Space and collection

I buy less now that my allotted space for them is full. I do worry what will happen if I move to a smaller space. I wouldn't be able to keep all of them even though I would miss them a lot.

 

Nope. I'm just trying to figure out where i can fit more dolls among the books,and other "collections."

I have got a list of just under 10 outgoing dolls (that's jist the BJDs, I collect all sorts of dolls), but that's because I've not done anything with them for years so they really need ot be moved on where they'll be more appreciated.

The ones I don't play with need homes where they'l be more appreciated. That's pretty much it.

Not really. The process of listing, figuring out the postage costs etc is so off-putting (I suspect ADHD plays a part in that) I tend to mostly sell by word of mouth, or chance, otherwise I'm more likely to gift them to friends who I know like them or are specifically looking out for that specific doll. When I had a "purge" of vinyl playdolls I didn't do anything with about a decade back, they went to my godchildren, for the most part.

No I got joy from gettign htem and having them and playing with them when they initially arrived, if they subsequently weren't the right fit so didn't get played with as mcuh as the others (or at all) then that's just a sign to moved them on as they've already served their purpose.

A deep (18" or so) by about 18" high shelf along a 9ft length of wall double stacked with plastic boxes containing clothes, shoes, and wigs sorted by doll size and (in some cases) gender. plyus a few other shelves dotted around wherever there is space. I really OUGHT to ghave a clearout of these, some fo the stuff is unlikely to get used again and some is for sizes of doll I no longer have.

Hmm... I have Dolly Drift Corner in the livingroom:


Plus another alcove in the living room:


And another of those 18" deep shelves along that 9ft span of wall (that's in a bedroom), and then they're wherever I can fit them in in other spots around the house (a few on my desk by my computer, some perched on the edge fo the bookshelves in the room I have set up for sewing in... etc.)

Teddy

 

Ironically, I'm carving out a new space now to display a new doll. The said space just wasn't really working with what I had there, so I'm donating what I don't use and shifting some things around into new areas. My collection is huge, and it varies a ton because I collect more than BJD as well.

I've found that I prefer having some dolls on display and cycling them out when I feel like it's time to change things up (I love switching things with the season).

As for selling...I've only sold a few and though I'm glad I did because it helped at the time but a bit of me regrets it too. Putting the dolls into temporary storage works for me because I know I still have them and I can work on dioramas/character development whenever I'm ready - even if that means two years from now. Fashion dolls are much easier to part with, I've definitely trimmed down a lot on my 'one day I'll make something of them' projects.

 

I live in a single room studio apartment, which limits what I can collect considerably. The only space I have for collectibles is a few spots in between books and whatnot near the TV.

This means I've had to pare down my collections - I no longer have anime figures (nowhere to display them) and I have to think very carefully about whether I like a doll/figure enough for it to take up the limited space I have.

I'm a "few dolls, lots of outfits" type of collector already, but I would own more than one doll if only I had the space for it. If/when I move, I want to get a display shelf dedicated solely to my beautiful dolls.

This happened to me with anime figures. I was collecting for the sake of collecting, and I sold 90% of my collection because eventually my space was filled with clutter... The figures weren't even my taste; they were sitting there because I wanted to buy something and I stumbled across a cheap figure.

Once I realised what I had gotten myself into, I sold everything I knew I didn't have a personal collection with. It's common for collectors to have a phase like this, I think.

 

I’ve been collecting these dolls for nearly two decades, so by now I’ve amassed a good sized collection. And at various times I’ve had other types of dolls I collected too…but those eventually fell to the wayside whenever I wanted to bring in a new bjd character and needed the display space for them. (This overrode any connection I had to those other types of dolls, so it was easy for me to decide to move them on.) Now I only have bjds and I’m quite happy that way. The others were fun and interesting for awhile, but nothing has grasped my creative heart the way these dolls have…not even close.

I think what has helped with the bjds was that I collected to fill a display space with a character, and never allowed myself to bring in a doll that wouldn’t fit just because “ooh, pretty!” I arranged them carefully throughout my home is small decorative vignettes with furnishings, a few interacting with one another here or there, as part of my overall decor plan (which is Bohemian, by the way, so it all works.) Wandering through my small home is a little like wandering through a Tim Burton’s “Alice” movie set, visiting with small groups of fascinating characters along the way. If I were to sell a doll, then that particular vignette would seem incomplete and unbalanced. I take great care to keep everything tidy and story-driven, making sure all their wardrobes and accessories are neatly stored away, so nothing about my collection seems overwhelming.

