We Need To Talk About "Overconsumption" In The Collecting Community...

[@orderoffries7880]

To me the major problem with overconsumption is that trends lead to a lot of stuff ending up in landfills (like clothes or makeup/skincare products). With most collector communities, ppl don’t collect with the intent to throw something away as soon as it stops being trendy. When collectors do want to downsize their collections there is always a place for collector items to be re-homed. I will be fair and agree that their probably is a discussion to be had about the environmental harm that goes into the production of the things we collect, but at the end of the day it’s the responsibility of corporations that need to make their products more sustainable and ethically produced.

[@DarlingDollz]

I have similar thoughts about people who collect things like skincare products or cosmetics, since by nature those can't be resold or repurposed. Sometimes people who collect clothing opt to throw them away rather than resell too. Which is unfortunate. But even so there's still a lot of nuance in the discussion, just as you brought up.

[@DoveJS]

All of this. In particular, corporations are the ones who decide to flood the market with too many dolls and while variety is fantastic and most doll lines can't be perpetually sustainable, I feel like these companies are the ones adding to the harm by rushing out too many options (which is utterly subjective I realize) and stopping production on each series sooner than ever before to push out the next one. I get that we look forward to new things, especially once we have the ones we wanted, but that combined with resellers creating false scarcity (possibly on top of corporate scarcity in the case of chasers) is pushing the flood of bad feelings IMHO. The number of dolls that end up in liquidation makes me sad, especially if they get trashed instead of sold on Amazon (lol.) Oh and on top of certain stores getting exclusives to limit the customers who might be able to purchase directly from a retailer, unless they can get it online, Limited Editions of any product seem to be the current trend to push people to buy more than they would otherwise. It's an easy way to release something new without putting in a lot of effort. I feel bad saying that because obviously that can change the one thing, like the colorway, that kept someone from buying something they'd otherwise enjoy so it's not all bad, but I'm seeing this more often so it feels kinda icky? Maybe I'm just assuming too much. I know Limited Editions are something that has been around for decades, I just feel like there's been an uptick, but that might be window-shopping online making it more visible than before the internet existed. (Of course way back when, they'd offer box points and have you send away for a special limited offer by mail lol. I know Gen 1 MLP did that a lot, I'm sure many other toy lines did too, plus all of the cereal box offers.)

[@joelast645]

@@DarlingDollz I love your show and think you are a great host but I also collect dolls and I only buy one of each character....I do not buy the duplicate of the same doll in a different outfit. I just buy the one character and change the clothing and hairstyle on them. It is too much to buy variants of the same character. All of my dolls have different faces and I only have one of each character.. Buying the same character over and over is a waste of money and insane.

[@elizabethclarke4981]

​@@DoveJS well the thing is if brands decide to slow it down with releases or focus on other age demographics collectors go crazy 😂😂, look at the amount of hate RH and OMG is getting because of this.

[@TinyGhosty]

I personally think the worst part of doll collecting is all the plastic waste from packaging. I feel awful because I save them up to cut out the back cardboard to keep, and see how much plastic overall I am wasting. Other collections I have do not give me stress from packaging because there is no or limited packaging: plushies, books/comics, and pokemon cards (individually from small businesses). But doll packaging does stress me out.. they could use a lot less plastic and still protect their product. I love Pixlings sooo much but they stress me out the most, I have to narrow down to just 1 or 2 a year now because of it.

[@scarlett453]

It is not you who is wasting it. It's the packaging designers and the companies. Think about the og first line of monster high boxes, they have so little plastic, and were highly successfull, obviously it can be done without this much plastic waste. But sadly that isn't the desicion that companies are making nowadays

[@arianafox365]

Just another reason why I love buying custom dolls from small artists

[@89marble30]

yeah 100% same. my doll collection is very small despite being interested in new releases because i always feel awful about opening it …. ive been keeping all the plastic waste in my barbie rewind boxes/any other boxes i keep that have no windows atm since i keep them as decoration. kinda like when people put the sewing waste inside whatever theyre making.

[@ectopasta]

I collect a lot of blind box bjds and figures; I try to recycle as many of the boxes as I can but the little plastic baggies just end up getting thrown away :(

[@sapphic.flower]

This is me with Skulltimate secret dolls. I’d really only want the doll but they all come with giant plastic lockers for no reason honestly.

[@danielharmon15]

I'd add when self-assessing whether a collection is veering toward an unhealthy amount-financial strain and emotional stress, yes, but also-physical space. When a space becomes unusable or visual clutter causes too much anxiety, maybe there's a limit.

[@ratimge]

yes !! when your collection stops bringing you happiness and instead fills you with anxiety or stress, it’s gone too far !

[@zebnemma]

I used to watch anime figure collectors for a little while and those who has massive collections in the 100-200 figure range: it looks cool and impressive but when you start thinking about the logistics of having such a collection it's all of a sudden less fun. Figure collectors have to spend time taking care of their collection or it will degrade over time, dusting and cleaning them from time to time. Also keeping boxes, because if you keep the boxes they came in it's easier when you move or when you sell a figure. They started talking about how they had to store many boxes at their parents house because their apartments were already full from top to bottom, every single wall and space was crammed with figures. Personally I have 8 figures currently but even that was my limit. I cannot keep any more than that as long as I live in smaller apartments, when I need space for other stuff too.

[@zebnemma]

part 2: and one of the reasons I stopped watching figure collectors was because I felt like many of them were basically promoting figure hoarding. Like they were so used to having big collections themselves that they started normalizing it to their viewers. And one of them later admitted that they had sold half their collection when they realized that their hobby had spun out of control and turned into figure hoarding, buying just to buy but not enjoying it.

[@nilawarriorprincess]

I think unhealthy is when they're spending above their means & racking up a huge debt. Or when they're not paying bills in order to collect.

[@Blue-fe4by]

​@zebnemma I agree with both of your comments. Ive seen those collectors regret videos too. Some people just get lost in the hype of it all and they lose sight of what brought them to the hobby in the first place. And when they come down from the high, they realize they've spent 20k on a bunch of figurines, dolls, games etc they have no attachment to and they can't even escape it because it's hoarded their room. I think these are the people we need to talk about. To me this is the true overconsumption issue that should be discussed. It's very easy to fall down this rabbit hole in any collecting space...

