Reality Check

After my last post I had an anxiety attack.  I really felt out of control.   As a doll collector, this is not a foreign feeling.

So, I took some time and re-evaluated everything.  I decided to work on my New Year's Resolutions and turn them into my "Rules for Doll Collecting and Having a More Enjoyable Life and Hobby":

RULE 1:  Focus my collecting.

I am completely all over the place with my collecting.  I have Barbie, Silkstone, Momoko, Gene, Tyler/Sydney, Tiny Kitty, Goodreau BJD, Pullip, Bratz, LIV, Dynamite Girls, Poppy, NuFace, Fashion Royalty,  Monogram, Misaki, Vintage Ginny, and Antique Porcelain Head.  And thanks to some special "friends" on the dollboards, I've been eyeing those Monster High dolls.  Naughty ... Naughty .... Naughty!

It's not a problem to appreciate the beauty between the different dolls, it's just I don't have enough room to enjoy my collection.  I have outgrown my comfort zone and the first casualties are:

These six dolls have been in a box for a couple of years.  They are the only Bratz I own.  I will list them as a set on The Doll Page.  If they don't sell ... it's off to Goodwill. 

I also have a NRFB Iden that needs a new home.  He is VHTF, so I know someone will want him.

In addition, I am going to list my ONE Momoko and some clothing I purchased for her.  I saw a post where someone had dressed her in this lingerie set and "I had to have it" - the doll and the outfit.  This was an expensive impulse buy.  She has no friends to hang out with here, so she needs a new home.

And I also have ONE odd Gene.  I always loved this particular outfit.   It is so classy and beautiful.   But I don't need only one doll from a line.  She is  lonely and sad.  Hopefully she will find a good home.

Which brings me to my next rule:

RULE 2:  No more impulse buying! 

It's alright to look at the posting boards, but I must avoid impulse purchases after I see something I like.  I must wait at least 24 hours before moving from the posting board to E-bay or The Doll Page.

This rule will avoid many mishaps, including my foray into Pullip dolls.  I haven't been "officially" counting this little imp as one of my 2011 dolls, but I guess it's time to fess up.  She was purchased this year and lives with me and causes quite a bit of havoc around here.   I couldn't resist her after seeing her posted on another board.

Impulse buying is one of my biggest weaknesses.  In my last blog, I posted that I purchased eight dolls at the ToysRUs "Buy One Get One Free" sale.  In my "buyer's remorse", I did return six of those dolls.  I couldn't bring myself to let I Dream of Jeannie go because I think that will be the most wonderful halloween costume for one of my girls, and I had already set Penelope Cruz free.   Just because it's on sale or cheap, doesn't mean I must have it.  I know those dolls would not have been played with or displayed.  They would've just stayed in their boxes in the closet.  (I also returned the Juicy Couture girls to Tuesday Morning.)

Someone who posts as "Jim" on Doll Divas message board posted some of the most breathtaking photos I've ever seen of Tiny Kitty dolls a few years ago.  They had a little dress salon and everything.  I was mesmerized.  I immediately started a small collection of Tiny Kitty dolls.  A collection that is still in its boxes today as a result of more impulse buying.  They will be the next dolls to find new homes.

RULE 3:  Until I get my collection completely under control, no new doll comes in without one leaving.

As you know, this was one of my resolutions, and it was one of the reasons I got so anxious after my shopping spree.    (That coupled with the fact that the new Integrity Line dolls are arriving by the boxful!)   However, I had to come up with some specific stipulations to make it manageable.

Addendum 1:  It doesn't have to be the same type of doll, nor same quality.  It doesn't have to be a doll sold on the internet or given to my sister; it can be a doll donated to Good Will.  This rule was to limit the sheer numbers of dolls in my posession, not a way of paying for my hobby.  This addendum will help alleviate my stress about numbers.

Addendum 2: Listing a doll on The Doll Page counts as a doll leaving because she will be moving to a new home. 

I put together 10 playline dolls on bodies that look like a good skintone match.  They will be leaving soon.

Rule 4:  No doll stays in its box for more than two weeks.  It either comes out of the box or is sold.

This was my other resolution.  I am definitely going to have to bend this one as much as possible.  It was originally intended to make me form a decision about a doll quickly.   That way, I don't look at a doll months down the road and wonder why I purchased it.  Unfortunately, when dolls arrive in multiple, I can't enjoy and savor the moment of a new doll if I am forcing myself to open another one.    Integrity ships their dolls in batches, so I had to develop addenda for this one also.

Addendum 1:  If I want to keep a doll in a box, a different NRFB doll in my collection must come out of the box.  That way the number of boxed dolls is not growing.

Addendum 2:  When multiple dolls arrive together, 2 weeks is given for a decision on each doll.  I know!  I know!  I purchased 8 dolls at the TRU BOGOF sale which would constitute 4 months of decision making, but I DID take back six of those!

