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Holly Hobbie Dolls - 40 Years of Lovely Dolls!The charming story of Holly Hobbie dolls begins in a way that not too many people realize. Did you know that Holly Hobbie is a real person? Born in 1944, her sunbonnet girl artwork first appeared in 1967, courtesy of American Greetings, as a line of greeting cards. These illustrations, hearkening back to the Sunbonnet Sue pattern used in quilting since the 1800's, quickly gained popularity. In 1974, Knickerbocker licensed the artwork of Hobbie to create a series of rag dolls that would become favorites for a generation of American children. Within a year of their release, Holly Hobbie rag dolls were outselling Raggedy Ann dolls by five times in number. Every child I knew in the 70's had at least one Holly Hobbie or one of her friends and just a glimpse of these dolls' pleasant faces is sure to bring back some sunny memories.
The new line of Holly Hobbie dolls is available from many fine retailers such as the ones shown here, but doll collectors with an appreciation of vintage items should find the following information really helpful as they search to collect original Holly Hobbie Dolls.
Characteristics of Vintage Holly Hobbie Dolls
Doll Sizes Throughout my doll collecting research, I have encountered a variety of dolls being listed in a somewhat confusing array of sizes. I recall that my own Holly Hobbies were 9" dolls, but that I had friends who had the larger 16" ones. A search on eBay revealed Holly Hobby and friends dolls in all of the following listed sizes, but I question how accurate some of these may be:
Holly Hobbie Memorabilia
Present Collectors' Value We're approaching the 40 year mark of the initial advent of this brand of dolls. As with many 20th century collectibles, you will be amazed to discover that people back in the 1970's had the foresight to purchase and store these dolls, unopened. Despite the normal desirability of mint condition collectibles, I have yet to see an original Holly Hobbie doll go for more than $25.00 USD at auction. The degree of rarity and the demand just isn't quite enough to make these high dollar items. But, this can also be taken as good news for anyone who wants to collect these dolls simply for the love of them.
In addition to this, Little House on the Prairie made its TV debut in the early 1970's. Based on the classic series of children's books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, the long-running television series chronicled the struggles and joys of the pioneer life and an American prairie family. The prairie dresses, pinafores and sunbonnets Ma and her daughters wore in the series further advanced the popularity of these old-world garments for modern wear. In my own family, my mother, who sewed beautifully, made patchwork skirts for herself, and calico bonnets and pinafores for my older sister and I. We loved these pretty clothes and identified closely with the Ingalls family's triumphs and love of life. Here's a funny bit of trivia. In several episodes of Little House on the Prairie, fans may have noticed a startling and amusing anachronism - Baby Carrie is playing with Holly Hobbie dolls! I know I laughed when I first glimpsed this, and it is further proof of the connectedness of this famous rag doll and beloved television classic. Holly Hobbie dolls fit nicely into this picture of back-to-the-landers and prairie stories. Here were dolls that encapsulated so many of the things that grown-ups were talking about, and so many of the ideals we children saw being celebrated on television. Though mass-produced, the cloth dolls provided a soft, comfy alternative to harder plastic toys and their homemade look certainly had an International appeal. When you hold a vintage Holly Hobby Doll, you are connecting with how little girls thought in the 1970's. My personal love of these dolls I'll be the first to confess that for me, the fabrics were the big draw. I absolutely adored printed calico - and I still do. I've become a quilter as an adult, and the first thing I'm still drawn to when I look at Holly Hobbies today is the fabric choice. Those pretty colors with their tiny figured florals really speak to me. When my little girlfriends and I would play with our 'hobby dolls', I always had to quell a certain enviousness of the playfellows who owned some of Holly's friends that I didn't own myself. In quilting, there are women who seem unable to stop themselves from buying yards and yards of fabrics that they know they'll never use. I believe it's that same feeling that drives them. They just love to own and touch all those pretty prints! I have worked, in the past, as a child educator, and am a strong proponent of keeping toys simple so that children can use their talented minds to develop all kinds of games. A few colored blocks, some marbles, or a simple cloth doll is all it takes to open up a wonderful world of vivid play. Thanks, Holly Hobbie, for all those happy times! |
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Greetings! This is me when I was 3. And, as you can see from the photo, I was
very happy when playing with my dolls. Decades later, dolls still hold a fond place in
my heart. I have created DollKind in order to publish my doll history research articles
and to share my enjoyment of dolls with you.
Cultural Significance of Holly Hobby Dolls
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