I fell in Love with Annalee Doll Art back in the 60's and 70's when I would see the Christmas Displays in the Upscale Department Stores... en masse they were even more Impressive as a Collection!
The Expressions on all of the Characters always Appealed to me, they have such Endearing Personality & Character!
I mean, just look at those Sweet Whimsical Impish Faces!!! They almost come to Life... and when Art does that it really Captivates me!
I always liked that they were Poseable too and were not just Decoration... but little Works of Art.
I must say that the Annalee Mice were always my Favorites...
And over the years I managed to 'Score' a few of the smaller ones in my Junquing Adventures... which was a Thrill since they were always a little bit out of my Price Range in the Retail Stores that carried them.
And back in the day you almost never saw them Donated to Charity Shops or offered in Antique Malls at reasonable prices. The only place you regularly saw them offered for Sale were in the Upscale Department Store Christmas Displays... and ONLY during the Christmas Season so your Window of Opportunity to purchase them was brief & strictly limited by the Inventory that Season each Character came out!
To be sure this was long before E-Bay and Internet Shopping had even been Invented...
And so 'Scoring' a Beloved Collectible was Serendipity at best and took you a very LONG time to amass a very Modest Collection of anything! *LOL*
And I think that in about 30 Years of Trawling Thrifts I only ever Discovered perhaps 3 Little Annalee Mice... but I was Jazzed all the same!!! {Okay, but now for some strange reason the Nursery Rhyme 3 Blind Mice is Echoing in my Head!!! LOL}
But now I am Amazed at how many I am coming across at Thrifts & Antique Malls and at very reasonable prices! My Friend Dan at THE BRASS ARMADILLO WEST has an Impressive Selection in fact of the Mid-Sized Annalee People and Mice! Which is where I Photographed most of these Delightful Images.
And I'm Wondering... perhaps they have temporarily fallen out of Favor or aren't On Trend right now and so that's why they are more Accessible because some folks have "Let Go" of their Annalee Collectibles, I dunno? Maybe the Diehard Collectors of them from the 60's & 70's have Passed & their Heirs just don't Appreciate them like us Older Folks do? So maybe we better scoop all of them up before their Cycle of Popularity comes back around & their pricing goes back into the Stratosphere?!? You know how that tends to happen!!! *LOL*
And you would think, after all of the Decades I spent scouring Thrifts and keeping the meager few tiny ones that I did manage to 'Score'... that when I 'Scored' a GIGANTIC Annalee Mouse Character whilst Goodwill Hunting that I would keep it & be unable to "Let Go", wouldn't you?
Especially knowing how much he would have Cost Retail... which would have certainly been Prohibitive!!! And it's not "as if" I didn't fall in Love with him & my Heart literally skipped a beat when I 'Scored' him!!! Or that I Lustfully looked on as his oversized Annalee Reindeer Partner was carted off slightly ahead of me spying them, by some Guy... the nerve!!! *LOL* But there he now sits in my Showroom... and I have to Confess, that if he doesn't Sell I don't really Care, because then I have a handy Excuse that it was meant to be & he is coming back Home with me and will probably stay out of Inventory and remain at Bohemian Valhalla for a few Christmases anyway. *Winks*
And the same with the Goodwill Hunting 'Score' of an Annalee Halloween Elf... which I didn't even realize Annalee Doll Art came in anything but Christmas Styles until I Discovered this one! And then went Online to figure out what Price Point would be fair to hawk him at! *LOL* Which Revealed even more Annalee Holiday Doll Art for various Holidays... all so Sweet & Charming!
And you can be sure if this Lil Guy doesn't Sell by the end of the Year I won't Care one iota... I will probably be glad that he'll be coming Home with me and the Gigantic Christmas Mouse... so that he can Grace next Season's Halloween Vignette here at Bohemian Valhalla! *Smiles* What Vintage Collectible Series were you always in Love with and has never lost it's Appeal?
Merry Christmas from the Arizona Desert... Dawn... The Bohemian