All this being said, I have finally now reached a point where my allotted space for them is full. The few preorders I currently have left should be it for me. I don’t want to get to a place where I’d have to let go of one of my beloved characters because of overcrowding. They all mean too much to me. Collecting is all about joy, and if your collection is making you feel overwhelmed then it’s messing with your joy, and that’s when you need to cut back. I’m making the difficult decision to stop buying now so I don’t find myself in that position in the future.

 

My space has been pretty much the same since I started the hobby almost 17 years ago. We've been in this house for 15 years, and the spare bedroom is my doll room. There were times I'd get so overwhelmed with too many dolls, and I've sold off a bunch, but then buy more, because I really do like having lots of them.

So my solution? Better organization. I think I have more dolls now than I ever have, but the room looks the least cluttered it ever has. I have a corner cabinet with a glass door on top and solid on the bottom, so I can store extra stuff, but display my off topic tinies. I have two of those cube shelving units that hold smaller dolls in the cubes, and several big ones sit on top of one unit, and I have my cat tree with all the bjd kitties on the other one. I have a chest of drawers that holds tons of clothes and accessories with more big dolls on top. I have a couple of doll couches on the floor, and floating shelves on the walls. There's also a storage bench to hold small doll boxes, and I have one of my girls sitting on it, with space for more. I think all the "hidden in plain view" storage makes it easy to keep the messy stuff out of view, so the rest looks neat and organized and not like a hoard of junk tossed in there.

 

I, too, have the problem of living in a tiny one bedroom apartment. I can only keep dolls in my bedroom, because the living room/kitchen has huge windows and I'm very careful not to expose my dolls to too much light. So yes, space is something I have to think about a lot. And the older I get, the less tolerant I am of clutter. I regularly go through my apartment and remove things that aren't bringing me joy anymore, and that I'm not using - and this applies to dolls too. If a doll isn't bringing me joy, it is time for it to go. It has made me a very picky doll owner!

I totally agree that it makes a huge difference to be organised - keeping clothes and accessories stored away, and making sure the dolls I have on display are well turned out and cohesive, makes me feel a lot more in control and stops me from feeling overwhelmed.

Lately I'm trying to think of a new way to display my dolls, because the place I'm currently displaying them is going to get very crowded if I keep buying more, especially as I've recently got into Blythes too. I would really like to put some shelves up around my bed. I think that would look really nice. Keeping them neat and organised and looking good, and making sure every one of them is bringing me joy - that's what I'm always trying to do!

 

I wanted to ask was there a point that you found yourself thinking the dolls invaded too much into your space or that it is not enjoyable anymore because they don't fit into your space and if this happened did you minimize?

I have close to 500 dolls, not all BJD's of course, but yes. I inherited my grandmothers Barbie collection, because no one else wanted them, lucky me, dolls was the one thing me and my grandmother shared together. I wouldn't get rid of those, but, I sometimes wish I hadn't gotten the American Girl doll collection, I have all the historical dolls, and many of the yearly dolls. Then their is the porcelain dolls, some of them gifts, my entire top bunk is filled with dolls. Kind of like Claudia in the Interview with a Vampire movie. I don't regret any of my BJD's, and I don't allow myself to start any new commercial collections, I haven't added to my Monster High dolls for sometime. I also have a reborn toddler collection, yeah, I am out of space. I haven't minimized, but I have thought about it recently. Only because I want more room for the BJD's.

What process did you do to decide what stays and what goes ?

I think I would weed out the dolls that are not worth as much, and have no sentimental value first. I wouldn't get rid of the antique dolls or the American Girl Dolls, or the Barbie's, which leaves a lot of the porcelain dolls would go. My mother likes the reborns and they are in the living room, so I they can stay, they are also worth a lot. I am a bit at loss as to where I would begin.

Did you have any regrets you did minimize?

I've moved at lost dolls before. I do regret losing them, but I think I would regret losing my current collection more. It was because of circumstances that I lost them, not because I got rid of them.

Is the price of the item playing a role in keeping or selling ?

Price definitely is an issue. So, is rarity. Many of my dolls are very rare, replacing them would be difficult and costly. I know I would regret losing this more rare and expensive dolls, and yes, a few BJD's are included in this. I wouldn't want to get rid of a doll that I would regret getting rid of which would be difficult or impossible to replace.

Did you have any regrets for even buying them?