[@DoIIyMama]

Overconsumption is when you buy the whole collection and put them on the shelve, and when the brand discontinues, you sell off bunch of those collections because they never really appealed to you but you had to have the whole collection. I have seen this happen with RH and now MH too. People kept buying all those draculauras and frankies even though they may not even like that certain design, but wanted a whole complete collection.

[@abbylarkspur]

I feel like that's a limited way of talking about it. Those people are a valuable part of the doll ecosystem. There are always dolls they make fewer of and that don't sell well and knowing there are sources for those dolls is fine. Some people just like to rotate their collections

[@DarlingDollz]

In a way, this is a pretty vital act to the doll ecosystem. If the line is discontinued, then a future collecter will get to buy the whole collection-- in good condition, too!

[@razu_gif]

lmao me waiting for mh's trending dying again so i can get dotd dolls for 10 dollars LMAO

[@sungexpression9093]

To be fair, collecting figures or dolls is a little different than Stanley’s because the utility of the doll is the aesthetic whereas a Stanley cup’s purpose is to carry water which is fulfilled with one.

[@riccee5242]

The only reason the Stanley cup became 'a thing' in the first place was because of that story of that woman's car that caught fire and the only thing intact was her Stanley cup.

[@Spidrick]

But it's not really that different because a few are for utility but if you have hundreds, I doubt all of them are being utilized. That said, I don't care what any buys/collects etc. I just thought you point was a bit of a stretch.

[@strayiggytv]

I would also argue that the Stanley cup craze caught hate because women did it. I can't think of a single craze men were ever into that caught hate. Even when people were going nuts for pokemon cards the hate was nothing compared to Stanley cups.

[@Poopie777]

Not necessarily. People can like the cups for aesthetic reasons. And one could argue dolls are made to be played with instead of displayed. Same thing

[@FlopCouture]

Isn't the purpose of a doll is to be played with aside from just being aesthetic? Technically, stanyels could also be used for aesthetic displays with their varying colors and re-skins. Tbf any collection can have varying purposes for the person collecting them. Doesn't make either collection less or more than. End of day, all types of collecting is consuming and taking space somehow. Although I do agree... stanleys were meant to be used and drank out of, and the people collecting them have driven it away from it's main purpose. Now people just use it to flaunt their collection, and I do question people's emotional connection with a metal cup... sadly it's not like the big corporations care as long as they line their pockets end of day.

[@hollowdescent]

you're so real for saying that online communities have become so hostile lately ;-; honestly i've been cutting down my time online and doing things irl just for myself... esp when it comes to things like collecting and buying things. life is so much better when you dont have a troll in your ear telling you that you suck/are doing something wrong.

[@EquinoxSlay]

Fr!!

[@morganqorishchi8181]

I'm glad you prefaced this with 'mind your business' because honestly, I wish people would. I've never bought into the idea collecting is overconsumption in and of itself. I spend less per month on my dolls than people I know spend on coffee, or on makeup, or on bottles of water they then throw away instead of recycling. The definition of unhealthy behaviors, psychologically, is if it's hurting your quality of life, be it financially or psychologically, it's become unhealthy. My collection isn't negatively impacting me. And if someone is mad at me for "overconsuming" by owning dolls but they're fine with Funko Pop putting THIRTY MILLION DOLLARS WORTH OF MERCHANDISE into a landfill, it's not about the environment. It's about yelling at people and feeling good about it. If it was actually about the environment, they would boycott Funko.

[@caspianshows]

❤

[@ScrubLordKyle]

This misses the mark imo. Overconsumption is not defined by behaviour that harms the user, it’s behaviour that is unnecessary and has negative impacts on the environment. Just because people may spend more than you on more normalised overconsumption does Not mean that what you are doing isn’t overconsumption! Someone can be spending very little on many cheap SHEIN clothes and that could absolutely be classed as overconsumption. Funko throwing away millions of dollars worth of merch is ALSO bad. BOTH can be bad. One is obviously EXTREMELY BAD, but corporations will almost always be doing things in way worse quantities than the every day consumer. That does not mean that you are entirely blameless. I have zero idea how big your collection is, so I won’t assume, but things can get out of hand and tip into overconsumtion long before they can harm you physically, emotionally, or financially. I think too many people are mixing up “overconsumption” with .hoarding”, they are different

[@Blue-fe4by]

​@@ScrubLordKylegood point. I didn't think about people mixing up hoarding and overconsumption. I definitely feel like there's 2 different conversations happening in this video and comments because overconsumption is the new buzzword lol

[@gothgammy666]

@@ScrubLordKyleYeah but YOU HAVE ZERO SAY in my life and need to mi d your own damned business!! People these days have like zero boundaries with things like this. Unless your collection has started to become hoarding it’s not your business it’s not your problem it’s just not your anything!

[@MTSN-hp9th]

Re: hoarding: Having watched almost every season of "Hoarders," the accepted wisdom from the professionals on that show seems to be that while a hoard is something you want to hide that interferes with your daily life, a collection is something you're proud to display that doesn't prevent you from functioning in your home.

[@fusetunes]

i know i’ve seen a lot of people who feel like they /have/ to buy a full set of etc. (mostly in doll and funko pop spaces), even when they don’t like a specific design, and i think that’s where it becomes a problem. fomo is not worth spending more money and taking up more space in your life for something that truly doesn’t even make you happy. also with the stanley cups i think the craze had a similar effect, like it was the in thing and people felt pressured to get all the new releases- but now that it’s calmed down how many people will still be using/wanting what they ended up with? especially since it’s supposed to be a product with a more utilitarian purpose

[@sharonthompson672]

👍 Yes! I just experienced this with the latest Monster High series the Sweet 1600 one. I love three out of four. Won't be getting that fourth doll just to have the complete set.

[@rubydoesthings]

my take on this is nuanced in a different way: i think that in general, collecting doubles is fine; but in a heavily limited situation it feels a bit sketchy. it's not our fault as collectors that these dolls are being sold in absolutely ridiculous production sizes, true, but as the companies have shown zero inclination to change or response to genuine criticism, i don't think we should be making each other's lives harder by making it even worse in the meantime. admittedly i might have some slight bias here, because a lot of the time the people pushing for 'mind your own business' in those situations (which is a philosophy i do generally agree with!) take the approach of 'well why don't you just buy from the resellers' which is, imo, the opposite of productive.

