Composition Shirley Temple Doll

Before: She was dirty and hair was a mess After: Yes that is the original dress Before: Hair had hints of factory curls After: Hair all restored

You can click on an image to enlarge it.

Description of Repair

This is a composition Shirley Temple I worked on. She still had her original wig and an original dress, shoes and socks.  She was dirty and mussed but otherwise in good condition. 

The Transformation

I cleaned and pressed the dress and socks and added a vintage ribbon. The dress needed only minor repairs. I cleaned her face and body and did some minor paint touch-ups. I treated the eyes which in dolls from this era usually are cloudy or crystallized. I was able to improve the look of the eyes to get them closer to the original condition. I then cleaned the hair and restored the curls she had when she came from the factory.

The cleaned dress, reset hair and cleaning made this doll a thing of beauty.  The work did increase the value of this doll significantly.  Even with this work the the value is still much less than a similar doll with a tagged unwashed dress and the original factory set to the hair.   

The owner was thrilled and amazed by the transformation.

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