The Doll Podcast

Stuart Holbrook president of Theriault’s auction house joins host Louisa Maxwell in Vienna, Austria, to discuss his travels in 2022 searching for unique and precious dolls. In Australia Stuart met collectors of antique dolls, that originally voyaged there in the 19th century, and jet setting Barbie rarities. Determined Australian collectors have traveled far and wide to get their dolls and each do...

Australian artist, Jozef Szekeres joins host Louisa Maxwell on The Doll Podcast. As a senior animator at Walt Disney, Jozef Szekeres brought a cast of imaginary characters to life. He is also the author of best selling comic books and graphic novels.  Inspired by his love of  sculpture and fashion and he created his fashion doll line GlamourOZ Dolls and received the accolade of  A merican DOLLS Aw...

Jonathan Greene, who lectures on Käthe Kruse dolls, and hosts the K ä the Kruse Gathering joins host Louisa Maxwell. Käthe Kruse has been a  name synonymous with dolls for over 100 years. Her journey as a doll artist started in 1905 when her daughter wished for a cuddly doll, so Käthe created a doll with the weight and softness of a baby.  Jonathan Greene tells us the story of this talented artist...

Michael Canadas of the Grovian Doll Museum joins host Louisa Maxwell to discuss the origins of World Doll Day and how it has grown into a worldwide celebration of dolls This year we will celebrate World Doll Day on June 11, 2022. World Doll Day is not just for doll enthusiasts but a day for everyone to give or share the special joy a doll can bring. World Doll Day was established in 1986 by Mildre...

Samy Odin lecturer and author of numerous books on dolls and director of the Musée de la Poupée Paris for 25 years, joins host Louisa Maxwell to share the story of  the magazine La Poupée Modèle. The French children’s magazine La Poupée Modèle was launched in 1863 by Parisienne business woman Madame Lavallee-Peronne.  Published monthly each issue included: stories, plays, recipes, puzzles and supp...

Adam and podcast host Louisa Maxwell share their mutual admiration for the band and the dolls that any celebrity doll collector will really, really want. Adam Weatherly  has the world’s largest collections of Spice Girl dolls. It’s over 25 years since the band successfully stormed the charts and Adam is hoping to get the dolls, who are the best selling celebrity dolls in history,  into the Toy Hal...

A little doll called   Bleuette enchanted generations of  French children for the first half of the twentieth century.  She was launched in 1905 by a children’s magazine called ‘La Semaine de Suzette' where she became a huge success with young readers who dressed her and sewed for her.  More than 1,000 clothing patterns were published for her making Bleuette one of the most fashionable dolls...

In the 1950’s toymaker Ruth Handler watched her daughter playing with paper dolls and was inspired to create a fashion doll that a child could hold in their hand.  Mattel assembled a design team of artists,  engineers and fashion designers to create Barbie  - and the rest is history. Our guest is author and  fashion doll expert  Bradley Justice Yarbrough. Bradley has made a study of Barbie doll an...

Designer and sculptor,  Robert Tonner, has created many memorable dolls that capture moments of fashion and pop culture . This years hottest fashion doll drop is sure to be Ellowyne Wilde! She's the Fashion doll who sets the trend - combining different pieces to create her own individual look.  Robert joins Host Louisa Maxwell to  share the inspiration behind this new collection and reveals w...

Photographer, author and interior designer  Bruce A. deArmond joins host Louisa Maxwell to  explore the ever evolving love affair between dolls and fashion. Bruce is an an interior designer who creates signature styes for an international portfolio of hotels, casinos and department stores. He also is passionate about fashion and the role dolls play as models, playthings  and historic artefacts.  B...

Robert Tonner has always been at the cutting edge of fashion so it’s no surprise that his latest dolls, the Model Behaviour fashion dolls, are inspired by the latest trend, digital influencers. With millions of followers virtual influencers like Miquela , Noonoouri   and Shudu   are changing our perception of beauty and gender.  With his new dolls Robert creates an intricate story of Moire, a digi...

Toy designer Rachel Godfroy joins Host Louisa Maxwell  to tell us about Sindy’s new look. Sindy, the British fashion doll that generations of children and adults “love to dress”, is back!  Sindy was originally launched by Pedigree Toys during the swinging 1960's.  A teenager with a mod wardrobe, straight out of London’s ultra fashionable Carnaby street.  Sindy has returned and is again embrac...

