My new line of “Mary Jane Growing Up in the U.S.A.®” dolls aren’t really “new”. They’ve been around since 1982, birthed by Miss Elsa, born and raised in Germany, who came to the United States in 1951 and has been in the doll industry ever since. Her old-world standards, creative designing abilities, and love for children made the creation of dolls and doll accessories her lifelong activity.

The “Royal Doll®” line, for which Miss Elsa is most renowned, has a history dating back to 1914, when Royal Dolls were first created by Maurice Donath. Miss Elsa became associated with Royal Dolls as a principal designer. In 1977, Miss Elsa purchased the business and its factory and began manufacturing hundreds of different dolls, among them a line of dolls called “Mary Jane Growing Up in the U.S.A.” As president of the company, Miss Elsa set one major goal: to continue to manufacture quality dolls in the U.S.A. rather than overseas.

During the 1980s and 1990s, Miss Elsa traveled throughout the country to toy stores to autograph her dolls and greet collectors and children. Crowds of men, women, and children lined up in long lines flowing through and outside the stores just to meet Miss Elsa and have her sign their dolls. Miss Elsa was considered a celebrity.

In 1992, in recognition of her exceptional contributions to the industry, Miss Elsa was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Doll Reader Magazine. Today Miss Elsa still designs dolls and doll clothing with exacting attention given to detail and with the highest standards of quality.

With my MaryJane Idaho Farmer Doll and Meggie Rae Teenage Farmerette Doll, I am so very pleased to continue her legacy of doll making, but this time with an organic spin! Each cloth doll is handmade in our Project F.A.R.M. (First-class American Rural Made) program using organic cotton sateen and stuffing topped with human hair. Why human hair? It’s durable and easily fashioned — the stuff a little girl dreams of. Each doll leaves for the train station to your home wearing their finest — an outfit made entirely from repurposed vintage linens complete with bloomers. If you decide to adopt either a MaryJane doll (15″ tall) or Meggie Rae doll (12″ inches tall), love them with all your heart, paying proper tribute to Miss Elsa. (Read more about this remarkable woman in my August/September magazine “Raising Jane,” available on newsstands July 15, 2008.)

In John Keats’ words written more than 100 years ago, “A thing of beauty is a joy forever ...”