[@rubydoesthings]

and like, if i happen to know someone like that, i'm still not going to assume they're a terrible person or anything? i'm just not going to tell them about anything i want that might be limited or harder to find

[@Princess_Igor5097]

i totally agree i couodnt agree with doubles of something very limited at all im sorry

[@annepandesal]

Yeah i really agree with your comment!! Its like, yes its your business but if to be part of the collecting community is to be courteous to each other, then is it not courtesy to buy just one for now to give others who are looking for her a chance too? Most especially when the sentiment was to open one doll and the other just to keep in box.... :(

[@gothgammy666]

It’s m money & my collection if I can & want more than one I’ll get more than one. It’s not reflective of my values. It’s a reflection on a company making limited edition sizes too small, there’s no morality involved anyone saying otherwise needs to touch grass because my behavior is not your business.

[@drippycity4135]

@@gothgammy666 they didnt say it was reflective of your values, but they did say it’s the company’s fault 😭

[@mariaisabelg4701]

Funny enough I can't help but feel that due to my limited space in room, it has immensely kept me in check with my consumption in collecting. It's also why I can't ever agree with being a completionist. That type of mentality can really lead to a slippery slope if it starts controlling your life. And I also think overconsumption gets even worse with FOMO, especially if it's artificially done. As much as I love Midge and would love to get my hands on her, the fact Mattel purposely short packaged her just made me loss joy in getting her tbh. I shouldn't have to deal with the stress of looking for her especially since her limited availability was artificial so I won't worry. Hobbies shouldn't be stressful and if they do, then I feel that's where you need to reasses your stance with collecting.

[@Miaomix666]

Same, I got rid of loads of dolls that I had just purchased and kept the ones that I absolutely adore. I also have to be way more conscious on which ones I collect due to limited space also.

[@gothgammy666]

The completionist approach is a road to disappointment and overspending on things you don’t even love.

[@sharonthompson672]

​@@gothgammy666 Unless you love it. 🤔

[@MoOveOver_plz]

Calico critters/ sylvanian families come in family sets of 4 so you simply cannot buy one of each figure unless it’s a special set or second hand. Love all your takes🫶

[@Lichtspuren]

I know many people who are over the moon about a new doll (especially fashion dolls)… just to forget about it when a new doll is released. Or doll collectors who are more hoarders because they want everything (I‘m talking about expensive dolls), they even forget which dolls they have. Some people on Instagram create a fomo because they are kind of promoting every new doll. I have taken some steps back and try to enjoy what I have and not to wait for the next fix.

[@jayfreechavez0000]

❤❤

[@sharonthompson672]

The enthusiasm is definitely contagious and Ive been known to pause a video, go find the item and bookmark it for further research, but I went cold turkey on impulse buys a long time ago. Especially eBay, I put it on my watchlist and if it languishes too long without me feeling the urge to hit "buy it now" or "bid", I take it off my watchlist. Of course the risk of someone else walking off with it is real, but when that happens I just tell myself "they wanted it more, kudos to them." 👍

[@emilia123zz]

Overconsumption for me is when you buy something you don’t need. If growing a collection (of whatever) brings you joy, then it has a purpose, therefore I wouldn’t classify it as overconsumption. Spending money on anything should be done wisely and within one’s limits.

[@jayfreechavez0000]

❤❤

[@juniperelliot6365]

But if you're growing a collection of dolls, dolls are something you don't need but food and water are something you need so isn't that your textbook definition of overconsumption? isn't collecting dolls thus overconsumption?

[@ScrubLordKyle]

Very poor logic imo. Dolls are never a need. A fast-fashion influencer could just as easily argue that going through a dozen full outfits a week brings them joy AND is a part of their livelihood as an influencer.

[@ruthènes]

Finding joy in the material is technically part of the consumerism cycle. It's unfortunate but it's something that a lot of us subcounsciously learn during childhood. Joy is a poor argument in defining overconsumption.

[@thegillmachine]

@@ScrubLordKyleI am glad someone else said something because I don’t agree with the original comment either. I think that it is important to acknowledge that our consumption is NOT need based and stay focused on how we can pressure doll companies to do better when it comes to single use plastic packaging. We should have thrown big, organized fits at Mattel when they stopped using the reusable bags for fashionistas and fashion packs and other such things.

[@fiishgirl]

i started customizing my dolls in small ways (painting their nails, adding little touches to their clothes, etc) and it’s made collecting a lot more fun and sustainable for me :] idk how helpful of a tip this is but it’s really made a difference for me

[@SomeBoyHere]

Omg same I love painting their nails ^^

[@fridawarnemyr6025]

For me, that makes it more difficult to sell them, which is not conducive to maintaining healthy collecting habits. ^^ I've resorted to only make such changes to dolls I absolutely adore, which does elevate them even further!

[@fiishgirl]

i didn’t really think about this… i dont have any personal experience with selling dolls but thats def something to consider ^^;

[@sharonthompson672]

​@@fridawarnemyr6025 You can sell them as a custom or restyle, there's definitely a market for them. And if not, the buyer always has the acetone option. 👍

[@PoopiGirl.23]

Not to get too woke about it lmao, but I feel like it’s worth bringing up. We’re SO hypercritical of “girlie” hobbies and pretty much anything women like in general. To me, the Stanley’s aren’t that far removed from sneakerheads, they’re both equally “wasteful”. Why is it normal and cool for a man to fill his whole home with merchandise for a rotating group of grown men who play children’s athletic games, but if I have three of them same Barbie, then it’s a problem?

[@DarlingDollz]

That's a good point. Sneakerheads are often very fastidious about never actually wearing or using the shoes they buy, but I never seem criticized for that.

[@m810x2]

@@DarlingDollzugh so true

[@canadaedwards]

Not sure if it's a girl's issue as I've seen men get criticized too for their collection especially if they're toys. (Toy collecting seems to mostly be ok for women to do than men)

[@m810x2]

@ I don’t think they meant it as just a girl issue but people nitpicking it because it’s seen as a “girl” hobby when it’s not.