Stuart Holbrook, President of Theriault’s Auctions, makes a welcome return to Vienna Austria for Part Two of our Fall 2021 podcast. A hot topic this year has been the discussion of the doll not just as a historic object but as a piece of art in its own right.  Stuart Holbrook and host Louisa Maxwell discuss landmark collections with unique pieces of such quality that they cross the line from antiq...

Stuart Holbrook, president of Theriault’s Auction house, has made a welcome return to Vienna, Austria.  A year ago Stuart joined Host Louisa Maxwell for the first Doll Podcast and here they are, one year on, enjoying coffee and delicious Viennese cake while talking about one of their favourite topics, dolls.  Stuart has a years worth of adventures to cover, so this episode comes in two parts: Part...

Billye Harris is an appraiser for popular TV series The Antique’s Roadshow on PBS . Billye has had a rich and varied career in the world of dolls and has sought to educate and entertain about the study of dolls and their place in art, craft and social history.  Billye joins The Doll Podcast’s Host Louisa Maxwell to discuss her career in antiques and some of her favourite dolls, she also shares her...

Doll Museums are becoming more of a rarity but the Grovian Doll Museum  has taken an innovative stance to make their collection a success.  Museum director's Michael Canadas and David Robinson  curate rare dolls, doll's fashions, furnishings and accessories. They also organise lectures and workshops in the museum and online making their collection accessible to all.  The museum is part o...

Author Brook Ashley joins host Louisa Maxwell  to discuss her book,  Dare Wright and The Lonely Doll. Dare Wright photographed and wrote the best selling series of The Lonely Doll Books . They tell the story of Edith, a doll that wants to find friends and when two bears enter her life, love and acceptance come too. Dare’s haunting and beautiful black and white images not only convey Edith’s advent...

Since their launch in 1991 Robert Tonner’s dolls have captured the imagination of collectors worldwide. His dolls have won numerous and have the distinction of being exhibited in the Museum of Decorative Arts at the Louvre in Paris. Robert Tonner is about to launch a new edition of a firm favourite, Ellowyne Wilde with an all new sculpt and  range of costumes. Ellowyne will be launched in March 20...

Dolls & Treasures with Samy Odin  & host Louisa Maxwel l Samy Odin served as the director of the Musée de la Poupée-Paris for twenty five years, during that time he was fortunate enough to curate exhibitions with  some of the world’s most beautiful and precious dolls .  Samy is an author of numerous books on dolls and shares his expertise lecturing at conventions and exhibitions. He also h...

Doll artists, experts and influencer's share memories of precious Christmas, toys and dolls. Guests: Mel Odom, Rachel Hoffman, Samy Odin, Rebekah Kaufman, Suresh and Joshua David McKenney join host Louisa Maxwell. https://www.dollpodcast.com/episodes

Rachel Hoffman is  a visionary in the doll world combining her degree in communications with doll expertise to launch the world’s first virtual doll convention. She has built on the legacy left to her by her mother Diane Hoffman who 45 years ago founded of Turn of the Century Antiques in Denver Colorado. Today, Rachel has taken over the business   carrying on the family tradition   with a team of...

When you hear the name Steiff you think of Teddy Bears but Steiff has a long history of doll making.  Steiff expert Rebekah Kaufman joins host Louisa Maxwell to discuss Steiff’s dolls, their history and how to collect and identify them. Steiff introduced a range of dolls called Characterpuppe in 1908 at Leipzig Toy Fair the press heralded these dolls as: “ A welcome change from the sweet and borin...

YouTube sensation Suresh on Barbie, Deboxing & Fashion Forward Dolls Suresh Seneviratne  turned his passion for fashion and design for  Barbie - into a YouTube channel with over one and half million views.  Suresh’s interviews with leading doll designers  and witty and honest reviews of fashion dolls keep collectors tuning in .  His interviews with doll designers and makers give insight into t...

The Art of the Doll with guest Joshua David McKenney, Creator of the Pidgin Doll and host Louisa Maxwell. Joshua David McKenney is an artist, sculptor and doll maker. His doll is called Pidgin - her name is inspired by the language that grows out of diverse ways of communicating and Pidgin doll is fluent in  the language of style. Since her debut in 2013, Pidgin has attracted a large and devoted f...

This week our guest is Award winning artist and illustrator Mel Odom whose images have graced Time Magazine, Viva, Blueboy, Omni, The New York Times, Playboy, Candy, CBS Records and Rolling Stone. It was a drawing of a beautiful face that inspired Mel to create a work in three dimensions, a doll and her name is Gene Marshall , and since her launch in 1995 and she has changed the face of fashion do...