Gail Wilson Designs

A Brief History

Joel Ellis dolls and other similar wooden dolls, collectively called Springfield Woodens, began in Springfield, Vermont, in a factory founded by Joel Ellis in 1858. Ellis made other items, most notably doll carriages, toy carts, some doll furniture and oddly, violin cases. The dolls known as Joel Ellis dolls were only made for one year, 1878, but soon after, a group of men formed a cooperative and made many other variations of the now famous jointed wooden doll using many patents, but primarily all made by Mason and Taylor. With the second group of dolls, the main differences were new composition (various styles) head and more complicated joints. The entire body of dolls is so confusing - it is hard to tell who was responsible for which dolls, that most doll collectors group them all together and call them simply the Springfield Woodens. Only Ellis dolls had the distinctive rock maple wooden head which was then steamed and pressed into molds. This process thus compressed the already hard wood even more and inadvertantly made the heads unable to hold their painted surfaces for more than one season as wood expands and contracts with humidity, thus popping the paint off with the movement. There are virtually no Ellis dolls around today with very good original paint, and even those held by museums have some very old, but nonetheless repaired, paint. The dolls were made with incredible joints and mostly had pewter hands and feet, probably because these could be cast into the shapes, whereas they would be impossible to mass produce by carving. Ellis intended the dolls to be sold undressed so that children could marvel at the joints, but of course children are children and wanted clothing, so Ellis was compelled to hire local women to sew the outfits.

I was born and raised in Springfield, Vermont, so it is very appropriate for me to be making these dolls. Since I do not have a factory at my disposal, I have designed a doll that one would know right away is a "Joel Ellis" doll, but one that is able to be produced using simpler methods. My doll has a wooden body with lathe turned arms and legs which are indeed jointed, hands and feet are cast in pewter like the originals and the head, though in the style of an Ellis doll, is my own sculpting and made of sturdy papier mache. The first of my dolls of this type was made in October, 2005. Like Ellis, I find it hard to dress the dolls after all the work on the wood parts, so I include a dress form with my dolls to display her outfit nearby. Each doll is signed and dated. This past year I added a "Mason & Taylor" version, which is to say it has a head more in the general style of M&T dolls with more complicated hair styles and it has the distinctive blue shoes. I plan to add more clothing patterns and a smaller 9" size.

NEW FALL 08 ~ 9" Joel Ellis and Mason & Taylors This new smaller size will be compatible with the Early American Series Scale.



DISPLAYING YOUR DOLLS ~ The way your dolls are displayed is just as important as any of the other factors about the doll (such as colors and fabrics used). Of course the most charming way to display vintage look dolls is in antique doll furniture, but this is not always possible. Below you will find some chairs to help address the difficulty in finding just the right props. Chairs can be used for more than one doll - for instance, one doll may be sitting in the chair, while another one may be standing just next to the back of the chair and another one or two may be sitting on the floor using the chair to lean on. In other words, a single chair can be then the focal point of a whole grouping. You should not have all your dolls sitting in chairs - it would look like a movie theater, and many dolls do not sit well at all (for example, I do not like to seat my Historical Folk Dolls #1,2 or 7 (see above). I will also be adding some new items in early 2007 to help in displaying your dolls. For instance, my new wooden Joel Ellis doll due to the elaborate work in her wooden joints, likes to be seen undressed, and yet she has wonderful clothing and even a special bonnet, so for this doll, I recommend sitting the doll down, say on a shelf, and next to her, displaying her clothing on my new larger doll dress form (dolls 12" - 15") and her bonnet on the hatstand which will also be available. I will also be adding in some new wooden display stands for your standing dolls who need support. For small dolls, look at chairs in the Early American and Hitty Series.

	DOLL CHAIRS WITH VINTAGE FINISHES Since a lot of my dolls are now in a larger size (for almost 20 years I worked on dolls 8" tall or less), I found that I wanted a size antique chair that is not only hard to find, but very expensive, due to their rarity. So I set about reproducing two in my own small collection. The chair on the left is painted a charming red that has been realistically distressed to look old and the chair on the right, which has a woven split seat, is aged wood. Both are 14" tall and are for dolls in the 14" to 20" range. Click on the illustrations for photos. Red Chair $95.00 Add to Cart 14" Ladderback with Arms $125.00 Add to Cart

	WONDERFULLY TURNED LADDERBACK ARM CHAIR ~ THE MUSTARD CHAIR This chair is best for dolls in the 10" - 12" range. It is a more refined look than any of my other chairs and is painted a pleasing mustard color with real ash splint seats. Chair is about 11" tall. $110 Add to Cart

	BASIC LADDERBACK BENCH AND CHAIR I made these a long time back for displaying dolls but they are still good basic display pieces for 9" - 12" dolls and they are available in kit form too. Easy to assemble and paint (chair old red and bench green) with all materials and wood parts provided. Seat weaving is traditional rush-style and instructions are included. These look like the same chairs as appear in the Early American Series, but they are larger. Bench will hold two dolls. Chair Kit $38.00 Add to Cart Finished $54.00 Add to Cart Bench Kit $38.00 Add to Cart Finished $58.00 Add to Cart