[@royalcrumble2384]

Those collections do get criticized though? Especially men who collect toys. It's true that people can be overly critical of "girly" hobbies but that doesn't mean those hobbies are without fault, and I think this defense is getting a little overused and removing nuance from discussions. Overconsumption is a real issue and I would argue it's applicable here.

[@Jhud69]

I think I see the most overconsumption in the Tamagotchi collecting community. A lot of people seem to have a weird fixation on buying every shell that comes out, saying „they’re healing their inner child because they couldn’t get one as a kid” etc (am I the only one who thinks this is pop psychology at best? Doesn’t seem healthy), while some are treating it as investment. With dolls at least it makes sense to have multiple different dolls, with tamagotchis as long as you have one or maybe two (for connecting features) of the same model it’s usually enough.

[@fusetunes]

so true!! i can admit i have occasionally fallen into the tama shell trap, i bought the melon soda connection shell and the kuchipatchi p1 shell when they dropped even though i had those models already just because i liked the designs so much- but i still felt a little guilty about it and i would definitely feel worse if i was buying every single new shell, especially with how often they come out now. it’s interesting how many people still see tamas as just a nostalgic 90s childhood novelty

[@ReddBluGreen]

I've thought the same about the whole "healing your inner child" thing! Like yes, there are some people who were shamed and forbidden from having something they wanted as a child and maybe it can be healing to have that thing as an adult...but when EVERY time I hear that phrase it's about purchasing something it's kinda like...hm...maybe we're taking "retail therapy" too far lol. Equating purchasing objects with mental/emotional healing does not seem healthy to me. You can just buy something because you want it! You don't have to justify it! (As long as you have the money, space, etc etc)

[@Jhud69]

@@fusetunesI think getting a few different shells is fine within reason, but the people who act like they „need” to get almost every shell always concern me. And I’m saying this with someone with quite a few tamas in his collection (been collecting of a LONG time, I own pretty much every connection model, both english and japanese including „odd” versions like the hanerutchi or oden-kun, as well as MOST color models, I don’t have a hexagontchi for example, and then I have a few vintage models, and then a few Digimon vpets), the modern tama collecting community gives me bit of a whiplash because with all the money they spend on the different shells etc they could try out some models they haven’t tried yet instead for example.

[@Jhud69]

@@ReddBluGreenExactly! I don’t collect toys to „heal” anything, I collect them because I like them and I try to think about every purchase very carefully.

[@qwqwqwqwwqw1234]

I don't get collecting to invest anymore. 10 years later, that tamagotchi might value 10x its price (if you lucked out and bought one that became sought after) or it might value 1.5x the price (if you're unlucky and nobody cared about that particular release). You might as well invest in stocks, at least this way you won't have stuff taking up space in your house. I was a similar way with dolls, where I couldn't bring myself to customize, restyle or even unbox ones that are rare/pricey because I was afraid of them losing value, so eventually I just resold them because messing around with my dolls is part of the fun for me as a collector.

[@kaitlynclem5967]

I have a couple of takes on the subject that people may disagree with. One is that I think collecting to "heal your inner child" is a slippery slope. I was very fortunate to grow up in a household where if I wanted a toy, nine times out of ten, I got it, either through saving up my allowance or a family member buying it for me. I understand that I can't directly relate to the experience of someone who went without as a kid. I can see how finally getting a doll/toy that you really wanted growing up but weren't able to have could feel really good. However, it can be really dangerous to use consumerism as a band-aid for anything, even unpacking childhood trauma. On a second, lighter note, I think the reframing of slight differences between dolls as individual variants that need to be collected is ridiculous. I get that playline dolls are mass-manufactured, but even machines don't make dolls exactly the same each time. It seems silly to me to *need* to buy two of the same doll because one has eye makeup that is a slightly different color, for example.

[@junnybear957]

you are so so right, using material items to help me "heal" my inner child has been a slippery slope straight into overspending. it's a quick little fix that gives you a dose of nostalgia & dopamine, and it doesn't take long for it to be like.. ok what next? I need the next thing.

[@c.w.2000]

Yes, I have heard doll collectors say, "It's cheaper than therapy.". The thing is, unlike therapy, it's enjoyable, but not generally healing anything. The goal of therapy, if you have a good therapist, is to build the skills and resiliency so that you can handle things on your own. Retail "therapy" usually just perpetuates more spending as the "high" needs to be maintained. I am a doll collector, and I can say that I have to work to keep my spending and collecting in check. I definitely need to balance that with meditation and habits that I learned from a psychologist and a mindfulness program. Playing with dolls can be a creative and mindful practice, but you really only need a few dolls and some clothing to do this.

[@fridawarnemyr6025]

I've done the "collecting to heal the inner child" bit myself and I can guarantee you, it doesn't feel the same to open a doll as an adult as it did when I was a child. The experience is similar, but not as intense. I find I can get way closer to the feeling of finally getting something I really want with newer dolls. Older dolls do sometimes provide an additional sense of calmness or satisfaction in a way I don't have with newer dolls, but acquiring them does not fix the underlying problem. Therapy and a lot of personal inner work is what sorts that out.

[@gothgammy666]

If you collect for emotional or mental healing you’re going to end up hoarding…therapy is cheaper and doesn’t take up any space in your home.

[@sharonthompson672]

Speaking as someone who came from poverty, neglect and abuse: It's complicated. You basically didn't HAVE a childhood, AND you were never taught normal adult skills. So you started out with a handicap and played catch up the rest of your life.

[@I-lunakit-I]

Things I personally do to limit myself when it comes to doll collecting so it doesn’t feel like overconsumption: 1. I don’t buy duplicates unless it’s for a specific occasion like customization 2. Wait for every doll I like to go on sale before buying. This gives me time to really know if I want it. 3. Once I fill up every space, I’m done. I have to sell/give something away if I want a new one. 4. I never throw dolls away. I always sell or gift them. 5. Keep the collection small so I can individually appreciate the dolls I have Again this is just for me. Whatever works for you is great.

[@bella1rules]

Running around buying all of something just so no one else can have it would be legit seto kaiba behavior lol Im picturing him ripping a midge doll in half somehow like he did that blue eyes card,, if I cant have it no one can!

