Darling Debbie by Deluxe Reading

Circa 1958 Darling Debbie by Deluxe Reading

This is one of the many pandemic doll purchases I made during the end of May and throughout the month of June, which led to a month-long doll-buying hiatus during July. I was still on said hiatus at the time this post was drafted. Darling Debbie, as seen in the seller's auction photo above, is a 30-inch circa 1958 stuffed vinyl doll by Deluxe Reading. She arrived with a couple of issues. Her leg vinyl has several wrinkles (that I planned to conceal with clothing) and her neck was unstable (which I was able to stabilize).

During the late 1950s through 1960s, this type of doll was sold under different names in grocery stores wearing elaborate cotillion gowns or dressed as brides or bridesmaids. As a child, I remember shopping with my parents and seeing the dolls that appeared larger than life on overhead shelves in grocery stores, but I never saw a black one.

As an adult collector, for years I searched for a black one and was outbid on eBay a time or two. Giving up the search, during the late 1990s/early 2000s I dyed a white one brown. I still longed for an authentically black Darling Debbie because the body of the dyed doll, which was once a rich brown color, eventually faded with time.

Darling Debbie's first close-up shot illustrates her faded lip color

"101" is this doll's only mark.

Darling Debbie's back is marked 101. I am not certain that this is actually Darling Debbie or one of the other 30-inch dolls Deluxe Reading manufactured, but in my collection, she is Darling Debbie. Incidentally, the doll I dyed brown is marked 251/A-E on her neck and 13 on her back.

Prior to taking the initial photos, I removed the white infant-size dress Darling Debbie arrived wearing and washed her face, body, and limbs with a mild soap. She remained nude for several weeks until I was able to find the perfect dress for her.

Darling Debbie models her new dress and poses with the dyed doll. In this photo, her unstable neck is apparent. In the next photo, the subtle differences of their head sculpts are noticeable.

The dyed doll on the left appears to have a more mature face. The new doll's upper lip is fuller, and she has a child-like face.

Because I wanted to dress my doll in period-appropriate attire, I searched eBay and found a lovely sapphire blue and black full-length halter dress with a sequined bodice. It was made for Deluxe Reading's 30-inch high-heel fashion dolls. According to the seller, the dress was part of a curated collection of 1950s fashion dolls, clothing, and accessories.

I added this handmade black slip.

The skirt of the dress is sheer, so I hand-sewed a half-slip using black taffeta. 

After searching through my large-fashion-doll shoe stash (shoes made for large fashion dolls), I found the perfect pair of black high-heel shoes that were purchased after the dyed doll arrived nearly 20 years ago.

Polyfill stuffing was added to the neck area to create stability.

Before replacing the disk that separates the head and neck, trimming the excess stuffing and reattaching the head to the neck, I also added stuffing to the head.

To add stability to the newest girl's neck, I removed the head and added polyfill stuffing to the neck area and also in the head opening. I packed it in as tightly as possible. While doing this, I wore a disposable face mask because I am not sure if inhaling fibers of the original gray-colored stuffing used in this doll is safe. 

The extra polyfill stabilized the neck, allows her to hold her head upright, and removed the wrinkle that was present around the lower neck area. 

Painted toenails

Next, I added lip, mouth, fingernail, and toenail color with acrylic paint which gives her a more mature look.

New earrings, choker, and painted lips

Another view of the earrings, choker, and added lip color

I visited a local beauty supply store and purchased faux sapphire and diamond drop earrings and another pair of oversized faux diamond hoop earrings. The oversized hoop earrings were fashioned into a choker and a bracelet.  

The faux diamond bracelet was made using an oversized hoop earring.

I removed the ear posts and clamps from the oversized hoops and squeezed these into the desired size and shape for the doll's neck and wrist.

The finished look

I think she looks stunning. The overall cost of the doll, dress, and accessories is far less than the final auction prices of other dolls I was outbid on in the past. As additional savings, the seller, who lives locally, delivered this doll to me along with two others that I purchased from her. This shaved over $30 off the final cost to ship all three dolls. As I have often said or written, it "saves" to exercise patience.

Darling Debbie's purchase motivated me to repaint the dyed doll's lips and fingernails and to restyle the hair of a 24-inch 1950s fashion doll by Adanta that had been wearing an oversized wig to hide her choppy and brittle hair. Because the 24-inch doll's hair is brittle, I smoothed it down with my hands and applied Eco Style Gel to give it a permanent hold and to prevent further shedding as seen in the final photo.

The dresses worn by the dyed doll and the 24-inch doll by Adanta Novelties Corporation are actually sequined majorette gauntlets that I purchased from a thrift store several years ago to repurpose as doll dresses.

All three dolls took the above final photograph before they were returned to their display area. I enjoyed several hours of doll therapy while refurbishing the older two and dressing and accessorizing my long-sought-after Darling Debbie. 

