Have a Safe Halloween!!

 

 

Enjoy your Halloween!!

Be safe, ggsdolls

Interview with KewtKitsch!!

  Interview with a Collector - ggsdolls blog Series

Here's my monthly series on my blog where I share some of the most amazing collectors, sellers, and creatives, that have become friends of mine and what they collect and why?

    For the month of October, my blog interview is with the gorgeous, funny, and creative human behind the best and only website for The Rushton Toy Company Rubber Faced plushies of Mary Rushton's creations, KewtKitsch on Instagram. 

When I asked KK where she was from she said this, "Living that old people, sweaty all year, Florida life!" KK works at a bakery, and she gets paid to eat sweets and punch cakes with her fist before they throw them away. She asked me if I've ever punched a cake, and said that I should try it sometime! LOL I asked her what her age was...

KK: "I'm in my flirty 30's! The first time I ever saw a Rushton toy was probably a decade ago. While browsing for my kawaii, pastel 90’s toys on eBay, I saw this really ugly, bizarre, weird looking fish. I totally didn’t want it. Little did I know what my future would hold. I think I remember watching it and it sold for around $300. That was too much for me to be spending on toys. BUT OH BOY. IF ONLY MY YOUNGER SELF KNEW WHAT I WAS GOING TO START SPENDING ON TOYS IN MY FUTURE. 

I never imagined I would now want these ugly, weird toys in my life. Staring at me at all hours of the day while I lay in bed and sleep. And that I would sell my soul and sacrifice food and water to have them. Just kidding, It’s not that extreme. I just gave up buying my 90’s toys and switched over to 50’s toys instead. Speaking of my other collections, yes, I still very much love my Japanese kawaii toys, girly 90’s toys. I also collect 50’s nursery planters, bathroom mermaid plaques, and of course, the rubber face plush toys. Can I throw in antique furniture, things with cats on them, and my cats whiskers that fall out?"

Gigi: How do you describe your relationship with your collection? What attracts you to it?

KK: "My toys and I have a pretty good relationship. As long as they do their part of the house work, which is looking cute 24/7, I don’t kick them out of the house. But no really. I actually answered the next question first, before starting this one. So I feel like the magical part of my toys is mostly described below on Mary Rushton’s amazing, realistic work. That’s the magical part of it to me. 

 

Also, I guess another thing that makes them magical is that these toys survived this long and that I have the honor to own them. When they are as original as possible (a little dirty or not) as when they first were made, is so great to me. And that, makes it special. 

 

My relationship with them has grown over the past few years. I use them in my art and use their realistic expressions to express my own struggles or joy in life. It’s like they are all a part of me. When I am sad, I am “Scrappy” bear. When I am happy, I am “Happy” bear or “Laughing Pup”. Rather than taking photos of myself, I’ll use my little, spawn, toy children to do the work for me in my art. All of us can relate to these toys and become them. But overall, I am their mother and they are all just my babies. They do as I say or else they get the hose again."

Gigi: What is it about the vintage Rushton's that distinguishes it from other Toy Companies?

KK: "I guess, to me, it’s really more about Mary Rushton’s work and talent that separates her toys from the rest of the other rubber face brand toys. Mary didn’t just make toys, she was a skilled artist. She made the faces (at times) so realistic, so human like, that they really stand out to people. People who have never seen these kind of toys before, the first time they see one, it can freak them out. It’s creepy to them. And I think a lot of that has to do with because the facial expressions are so human like, it’s just weird. 

 

You aren’t used to seeing that on an animal toy. Lots of people have smiling teddy bears and no one cares or even thinks about it. The My-Toy company and Knickerbocker made toys showing human emotions (or just anthropomorphic) but they are more cartoon-y looking. Mary’s work isn’t like a cartoon. It’s like a real, alien kind-of-creature from another world. Her work was the best when it came to her talents and especially the quality of the bodies (pre 70’s production). She was toy queen of her time and I (and others) still worship her work."

