Monday, April 30, 2012

Izannah Walker Patent Conversation Print Fabric

One of my goals this year is to learn about fabric design.  I really love old fabrics and some of the "conversation prints" in old fabrics are so fun.  I made my own "Izannah inspired" conversation print using the doll image from Izannah's patent and thought it would be fun to share here. 


You can choose to have the design printed on Kona or quilting fabric or a heavier weight.  I've printed on the quilting fabric before at Spoonflower.com and like it but it's a bit thick for tiny dolls. The voile would be perfect for very small creations.

So if you're a quilter, and you like Izannah Walker dolls, then I've made this fabric available for purchase on Spoonflower.  It's my first design but not my last.  It reads somewhere between a pink and a red, a little on the salmon side.  Kind of like a faded red.  A fun color to put in an antique inspired quilt.

Saturday, April 28, 2012

Izannah Walker's Patent In Written Form

Elizabeth Isenberg, who shared the wonderful daguerrotype of Mary Jenks holding an Izannah Walker dollcontacted the National Archives to get a copy of Izannah Walker's Doll Patent in written form. The form online is a typed/printed version. She kindly shared the PDF of the written patent with me so that I could share it with Izannahphiles who read this blog.  It is so fun to be able to see this patent and also to compare the handwriting in it to the letter that Izannah wrote to her sister Bridget.   Elizabeth said in her email to me, 
"I do love how Izannah used the word sometimes and I am surprised her patent atty allowed this to be submitted. Patents are suppose to be like a recipe in a cook book. It really reflects on her personality and it must have driven the patent staff crazy to smooth out the inconsistencies."

It looks as if Izannah paid $15, and an additional fee of $20 to file this patent.  $35 of 1873 dollars would be worth $673.08 in 2012.  That was a large amount of money for a middle-aged female to spend on getting a patent in her own name. Patents were often taken out in the name of a male family member, rather than in the name of the female.    

courtesy of National Archives

"Patent Case File 144373; Patented Case Files; Records of the Patent
and Trademark Office, Record Group 241; National Archives at College
Park, College Park, MD."

I converted some of the PDF images to photo files below.  But do view the PDF to see all of the pages of the patent.  Thank you so much to Elizabeth for sharing once again!







Thursday, April 26, 2012

Izannah Walker Dolls Auction Hammer Prices


In reporting on what Izannah dolls are ending at via auction, I have reported hammer prices, which do not reflect the final amount paid for the dolls.  In each situation, the auctioneer adds a premium, and in most states there is sales tax added as well.  The range of premiums added by auctioneers varies quite a bit - from as little as 10% to 18% (some higher).  If the auction is in a state which charges sales tax, of course that adds to the cost of the doll as well.  Also, another variation is that some auction companies vary the premium depending on if you pay by cash or if you pay with a credit card.  Having said that, I report the "hammer prices" which do not reflect premiums and taxes.  Of course, when people are bidding, they are adding that percentage on while they bid.  I may reconsider how I do this in future.  Until then, I try to clearly state what the number reported reflects.  Best to you, Dixie


The hammer price for this 
Izannah Walker doll was $4,800.00
plus 15% buyer's fee and taxes.








This Izannah "Type" doll
below ended at  $5,100.00
plus 15% buyer's fee and taxes.




Saturday, April 21, 2012


Saturday, April 21, 2012

Studying Izannah Walker Dolls


The purpose of this site is to document and share original Izannah Walker Dolls.  It began as a way to share photographs I was able to take at Lucy's Doll House.  Since that time, I have traveled to other places to photograph dolls and share them.  But auction photos are a very good source of information.  

A savvy Izannah student can learn quite a bit from really studying pictures of original Izannah Walker dolls.  Skinner's has some very good images of this Izannah Walker Doll at their site.   I posted about this doll previously before the auction.  Also, search past posts to find other auction images.    



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