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Do you keep all your dolls out on display all the time, or do you rotate which ones are out and which ones are in storage? The thread about limits got me thinking about what my life would be like with say, 12 dolls. It seems like it would be really hard to bond with that many, at least at once. I'm curious, for those of you who have more dolls than can be counted on one (or two!) hands, how do you maintain that special connection with all of them?
- Becca
I have 10 dolls. For a long time, 9 of them sat on top of the bookshelf in 2 rows (that was when I had 9.)
Now I have 2 or 3 on the living room shelf, 2 or 3 on my nightstand, and the rest sit on the top of a bookcase.
I would hate to not be able to display them all.
As for special connection- I didn't get them all at once. Kirsten, Felicity and Addy are from when I was a little girl. My AGoT was a gift from my parents when I got my Girl Scout Gold Award in HS, Molly and Samantha were given to me in HS. I was supposed to get Molly in middle school but "my behavior did not warrant a new doll." She is special because I finally earned her in Middle School. I am fairly convinced these dolls are all PM, but I am not sure about the last 3.
I have never bonded with Kaya but she is special because she was a gift from my fiancee. Not my favorite, but she still has a special place.
I love Kit's stories and think Josefina is beautiful. I honestly don't remember when I got those dolls at all. But I remember using HS graduation money to buy up Josefina's books.
Marisol is in the closet waiting for Christmas, she and I share ballet.
So I have a connection to all of them. Even though I have a handful of them. (Not quite as many as some people.) Lately I have gotten A LOT (perhaps to many) outfits all at once. But I am careful not to do that with dolls. They would lose their shine, to me.
(Currently I want Elizabeth, the short blonde haired AGoT, and am debating Nellie- so more dolls will come, sometime.)
<font color="#051E50" size="1">[ September 19, 2005 05:25 PM: Message edited by: Skittl1321 ]</font>
I have seventeen and they are all out in my living room on display. I also have 4 doll rooms and their furniture and extras. I do have seasonal stuff put away and take out lawn furniture and grill only during the summer and winter stuff during the winter etc!!! I have a son and 5 DDs and didn't have any trouble bonding with them or loving them and it's the same with my dolls! You can never have too many dolls or children!
signed, Old Woman Who didn't Live in a Shoe!
I keep mine on the top of my bookcase. I used to have them in two rows, and try to rotate the front row often enough to see them all in turn, but got tired of it. Now that I have 10, I recently made a riser (out of sturdy shoeboxes) on the back, so now I can see all of their sweet little faces all the time! (See my album in my signature!)
I wouldn't want to put any away, and I have limited storage space, so that wouldn't be very practical for me.
I have seven AGs currently and I've bonded with each of them for different reasons. Molly's my childhood doll, Kit's my writing companion and the doll my Mom chose for me, Felicity was the doll I wanted for 13 years before I got her, etc.
I try to rotate who comes to hang out with me when I'm watching movies or reading, but their personalities play into that too. Kit is helpful with writing, and Marisol loves to watch anime. Nellie likes to hang out by the sewing machine and Felicity is a book worm. Molly loves a good scary movie, but Kirsten likes nature documentaries better. So far, Elizabeth seems to enjoy sitting with me when I cross stitch. [img]smile.gif[/img]
I keep all of my dolls in the living room in different places.
All of my dolls are displayed. [img]tongue.gif[/img]
Well, 5 of mine are displayed right now. I honestly am running out of room, until my boyfriend and I buy a house... which we are hoping to do by next june! [img]smile.gif[/img] Then, we are going to have a dedicated room for our "collector" stuff! [img]smile.gif[/img]
All of mine are displayed, too.
I have a lot of dolls, and they are all out on display - on top of bookshelves, on chairs, but mostly in little displays on the floor, where I keep their furniture and accessories. I have plenty of room right now so it's not really an issue to have them all out, but if I did have extremely limited space I would simply put up a nice long shelf somewhere and stand all the dolls on it, and keep just one little corner or bookshelf top for a display scene. If you put the dolls at an angle you can fit LOTS on just one shelf, so they wouldn't have to be packed away. I never leave my dolls in the same spot for long, so it wouldn't matter to me too much if the only space I had for them was on a shelf. I'm always pulling one out of a display to bring downstairs to watch t.v. with me, or to sit on my desk while I'm typing, etc. They don't just stand there on display; they all get attention sooner or later!