Gigi: Tell me a bit about your collection, how it started, what your first items were and how it has grown?

KK:  "I always loved toys in some way. I never grew out of them. Just what I collected would change over the years. At first, when I became a teenager and knew what I wanted to collect, it was creepy dolls, BJDs, dark, goth looking stuff. Then I wanted everything pink and Hello Kitty. THEN, Japanese modern kawaii toys + 90’s American, pastel toys. I started buying simple “soft plush” (not rubber face) vintage toys and 50’s nursery planters. THEN! That’s when I started my rubber face toy adventure and beyond! 

 

I’m fixated on having only vintage or (reproduction) vintage looking items right now. (I still make some exceptions for my kawaii stuff). But my theme and what I always look for is = pink, cats, desserts, cute, baroque, vintage, and if I can make room for it in my house. I now have to be very selective or else my room will start looking wacky."

Gigi: What has been the reaction of your family, friends and coworkers on your passion for your hobby?

KK:  "One time my sister saw my Rushton cow and said “Whoa….”  The guy I live with loves all the 50’s stuff I have. It’s probably his favorite. So, I know if I buy 50’s kitsch, he won’t be mad I spent more money on 50’s stuff, haha. 

Not many people in real life (who actually see me) know about my collections. Everyone will think it’s weird, I already know this. I try to stick to my online world when it comes to sharing my collection because I know no one in real life will really understand anyway. It’s cool. At times, I really so think I prefer to keep it a secret from anyone who isn’t connected to me online. If people want to know, I will share. Otherwise, I’m perfectly happy locking myself away in my room with everything I’m in love with."

Gigi: Tell me about your favorite item and why it is so special?

KK:  "Girl, you know I have too many. But if we have to pick, it’s my “Diaper Baby” bunny who I just call “Baby”. Because she was my first and started it all. I would be halfway in my closet putting on my “cake-punching” work clothes and shoving my fat, chocolate loving, butt in my work pants and just stare at her face while doing it. I’m sure she didn’t love that. But I would constantly think, “Her cheekies are so cute and dumb, wow, she is so cute!”  Then I bought 346843 more rubber face toys after her. But she’s still and will always be my babyyyyyy!"

 

Gigi: If any item could just land in your lap for free, what would it be and why? 

 

KK:  "For many reasons, I'll keep my wishlist a secret. I will fight amongst the many, anonymously, for what I want (So if I don’t get it, y’all don’t know I’m over here crying) But my cat lands in my lap free of charge daily. So at least I have that to enjoy."

 

Gigi: Have you seen an increase in popularity or demand for what you collect? If so, why do you think that is so?

KK:  "It’s like Voldemort, the one name we do not speak of who has brought the kitsch community more attention. If you know, you know. When you love someone influential, sometimes you want to become them and have what they have. I think that’s part of it. But it can bring in the wrong kinds of people which is something we’ve had to deal with.

 

Otherwise, some of the people who are into kitsch/rubber face toys, show it off very well with their art, aesthetic, ideas, photography, etc. And I think because of this, it brings more attention to that person and what they are showcasing because it’s all so well done. It introduces people to something they didn’t know about before. So if it’s a collection of rubber face toys in a nicely done setting of their aesthetic and style, people like that and want to replicate that in some way in their home or in their art. And it just spreads from there. 

 

I think that applies to anything, not just toys. So now we see other parts of communities (some that weren’t kitsch at all) making kitsch toy art and selling it on clothes, key chains, etc, to match their style and aiming it to their already large audience. Which then, introduces more people to these toys. It’s a chain reaction. It will probably die down eventually. That’s just my guess. Every trend dies. Rubber face toys have been around for decades and no one payed much attention to them until now. Peoples interest change. Us, more dedicated toy fans, hope that our toys will be forgotten again and we can continue to collect without having to fight with everyone and spend multiple paychecks for one toy."

 

(Above, KewtKitsch also sculpts her own adorable Rushton Style Animal wall art! 

