I was asked to write about Henry for those who are new to the Sasha hobby and might not know Henry Holiday. I have copied below two 'articles' I wrote about him, the first in May 2012, and then the second in October 2013, some of which will be duplicated. At the end I will write about Henry now.
May 2012: Why Henry:
I first saw ‘Henry’ on Ebay. He was being advertised by Sarah of
Vintage-Sasha on behalf of a friend. His
description read: “I’m
selling 2 dolls this week for a friend, first is this 1972 Gregor who has been
cleaned and restrung by Brenda Walton, he will come wearing the outfit shown, a
Betsymay shirt and shoes, trousers by Molly and jumper by an unknown
knitter.......he’s in lovely condition and poses nicely BUT he does have
falling hair, it’s not really bad but with a vigorous brush some does
fall............if you need any more info please ask” However, I
don’t think I really read the description, I just saw a picture of his gorgeous
little face and knew I had to have him.
The fact that he had slightly
falling hair didn’t bother me in the slightest.
When he arrived his hair didn’t fall at all, but after travelling to New
Zealand, whether it was the changes in humidity and temperature or not, I don’t
know, but now his hair is falling, but still not too much, I just try to avoid
brushing it.
Little did I realise how much
this little Gregor was going to become part of my life. His name didn’t come instantly, but within a
short time, Henry he was. Neither did I
realise how much travelling Henry was going to do! He has become my little companion,
inspiration and has brought out the inner child in both me and my husband as
photographs will testify! As George
Bernard Shaw once said, “We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old
because we stop playing”. Well I am
certainly determined not to grow old and have wholly embraced the world of
play!
Henry has a very lovely
expressive face and is a sensitive and thoughtful lad. He does like to get up to adventures and the
occasional mischief though and enjoys playing with his friends. He is very photogenic and poses well and I
enjoy making photo stories with him.
Never would I have believed a few years ago, how much I have fallen hook
line and sinker for these wonderful dolls and especially Henry.
Henry really has developed his
own personality. Once I had gotten over my initial inhibitions and shyness at
taking him out places with me to photograph, there has been no stopping his
trips.
Henry has been on several aeroplanes flying to both Germany (with Emily who is probably my favourite Sasha) and New Zealand and transit stops in both Los Angeles and Hong Kong.
I have taken Henry into hospital
with me several times and he has even sat on an MRI Scanner!
Henry’s latest trip was to Devon where we visited my friend Laura and her ‘Dollies in Devon’. He had a companion this time, Harry a redheaded lad from Washington in United States who had just been repainted by Shelly. Harry is staying with us until he returns to USA with his ‘Mum’ Carol after the Sasha Festival. We had a fabulous time and raised a lot of interest in what we were doing. Our answers varied from the sensible explanation to the ‘having fun’ which indeed we were…to ‘we’ve been let out for the day’.
Henry has helped me to make many
lovely friends and contacts around the world and it has been lovely to write to
and meet so many special people who enjoy Sasha dolls and indeed other dolls as
well. The generosity and friendliness of
people is wonderful and reassuring.
In fact in his way Henry has
become famous and now even has a pair of Jean Jensen’s footwear named after
him…’Henry’s Hiking Boots’. Which were
seen featured in a lot of his New Zealand holiday photographs on my blog.
Henry is offering ‘Holiday’s with
Henry’. If anyone would like their
Gregor or Sasha to come and stay with Henry to experience what it is like
living in Hertfordshire, England and exploring some of the countryside they are
most welcome. As mentioned, he has
already had two visitors come to stay Harper and Harry from Washington, United
States. Harry of course went with Henry
to visit our friend Laura and her ‘Dollies in Devon’ family.
If I had to choose between all my
Gregors and Sashas and was only allowed to keep one, Henry would be the
one. But sshh, don’t tell the others
that, I would hate to upset them as they are all loved very much.
October 2013: My Sasha Gregor Story: Henry.
When I first
discovered Sasha dolls, little did I realise the journey I would end up taking
and how much one doll in particular would end up meaning to me. Although I have a lovely collection of
beautiful Sasha and Gregor dolls, I am going to focus my story on just the one,
Henry, known to many already. I first
saw him advertised for sale on eBay in June 2011 and as soon as I saw his face
I just knew he had to come home to me.
It really was an attachment at first sight. He duly arrived and was everything I had
expected and just the perfect little guy who became Henry - I do believe he may
have told me his name…anyway Henry he became shortly after he arrived. Little did I realise how much he was going to
become part of my life or how much travelling he was going to do with me in
tow!