[@keldawott]

I love this comparison so much 😭 I’m using that

[@NikFishStix]

I think a lot of hobbies turn into an excuse to spend money instead of buying strictly what brings you joy

[@victoriascholl4607]

I am out of room to keep collecting dolls or Funko pops. I have to think about what needs to go to make space. I don't want to turn into a hoarder. When you see things like storms or fire where people loose everything - I have to ask myself what really talks to my heart and means something to me!

[@francesrobinson1335]

Ok, I'm not going to comment on other's collections. I have been studying my own collection behavior. So, I have about 50 dolls, I think. And I really, really like my collection. I want to keep the number rather small because I don't think I could enjoy each doll if there were many more. I'd get very uncomfortable if I continued to buy dolls, ran out of space, and started to store them in crates. I know some people do this but it's just not something I could do. Actually, I could even see letting a few dolls go, but that's a topic for another day. So, right now it would take an extraordinary (in my eyes) doll to take me out of my own self-prescribed limits. I'm comfortable with that. By the way, I also have a small collection of tarot decks, a few calico critters, several beautiful stones, some feathers, several shapely, bare tree branches, and two used calico critters houses that I'm going to customize. So, a bit of a ramble. I'm very curious about other people's collections and how they manage them. Humans are pretty weird.

[@fridawarnemyr6025]

As someone who used to have a doll collection of 50, I greatly admire and respect your self-restraint. I've now got close to three times that size and I find myself struggling to appreciate it. I've decided to let go of most of the dolls from brands I'm no longer focusing on, if I don't appreciate them as much anymore. It becomes more difficult to do when some dolls are expensive to replace, as I know I'd like to have them on a shelf someday when I have more space for myself.

[@francesrobinson1335]

@fridawarnemyr6025 I think I would have the same struggles you're describing if I didn't restrain myself. It's only possible because I'm sure a huge collection would end up making me anxious and miserable. I've decided to concentrate on restyling and making clothes/accessories for the dolls I have. I'm exploring ideas to dress some as characters from stories I love. Others will just get regular outfits. I'm also interested in making small dioramas for some of them. I'm working on a bedroom with two walls that will stay on my nightstand. I think this will satisfy the urge for something new. Take care of yourself and thanks for reaching out.

[@sharonthompson672]

I didn't stop at 50. But I DID finally put the brakes on. My mind works in categories/themes. For years it was Pierrot/ Harlequin/Mardi Gras dolls....then last year I discovered Freak du Chic and fell down the Monster High rabbit hole. Blissfully. 🥰 And they just reignited my creative spirit. Mermaids, Fairies, Universal Monsters, Witches, Ghosts...add in a home renovation and repainting all my thrifted furniture to fit into my cottage decor and chaos ensued. So I'm finally able to get them all unpacked, set up 9 or 10 repurposed bookcases and cabinets and set up my little imaginary world in my section of the basement adjacent to my hubbie's workshop. I'll probably be fine-tuning until they carry me out feet first, but to have my treasures around me where I can see them, embellish them, let go of the ones that no longer "spark" so someone else can treasure them....I think that's why there's such a boom in professional organizers and storage rentals and focus on hoarding, our minds work so differently, we all journey our own paths and some of us instinctually know the way, or were brought up in a less chaotic environment so discipline and foresight comes naturally, others have had to learn by trial and error, maybe.

[@francesrobinson1335]

@@sharonthompson672 Sounds like you're having a great time. Happy for you!

[@veryannoyedrn]

Context to me is important Collecting because you love the Thing™? Yes! Collecting because you want to preserve history and have a personal museum? Yes! Both of these usually (this is the key word here) stem from a place of love, less likely to toss them all out when they dont want them anymore But whenever the context is that you wanna make money or following a trend well.... Collecting to sell isnt inherently bad but unfortunately it leads to greedy practices like scalping and buying way more than you even want just so you can sell later, and thats even assuming they’ll be worth anything Following trends isnt inherently harmful, but buying way more than you need for something with a very limited lifespan of worth is begging to become landfill

[@edwardtheinsane]

I was watching a collector who was talking about how their collecting space was so crammed with stuff and they had so many dolls that their hobby made them feel overwhelmed. And I was like, but you keep buying more? And then I reminded myself that sometimes we keep collecting beyond our ability to do so (financially, mentally, physically, etc.) because marketing and the materialistic/consumerist culture we live in manipulates us to do so. I don't blame that person for continuing to buy, because when you're deep in a collecting culture, especially in online communities, sometimes you feel like you HAVE to keep collecting to "keep up" or because of the dreaded FOMO. All that is to say, I agree with you that we shouldn't attack our fellow collectors for doing the thing we are all doing. If you have a problem with scarcity mindset, over-consumption, manipulative marketing, and so on, blame the people that create that stuff, not the people that are being manipulated by it, just like you are.

[@sharonthompson672]

That was very appreciated, how you expressed your opinion while remaining empathetic to other collectors who may be in a different mindset than you. Thank you.

[@ScrubLordKyle]

To an extent though. Yes it’s very hard to pull yourself out of that hole once you land there, but people who make content online about it (ie influencers, KZbinrs), for example, are actively part of the problem. Recognising your “addiction” is important, but it sort of doesn’t do anything meaningful if you aren’t at least *trying* to take steps to crawl out of the overconsumption hole

[@thedollsthewitchandthewardrobe]

I love what you are saying here - I found Midge and bought the 2 I found. Guess what I'm going to do with number 2 - I have a dear dolly friend that I want to surprise with her as a bday gift - knowing that my friend has no chance of getting her because of where they are located. (Hopefully they don't see this comment - LOL - I want it to be a surprise). But yeah I didn't want to tell anyone about getting both because I know there's a lot of judgement out there about this in particular.

[@amberdawn868]

I feel the same! I would want to get two so I can give one to my mom (Midge was always her favorite of Barbie's friends ever since childhood) and keep one for myself, but I don't want to be judged for it by anyone in the store that just sees two Midges in my cart.