Related Links

Doll Reference, Deluxe Reading Betty the Beautiful Bride Doll

Vinyl Variations -- A Dyeing Need

Gauntlet Dresses

Dyed Doll as a Puzzle

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14R and Other 1950s-1960s High-Heel Fashion Dolls

Last year in anticipation of buying birthday and Christmas gifts for a friend, I asked her to share names or types of dolls that were on her want list.  "I'm always looking for 1950s high-heel fashion dolls" was her answer.  I was able to find five for her last year, which will be shared here, along with two that I own, and photos of others that she owns (shown on the left and later in the post).

All of the dolls I purchased for her and the two I own are categorized as 14R dolls.  The dolls I purchased and the two I own vary in size from 18 to 19-1/2 inches.  All have brown sleep eyes.

According to page 138 of Black Dolls an Identification and Value Guide 1820 to 1991 by Myla Perkins (Collector Books, 1993), "Dolls marked 14R are a collection of glamour dolls made between 1957 and 1965.  It is not a company mark.  Dolls marked 14R were sold undressed to a variety of companies who then dressed and marketed them.  Companies known to have used the 14R doll were Bell, Deluxe Reading, Eegee, Natural, Rita Lee, Royal, and Sayco.  In some cases, other marks were added to the 14R.  An example of this is [a] doll marked 14R-1.  Some dolls with this mark are known to have been made by Eegee."  A very informative website devoted to 14R dolls also attributes 14R dolls to Roberta Dolls.  See link at end of this post.  As a result of my purchases, I can also attribute 14R-type dolls to Eugene Dolls.

All except one of the dolls I purchased needed a little help to make them presentable as gifts for my friend.  I will share before and after photos of these with details of what I changed or added.

The doll in the ill-fitting blue ball gown and light blue faded shoes, above left, was redressed in a pink ballerina outfit that includes white tights, white slippers with white ribbon ties, pearl earrings and necklace (above right).  The doll's hair was quite dry upon arrival.  I washed, conditioned, reset and styled it as illustrated in the photo on the right before sending her to my friend. The complete ballerina fashion and jewelry were found on eBay from a seller who continues to sell this in pink and a variety of other colors.  (The before photo above was taken by the eBay seller.)



The above photos on the far left and in the center are before photos of Eugene's 18-inch My Little Lady from the 1960s.  The doll arrived in her original box, which is an added plus.  Her hair, however, was jacked up, very fuzzy and flyaway.  I washed, reset, and styled it, as illustrated in the photo on the far right, which was taken by my friend because I failed to take an after photo before sending the doll to her.   Before sending, I also had to repaint the doll's black shoes as some of the original black paint had begun to chip away with the slightest touch.  Now she is near mint with original box.  (The before photo above was taken by the eBay seller.)



This doll has the loveliest face of all the ones I purchased.  Unlike the others, she has a stuffed vinyl body.  She arrived wearing a lovely pink satin dress, white satin panties and slip, and bare feet.  (Her before photo was also taken by the eBay seller).  I redressed her in a two-piece aqua sweater fashion (above right), added the pearl necklace, and purchased shoes (poorly) handmade for 14R and Miss Revlon dolls.  To make them fit her ankles, I had to cut and resew the elastic straps on the shoes.  Mounds of glue residue also had to be removed. Needless to say, I did not provide this eBay seller any feedback.

The aqua two-piece wearing doll's hair was pretty unruly upon arrival.  After shampooing, I applied gel and placed several metal hair clips on both sides and in back to create waves.  One side is wavier than the other.  (I tried.)  I gave her a new pair of vintage doll earrings, too.

Except for wiping off their vinyl, I did not have to redress or restyle the hair of the next two dolls.




The doll in the lime green hand-crocheted dress is 19-1/2-inches tall.  She has frosted brown hair with brown sleep eyes.  The doll on the right, also 19-1/2 inches, is My Dream Bride by Eugene.  She wears her original bridal gown, veil, and white high-heel shoes.  Much to my surprise, after their arrival, I discovered that the above two dolls are featured in Black Dolls an Identification and Value Guide, books 1 and 2, respectively. Based on the return shipping label, I concluded that the eBay seller was Perkins' granddaughter.  I shared their provenance with my friend.

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My Little Lady (the center doll in the photo on the left, previously described) was photographed by my friend with two 25-inch 1950s high-heel fashion dolls.  Two other 25- and 23-inch 1950s high-heel fashion dolls from her collection are shown in the above photo on the right.  She has stylishly redressed each of the taller dolls.

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The two 1950s high-heel fashion dolls above have been part of my personal collection for several years.  Both wear their original fashions.  The bride is marked 14R while the one on the right is marked with a P.   Both wear the typical pearl drop earrings.  A full view of each is next.




I have also created a Pinterest board where photos all dolls featured here, as well as others, have been pinned.

A prior post on two additional 1950s high-heel fashion dolls can be read here.  These are not 14R dolls but they do fall into the 1950s high-heel fashion doll category.

This website is devoted to 14R dolls and includes a wealth of information about the dolls and the companies that used 14R- marked dolls.

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Check out my eBay listings here.