Why not rescue a doll?

I have had the great fortune in the last two days to rescue not one but two dolls from different thrift stores where I live, one of them was the original Pleasant Company (American Girl before the name change) Samantha, who I picked up at the Salvation army in almost original condition, missing only her boots and hat for $9.99, this is almost a steal, as I live in Canada I am certain that the store had no idea what they had. I really am thrilled with the find, came home cleaned her up and introduced her to her new friends here at my house, sorry but I am not parting with her. The other doll I rescued is a Tolly Tots doll, They were made about 12 years ago, are 18 inches tall but their eyes do not open and close. They are very cute dolls and this one is about the 5th one I have rescued. I picked her up for $1.99 from Value Village, a brand of thrift stores where I live. I always get so excited to rescue a doll, I may not have the girl in mind for it right away but one always pops up. When I got this doll home, I cleaned her arms and legs, and started to work on her face and hair. This dolls hair was a mess as you can tell from the before shot but only took a little work to spruce up. These Tolly tot dolls have saran hair which is not anywhere near the quality of American Girl Dolls or Mapelea dolls but should be cared for the same way with a wired wig hairbrush.  I actually have been getting pet brushes with wire and ball tips like the American Girl doll brush and they work really well on this type of dolls hair. Always mist it first with water then work BOTTOM TO TOP, it took about 10 minutes to get the hair under control, I had to trim a small amount from the bottom and had to cut out the remaining tangled hair elastics BUT NEVER CUT YOUR DOLLS HAIR WITH OUT PERMISSION FROM AN ADULT, just so you know the hair will not grow back and if you have an American Girl doll it will have to be sent back to the Doll hospital to be fixed which is about the same price of a new  doll bed or 1/2 the price of a new Doll.
Then once the doll is cleaned up and ready to present, make or buy or reuse some doll clothes and she is ready to be given to a girl who would love her. I am not sure what will become of this little doll, she is blond with freckles and is just lovely. Any girl would love to have her. It is my goal to rescue and donate at least one doll per year. I will make a few outfits to go with the doll so she will make someone very happy. So next time you are at a yard sale or thrift store keep your eyes out for one of these gems and make someones day.
As with all my posts I would love to hear from you so please email me at karenmowen@gmail.com or leave a comment here.