Bru Doll Review

A phrase that makes any doll collector go weak at the knees.
Dolls that are of the  very highest quality to any Doll Collector.

 

Bru Jne & Cie marketed dolls  from Paris and Montreuil-sous Bois in France
between 1866 and 1899

 

Bru Dolls came in either dressed form or undressed form so that the the lucky owner could sew her own doll clothes.They were beautifully packaged in expensive boxes willed with tissue paper.
This was a very popular pastime for most Victorian girls.

 

Bru like many doll makers also sold bisque heads so you may be lucky enough to find a Bisque Bru Head on another makers doll.

Dolls from Bru won  Gold Medals at most expositions throughout Europe from 1855 to 1889.

Bru used French artists to design their dolls which were mainly produced in bisque.(sometimes with papier mache or rubber bodies)
Like all doll makers they bought in doll heads from a number of companies and assembled them in France with clothes made by French dressmakers.

 

They made many moulds and some of these exist today and are used for making quality reproduction dolls.

Bru like Jumeau , made versions of Bluette - the famous French Doll beloved of youg French girls.

 

Bru was one of the most popular high-class dolls available.The most popular models were the Bru bebe which were well marked.

The Bru Jne  is popular with collectors as is the Bru Brevet and the Circle dot model (named after its mark)

The other Doll that Bru became famous for was the double-faced dolls where models include a doll where one face is smiling and the other one
is crying, or a model where one face is awake and the other  is sleeping.
Dolls with leather or rubber bodies were also popular as they were almost unbreakable.

 

Bru also made  novelty dolls including a Musical Doll (bebe musique) and a doll which could be fed by its owner (Bebe Gourmand)
and the Bebe Teteur which would suck from a baby bottle.

 

Other novelty dolls included kissing dolls and talking dolls which were operated by pulling a string.
A wooden bodied doll also had a motion mechanism enabling it to walk.

 

Bru also made a range of Fashion Dolls with wooden bodies and these have now become really expensive.
 (15 to 25 thousand $ is not unusual at auction)

 

Bru Dolls often have large soulful eyes and full cheeks. the delightful faces on Bru Bisque Dolls made them desirable to almost all girls.

 Sometimes they have kid and bisque bodies
 (this made these bisque dolls look as though the head was too large for the body but they are still desirable today.)
Bru Dolls with pursed lips are some of the most collectable models.

The most sought after Bru dolls are those with their original couture clothes as these are stunningly beautiful.

 

The Smiler dolls have a slightly upturned mouth and they have a look of the Mona Lisa about them.

 

Bru Dolls are more scarce than Jumeau Dolls as they were made in smaller numbers

Bru  eventully became part of the French and German conglomerate SFBJ.
(S.F.B.J  wasThe Société Française de Fabrication de Bébés et Jouets)

This was a large  group of companies who joined together to counteract Foreign cheaper dolls and promote quality French Dolls.

SFBJ included Jumeau and Bru and later were joined by the Franco-German doll company Fleischmann and Bloedel in 1899..
Bru were almost similar to Jumeau in quality but were preferred by many because of their exclusivity.and they sold dolls well in France and the French colonies but also to places like Australia , China and the UK

The following people carried on the Bru Tradition :
 Leon Casimir Bru 1866-83
 Henri Chevrot 1883-89
 Paul Girard 1890-99