You can find them and purchase here, KewtKitsch shop on Etsy!) 

Gigi: Is there anything else you might like to add?

KK:   "Watch out for all the fake bidders on eBay! And Rushtons that sell on eBay getting relisted on Etsy by zero feedback sellers. I see it all the time. I always report them. Rushtons are that popular right now that there are many scammers. Sometimes, if it seems too good to be true, it is.  Be careful of who you make friends with in this community as well. It’s sad to say, I don’t even want too. But some people out here are selfish and will literally steal a toy from underneath you if they can. You don’t always need to clean your toys! Sometimes we have somewhat dirty toy children and that’s okay! Not all toys will be beautiful and shiny like they used to be. Some people like that look. If you are not experienced, you can destroy the toy and an important part of history. 

But most importantly, do not forget the woman who created our toys!

! Mary Rushton !

For she, is too often lost, forgotten, and over shadowed by others in this rubber face toy world."

Well said KK! Thank you to the wonderful KewtKitsch for sharing her story and collection with us! If you want to learn more about Mary Rushton and her creations be sure to visit The Rushton Toys on wordpress. A special thanks to KewtKitsch for creating this website and providing us a place to go for the history and information of our Rushton toys!! 

See you next month when we talk with a fellow toy artist and collector from Canada!! Until next time for another installment of ggsdolls Interview with a Collector!

Thank you for reading! ~ ggsdolls

To Restore or Not To Restore, That is the Question?

 

Restoring vintage items can be a labor of love, but sometimes from my recent experiences, not all things need or must be restored. I was inspired to write this post to share this one bad experience, that I have had. Special thanks to KewtKitsch and OldSoulVintage for encouraging me too. They both had discussed with me about their thoughts on restorations. So my hope is that this post will give you some 'food for thought' when deciding whether or not you need to restore something that is vintage... 

Now, if you are thinking about restoring anything, first decide whether this is for yourself? 2nd is it to be resold or 3rd is it for a customer? Because if you are restoring something for yourself, than if there is a mistake, it is okay and it is not something that will hurt another person. If you are restoring something to be resold, please make sure you are honest and share that in the description of your item, because it is only fair to the buyer that will be purchasing the item. Now if it is the latter, than extreme precaution should be taken to make the customer understand fully what you will be doing and how you will go about doing this to restore their vintage item. 

The photo above, is an adorable sleepy kitty I was given the opportunity to trade for from a dear friend, post here. She was honest with me in that the kitty had issues like plastic degradation on the face, and the body needed cleaning and some patches were needing to be resewn along with some fur loss. So since she was to be mine, I took into consideration, what I was up against and how I was going to get her looking decent again. I tried washing her first. I removed the sponge stuffing inside her and after being washed, much of her original fur came off from age. Ugh. Even with handwashing, the fur can be so delicate, it still slowly came off. So, I tried making her a new body, post here. 

Which was nice, but she was not how I expected her to be in pink. So I decided after a month to put her original body back on her. It was difficult because her original fur was still coming off, and even as I began to sew the parts back together. Why was it still falling apart? Well sadly, the orange sponge that these types of plushies have are basically were like the glue that held most of the fur in place. I also had a hard time putting her ears back into the proper placement and I had her arms sewn too low on the body. I think I had resewn her like 3 time by now! Darn it! In the end, this is the way she turned out in photo above. I felt gutted, angry at myself for even trying and even more upset for making it worse in my eyes. Sleepy kitty's face was repainted and fine, but her body was as if she had been starved to death, even with added cotton stuffing. UGH!!!

A LESSON LEARNED. Period. Sometimes not all restoration are good ones no matter how hard you may try to fix the issues. Take it from me, sometimes it is okay for a plush to look vintage, because it is.

I also wanted to add, that I've been saddened by some 'so-called' restorations that are happening in numbers by collectors as of late, mostly because they want to think of themselves as being experts or perhaps just to make a video. It takes research, experience, and understanding of what you are dealing with to even begin to try to restore something. Even a seasoned collector like myself, is still learning. 

