Downsizing: When a Collector Has to Do It

Downsizing usually evokes negative images: you think of employees unemployed, jobs lost, incomes reduced, people scrambling to meet bills. When it comes to collections though, downsizing can be a good thing. I let go stuff I no longer want; someone else finds a treasure. I have more space and time to devote to the stuff I LOVE. Sounds good, right? Yes! So what's the problem? Problem? Problems.

First, overcoming inertia. So many dolls, so many action figures, so many accessories. I'll look at them again tomorrow. Promise. Or I'll pull a few things from shelves. Okay, these will go. Then I get distracted or move on to something else. I need to set a timer and pull until I've separated all the TO GO stuff from the KEEPER stuff.

How to decide what goes and what stays?

Since I collect from Barbie to Fashion Royalty to action figures - as long as the doll or figure is playscale, I can't limit my collection by manufacturer. What about my variety? Hyperventilating, hands fluttering. Taking a deep breath. Okay, variety stays, but I have to reduce the duplicates. Multiples of dolls that look alike or ARE the same. Surely I can do that? Unless I plan to alter them ....

Sigh. So that's where I am at now. I will take these steps:

1. Set aside stuff that no longer interests me
   
2. Remove duplicates from stuff I like (except 1 or 2 I intend to alter)
   
3. Photograph stuff TO GO, duplicates I no longer want
   
4. Debox KEEPERS - might as well have fun with them
   
5. Find "homes" for the KEEPERS - where will I put them?
   

Reward for this labor? List new stuff I want - yes, sounds like I'm going backwards. But I am taking precautions I did not used to take. Like considering what I am purchasing BEFORE I purchase it.

Example: I saw the So in Style Rocawear Darren in a Walmart. Once I would have stomped a happy dance. This time though, I thought about the purchase. Did he resemble any other dolls in my collection. Oh yeah. I mean, YES. I have several Stevens he resembles. Is his outfit different enough to warrant the purchase? Not really. So I won't purchase him. At least not this version.

Example 2: I will get the Barbie Basics No. 1, Model #12. I like her face and LOVE the face screening. She's similar to my Fashion Fever Shannon only I prefer the Barbie Basics' face and haircut. I can then sell the FF Shannon.

Any thoughts or suggestions welcome.

Attempting Order: DAF Organization, Part 1

I spent time offline in the DAF Room. I separated boxed dolls from out-of-boxed dolls, from loose clothes. The above photo shows my progress. To the left, there's an open box of NRFB dolls and action figures with a narrower box of deboxed figures on top. In the middle, there are loose dolls and action figures. To the right, I have two big bins of loose clothes (his, hers, hers) and more loose clothes in smaller plastic boxes. These are my keepers, the ones I want to retain.

Phew!

Order established in one section. Yay! Applause!

Organizing Clothes by Season and Size

Note to self: separate doll and action figure clothes by season (spring-summer and fall-winter) as well as size. Most things will go in the spring-summer bin; heavy coats, jackets, sweaters, boots, etc. will go in the fall-winter bin. Then if I can break down by size -

infants/toddlers - 3" babies, Kellys, Todds

children - 8-10" children like Stacey, Harry Potter (young Hermione)

teens - 9-12" young people like Skipper, HSM crew, Mystery Squad, Generation Girl

adults - 9-13" juniors

misses - 10-13" fuller bodied females like G.I.R.L. Force, Get Set, Mixis, CyGirl

plump or husky - heavyset figures (probably keep w. individual doll or action figure)


Ideally, I would like to store the outfits I use for certain dolls or action figures with the doll or action figure. Course that makes it harder to share/borrow clothes across the lines.

Re-use Plastic Boxes for DAF Collector Organizing

As I was deboxing my dolls for Project Emigration aka Refining the Collection, I noticed that the clear plastic boxes used for My Scene and other Barbie dolls and the clear plastic tubes used for the pre-Hobbit bodied Fashion Fever dolls could be re-used to hold items. I like the tubes for holding heads and accessories - separate, of course - and the boxes for holding bodies.

Aside: why do I have head tubes and body boxes? Sigh. I don't always like the head-body union that manufacturers provide. So I find a more suitable body and set aside the original body. Oops, got an extra head there. Or I want the doll to have more pose-ability so I body-swap. A discard body there. Solution: head tubes and body boxes.

These plastic boxes and tubes allow me to see what I have better than if I put the parts in an everything drawer or box. Plus, I can tuck them aside so that they aren't in my way when I don't need them. I don't have to buy organizing stuff and waste doll/action figure/accessory funds. I re-use stuff that would otherwise fill landslides.

Here's a photograph showing my new organizing aids:



I'm a happier collector ... and I didn't have to buy a thing.

Organizing the Doll and Action Figure Collection, Part 3B

Okay, I really want to break down those boxes. Open them up and separate the clothes by size into boxes. So let's get the preliminary analysis work out and done. Then I can dig in with no anxieties that I am jinxing myself.


What works?