I don't think having a lot of dolls makes them any less special. The way I got them all makes them special - some were childhood dolls, some were gifts from my mother, some from my boyfriend, some were ebay deals I looked long and hard for, and some were dolls I bought at AG Place on trips with my friends. They all joined my household for a reason, and most importantly, they are here because I fell in love with each one. No matter what mood I'm in, there's a doll around who will fit that mood. Sometimes a doll will get a lot of attention for a week or so, then my focus will move to another, but they all get played with and dressed and their hair fixed. I don't feel overwhelmed by a lot of dolls or like I can't bond with all of them. As janabanana said so nicely, my dolls are like children - I never have a problem loving a lot of them at once. [img]smile.gif[/img] Frankly, I've really never understood the idea that having a lot of dolls makes them less special, or that's it's too hard to bond with all of them - I guess I've never had that problem! [img]redface.gif[/img] My motto is, the more the merrier! [img]graemlins/heart.gif[/img]
My dolls are all displayed - all 10 of them in my room in the corner and the two Bitties in the family room up on the mantle.
For a while I did not keep all my dolls together in an attempt to never put my husband in a postion where he could easily count them and I usually had one of my daughter's dolls "visiting" so when he would ask, "Are ALL these YOURS?!" I could truthfully answer, "Oh no!! Some are just visiting!!" [img]wink.gif[/img]
All of mine are displayed. About 35 of them are in the Cottage (where I am during the week) and 15 of them are at home, but in each location they are standing up on display.
I do change their clothing and think, once I move to the new cottage, I will order them by clothing change date so I just go around the room, but that will take some arranging.
It seems unreasonable to spend money on a doll only to put her away either out of sight or out of reach.
Taffy
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">LOL!! [img]cool.gif[/img] That's how I finally was able to bring PM Samantha (the poor dear with no name YET! [img]redface.gif[/img] ) out of hiding. She'd been in the basement closet for just over 6 months when I finally realized "heck, we have so many dolls, DH won't even notice one more!" That was 3 months ago and I haven't heard a word from him about the "new girl." [img]graemlins/smarty.gif[/img] [img]wink.gif[/img]Quote:
Originally posted by Nicole J:
For a while I did not keep all my dolls together in an attempt to never put my husband in a postion where he could easily count them and I usually had one of my daughter's dolls "visiting" so when he would ask, "Are ALL these YOURS?!" I could truthfully answer, "Oh no!! Some are just visiting!!" [img]wink.gif[/img]
We tend to have dolls all over the house. Sometimes they are in our bedrooms. Josefina stays in her adobe room almost all of the time, but she gets visitors so she's not lonely. Kaya is out on the prairie (above Josefina) with her horses and Tatlo. Felicity is usually on the changing table/bookcase/Felicity area with her items. She is patiently waiting for her own doll room. There are usually a couple of LE/AGT/BB/BT in the Today bedroom. The rest could be anywhere from the basement to the attic! [img]rolleyes.gif[/img]
I guess you could say they are all out on display [img]graemlins/wonder.gif[/img] . But I play with all of them, not necessarily all at once but generally they don't stay put for very long because I just can't resist loving them! My historicals, except Lissie, are on display in my closet (I leave the doors open all the time since I have my tv in there) and are the ones I play with the least [img]redface.gif[/img] . Lissie is sitting pretty on her bed, chatting with Charlotte, Laurie and Hippolyta. Chava is in the hall, in the tub I found/ made for them. Marisol is sitting on top of Lissie's bed canopy, not really sure why but she seems to like it there. Zipporah, Penelope, Gabriella and Juliette are in the living room having a blast playing grocery store.
My girls are always out and around. Mostly they are downstairs in either the TV room - just hanging out on the couch or the floor pillows - or in my sewing/computer/doll room, sitting or standing around on the sewing table or the bookshelf (or the ironing board, occasionally [img]wink.gif[/img] ). When they go upstairs, it is to be put in a formal display in the living room or the family room. We're planning the Halloween display now; the girls are going to take over the living room!