[@ratimge]

when mh g3 first came out, i was set on buying every draculaura doll. i quickly changed my mind lol, as there are some dolls i dont really need and aren’t attached too. a lot of people in the community however will still get every mh doll that drops, wether they like the design or not

[@EvgeniiaGubin]

I don't understand collecting dolls you don't like. Some people may love Barbie, but I highly doubt that those who have entire rooms of unopened dolls from the 80s and 90s really enjoy the aesthetics of these dolls. These boxes are just like books placed sideways to each other, you can’t see the dolls there. Just having all the doll models is also strange, if you take, for example, dolls from the 80s and 90s, then you have to watch out for the plasticizer of the rubber parts of the doll. Collecting can be done from an aesthetic point of view, but some see it as an investment. It’s interesting for me to have dolls whose history is interesting to me, about which I can tell something - this is a valuable part of my collection, but there are just lol or rainbow tall ones, in which I don’t really see the value, they are just bright, like fruit caramels in a vase. I like them, that's why I buy them, but I'm not ready to pay 70-80 euros for these dolls.

[@ariadnefrolich7243]

One of the ways I limit my consumption is to buy second hand, especially if I only want one particular doll out of a box set of 3 or something like that. For an example I really wanted the raven pet from the Monster High gen 3 Coffin Bean set, but I didn't want the rest of the set (and I wasn't going to pay $25 plus for a tiny piece of a set). Found the raven and her stand for about $7 second hand. Now my Gen 1 River Styxx finally has a pet

[@torosmoon]

100% agree! thats what i do with sylvanians/calico critters as well. i am one of those people that really only want one or two figures from a set so i dont see the point in wasting the money/space in buying the whole thing for me personally. especially since calico critters usually use the same mould for each species regardless of release. its a lot less expensive to buy individual dolls and even clothes second hand. that being said, i completely understand when people want the whole family! different strokes for different folks lol

[@MultiSuperdinosaur]

I’m a staunch 1 per person collector. I also recognize that collecting hobbies are a privilege.

[@nixxdra]

Just out of curiosity, is your philosophy for all dolls or just for limited edition/limited quantity dolls? Because I feel like when it comes to mass-produced playline dolls, it makes more sense for a person to buy multiples of dolls if that will make them happy, than for the dolls to sit on shelves before inevitably ending up who knows where, where no one can enjoy them.

[@milkcanfan97]

6:10 I think the line is when it starts harming the person collecting them and the people around them. Of course that's not something people in the internet should go sleuthing or gossipping about though! 17:20 THIS!! Collectors fighting each other instead of fighting the megacorpos mass producing and distributing these little plastic women is so disappointing. There's strenght in numbers wether mattel or whoever listen or not.

[@ismaelrodriguez6420]

My thoughts precisely. Instead of getting mad at others, get mad at Mattel for pulling the stunt.

[@littlemisstfc]

I’m guilty of buying multiples of the same character, but only because of the emotional attachment I have with that character. For example, I’m a huge fan of The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Ever since Disney Store made a classic doll of Esmeralda, I bought multiples of her to show there’s an audience for characters like her; it’s also because of my emotional attachment to her. I also make sure to dress my multiples in outfits she wore in the movie. I also collect lines of the Bratz repros because I get enjoyment from the feeling of my girlies being together. I feel like overconsumption is a double edged sword because there’s no certain way to determine the motivation behind collecting multiples or an entire line. At the end of the day, I think it’s down to whether or not the doll makes you happy and if you’re motivated by fomo.

[@fusetunes]

similar boat here. i prefer to only have one of things that i truly like, but my all time favorite character is gizmoduck from the original ducktales who doesn’t have much merch at all. because a couple of the things that do exist for him are small and really cheap/easy to find, i’ve picked up multiples and display them all together because it fills in the gaps on my shelf and just makes me happy since i love the character so much. but i feel like i’d draw the line there, cause doing that for anyone else especially if they’re a more popular character with lots of merch would definitely overwhelm me instead.

[@josiedungeoneer]

Yeah, the whole world could use a large dose of minding their own business...

[@veganvampdraculaura]

perfect timing because i need to stop making doll purchases

[@sharonthompson672]

I've hit pause for now as I'm determined to get my hobby/display space set up before bringing anything else into the house. ♥️

[@linphillips8331]

Around 2003, I was collecting those Mattel Kelly dolls. I was obsessed with them and thought they were so stinkin' cute. There was a harder-to-find one, of which I had multiples because for some reason they were abundant in my area. I made the mistake posting a picture in a doll forum and was met with the "hmph. I see why I couldn't find any--you took them all." 🤷‍♀

[@jenny-fishy7]

Ooo this is such an interesting topic! As a collector of art commissions, I haven't thought much about the "wasteful" aspect of collecting since what I receive is all digital files that don't take up physical space. I definitely do see in my space FOMO and people "competing" to get art from popular artists and using that as a sort of status symbol. There is unfortunately an overspending problem and I have seen far too many people dump unsustainable amounts of money in short periods of time and then ending up chargebacking artists and being blacklisted from the community. I take your point for not looking in on the outside and judging though because we never know the situation, and it's something I have to watch myself for in the future, though it's hard to draw a line since I think for artists the headache of collectors overextending can affect their livelihoods, and so it's not just hurting themselves.

[@abbylarkspur]

There is an element of gambling in a chase doll or in trying to get something rare. I definitely felt like I was pulling the slots when I was running around looking for dolls on discount. It makes sense in that light that people get rage-filled and accusatory. But just like the winners of the lottery, a lot of it is luck and the rest is the amount of resources you're willing or able to dedicate. At least with dolls the odds are better 😅

[@armpe-p7l]

Some collectors miss out on one limited release, get mad, and suddenly become environmentalists and advocate against overconsumption.

[@Anny-dn9ix]

I'm actually so happy that you made a videos about this since this already happened to me once, i bought both a Draculaura in box and out, both were resold by different people and i have a couple of friends that share the same love for dolls as me and I did get a lot of mean texts from a friend of mine. They also follow you and i hope they change their opinion about buying 2 dolls and i sometimes buy more than 2 dolls because i want to customise them. I get a lot of mean comments about this and I've been collecting for only 3 months. Thank you so much for bringing this up since i really look up to you

[@SS-xr7jf]

I feel like going after collectors for being “wasteful” or “overconsuming” is a bit of a missing the forest for the trees situation. There’s so many way more wasteful habits and societal norms that we would be way more effective being addressed than focusing on individuals collecting some oddball thing that makes them happy. Packaging, single use plastic, and things being made not of quality meant to last is way more of a problem than collecting even a lot of one thing. I do frown upon people who have the completionist mindset, though. Not because I have an objection based on overconsumption. But because if too many people are lax with their standards for completionist reasons, companies get the idea that they don’t have to try. So they get lazy and less incentivized and produce inferior stuff than they would have otherwise. It pushes quality down for everyone.

