Place

Toronto, Ontario

Date

1940s

Materials & techniques

Cotton, plastic, elastic; Machine and handmade lace ribbon

Credit

Beverley Baird Lane

I won these dolls at St. Margaret's Church bazaar in the 1940s. They were made by a woman at the Church which was on Avenue Road just north of Eglinton at the time. I was on my own and fell in love with the dolls. I had to guess how many beans were in a jar. A chance to guess probably cost a nickle or a dime. I still remember the numbers! I guessed 1269 and there were 1285 so I was the closest. I couldn't believe it when, on arriving home, I received a phone call.

They have been cherished ever since then. The dresses were recently washed and starched. The skirts are double, made of find cotton lawn. The limbs of the dolls are joined with elastics. Other features are the lace brims of the bonnets, and the tiny buttons and button holes.

My granddaughters, Florence and Sophia, are the third owners.