Jan McLean Dolls

Jan and Dorothy are now in Rostov-On-Don preparing the 4 dolls for exhibition at the Russian Beauty Pageant on Friday 12th September. This is an exclusive event and Jan, Dorothy and old time friend and doll artist Brigitte Duval will be attending as VIP guests along with the Rostov-On-Don region Minister of Education is Guskov Igor Alexandrovich.
Each of the four dolls are one of a kind and one will be auctioned on the night at the gala to raise funds for a local charity.
Jan & Dorothy have spent the last week in Shanghai attending some business meetings, then a bit of R&R and sightseeing of the fantastic exotic cities of Moscow and St. Peterburg. Everyday has been a full day of walking, sightseeing and enjoying some local entertainment at the ballet or opera. Now they have a few days to rest their weary feet, pamper themselves for the gala event tomorrow night and recharge for the rest of their trip, which will see them visit Budapest, Prague, Tuscany, Rotterdam and finally San Fransisco before touching back down in New Zealand.

The destination store, Jan McLean Originals, based at 494 George Street, Dunedin has attracted many visitors since it first opened its doors on 14th November 1996. It has been a place for locals to pop in for a viewing of the dolls and a friendly chat with shop Manager Dawn Arnott. The iconic shop has attracted many International tourists and fans from around the globe, some passing by on foot and others with a planned stop at Jan’s shop on their travels around New Zealand.
Many laughs have been shared at Jan McLean Original and it was with a heavy heart that we carefully packed up the dolls and closed the shop doors on Saturday 6th September 2008.
The wonderful and eye catching window displays done by Liz Neville, of Dunedin (who is also one of Jan’s close friends) has drawn so many people into our shop who have been amazed by Jan’s beautiful creations and  become some of our avid collectors and fans.
Our Jan McLean Original shop has not only been a retail shop but also a wonderful gallery for Jan to display her creations and for people to come by and see the masterpieces as well as social network of local friends and retuning International visitors for Dawn and the rest of the staff at Jan McLean Designs.
Jan has been very busy juggling all her passions this year - JMDdoll making, Lollipopgirl brand, and most recently sustainable living and planning a good life by the beach. Aside from being creative, Jan would also like to hold cooking classes at her holiday home on the beach; make cheese and run a local farmer’s market. As a result she has been rushed of her feet, flying out the door at the last minute with not enough hours in the day to achieve it all.
After many sleepless nights trying to find the answer Jan has decided to downsize the business and take a year out to focus on the Lollipopgirl girl and her other passions. The shop’s lease came to an end in September this year and this helped Jan in her decision to downsize the business and close the doors of her shop.
We will still be operating business from our studio in Dunedin , but on a smaller scale. As always we love hearing from our fans, admirers and collectors, so please feel free to contact us on email info@janmcleandolls.com or our guestbook on our website.

This year has been a busy one for Jan with her attending various Doll Shows; doll galleries, and designing new collections.
Jan loves to travel around and meet some of her collectors in person as well as catch up with old friends. Jan and the team are preparing for her trip to R
ussia to attend  the “Beauty of Russia” pageant as VIP guests. Jan has designed an exclusive one-of-a-kind doll which will be auctioned for a charity for children in an orphanage in Rostov-on-Don. The Russian Minister of Culture will also be attending the event. So a very exciting event for Jan and Dorothy (who is joining her on this month long trip) . Some of her other dolls and other one-of-a-kind dolls will also be on display at a Doll gallery in Rostov-On Don province. 
See below local Dunedin newspaper article  about Jan’s trip with the dolls to Russia and Europe as well as news about the Portobello Farmer’s Market that she is starting in November this year.

MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL
COMPETITION WINNERS

 

 

 

To celebrate membership renewals in May this year, we offered our members the opportunity to win ‘Elinor’ in our Collectors Club lucky draw which was drawn in July.

 

We were delighted to receive so many renewals and decided to draw 5 lucky collector renewals for their very own “Elinor” doll.

 

We thank you for your continued support and wish our lucky winners all the joy with their new addition.

 

 

The Lucky winners are:-

Jan Hickman -
New Zealand

Gwenda Allred - New Zealand

Joan O’Marley – Australia

Pearl Wilson – Australia

Margaret Michaelidis - Australia

One of Jan’s amazing dolls’s outfit was the inspiration for one young girl’s prom dress design.
Dina Augusta is the daughter of Long Island resident and avid Jan McLean Collector, Marianne Agusta. Dina loved the beautiful design of Zanthe’s dress (black antique beaded lace) so much that she designed her own Prom dress in similar style - complete with feather in her hair.
We think Dina looks absolutely striking in her dress and sure it made an impression on the night. Here is a picture of Dina in her dress alongside Zanthe doll. 

Mark your diaries collectors!!! The Midwinter Doll, Teddy & Craft festival will be held from July 12 - 13th, 2008 at the Howick Recreation Centre, 565 Pakuranga Road, Howick, Auckland. With over 100 sales tables including Jan McLean Dolls it is a must see place to visit for all collectors. The event will run from 10 am - 4 pm on Saturday and 10 am - 3 pm Sunday and includes lucky door and spot prizes. Jan will be present at the show during both Saturday and Sunday and we will have a selection of dolls for sale. See you all there!!

Imagine being a little girl in a room full of beautiful dolls. Jan’s youngest granddaughter, Taylor Anya McLean, who is 14 months has been helping out at our studio…well sort of..more like intrigued with the dolls. She had a great time immersing herself with the Belle 1 & 11 and the Madison dolls last week.

As a long time collector of Jan McLean Dolls, Mary Belcher from Kati Kati in New Zealand , has realised her dream by opening an exciting ‘Jan McLean‘ doll museum. The museum showcases a fabulous and vast collection of Jan’s designs including many one-off and limited edition dolls that Mary has collected throughout the years. When Jan first visited the museum she was overwhelmed by the collection saying “it felt like this is your life”, with many one-off dolls on display that Jan herself had not seen for many years. “I was so amazed to see so many dolls from the past all in one amazing venue” Jan said. Both Jan and Aron visited Katikati to help Mary “pose and titivate” the dolls before the official opening, Aron said her first impression of the museum was “magnificent” to see the dolls displayed in such rich sumptious surroundings. The dolls are displayed in different areas of the museum creating different scenes, such as the fabulous “french floozies” or the “titanic era”. Mary had a vision along with many months of dreaming and thinking about what she wanted to do and how she would achieve it. The museum is a beautiful place to visit and a must see for any doll collector.
‘Beautiful Dolls’ is situated at the Forta Leza Country Inn, 2656 KatiKati, Bay of Plenty, North Island, New Zealand. (Between Taurange and Katikai)

See Above - Jan and Mary with some of the dolls on display.