[@nixxdra]

There aren’t enough completionists in the world for companies to be able to rely on them completely to buy bad products. There are a lot of reasons companies think they have to produce low quality products but I don’t think that’s one of them.

[@SS-xr7jf]

@ you say that but people willingly buying Pokémon games regardless of quality is probably why game freak can release the same game every year. Or even worse versions of the same game. Same with those million terrible live action Disney films. Companies absolutely will churn out safe slop if they know it will still sell, even with the cut in quality.

[@nixxdra]

@@SS-xr7jf Oh you meant in general, I thought you were talking specifically about dolls. I meant that in order for something to be worth it to companies, it can’t just sell, it needs to make a profit. The adult doll collecting community makes up a smaller portion of consumers than the companies’ target audience, and the portion of us that are completionists aren’t nearly enough to make manufacturing probably a few hundred thousand low quality playline dolls profitable. But for other things, yeah I can see where you’re coming from.

[@royalcrumble2384]

Packaging and single use plastics are massive issues in doll collecting as well, though. Consider how much packaging goes into each doll. Also, just because societal issues are worse doesn't mean that overconsumption and waste from consumers aren't also issues. Companies are manipulative and wasteful, but people who still insist on over consuming are rewarding that behaviour and creating demand for more waste.

[@SS-xr7jf]

@@royalcrumble2384 like a third of single use plastic is in food and beverages. You could put every single doll in the most garish, wasteful plastic packaging and it still wouldn’t matter in the grand scheme of things, as it’s such a small market share compared to other sectors. And fixing the packaging problem isn’t something successfully dealt with by berating individual consumers for buying an extra doll anyways. It’s a systemic problem that can only be solved with a top down approach. This means lobbying companies to change their approach to packaging or lobbying governments to force the change to happen. If you simply do not buy a doll, the company will not assume it was for wasteful packaging purposes. They will assume you did not want the doll itself. This will not improve their packaging. They will just pivot to a different doll/toy line with the same packaging problems. That is not to say that individuals choosing to buy less or reduce their individual waste production is doing anything wrong. That’s a noble, if privileged, way to live one’s life. And I’m glad those people exist, as their existence opens doors in the market for innovative products that focus on more sustainable packaging practices to emerge. Encouraging consumers to get used to and try those changes can help pivot the industries in better directions. However, none of that happens by complaining that a person bought an extra thing that they like but didn’t need. You just end up being loathed and then ignored when you do that.

[@LakelandluvsBlythe]

you are wise beyond your years Darling!

[@art-eroflore]

"Tell me how your day is going" WELL cammy i found a 1991 holiday barbie with her dress on at Savers and i bought her and i love her. i like collecting things that need a new home!

[@chickenwire88]

Something else that I think needs to be said that nobody is really talking about, and something that I actually got a lot of flack from big doll creators about is the issue of buying from resellers. I have seen a lot of anger and vitriol directed at collectors that get desperate and buy from resellers, ideally, I do think that it is detrimental to buy from resellers but, I don't see any of the same people that are attacking collectors that are desperate to buy the doll that they really love that is no longer available actually attacking the companies that let resellers get away with this to begin with. I had a long argument with a very well known and popular doll influencer about this very subject when she made a reel on Instagram pretty much blaming collectors buying from resellers for the resellers' actions.

[@elizabethclarke4981]

I'm not 100% against buying things from resellers because what if you wanted a collector doll, but u didn't have the money for it at the time and by the time u get it, it's sold out so if u really want it, u might have to go that route. Also, it's not just scalpers that are buying things out like crazy, regular costumers do it too, I've seen plenty of collectors with quadruple of the same doll so they're also part of the problem of lack of availability

[@ismaelrodriguez6420]

I think it is the frustration of feeding to the scalpers. As long as people get desperate and agree to pay five times the retail price, they will continue to abuse the collectors FOMO. I have purchased many of my dolls online, but I refuse to pay what they are wanting for that $20 Midge doll. It is criminal.

[@canadaedwards]

I don't think this is something a company can even stop except limiting how much each person buys online.

[@ReddBluGreen]

The Midge situation has been kinda...oof. usually I have 0 issue or with someone buying multiple of the same doll. Not even something I think about honestly. But when every Target only has TWO dolls and everyone knows that, it's kinda a jerk move to buy both for yourself, imo. Like in elementary school when your teacher would say "no seconds until eveyone gets a piece". Like, yes, ultimately it's Mattel's fault for doing this to begin with, but the situation is what it is. I'm not gonna say anything to people I see who bought more than one Midge. But I will privately side-eye them lol. I don't think they're a terrible person or anything, just that it was an inconsiderate thing that they did.

[@joelast645]

those individuals buying midge are ebay scalpers...they are not doll collectors

[@ReddBluGreen]

@@joelast645 I was talking about collectors who bought multiple for themselves, not for reselling

[@joelast645]

@@ReddBluGreen midge is ugly....i do not want her

[@annepandesal]

Your comment is exactly what i think! Thanks for putting it into words. Mattel is to blame for this artificial scarcity sadly thats how it is, and yet some collectors act inconsiderately

[@jenneyblade]

"Mind your own business" 😂 oldie but goody saying that applies to so many scenarios. Its sad how some marketing can cause ppl to be so... unhinged and attack others. I want my hobby to be fun and not full of dolly violence. Thanks for covering this topic! You crack me up.

[@ChristineSG19]

They call it a community for a reason. Why can’t we be happy for others when they get something we wanted instead of jealous? And even if you’re jealous, can we not attack them? Because 99.9% of the time it’s not their fault.

[@thebunnyfoofoo]

If there is someone running around collecting all of the Midge’s so that no unworthy people have them, we should not hunt them down. We should give them a reality show!

[@zenaiwilson405]

lol i love how at the end you kind of went class consciousness(basically). we need to be upset with the companies doing this, not other collectors. i do believe there is such thing as overconsumption but its hard to see the line because of the type of system we live in. i think this was an awesome video. thanks darling for helping others find compassion.