Friends, when making a video and calling it a restoration when it really isn't one can be damaging to those who may watch it and get the wrong impression. Especially if you are going to share with others that you are using any kind of soap. People will get the sense that any kind of soap is okay to use, not realizing that soaps with perfumes may damage the plush or vintage rubber further. Also, sometimes not all original stuffing is bad. Some are still perfectly good, and tossing them out isn't restoring, but rather being wasteful. These are things that I've learned the past few years myself. Another example is that there are seams on the back side of a plush, and you could use a seam ripper to open the fur up without having to use a scissors to cut a new hole. These are just some things to note.

Well, thank you for reading. I hope that sharing my learning experience with even a rare plush may teach you something. I'd rather you know about it now, than to ruin your vintage plush in the future...

Thank you for listening! ~ ggsdolls

Rare Rushton Finds!!

 The past month have been some of the most amazing finds since I've been collecting Rubber Face vintage plushies. I'm somewhat shocked honestly! But, definitely feeling blessed.

In my last two posts, I shared with you the adorable Clown by Rushton, which by the way thanks to Savannah of Oldsoulsvintage, I now know his name! It's "Bobo" the clown. So cute and fitting too! The Rushton poodle, Fifi, a sleepy bunny named, "Tipsy" who is now living in Germany with the sweet Sui there. Now, these I've added to my list of Rushton finds...

This amazing "Mother Goose" Rushton came to me nice and minty, with bright lime green fur. She still has her original tag, purse and bonnet. I was definitely surprised at how pristine she was. Though, I must admit, she was not an ISO. Now, she's grown on me. Haha! I also won this sweet Scarecrow Sam via auction and he was actually owned by the seller's grandmother and decided to sell him because they were moving. So, I was very pleased to adopt him and give him a home. I actually didn't do much of any restoring on either of them, because well they didn't really need it.

With the exception of Sam, just needing a few seam fixes and his hat to be sewn in place. His bowtie is not original, but it came with him so I will keep it on him. He's perfect for Halloween as well. Now, if I could just find my vintage ceramic pumpkin Jack. Ugh memory loss... LOL Just as with Mother goose, I didn't realize I would want Scarecrow Sam...

Above, I also was able to find both of these adorable large baby rattle dolls. I didn't realize how big they were until I got them in the mail!! Just adorable and precious. I will keep the pink and the blue one has already sold in my Etsy shop. Than, I also found these Disney Kokeshi dolls via Japan. They were in a lot which included Cinderalla with four mice, Lady and the Tramp, Dumbo with two crows, Three little pigs, and even what I thought was the mice from the 'Rescuers', but instead they were 'Bongo and Lulubelle'. I listed most of them earlier this past week and most were sold with the exception of Lady.

I found these adorable pastel colored mini pumpkin Halloween buckets. Just too cute! They were also in black and white. But I opted for these instead, and great for display too! I received my large plush diaper baby made by icecreambear10 shop from Mexico. Too cute and she giggles too! Just look at how big she is compared to my Rushton diaper baby!! Haha!

Another adorable child's pink suitcase with a Scottish Terrier pup on the front. I have a black one with a pink poodle as well and thought both are just kitschy cute to me. Lots of wear, but I just had to have it. If you noticed, the lining inside is similar to Margaret Holbrook painted cases. Silver painted stars inside. Perhaps these were common in child suitcases of the 1950s? It's very worn, but I love the coloring best!

Finally, I had some postcards made of my photos Diaper Baby taking a nap, and the adorable ceramic Bunny couple. I hope to make more. These are blank on the other side for you to send to family or friends! Already available in my Etsy shop! Well, that's all for now. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Happy treasure hunting!

Thank you for looking! ~ ggsdolls

Yay It's October!

 One of my favorite months of the year!! My goodness how time flies. Here's my vintage finds recently...