Honestly when it comes to BJD's I really wish I would have researched more. I thought the SD size was too big and originally wanted something smaller. Now I have a lot of MSD's that just sit on a shelf. I do enjoy looking at them, and having them in my room. But, if I would have just started with the larger dolls that I prefer I think it would have made my BJD collection more manageable. I would have focused on the dolls I wanted rather then buying randomly as I have in the past.

 

While I'm not even remotely a minimalist by nature... I am a "neat freak", so even as my collection has grown into a pretty ridiculous tribe over the last nineteen years, I've never allowed them to take over my space. The dolls are confined to their display shelves and cabinets in my sewing room. That's all the real estate they get.

Ultimately, that limits the number somewhat, but I have a similar rule for my books, my wardrobe and my kitchen gear. I curate the lot regularly and only keep as much as fits the allotted space and makes me happy.

 

I love your Sasha collection. I used to have one. They are all so cute! Lovely doll collection!

 

If I need space I go through my other collections and purge. My bjds take priority and if I reorganize my room, I could fit two more 6ft high shelving units in there without issue... I've been thinking about it a lot lately.

 

I wanted to ask was there a point that you found yourself thinking the dolls invaded too much into your space or that it is not enjoyable anymore because they don't fit into your space and if this happened did you minimize?
Yes.

What process did you do to decide what stays and what goes ?
I put all my dolls where I couldn’t see them (in the cupboard) for a month, and the ones I didn’t think seriously about in that time, I sold. This was a pain free process, because the ones I did want to interact with I brought out of the cupboard and put back into my space. At the end of the month, the ones left in the cupboard found new homes.

Did you have any regrets you did minimize?
Minor regrets sometimes, but I would look at photos I had taken of the doll I was missing, which made me remember the doll in a nice way, but also made me remember why I rehomed them! This made me feel better and generally made any regrets disappear over time.

How did you discipline yourself to stay focused and finish the job?
I focused on the reduced mental clutter I would feel after the doll/s were rehomed, and of the extra money I would have to spend afterwards!

Is the price of the item playing a role in keeping or selling ?
No, although the less expensive the item, I found it easier to sell or donate.

Did you have any regrets for even buying them?
No.

 

I'm also joining the 1-small bedroom apartment gang xD. I share my space with a roommate, and since we share the bedroom there really isn't a whole lot of floor space for me to display my dolls. So instead they're out in the main living room, on a shelf near my desk. Nearly all of them are in a display area/box of some kind to keep them organized (and safe from cats, bugs, etc.). I don't have nearly as many, thankfully. It probably helps that I'm EXTREMELY picky abt the type of dolls that I like, playline or bjds and whatnot. I do have a sliiight blind box figure and plushie problem as well, but I'm trying to curve that too by only buying the ones that i like.

Organization is definitely the main key here. I'm not perfect at it yet, but I'm trying to tackle it in smaller chunks whenever I can. Put stuff into (decorative) boxes and bins, keep everything organized into categories; clothes stick with their sizing (msd vs yosd), furniture pieces go together, etc. Another thing I try to keep in mind is the Marie Kondo method, of "does it spark joy" for me. If i do, great! If it fades after a few months, then it was likely just the hype and the FOMO talking. Or it's my wallet reminding me that I only have so many funds to spend on certain dolls/items, haha.

So far there's been only a few dolls that I regret. I haven't sold them yet, but I want to so i can free up the space for more organizing. It's just been hard to do bc I have no clue how to ship things in a timely matter, and accepting stranger's money and their trust makes me anxious;; I'm honestly more concerned about the plushies taking over, so I'll have to start dealing with them asap so they don't overwhelm me. Gotta keep my collections in check after all! So long as i'm careful, they won't get the best of me.

 

Yes my dolls take some space, since I only feel secured if they lie down completely. But it's quite complicated to manage clothes and wigs, especially wigs as they need space. But I found out that sealing all the clothes in same bags and put them in boxs does same space. But the most important thing is to organise them every time after you take out something.(it's difficult !

 

I have very limited space as well and can be quite frugal with my own items - I don't love having the things I never use or wear so I pare down my cupboards and closet every year-ish. Clutter makes me annoyed and anxious so I'm constantly trying to organise things better to fit two people into our tiny apartment comfortably.