No illustrations available now.	WOODEN BENCH - NOT SHOWN (YET) This painted wooden bench (syled like the EA settle bench) is just right for displaying a pair of dolls (intentionally matched or not) in the 12-14" size range. It is painted a pleasant sage green to go with whomever graces its wide seat and would look especially good with a doll sized quilt draped over its high back. About 11" wide x 10" tall and 4" deep. $48 Add to Cart PAINTED POUTING CHAIR (for 14" scale dolls). Antiqued green $42 Add to Cart

	A DOLL FOR DISNEY In early 2001, I was asked to do a doll for the Disney movie, "Tuck Everlasting." The doll originally was to have an important role and my mission was to make three of the same doll - the first was to be worn, but as if in the present time of the movie (1820); the second was to be very tattered and look as if she were 100 years old and the last was to be used in a house fire into which Sissy Spacek, playing the mother, runs to rescue the doll because it is so dear to her. When the movie finally came out in fall of 2002, the doll is only a prop on a shelf, but for me it did not really matter because I considered the challenge so great that when I finished with more success than I felt possible, that became my real reward. The real task for me was not just making a rag doll of the times with the qualifications handed to me (only brown for colors and real hair), but to create one which clearly had the stamp of endearing on her and to take my aging techniques into new territory such that it would be hard to really tell that the doll was not old. Her reception at shows proved I was right, for everyone was drawn to her even when they knew nothing of her connection to a movie. Favorite details are her wispy hair, sweet countenance and her worn shoes. Kit (This is an advanced level kit - you should have done my kits successfully before) $58.00 Add to Cart Finished $695 Add to Cart Chair sold separately below.

	COLUMBIAN DOLL SERIES FOR THE WENHAM MUSEUM The Wenham Museum has asked me to do a small kit series of the Miss Columbia doll who lives in their wonderful collection of historical dolls. This doll, originally a painted cloth 19" tall doll, is probably the most famous of the many dolls made by the Adams sisters in the late 1800's, having traveled led the world raising money for children's charities in 1900. The doll on her tour raised a remarkable amount of money for the times and everywhere she went, accompanied by her trunk, diary, coat and bonnet, she was given gifts by the children she visited. Many of the gifts still live in the museum with the doll and her things and part of the proceeds of this series will go back to the museum for the support of its collection. The doll I have done is a more manageable 14" size, and comes either finished or as a kit. FINISHED DOLLS AND ACCESSORIES: Finished 14" Columbian Girl Doll with Bonnet $425.00 Add to Cart Finished 14" Columbian Boy Doll $395.00 Add to Cart Finished 14" Columbian Black Girl with Bonnet $425.00 Add to Cart Finished 11" Columbian Girl Doll with Bonnet $275.00 Add to Cart Finished 11" Columbian Boy Doll $250.00 Add to Cart Finished 11" Columbian Black Girl with Bonnet $275.00 Add to Cart Finished 14" Columbian Coat and Bonnet $58.00 Add to Cart Finished Trunk and Diary (good for 11" or 14") $195.00 Add to Cart KITS IN THIS SERIES: Kit for the 14” Doll (Girl) - New, now comes with patterns for the second outfit shown above. $54.00 Add to Cart Kit for the Coat/Bonnet $28.00 Add to Cart Kit for the Trunk and Diary $48.00 Add to Cart 11 INCH COLUMBIAN DOLL SET PATTERN ~ Extensive pattern for the sweet 11" size. Patterns and instructions for a girl with bonnet, boy, black versions, other clothes including small sized coat and bonnet. $18.00 Add to Cart CLICK HERE TO SEE PHOTO OF AN EXAMPLE FROM THIS PATTERN
	KATE GREENAWAY BOY AND GIRL ~ This will make a pair of 10" painted cloth child dolls in a newly worked pattern of a style I am coming to think of as one of the best for a fairly uncomplicated cloth doll with a fully three-dimensional look. Faces are to be outlined with iron-on transfers and hair is a series of templates and brush technique. Painting is a combination of acrylics and fast drying oils. The charm of this pair of dolls comes from their small size, the added interest of a boy and girl pair and of course the wonderful clothing taken entirely from Kate Greenaway illustrations of the late 1800's. This is a doll you will want to make over and over. Pattern $18 Add to Cart Additional Iron-On Faces (10) $1 Add to Cart Finished Set of Kate Greenaways on double stand $595 Add to Cart A limited number of kitted parts (this includes everything you need like my other kits) are available to go with the Pattern above. The fabrics are a blue combination pictured below. $38 Add to Cart New blues combination. From left: dress, covered bonnet, boy's flannel and tiny stripe is for boy's collar. Vintage blue ribbon for bonnet and extra tiny buttons come in kit.