As for bonding with them all, I like what Jan said comparing them to her own children. You always love all of your children, no matter how many more are added to your family. I ended up with seven kids, and I love the last as much as the first and all the ones in between. The same holds true with all of my dolls; the heart is wonderfully elastic and always stretches to make room for more. [img]smile.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/heart.gif[/img]
<font color="#051E50" size="1">[ September 19, 2005 07:45 PM: Message edited by: Jeanette M. ]</font>
I have 24 dolls (20 AGs and 4 Bitty Babies) and they are all on display in my playroom. I love seeing all of them, I'll just sit and look at them and pull which ever ones out I want to "play" with (ie. changing clothes and doing hair). I have no trouble with bonding to them as they are all my dolls, I actually miss my collection as a whole whenever I travel not just any one doll. Also, I grew up with very little toys hardly ever any new ones. When I was in college money was so tight that having one of these AGs was even out of the question, $84 for a doll!! I couldn't even imagine! I would look at the catalogs very longingly while eating our dinner of ramen noodles or macaroni, and my fiance(then boyfriend) and I would always dream of "some day", he would say "someday you will have everything in the whole catalog if you want! I promise", and he worked very hard and kept his promise and now that we can have all that we used to dream about, you can see why they mean so much to me.
<font color="#051E50" size="1">[ September 19, 2005 07:49 PM: Message edited by: Chauster ]</font>
I have mine spread out over two countries, hehe. My pre-Mattel dolls (all but Kit) are all at home with my parents for safekeeping. I keep them on display on the top of my bookshelf in my bedroom. When I'm at school in Canada, I just have Kit (although soon I'll have AGT25 here, too) and she sits on my bed. [img]smile.gif[/img]
When I move next year, I'll probably keep all of my dolls except for, say, two (three at most), at my parents' house. I visit home often so I get to see them a lot, and I just am more comfortable with having them there for safekeeping. Plus, I find I appreciate them more when I go home to visit them instead of seeing them every day!
We only have a handful (5) of dolls. They are usually displayed on the fireplace on the GOML shelf. Just today when I got home I found Marisol back by DD's room (imagine DD was actually playing with her dolls this weekend.) I quickly brought her back to the family room and her spot. I miss them when she takes them to her room. Maybe if I had more dolls......
I have around 38 right now and they are all out on display in various rooms and a lot are in my sewing room.
I always feel like my input isn't very useful on threads like this since I am on the way, way upper end of the doll scale. I have about 110 18" dolls, almost equally divided between soft-body types like AG and all-vinyl like Magic Attic. I can't say that I am "bonded" to each and every one of them. Some of them are definitely more special than others but they all get displayed. (The ones who are still in their boxes are the ones who are waiting to be listed on eBay.) It helps that I have a dedicated doll room (and it's 10'x7' dollhouse) to display them in! I like my dolls to be doing something, even if it's just standing on a shelf with a bunch of other dolls wearing similar style clothes, like my "Summer Party" where everyone is wearing the fanciest summer outfit. A few of them are behind glass in a doll cabinet, but just a few and never dolls like American Girl who would be sad if they weren't played with regularly.
All of DD's dolls are out. I think we have 17 now with the addition of Elizabeth and today #26! [img]biggrin.gif[/img] They are mostly in DD's playroom, but we also have a couple in the familyroom and DD's room as well. We do have quite a few acessories, so we do switch them out. We just took dowm the cabana and put up Kaya's teePee which will be up until right after thanksgiving, then the sleigh will come out, etc. The dolls are always out though and dressed for what ever is going on at the time...It is a lot of work, but it makes it so much more fun to bring different things out all the time.
Shelly
YEE GADS! I don't know how to count...we are at 20 dolls as of today...UGH!
Shelly
Wow! Some of you have a lot of dolls. I can't imagine having that many!
I'm just excited for the holidays because I'm hoping to get enough money to buy one or two more!
-Jordyn
My dolls usually end up in various places throughout the house or they stay in their beds for a while.
I have only five dolls as of right now, but I display them in what used to by my older brother's room and what is now the computer/doll room. I keep trying to get my mom to get rid of my brother's old furniture because I tell her he's ruined it and there is not point to keeping it. But she know's my real motives! I'll be needing more room soon, so I'm hoping I'll convince her. I used to keep my dolls in my room when I just had two, but the furniture and accessories took up too much room. They have moved around in the house over the years, but I took my brother's moving out as a great opportunity to store my dolls somewhere closer to me. Although I only have only five right now, they all mean something to me in their own way. I know exactly the love everyone is speaking about for their dolls. Although my parents would have if they could've, they would have gotten me a doll as I so dearly wanted as a child. But when my dad was laid off and trying to get back into the education system again, getting a doll just couldn't happen. So now, I think because I couldn't have one then, it's like hyper drive for AG now! Things have been good since those difficult years, but because I'm a student I still can't get as much as I truly desire. So I have told my boyfriend that someday when we are working and we have a house together, I will have a room dedicated to my dolls to display them and their collection. And I will let my collection grow to what I've always imagined it to be.