With dolls it is the same - I know I have quite limited space for them day to day, as craft and art stuff, other work/hobby things and practical items all need their space as well. They all stay in boxes unless I am actively engaging with them, mostly 2 sharing a box, and I will consider letting a doll go if I really feel like bringing another one in just so the mountain of packaging doesn't grow. The clothes/wigs/stuff went a bit overboard at some point so now I regularly sell what hasn't seen use for a while so everything fits into the 2 plastic boxes I have allocated for this purpose. It's also just plenty of choice and variation that way without being so much that I forget what I have at hand. I also had some blind box figures at some point but I found myself annoyed at them taking space on my desk so letting them go felt so good.

While I have had feelings about letting dolls or their things go, I've never regretted selling anything I've sold. The niceness of letting go is so much tastier than having iffy feelings about excess items! It's the same with knitting - it is hard to take the decision to frog half of a sweater but I've never regretted going back and fixing the mistake that was nagging me.

 

My doll family lives in a tall double-door glass cabinet in our (my husband and me) bedroom. That cabinet is also populated by some of our treasures (books, comics, stuffed animals, figurines...) so the space is very limited there, and it's a bit anxiety-inducing for me sometimes. You see, I'm the kind of person that likes to have beautiful stuff I like, yes, but only wants a little part of it on display and in a very organized manner (and never where they can catch dust!) while the rest needs to be contained so I don't see it or it will affect my mood in a nasty way. My husband is kind of the opposite, though, he needs to have everything on display or he'll forget the things even exist.

We recently came home from Japan (it was a dream of ours since we were teenagers) and we brought back probably too much stuff, so I had to rearrange the cabinet to fit every everything and had to relegate some of the stuff that used to live there to drawers or other covered places. Right now, I have five dolls on display while I keep one doll head in a drawer and one more doll in her box in the compartment under the bed (she's for sale for not-bonding-anymore/space-consumption reasons), but I keep thinking about when that floating head gets her body and that (alongside a handful of other reasons) is making me reconsider my collection.

I know which dolls I enjoy more and which ones I enjoy less, and their price tags has nothing to do with deciding which ones I would put up for sale if I ever made up my mind about it, but the second-hand market is stressing nowadays, so even getting to sell the one doll that has been for sale since April seems an impossible task, so the thought of trying to minimize more, specially when most of my little collection is composed of limited or hard-to-find dolls, fills me with fear of regretting it in the future.

 

I wanted to ask was there a point that you found yourself thinking the dolls invaded too much into your space or that it is not enjoyable anymore because they don't fit into your space and if this happened did you minimize?
I'm now at a point where I think I have enough dolls to fill my space. There are two dolls left on my wish list that I haven't found yet, and I will get them if I can.
I started the year with a wishlist of eight dolls. I bought four through the company, found two on the MP (both very unexpected surprises) and now there's only two left.

What process did you do to decide what stays and what goes?
I don't want to downsize just yet. I think if I do start downsizing, the first thing I'd do is sell dolls that I find "want to buy" ads for on the MP. I figure if I need to downsize, my dolls should go to people who will really appreciate them.
I am seriously downsizing my collection of outfits, wigs, etc.

Did you have any regrets you did minimize?
Not yet. But I'm only getting rid of damaged outfits or ratty wigs. I do regret getting rid of the full-set helmet of my WD Jewel, but it was just broken beyond repair and unwearable.

Does the price of the item playing a role in keeping or selling ?
No. All I want to know is whether or not it's something I could possibly see myself using in the future. If not, it goes.

Did you have any regrets for even buying them?
Yes, for some things - outfits made out of that horrible pleather than sheds all over the place. And a full set outfit that ended up shedding gold lame and feathers. And some very shoddy items that looked good on Etsy but weren't.

 

I fine myself as of recently wanting to de-clutter and organize my room a bit more so I think with dolls on top of that it can become a bit irritating. I find myself lucky to have a rather large tv stand that has a connected cabinet which I put my large dolls in. I think as long as there is a proper space for dolls to be displayed I don't have much worries.

 

I haven't made it to a point in which my dolls have invaded too much of my space. However, if it does get to that point I would eliminate the dolls that no longer make me happy. I love double jointed well articulated portable dolls that are easy to clothe. Therefore, I would start from that idea and proceed decluttering who doesn’t fit in that mindset. I did get rid of four dolls from my collection so far since I started collecting. Yes sometimes I miss them but I know they were not for me and there is dolls out there that I am more interested in so I keep looking forward not behind. Since I am not decluttering due to the lack of space I just keep my mind on obtaining the dollies I am currently lusting over. Price never plays a role it’s my overall happiness. I don’t regret buying any dolls because they just end up fine tuning what are my preferences so I don’t make the same mistake.