This week three more Integrity Dolls arrived in the mail.  High Brow Adele was chosen to come out:

I was hoping I would be able to add this girl to my group of Adeles.  Unfortunately, her faceup reminds me too much of Something Sexy.  So I am going to rebody her and use her handspeak body on Bodacious (my alltime favorite Adele).  I also love the clothing, so it will stay.

The shoes that came with this Adele are extraordinary.  I don't get how they work with what she is wearing, but I have defnite plans for them.

Rule 5: I will NOT pay more than retail price for any doll, not including convention exclusives.  Because I do not attend conventions, I do not incur the registration fee, travel fare, or hotel expenses.  That allows me to purchase a couple of the convention dolls that I most like.  The only other exception is the two dolls currently on my Grail list - Cosmetic Takeover Natalia and A Fashionable Life Platinum Vanessa.

These are photos from the FR Reference List website at http://woodsky.free.fr/LBX/listeFR.html

There you have it!  I am much calmer now.  I believe I will sleep better at night ... except for those dreams of running down the isles of Target trying to find the new Monster High dolls .... oh, no!

BTW, anyone interested in of the dolls I'm selling can find them on The Doll Page ...

http://www.thedollpage.com/ads/searchresults.php?owner=210

How should I be looking at my glass?

I made it through six months this year and managed to keep my two New Year's Resolutions:

1)  No new doll that comes into this house will stay in its box for more than two weeks.  It will either come out of the box or be sold.  (Amended:   It can stay in its box as long as one of the NRFB dolls comes out of a box- that way the number of boxed dolls will not increase.)

2)  For every doll that comes in ... one goes out. 

Unfortunately, I think the following photo sums up my doll shopping experience this month. To quote, Penelope, "Full steam ahead!"

With the recent first release of Integrity Dolls and the "Buy One Get One Free (BOGOF)" deal at Toys R Us, I have completely upset my apple cart. 

While I was at Toys R Us, I literally lost my mind.  (If anyone happens to be shopping in the Athens, GA Toys R Us and finds it, please forward it to me.)   Other than the Barbie Basics, I haven't purchased many Barbies lately, but the BOGOF sale was just too much to resist.  I believe this photo pretty much sums up my doll shopping for the month of July.

I got the Bewitched, I Dream of Jeannie, and Beverly Hillbillies dolls.  I watched these series as a child and they were my very favorite shows.  Now if I could get Mary Ann and Ginger dolls from Gilligan's Island, all my favorites would be represented!

I picked up the Japan doll because I found one with terrific hair and screening.  I also added the Russia doll and Sydney Opera House doll.  I love the screening on the Sydney doll and hope the hair can be tamed and managed.  I got an extra Pirate doll for a body donor for this girl.  (I know several collectors bought multiples of this doll so they could use the body for other dolls.)  Eight dolls and $160 less in my bank account, I left the store with my arms loaded and a big smile on my face.  

My readers met Heat of Glass Aria in my last blog.  The other dolls I purchased from the Plastic Inevitable line were Rock Candy Rufus Blue and Most Beautiful Boy Auden.   Auden is probably the best male doll IT has ever produced.  BUT his price on the secondary market makes me scared to take him out of the box.  He has sold for over $500.  Should I sell him and use the money for a grail doll?  or should I just let him out?   All three DG dolls were pre-ordered and I paid retail price.

The other three IT dolls are Magnificient and Extravagance Monograms (purchased at retail from an Integrity dealer) and Red Desire Mini-Gene which was purchased on the secondary market at original price.

When I went home this week for a reunion of my mother's family (many followers know that I lost my mother this year to cancer), I stopped at the Tuesday Morning nearby.  I found the Juicy Couture set for $39.99 and just couldn't leave it behind.

I think one of the most pleasant surprises from Mattel this year was the Pirates of the Caribbean dolls.  Not only is the screening terrific, the dolls are on articulated bodies.   The Angelica (Penelope Cruz) doll is actually on a Barbie Pivotal body.  The outfit is actually quite well made, allowing for many redressing possibilities.   You can see that the pirate blouse (reminds me of that Seinfeld episode) is actually a body suit that slips on and off easily. 

The bustier is separate and closes with a snap.   The little sword is amazingly detailed.  The only disappointments were that the the boots were not actually boots and her hair is rather messy.  With a proper reroot, I think she would be amazing.

I'm sure everyone here can count.  There are sixteen dolls (17 if you count both dolls in the Juicy Couture giftset) in the photo.  When added to the 8 dolls already added to my collection this year, that brings my total to 24/25 dolls.   22 dolls have left this year, so I am officially upside/down in my resolution.  I also have A LOT of deboxing to do.

It's always wonderful to have dolly friends.  When I was talking to my sister about the amount of money I spent this last month, she said, "But you purchased everything at either retail price or at the Buy-One-Get-One-Free sale.  So, it's better to look at this as how much money you saved!"  I guess the glass is actually half-full.