My AG dolls are all in the living room.Nellie and Sam in Sam's bedroom scene, Kit and Molly in Kit's bedroom scene which are on a card table in the corner of the room. Elizabeth and Felicity are on the entertainment center with the tilt top table. The rest are on a desk in two rows,the top one raised 6in with styrfoam boards, so that the top row can be seen well.
I have other dolls in other rooms, but my AG dolls are where I can gaze on them always.
I too just want to be able to see them when I am home.Some have extra special meaning to me, but,all of them I adore.
If space were not a huge issue for me, I would probably have many many more.
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Well said, Jan. I never really thought of it that way, but it does make sense. I suppose my slight apprehension at having a large doll collection was largely space-related - it's a bit overwhelming to think of how much space one would need to display 8 complete historical collections (my dream goal!) when you live in a small apartment. It also seems like AG is releasing dolls at a much faster pace then when I collected as a child. Anyway, I'm glad to hear that you were all able to bond with your girls, however large their number might be. Thanks for sharing your insights.Quote:
Originally posted by janabanana:
You can never have too many dolls or children!
- Becca
So far Just Magic Maria is winning the Who Has The Most Toys contest, hands down! I think I'm pushing 60 eighteen inchers now because I just bought 4 this week and am bidding on one more. I'm hoping that some will go back to their beds or boxes some day soon because they're literally all over the house, on chairs, floors and tables. No space left for formal set-ups so I'm photographing them outdoors these days.
There are always special dolls but if I don't bond with someone after a reasonable interval, I give them away. As I've said in other threads, all the dolls belong in a primary group. Most groups have 6 to 9 members. So I can play with one grouping at a time. Then they have friends in other groups. So the friends drop by. Now I have a problem because the group lines are sort of blending. Therian started in Windsor but she's really into ice skating, so I moved her to the Simsbury group. But she has friends in Windsor. Help???
I usually have all mine in storage. Sometimes I have this wild hair to get one out..take pics...or display a few. I don't like them to catch dust and let it ruin thier pretty hair. Also before we moved I had problems because my windows would fade things fast....
How do you bond to so many! Easy, I bond the minute I open the box and see a new precious beauty. I just have never had trouble bonding to any of my girls.
I love these dolls so much, it is scary! I have loved dolls all my life, but none as much as my AG's. They are the most beautiful dolls to me. The quality of the dolls, their clothes, and accessories is just phenominal.
My girls are usually in my foyer/entry hall area on top of my buffet; but I play with them a lot!. Right now Sue Lynn and Addy are on the dinning room table riding the AG scooter and skateboard. Abigale Marie and Andrea Pauline are watching them ride. The rest are on display on the buffet. [img]biggrin.gif[/img]
I thought my eight dolls were a lot, until I read this thread! [img]smile.gif[/img]
I love having my dolls near me and in cute displays. I am really fortunate that I have a great display area right inside the front door. It used to be a coat closet, but DH opened up the wall surrounding the stairwell, took out the closet and the wall between the kitchen and living room. This gives our very small house a much larger "feel." The closet area was turned into a little bench, which is perfect for doll displays. Right now, it is set up as Kit's bedroom. Linda and Molly are studying there. I have big plans for a fall display, a football display and a holiday display in this area.
Felicity is displayed with her bed in the extra bedroom/doll room, but she and her things will soon move to my newly remodeled, red-black-white sewing room/office. Marlot and Kit are hanging out on an antique dresser at the bottom of the stairs, which lead to the TV room. Lindsey, Ruthie & Marisol are displayed on a cedar chest in the doll room, and all the minis and pets are on the dresser in the dool room.
My dolls are all on display in my sewing room on three wooden shelves I bought at Lowe's. I spend lots of time on my daybed reading and using my laptop when I'm not actually sewing and it is very comforting to have my dolls for company. Here's a link to a picture of one corner of my sewing room.
web page
Patricia
sewfancy, What an unbelievably GORGEOUS room!!! I am so envious! And what a blessing to have Lindsay, Kailey, and Marisol!!!
