Vintage eyes

 

This is 'Suzy'.

She dates from the early 1960's and her head has arrived so I can do something with her eyes.

Her eyes should open and close but both are seized up at odd angles.

She was a 'Drink and Wet' doll. One inserted a bottle of liquid into the hole in her mouth and the liquid eventually worked its way through her body to a hole in her bottom.

Out come her eyes.

There is rust, leaching plasticizer and gunk.

The eyes are dismantled.

Part of the problem seems to be a warped bit of plastic (the lower left piece)

This bit needs a good scrub!

I should have taken some more in between pictures but here she is with the eyes scrubbed and new eyelashes.

Suzy's head gets sent back to reunite with her body.

Magic skin body replacement

 

This head arrives with a request for a new body.

It once had a cloth body with rubber limbs. From the description, the body likely had magic skin limbs that have long since disintegrated.

The head is vinyl and has leached plasticizer to form a sticky coating that picks up dirt very easily.

A close up view. Can she be saved?

My current favorite cleaner for plasticizer coated dolls is a scrubbing with a toothbrush and a commercial cleaner/degreaser followed by a scrubbing of diluted rubbing alcohol.

She cleaned up well so it is time to look for body options.

One option is to find a newer cloth body with vinyl limbs. Unfortunately the local thrift stores had nothing of the right size.

But, in my stash of parts is this lanky magic skin doll. The magic skin in the neck area was weak and tearing but the limbs seemed still sturdy. The body shape does not suit the babyish head but adaptations can be done.

Here is how I adapted the body.

She now has a new muslin body with vintage magic skin limbs.