Well, the doll we left behind has now become the doll who will not be left behind. Naomi went back to New Norfolk on Wednesday as she was going to look at a vintage vacuum cleaner at a property at Magra which is nearby. She decided to drop in to the shop where we had seen the vintage Shirley Temple doll and see what had become of her. We had previously agreed that if she was still there we would put her on lay away, or lay by as we call it here.
At first it appeared that the doll was gone as she was no longer in the basket although several other dolls were. However, the owner remembered her and pointed out Shirley who was now in a safer location. The woman told Naomi that after we left she decided to take her advice and move Shirley in case she did get broken. Naomi put a deposit on her and we have six weeks to pay for her although I expect we will be able to get an extension if necessary.
I still don’t have a picture of Shirley to show you but Naomi says that she is fairly sure the doll is composition which would be correct for the 1930s. I am looking forward to trying to ID her. I’ll post about her again when we finally can bring her home. Until then here is another random Shirley photo from the internet.
Dolls, Dolls, Dolls 
I am very happy for you and poor almost left behind Shirley. It would have been very sad, if she were sold to someone else who might just see her as an investment.
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She’ll have a very good home eventually.
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Hi from a new subscriber. I just found your blog and like it a lot. I wanted to let you know of a website that will guide you through dating your Shirley Temple doll:
http://www.shirleytempledolls.com/label.php
I’m embarrassed to tell you I got my Shirley (one of the original 1934 versions) for $5.00 from the Salvation Army Last Chance Warehouse here in Reno, Nevada, USA. She had come unstrung and was in pieces in a plastic bag. I asked to see her (yes, at least they put her behind the counter), saw her open mouth (teeth missing), and decided she was some baby doll, which I am not interested in. When I got ready to buy my other stuff, the manager pulled her out from the display case and said $5 for her and $1 for the rest of your things. He pointed out that her original price, at the Salvation Army main store, had been $25. I knew she would end up in the landfill if I didn’t take her so I took her. On the way home I started looking at her and thinking her face looked really familiar. Her wig was very skimpy and had come off. I saw the dimples and thought maybe she was Shirley. When I got home I Googled COP IDEAL N&TCo. that was on the back of her neck and found out that yes, she was a real Shirley Temple doll!
I restrung her (one of my few dolly repair skills) and ordered a set of porcelain teeth for her but couldn’t get the set of six teeth to fit in her mouth, so I just used the set of two, which looks fine. I put a curly wig on her and I am really going to make her a Shirley Temple dress one of these days, but for now she is wearing an American Girl doll dress. I’m so glad I decided to go ahead and get her.
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Hi Cathlin, Thank you for the link and the story. Your Shirley was a great find. I’m kind of embarrassed that we spent so much on ours. I wonder if she was over priced but our motivation was to save her from being damaged in the store. We’re still paying her off but when we get her home there will be quite a bit of work to be done on her I think once we’ve done the research to see which Shirley she is. Glad you like the blog. I have a lot of fun writing it.
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