Dani
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Thank you, Dani. I'm glad you like my sewing room. We just recently painted and I love the color. It's called "Meadow" and is so easy on the eyes. That big window faces the north and lets in lots of light, but not afternoon sun and heat. It's a perfect sewing room for me.Quote:
Originally posted by AG4Alison:
sewfancy, What an unbelievably GORGEOUS room!!! I am so envious! And what a blessing to have Lindsay, Kailey, and Marisol!!!
Dani
I am glad to have all three limited editions, of which Lindsey is my favorite. I only started collecting dolls after my kids were grown and out of the house. I wasn't able to indulge myself like I can now when they were young because they always came first and I couldn't afford to buy much for myself, certainly not $90 dolls! I have to admit that I'm really enjoying myself.
Patricia
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Yes, you definately need more....how many more is the undetermined answer! [img]wink.gif[/img] You can tell your DH I said so! LOLQuote:
Originally posted by vew-tori:
We only have a handful (5) of dolls. They are usually displayed on the fireplace on the GOML shelf. Just today when I got home I found Marisol back by DD's room (imagine DD was actually playing with her dolls this weekend.) I quickly brought her back to the family room and her spot. I miss them when she takes them to her room. Maybe if I had more dolls......
Most of my dolls-my 12 18in AG dolls, HSH Hallie, Teen Trends Courtney, Coconut and Licorice sit on 2 shelves high on the wall in my studio apartment. The only thing I don't like about this is that they're high up and can't be taken down easily without a stepladder so I can't "play" with them very often. I don't have extra room for doll furniture and extra things like that, maybe in my next apartment.
My Bitty Twins stand(or lay down) on top of my TV. My mini dolls are on my nightstand and 3 of them are in little fancy chairs that someone gave me for free at a garage sale.
Whatever dosen't fit in the apartment I have to put in storage, where some of my extra AG things are(outfits, catalogs, shoes, schoolbags, stationary sets, etc.). I know that I won't be in this apartment forever and it's a temporary situation while I'm going to school since this is all I can really afford now. But when I graduate and start a career as an Elementary school teacher(in another 4 years or so) I can move to a bigger apartment where I can maybe set up a little doll corner or something.
<font color="#051E50" size="1">[ September 24, 2005 01:14 PM: Message edited by: Katie from IL ]</font>
Patricia/sewfancy, your sewing room looks great! How on earth do you keep it so clean and organized?
I still think we need a jealous graemlin! The closest we've got is this [img]graemlins/gulp.gif[/img] and that's not exactly what one wants to see when showing off a prized doll collection.
"Wow, Maria, your doll house makes me so [img]graemlins/gulp.gif[/img] "
Disaster.
Seriously though, you all have such wonderful collections. Thanks for sharing them with the rest of us! [img]biggrin.gif[/img]
- Becca
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Hi Becca,Quote:
Originally posted by Becca B.:
Patricia/sewfancy, your sewing room looks great! How on earth do you keep it so clean and organized?
- Becca
It's pretty easy to keep things clean since no one even goes in there except me. When my grandkids come to visit, it's a different story.
Patricia
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Help? The kind of help we can provide is not the kind of help you need!!! However I am available to provide you with dolly daycare if you should ever need a break from any of your sweethearts! My girls are very friendly and will welcome new friends! You can send extras to:Quote:
Originally posted by Sakurako:
So far Just Magic Maria is winning the Who Has The Most Toys contest, hands down! I think I'm pushing 60 eighteen inchers now because I just bought 4 this week and am bidding on one more. I'm hoping that some will go back to their beds or boxes some day soon because they're literally all over the house, on chairs, floors and tables. No space left for formal set-ups so I'm photographing them outdoors these days.
There are always special dolls but if I don't bond with someone after a reasonable interval, I give them away. As I've said in other threads, all the dolls belong in a primary group. Most groups have 6 to 9 members. So I can play with one grouping at a time. Then they have friends in other groups. So the friends drop by. Now I have a problem because the group lines are sort of blending. Therian started in Windsor but she's really into ice skating, so I moved her to the Simsbury group. But she has friends in Windsor. Help???
Jan's House of Dolls and Dollstuff
508 Greedy Lane
Covetsville, MI