Oh My Golly That's a Big Dolly - Collecting Large and Lifesize Dolls

We are continually educating ourselves on doll brands and what individuals are collecting in order to best serve the doll community as a supplier. Last year we started creating products for Patti Playpal and Companions which are a lifesize doll from 32-36" tall. We also produced a My Twinn wig line for 23" tall dolls and a 13-14" head and collectors of similar sized dolls started to come forward and talk with us.

Adult collectors seem to really love these lifesize children dolls and there are several to choose from if you start looking.

Patti Playpal - A lifesize 3 year old made from 1959-1980. She's made from a combo of vinyl and plastic with large sleep eyes and rosy cheeks. Also part of the Patti Playpal are Peter Playpal who is 5 year old size, and several other dolls who are 1 year old and 2 year old sized. They have rooted hair from saran fibers to brush and style and often have very vintage looks for their time period as collectors preserve the era they are from. They have a head size of 19-19.5". Pricing runs between $100-$1200 depending on condition.

Patti Playpal Dolls

Himstedt - Himstedt dolls were made by artist Annette Himstedt in Germany until about April of 2009 when the company closed their doors. Himstedt dolls have a very distinct look with an artistic look to faces and bodies. They have a very elongated style with long legs and big feet and very artistic faces. Wigs are mostly made from human hair or mohair to look as lifelike as possible. All different sizes of these dolls exist and so head sizes vary but most use 13-14", 14-15", 15-16", and 16-17" wig sizes. Dolls have been released in both vinyl versions and porcelain versions. Realistic glass eyes are often used and dolls can range around 30" tall. Himstedt dolls are available as repaints from several doll artists and also are sold largely on eBay. They range from $200-$5,000 depending on the edition.

Himstedt Doll

Masterpiece Dolls - Masterpiece released a lot of dolls, mostly porcelain dolls, but there are a series of vinyl dolls that are articulated young children standing even taller than Patti Playpal at up to 48" tall and are often used as clothing models for size 5 and 6 year olds. Masterpiece worked with artists such as Monika Levenig and Pamela Erff. Each brought their own style and sizing to the sculpts. Most wear children sized clothing rather than doll clothing and are largely sold on Ebay for between $400-$1000, though you may find some higher priced ones as well. We are not sure of the head sizes, but they do look like they wear larger wig sizes probably from 15" and above.

Masterpiece Doll by Monika Levenig 48"

Zwergnase Dolls - These dolls are still made today in Germany and distributed. They range in different sizes but largely the lifesize dolls are over $1,000 even in the second hand market. They have a very artistic look similar to Himstedt dolls with many versions having long bodies and very artistic facial shapes and features. Largely we see them in artistic clothing and mohair wigs, even human hair wigs. There is however some cross over as an 80cm tall Zwergnase doll can wear size 13-14" wig on their head. Many fall in other head sizes ranges which we are trying to get a listing of as they do several sizes of dolls.

Zwergnase Doll

Do you know of a lifesize doll brand to add to our list? Please let us know!