Found these adorable terrarium coin banks via Yahoo Japan, and won them. Made by Mitsui Bank from the late 60s I believe. They are plastic roses inside a clear dome and the bottle have an opening you twist to get the coins out. I've already listed the pink one and will keep the red rose bank.

Also from Japan this lovely vintage blue glass bear shaker! I've always wanted a glass bear and the cobalt blue on this one is stunning! I've had the idea of making some post cards to sell in my shop, and so these adorable couple bunny post cards are available, blank on the other side, they make great cards to send to family or give to your favorite Kitsch collector. I also made one with my Rushton Diaper baby bun! I hope to do more soon!! Listed in my Etsy shop!

This lovely Candy Candy necklace with pendant, I found via Japan. I've always loved anything from the Candy candy anime, but they can go for a lot these days. So it was nice to find this one at a cheap price. Part of my collection now. Next, this lovely ceramic girl sitting on a metal chair. Adorable Ado Mizumori style girl with synthetic hair. Just too cute and she has been added to my Etsy shop just in time for Christmas!!

@ggsdolls_vtg Watch me add fur to this cutie… #ggsdolls_vtg #ggsdolls #vintage #kitsch #upcycle #refurred #vintagefurry #pup ♬ Until I Found You - Stephen Sanchez

I found this lovely ceramic pup via Ebay and she was missing her fur. So I made a TikTok video on it. She turned out lovely and I am definitely tempted to keep her. But, she needs to be loved!! Already listed in my Etsy shop too! It was fun to come up with a different look for her. Now, she is pink and purple. I was going for a Melanie Martinez vibe for her!! LOL I also found out about these lovely vintage nursery character puzzles. I fell in love with them and decided, to get one or two!! LOL My fave of course Cinderella!

I able to restore this adorable 'Bobo' Valentines clown by Rushton. He just needed his shoes restored and I repainted the green stripe to be pink on his forehead. Now, he's ready for Valentine's next year. Love him and he goes well with my other clowns too! I also restored this adorable Rushton 'Fifi' poodle. She came to me missing her crown and pillow. So far, I was able to remake her crown, but it will take time for me to find her pillow bag she sits on top of. For now, I just added bows to her ears and she will stay with me for a bit.

This next item, I found while searching for some milk glass jars. It's an adorable Oneida plastic canister or bowl with lid for babies, and came with a silver spoon. A gift set. I love the artwork on it so very MCM and mod too! I decided to resell it and it sold fast in my Etsy shop too! I hope to try and find more again soon! A Masako W. make up or trinket box case from Japan, and in gorgeous condition for its age. I have already listed it in my shop! I also bidded and won this adorable mint in package puppy rattle in a lot. I will keep the puppy rattle and sell the fish and safety pin with other extra rattles I got.

This gorgeous huge doll is made by Sekiguchi Japan and she is called, "Silky". I won her via Yahoo Japan! I was so happy too. She is rare to find in a curly haired version. She has lovely eyes and her body is very similar to Printemps or Alice Tear dolls from the same company. But, she is a lot larger at 21 inches tall. Love her Victorian style look too! Next, below this precious and tiniest of all my Rushton plushies, baby that I adopted from the wonderful Sui. She offered her to me and at first, I was going to pass her up, but I am so glad I didn't. She is so cute and tiny at about 7 inches tall. I had to delicately wash her. Sadly, her stuffing was the orange sponge from the 50s. Ugh. Now, she has vintage cotton batting and needed a bit of seam repairs. I just love her to bits!!

Last find for now, this adorable Sheep lamb by Rushton sleeping. She is in perfect condition and still has her original tag and satin bow. I have already listed her in my Etsy shop. She is definitely from the 70s, as her fur is that cheaper type used around that time frame. Still gorgeous she makes a sweet gift for any lamb lover out there!!

Have a great start to your October!! Happy Findings!

Thank you for dropping in! ~ ggsdolls