Wednesday, June 23, 2021

Mid Century Jantzen Mannequin (PART ONE)

My big find of the month (so far) has been this late 40’s or early 50’s Jantzen store mannequin which appears to be modeled after the masterful mid century swimsuit ad illustrations of Pete Hawley (hit up google for endless examples!) Anyway, she's missing an arm, and is covered in scratches, dents, and worn spots o'plenty, but I still got a mind-boggling steal-of-a-deal on it too, —why, she’s even still tramp-stamped with the original manufacturer name of Wolf & Vine, Inc on her backside. She seems to be made of a very light mix of pressed cardboard layers, and a hard coated plaster exterior. Her hair is wonderfully textured and full of realistic detail. The hair rolls on the back of her head feel like separate, snapped in pieces as well. A big thanks to my main man(equin) expert, Clint, for filling me in on the actual potential value of this blue-haired rarity. I’ll post more pix of it after I get her cleaned up, she’s covered in 65+ years of dust and grime. I seriously can’t wait to start displaying my vintage Halloween costumes on her, though to be honest, I hate the thought of covering up that lovely face with a mask. Also, at the end of this post, I've included an awesome original store window display photo from the 1950's, where you can see my mannequin kneeling next to the tree. More close-ups coming up in the next post...

6 comments:

Peteski said...

she's a keeper : )

Mr. Cavin said...

That is so super duper. What a magnificent find. I've always loved mannequins. But all I have is a headless, armless wicker torso I bought from a closing outdoor sports outfitters at the local mall back in the early nineties. Actually, I haven't really paused to consider this until now, but she's very nearly thirty years old now, herself. Man, she's in great shape!

I can't wait to see pictures of this lass all cleaned up and trick-or-treating.

Craftypants Carol said...

Wow that is so awesome!! I love her eyes!

JMR777 said...

When you dress her up for the greatest holiday of all, All Hallows, you don't have to put the mask over her face, you can situate the mask on the top of her head or dangling from her neck.

I'm afraid to ask this, but are there clubs or online groups for mannequin owners and collectors? If so good for them, everyone is entitled to have a hobby that makes them happy.

Mr. Karswell said...

There are hundreds of online groups dedicated to mannequins, they are quite collectible, after all. And yes, her eyes (and nose) are superbly rendered, it’s a definite highpoint to have your mannequin line modeled from Pete Hawley illustrations!

I’ve taken a few costume pix, but I think I’ll save them for October, (which is only 4 months away btw!)
Thinks for the great comments, part two is already up too!

Brian Barnes said...

... and somewhere in an FBI office somebody does a search for "armless legless torso in car" and stumbles upon this!