The enthusiasm that I still have for this hobby. That I have a room and some additional space to place stuff.


What doesn't work?

While I have a doll and action figure collection, much of it is either boxed up or spread throughout the apartment now.


Essential needs?

Access to collection and maintaining the collection so that I enjoy it now and others can enjoy it when I no longer can.


Why get organized?

To better enjoy my collection.


What's stopping me from having an accessible/organized collection?

* I have items I no longer want to keep

* I have lots of boxed items that I cannot enjoy fully because they are boxed.

* I am not using the space that I have as well as I should/could

* * * * NOTE: NOT SAYING THAT I HAVE TOO MANY ITEMS * * * *

* I may need additional storage units

* I definitely need more shelves and possibly glass cabinets

* I don't have funds for new shelves, storage units, etc. now


What is my goal now?

My goal used to be to amass a huge and varied doll and action figure collection. Now I want to have a varied collection only I want it to be accessible and to be well maintained. Boxes are not as important as they used to be. In fact, I want to "play" more with the figures.

Step One: Analysis done.

Organizing the Doll and Action Figure Collection Pt. 3

After I completed my last post about organizing the doll and action figure room, I noticed that unopened clothes take up a lot of space. Here are four photos of unopened clothes:









Yes, I am jumping steps ahead of my organizing project. Deboxing comes further along, after I have written the action plan. Then I schedule actions. On the other hand, I would have more space AFTER I have opened some of those outfits up and deboxed them.

Maybe I'll start with the Ken and action figure clothes. Sort by size. I've got two tall guys (Lukas and Scottie), three husky guys (Sulu, Pavel, and Noah), about ten male teenagers (Mattel HSM and other teens; Takara Jenny's beaus), and a bunch of "regular" sized guys. Lukas, Scott, and the husky guys can have their clothes in one box, Tall and Big. The teenagers can have their clothes in another box, Youth. The other men will have a third box, Regular. When I have a chance, I would like to sort the Regular size clothes into Fall-Winter and Spring-Summer boxes so that I can go to one or the other box by season. I'll separate the shoes as well: Small, Ken, X-Large.

I also have loose clothes (male, female, children) and boxed clothes from the Mattel Mary Kate and Ashley size, Lollipop outfits, and Kelly/Shelly clothes. There is a broader range in female sizes so I would separate those outfits later. Women's sizes go from 8" Grandma Walton (Petite) to 11 1/2" Tracy and 12" Esther (Plus).

New Year Project - Organizing the Doll and Action Figure Room Pt. 2

In Part 1 of Organizing the Doll and Action Figure Room, I gave the room size and that the room would be shared with pets, one cat and three turtles (contained). In Part 2, I will start with my resources because they will help me form my action plan and describe the results. There are two books and one web source.

The books are Don Aslett's Clutter's Last Stand and Julie Morgenstern's Organizing from the Inside Out.

The web source is some pages titled "Strategies for Organizing Your Doll Collection" by Denise Van Patten of CollectDolls.About.com. That web page is found here:

http://collectdolls.about.com/library/weekly/aa010401a.htm

Don Aslett's statement that a collection should be used or lost reminds me that collections deserve to displayed and appreciated. As my collection has grown, I have seen less and less of the individual pieces that thrilled me when I first discovered them. I miss knowing where items are and setting them up.

Julie Morgenstern's system calls for these acts: analyze, strategize, and attack. What's the current situation and why do I want to organize my collection? What do I need to do next and when do I do those things? And finally, I execute the plan and share the results.

Denise Van Patten's articles provide hobby specific organizing tasks including display tips and storage tips for overflow dolls and action figures.

The storage units I have now, the collection size, and additional steps will be posted under the Organizing the Doll and Action Figure Collection header.

New Year Project - Organizing the Doll and Action Figure Room Pt. 1

A recent thread on DollyDaily.com , Do You Have a Dolly Room, http://www.dollydaily.com/community/showthread.php?p=45280#post45280 and some additional photos of a British doll collector's rooms -- Jody at http://www.britishbarbie.co.uk/ inspired me to look at my Doll and Action Figure room for improvements.

Space. My collection needs more space. More storage units, too.

I can't afford new storage units at this time. So I'll work on the space issue for now. I have a room that's roughly 15 feet wide by 10 feet 5 inches deep. There is a door at each end of the first wall and a large window case in the center of the opposing wall. There's a smaller window case in the wall on the right (when entering the room), but that window case is shorter and higher up. The fourth wall is all wall with no interruptions.

This room is shared with one cat and three boxer turtles so I will need to keep them in mind as I make plans. The cat needs one or two window spots; the turtles are less demanding, but they would be better near the door. (Have to change their water regularly so they shouldn't be across the room.)

I've also got two computers here. One works; the other has old photos and documents that I hope to recover. There are also two printers and a 4-drawer vertical file cabinet. A round wastebasket and two boxes of old journals complete the non-doll stuff.

I'll post photos tomorrow and steps to take and maybe a calendar.

I'd like to know what I have and to be able to get things when I want them.