Henry has
become in all sense of the word a true travel companion doll. He has accompanied me on overseas trips,
visits to the hospital for treatment and days out to various interesting places. The whole family has embraced him…although my
two sons won’t actually admit that! My
husband in particular has surprised me with how much he enjoys outings with
Henry as well. In fact when deciding which National Trust or English Heritage
property to visit next, the topic of whether Henry will ‘enjoy it there’ will
often enter into the discussion. Even my
Dad in New Zealand was taken by him and enjoyed his exploits when we went
hiking. I have been to places I never would have
dreamed possible before Henry came into my life and he has helped fill a void
left by the loss of playing, performing and teaching music. He is my little companion, listening with
wisdom to all I wish to tell him. He is
my inspiration and has brought out the inner child in myself, my husband and
many who get to meet him. I have quoted
this before, but I will quote it again as it is so true! George Bernard Shaw once said, “We don’t stop
playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing”. So the key is…keep on playing!
Henry has
certainly developed his own personality.
He has a lovely expressive face and is a sensitive and thoughtful lad
who often thinks of others. He enjoys
adventures and getting into the occasional mischief whilst playing with his
friends. He is very photogenic and poses
well and I enjoy making photo stories with him.
I have met some really amazing people through Henry and his adventures
on my blog, which led to me offering ‘Holidays with Henry’ when I was asked if ‘Harry
& Harper’ (a Sasha & Gregor) could come and stay with him before the
2012 Sasha Festival. This first visit
has been recorded both on my blog and in book form: ‘Harry’s Holiday with Henry 2012’. This in
turn has led to Henry starting his own blog ‘Holidays with Henry’ and it is
here we document the trips, visits and holidays we go on with Henry and his
guests.
When attending
the 2012 Sasha Festival I was astounded by the number of friends Henry had from
all over the world, and how many were keen to meet him. I heard how many look forward to reading his
stories and seeing his dear face. What I
also felt was very special was the hiking boots I asked Jean Jensen to make for
Henry before his trip to New Zealand have since become known as ‘Henry’s Hiking
Boots’ and I thank Jean so much for this lovely gesture.
I believe that
through the confidence Henry has given me…I would never have dreamed that I
would boldly go out photographing a doll in public before Henry… I have visited
places I would never have imagined possible before. He has opened new doors of adventures and it
was a dream come true when we managed to fly to the United States in July 2013
to stay with a friend I’d met online through a Sasha Doll group and attend the
2013 Sasha Festival. I have experienced
nothing but positive comments and discussions from people who stop and ask me
about him when we are out and about.
Many remember Sasha and Gregor dolls from their childhood and this often
brings back happy memories and reminiscing about their childhood. While in the USA it was amazing to see Henry
get a ride in a Police car outside the White House, have a ride on a police
horse and many other such exciting things that I would never even have dreamed
about before. In fact I strongly believe
that if I Henry hadn’t come into my life I would never have gone the USA.
Henry is becoming
quite the jet-setter and is building up his list of countries he has visited;
Germany, France, USA, New Zealand as well as England of course. He has also stopped over in LA and Hong Kong
transit lounges…although he assures me they don’t count!
Through
writing the stories for the blog and of course boys needing lots of toys, I
have built up a lovely collection of props used by Henry and his friends. Bicycles, a tricycle, skateboards, climbing
ropes, games and many more things – he really needs a room of his own! Henry also has designs for a tree house which
we are hoping to build by summer 2014.
This is an exciting project inspired by another Sasha collector who
kindly sent me photos and measurements to help us on our way. The way collectors are willing to generously share
their ideas is so very special and the encouragement that is given to each
other is lovely as well. The generosity
and friendliness of people is wonderful and reassuring.
Who knows what
the future holds for Henry and myself, more adventures for sure. An eventual re-rooting of Henry’s head or a
wig, as sadly he is suffering from the dreaded brunette falling hair syndrome,
is definitely on the cards, but hopefully not for a long time yet.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Henry Now.
Henry did require a re-root in the end, wand this has been a strange transition for us...probably more me than him. I have found it harder to accept his new look, even though it has been done well. This he got at the beginning of 2019 before what is now possibly his last trip to New Zealand. Henry hasn't been so active the last couple of years but we are working on remedying that, and he is still always a constant companion and certainly not tucked away out of sight.
Each year I used to produce 'Henry's Yearbook', but haven't for the last three years, for various reasons (a good reminder to self to try again next year!) I also used to donate a copy of this book to the Sasha Festival and it was a lot of fun.
Henry has his own facebook page which can be found here: Henry Holiday which he primarily used when on holiday which was a great way to post his updates, and his own blog of his holidays: Holidays with Henry at other times he will be featured on this, my new Sasha Haven blog. Over the years I have blogged about the Sasha dolls and their adventures on different blogs which you will see in the links on the side bar.
