"Little Miss Revlon" dolls were manufactured by the Ideal Toy Company from 1958 to 1960. She was a 10 1/2 inch version of the larger sized "Miss Revlon" doll. (Click here to see my "Miss Revlon" page) "Little Miss Revlon" was produced during the 1950's "Glamour/Fashion Doll" period. These dolls appeared prior to the introduction of "Barbie". Although "Little Miss Revlon" is more on the size scale of "Barbie" than "Miss Revlon" was, she is still very different. Although she has a grown-up figure and high heal feet, her face remains very young and childlike. Her face along with her shorter body makes her appear much less sophisticated and less glamourous than the future "Barbie" would be.
Ideal successfully marketed the doll with a tie in to the Revlon Cosmetics Company. This gave some brand familiarity to the mother's who would ultimately purchase the doll. It also helped Revlon market their name to young consumers even before they were ready to use make-up. When they were old enough, they were sure to remember the Revlon name.
"Little Miss Revlon" was made of vinyl and her body was "strung" meaning elastics within the body were used to connect the limbs.
The basic "Little Miss Revlon" doll was dressed in just lingerie. Many outfits were available to purchase separately. The outfits ranged from casual to dressy and all were of styles popular with adult women during that time period. There were day dresses, prom gowns, wedding gowns, as well as coats, pajamas, shorts, and "peddle pushers" . The outfits often came with elaborate hats, shoes and jewelry. Clothing pattern companies such as Simplicity also sold patterns to allow you to make your own clothing for this doll. The doll above is not wearing an Ideal tagged dress, but it is of a style similar to those made by Ideal.
"Little Miss Revlon" had pierced ears, which over time often caused a condition known as "green ear". The jewelry would react with the vinyl leaving a green stain. This can be removed by using a doll stain remover called "Remove-zit" by the Twin Pines Company or benzoyl peroxide (solution used to treat acne found in brands such as Clearasil).
Prior to creating "Little Miss Revlon", Ideal made a similar doll called the "Crown Princess". The "Crown Princess" was only produced in 1957. She had a different head mold than "Little Miss Revlon" with no pierced ears. She was slightly taller and rather than being "strung" her body had "flanged" joints. It is not very clear why this similar doll was produced before "Little Miss Revlon". Perhaps this doll was manufactured to test the market for a smaller sized doll before officially utilizing the "Revlon" name. As you can see in the photos above, the two dolls definitely look different.
Other toy companies also made similar sized/styled dolls at this time. Some examples are Madame Alexander's "Cissette", American Character's "Toni", Vogue's "Jill", and Cosmopolitan's "Miss Ginger". There were also several lower quality "knock-off" dolls produced at the time which are often unmarked.
Ideal stopped producing the "Little Miss Revlon Doll" around 1960. This, of course, coincides with the rising popularity of the more sophisticated "Barbie" doll. Many collectors, however, hold the 1950's fashion dolls in high regard today. They are very sought after and often demand high prices. Their style and quality bring back memories of a special time in doll history.
For more information on fashion dolls of the 1950's, here is a link to a great website: Fashionable Ladies - The Online Encyclopedia of Glamour Dolls - 1955 to 1964
Also refer to these great books for more information on Revlon dolls as well as other Ideal dolls.
Dolls and Accessories of the 1950's by Dian Zillner