This post was inspired by a ModernWizard query/comment.
What materials annoy DAF collectors? Plastic inserts, styrofoam, and wire twist ties. We love the protection - everyone wants to get an intact doll or action figure. After we remove the doll or figure, we are left with packaging. Packaging and how to get rid of it. Responsibly. Time to breakdown the box, separating the cardboard from the clear plastic and/or any styrofoam. Hoping that the trash collectors will take the separated materials. Putting the separated materials in a large, dark plastic bag if/when the trash collectors are on a "garbage only" tour and then a litterer adds food to the recyclables. Grrr ...
Collectors, we have an alternative. And I don't mean putting everything in a large, dark plastic bag the first time. We can recycle our packaging junk by re-using it.
I don't have any recycling projects, but I know of at least three websites where you can find inspiring new uses for DAF packaging. Please see these links:
C. Bradford Gorby's 1:6 Scale Diorama Creations
and
J. Steven York's "Thinking inside the Box" post dated Tuesday, September 02, 2008
and
DollDivas Dioramas
You can also check archives of online boards like Men With Dolls or One Sixth Warriors for customized furniture and structures.
2 comments:
I know this is an old post, but it addresses an interesting dilemma. Different manufacturers seem to have different approaches to packaging. Mattel, MGA and other playline producers seem to produce dolls that are appealing on the basis of their packaging as well as the doll itself. Frequently Barbie dolls look much better inside the packaging (where they are enhanced by their surroundings in the box) than they do outside of the box.
I have a lot of adult collectible fashion dolls and for many of these dolls, the packaging is very compact and plain (one thing I really like about Tonner dolls is that the box or tube is just big enough to contain the doll without much void space). The dolls are tied into their boxes with ribbons and can be easily removed and then put back into their packaging for safe storage. The packaging doesn't enhance the doll's appearance any as the box isn't used to market the doll to consumers the way that packaging is used in playline dolls.
Ah! (Pounds chest with fist - lightly) you've got it. Seduction by packaging. I cannot count how many of my dolls - mostly by Mattel - I would never have bought because I already owned a doll similiar to the new one. Sigh. And me supposedly an adult ;-D
An additional comment on collector doll packaging: sometimes, the packaging can double as a carrier/storage for the doll. My Mixis and my Fashion Royalty dolls have those kinds of boxes. Sturdier boxes with clean lines and simple graphics. I like these boxes because they help me keep my figures protected from dust.
Oh and one last comment: some action figure companies have taken a page from the Mattel School of Seductive Packaging. Sideshow Toys, Majestic Studios, Dragon, and Aoshima/Skynet have these gorgeous, nifty boxes that I can just sit and gaze at for days ... well, more minutes than I should. Hot Toys' plain plastic blister paks, in contrast, only inflame the desire to liberate the figure from his clear prison.
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