Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Preorders and Thinning the Herd

The Volks USA online full choice system was only live for 10 days this month, and while I managed to hold out until the final day, I did surrender and place an order for the new sculpt (Amethyst) in  ebony, with the "vibrant" faceup.  They're not expected to be ready until early January, so plenty of time to decide what I'm going to do with her.
The FCS (Photo credit).
In other pre-order news, I'd been waffling since the summer about ThreeZero's Dragon Age Alistair figure and his preorder sold out on the Bioware shop while I waited. But I recently realized that Sideshow is still offering preorders, and that I have enough points from prior purchases to get a solid discount on this one.  So I guess he'll be here in a month or so as well.
Alistair (Photo credit.)

With both of these on the horizon, I'm thinking it's time to think about thinning out my collection a bit.  The dilemma of course is who should go and who gets to stay.  2014 was my year of curiosity about playline dolls (which resulted in my picking up dolls that I liked but don't necessarily love), and I still haven't sold any of my BJDs, even though I've been talking about doing that for years (2011 was my year of too many of them, so I've clearly been procrastinating on that one).

I know other collectors manage to do this all the time, so I'll ask all you experts out there: what's your process for deciding whether it's time to let a specific doll or figure go?

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20 comments:

  1. Barb the Evil GeniusOctober 20, 2015 at 12:03 PM

    Well, especially in your case, one thing to think about might be, if you have the doll packed away somewhere, do you miss it? If you still have ideas about getting it out and where you would put it, keep it.

    A few dolls I sold were because I wasn't interested in the line anymore. When 16" fashion dolls were first becoming a thing, I picked up some dolls from the Gene line. I eventually really got into the Tonner dolls more, so the Gene dolls went.

    Has the "theme" of your collection(s) taken a turn? I used to mostly be interested in dolls I could give a vintage look to. Thanks to some enabling, I now have dolls with both vintage and more modern looks.

    Lastly, do you have too many dolls or lines in one size? I have several types of dolls in the 6-8" range, and I've thought about getting rid of perhaps one line of those dolls. But I can't bear to part with any of them yet, so they all stay, for now.

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    1. jSarieOctober 22, 2015 at 8:47 AM

      That's a good point about missing them. I still haven't unpacked all the dolls from our last move, and I've definitely been thinking about some of them, but others not so much. I think I'll start my list there - thanks for the tip!

      The size issue is a good one too at one time I was almost exclusively into 60cm+ dolls and 7" action figures, but branching out is probably part of why I've ended up with more than I need. Definitely something to think about.

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  2. D7anaOctober 20, 2015 at 1:03 PM

    Congratulations on getting Alistair - he looks interesting ;-)

    I go by how much and how varied the dolls look. If I have too many of one or more face molds that look alike, I decide which one or ones stands out for me. Which one or ones could I not likely replace? Sometimes we like something enough to repeat the purchase. But thinning time comes and we can remove the extras.

    Good luck with that project. Still working on my weeding project.

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    1. jSarieOctober 22, 2015 at 8:52 AM

      Thanks!

      Replace-ability is a good point - I'm hoping to be able to make an inventory of everyone, so that will be a good column to add to the spreadsheet.

      How is you're weeding coming along?

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    2. D7anaOctober 23, 2015 at 10:45 AM

      Thanks for asking ;-)

      I'm picking up on weeding ... had let it go, but I must reduce. Will not allow myself to get new dolls until I've downsized.

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    3. jSarieOctober 28, 2015 at 11:06 AM

      I admire your restraint - I think I should copy that and hold off on picking up anything new until I've made some headway on purging...

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  3. Petite Plangonophile au chocolatOctober 20, 2015 at 1:05 PM

    Hi J! First congrats on your orders! I can't wait to see your ebony princess and your warrior.
    As for your problem, I totally agree with what Barb told you.
    Take care!

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  4. Big ToneOctober 20, 2015 at 2:52 PM

    I usually tend to sell those that I don't feel a real need to display.Might as well make some dough off of what I rarely or never even see anyways.

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  5. AnonymousOctober 20, 2015 at 3:13 PM

    Great purchases, I look forward to seeing more of both dolls! Alistair's outfit and accessories look awesome!
    As you might know, I sold a lot of dolls this year. I made intuitive decisions, that worked best for me. I don't collect a particular line of dolls, and some of the dolls that I kept and love the most, are ordinary dolls with no special value or uniqueness. I do try to keep "fashion dolls" and get rid of "child dolls", but for me some (vintage) child dolls are also fashion dolls, so it all depends on how much I would miss them if they went.
    I also have to say that I enjoy my dolls much more now that I don't have many dolls any more. It feels better to have a very small collection to me personally.
    I also agree with the said above by Barb and D7ana, if you want to use a method to choose which ones can go.
    Good luck, I'm sure you will make the right decisions :-).

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    1. jSarieOctober 22, 2015 at 8:54 AM

      Thanks!

      I think I'd probably enjoy what I have more with a smaller total number as well, so that's a good bit of inspiration there. :)

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  6. Black Doll EnthusiastOctober 21, 2015 at 2:31 AM

    Congratulations on your two new preorders. I really look forward to seeing the new Amethyst.

    I really do not have a process of thinning out my dolls. There are some doll categories (dolls to be exact) that were emotional doll purchases and/or types of dolls that I no longer actively collect: baby dolls, some playline dolls, older artist dolls, porcelain (but I make some exceptions). The dolls I choose to "let go" usually fall into one of these categories and when time permits, I actively try to find new homes for them.

    Good luck in deciding which ones you ultimately let go.

    dbg

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    1. jSarieOctober 22, 2015 at 8:56 AM

      Thanks! :)

      It's those exceptions that always get me - I think I need to just get over making *everything* an exception! LOL.

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  7. XanaduOctober 23, 2015 at 11:19 PM

    Congrats on the new orders JS! I think when you no longer feel the love for a doll is a good time to let it go.
    Hugs,
    X

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    1. jSarieOctober 27, 2015 at 9:54 AM

      Thanks! And that's a good guide to keep in mind. :)

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  8. MuffOctober 25, 2015 at 9:11 AM

    I'm no help. I decided I was going to sell off some doll things and couldn't do it. I ended up selling off old books instead, lol.

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    1. jSarieOctober 27, 2015 at 9:55 AM

      Heh, that's what I'm afraid is going to happen to me!

      Delete
  9. FarrahOctober 25, 2015 at 9:14 AM

    Awesome new orders, jSarie! I can't wait to see your photos of them. I am not sure about the doll selling thing as I'm not yet at that point. I am still a newbie collector so I am definitely still in the "horder" phase. I have been considering selling a couple though. For me, it's just an emotional thing. I"ll take a look at a certain line and pick out my least favorite and start from there. I try to think "would someone else enjoy this more?" Also I feel like once you sell the first one, it would probably get easier. Good luck!

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    1. jSarieOctober 27, 2015 at 9:56 AM

      You're probably right - if I can convince myself to let one go, I'm sure it will get easier from there. Or at least I hope so! ;)

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