[@bratzscene3131]

I LITERALLY just saw a post in the Bratz Facebook group about somebody who spent 2-3K on a Bratz 2pack. Yes, you read that correctly, 2-3 THOUSAND USD. A lot of newer collectors are WHACK...

[@DefyReality-ll2cg]

I saw that on reddit, it was one of the play sports teams, Cloe and Dana, absolutely crazy!

[@citrinedragonfly]

Out of genuine curiosity, why is it psycho? If that person had the money to spare (was still able to pay the bills, etc.), and that's what they wanted, why not spend it on a Bratz 2-pack? If something means that much to them that they're willing to pay what, for me, would be an unreasonable price, it's their money.

[@drippycity4135]

The collector buying it is wack?? Not the person who put it up for that price?

[@bratzscene3131]

@@drippycity4135 no ur absolutely right!!! resellers, scalpers and scammers are disgusting.

[@StarSparkleofficial]

Unfortunally doll prices have gone crazy, especially Bratz and MH dolls that went viral on tiktok. Dolls that used to cost 70$ in a great condition are now being sold for 200$ with missing accessories.

[@vanillaseahorse4228]

Overconsumption really only bothers me when its a type of product that has an expiry date and will go bad if you don’t use it up, skincare especially. When I see TikToks of people showing their shelves with 40 moisturizers and 20 cleansers and toners, I immediately know that 95% of that collection is going straight into the trash because there is no feasible way to use it all. Wasteful packaging on anything also grinds my gears, but its just extra insult to injury when it’s wasteful packaging *and* product.

[@sunlitegodis]

Is no one going to mention the best part of this video? 17:56 HSM lyric quote…I laughed and just…YES we are all STARS and we see YOU! Thank you for this keep on collecting…and minding your business!

[@citrinedragonfly]

I've collected things, in one form or another, since I was a kid. Right now, dolls, books, and certain Doctor Who memorabilia are my thing. I don't think it's "overconsumption" if a person can afford what they want to buy/collect without it impacting their daily living expenses and circumstances. I had a high school student ask me last term if I thought it was stupid to spend $700 on a pair of sneakers. I asked the kid if they had that kind of money to spend on the sneakers, and they said yes. I asked the kid if they had any expenses the money should go toward instead. Kid said no. So I said, if the sneakers would make you happy, and you think they're worth the money, then it wasn't a stupid idea. Kid seemed surprised I would say that, so I explained about my doll collection. Add up the amount I've paid over the decade plus I've been collecting, and it's WAY over $700. Is it overconsumption? No. I have discretionary income, and that's how I choose to spend it. And when I decide that it's time to pare down the collection, I'll do it the way I did last time, at a community yard sale. I had shoe boxes I'd used to bring things over in, and I had so many dolls I was getting rid of, that after the first one or two sold, and I had a bunch of little kids coming over asking how much one doll or one accessory was, I decided each shoe box was $3. As long as the parents were cool with it, whatever the kid could "fit" in the shoe box was $3. Those kids spent a lot of time looking at the dolls and choosing their favorites, and grabbing accessories, extra clothes, etc. to put in the shoe boxes. And whenever the parents asked me if I was sure, since they knew how much the dolls cost new, my response was always, "I'm paring down my collection. They're going to Goodwill if I don't sell them here, and here, I can see how happy they make the kids." I did the exact same thing with my old Star Trek figure collection before I got into doll collecting. That's just me. Everyone does their hobbies differently, and it's all good.

[@kluski3423]

Collecting stops being healthy when buying a doll is more important than buying food or paying bills. Also, when you run out of space, yet you're still buying more dolls.

[@greenbean3582]

I feel the real issue is hoarding more than overconsumption. Like this hobby is not the environmental sink we need to worry about. Also end of the day dolls are toys. If someone suddenly wants to get rid of their collection there's enough kids out there in need before they reach a landfill. The issue with resellers is def big with overconsumption tho. We as a community need to let scalpers face financial repercussions #MakeDollsCheapAgain The influencerification of collecting is mad goofy. Tho this is def a wider issue than this one community of everyone trying to become "aspirational" clout chasers

[@jenniferch3ck]

sorry but when you said collecting cups makes them happy i had to pause. I don't believe something as shallow and consumerist as collecting giant boring cups could actually make someone happy. That's tragic. Being happy doesn't mean filling a void with stuff, and no fulfilled person would ever desire to collect Stanley cups of all things. I just can't with this

[@nixxdra]

There are many people who see dolls as just colored hunks of plastic and don’t understand how anyone could desire to collect them either. For every person whose experiences you’re willing to hand-wave away, there’s a person who would do the same to you. It’s all just opinions at the end of the day.

[@jackiecook8753]

Actually, this is a great topic. Everyone definitely needs to at least think about these things. Evaluate your situation. Ask yourself these questions.

[@juliusmaloney]

I feel like the passionate frustration expressed (and watching the commentary across Reddit was popcorn worthy) regarding the Midge chase doll, was very much equally aimed at Mattel as much as other collectors. The main complaints I did see aimed at collectors was not those that bought two (though I did see some of that) was those that bought 3 or 4 because we did see some stores get more than just two dolls. I think once you move beyond two (one to remain boxed and one to remove) you’re going to naturally raise the ire of other collectors. The example I’ve seen are those collectors that have 7-10+ of the same rare doll (both vintage and modern), and I’m sorry but for me that’s hoarding and creating scarcity.

[@naesala]

I have a fairly large collection of Ace Attorney merch(300+ pieces not counting doubles), and in my case, I've gotten into getting doubles sometimes because it reduces the anxiety of losing my only one of something! If i have two of a keychain, I'm more comfortable having one just for display and the other for actually using. Plus, sometimes I find doubles when buying bulk listings anyway, so I come into them naturally a lot. I only ever display one of something, but having those doubles means I can comfortably show them off on the go!

[@superstar-eb5wb]

I do hope that one day soon we’ll stop buying from the big companies, especially things we actually don’t need like dolls and games. That’s my biggest issue.

[@superstar-eb5wb]

I actually think the biggest problem is that capitalism makes us think we need all of these things, and also we keep helping to give power to the companies that cause all the issues in our world.

[@larynOneka8080]

I have a mortgage and children so I can only purchase the dolls that I really love. I watch doll channels to see the dolls that I love and don't have.

[@annagagapearson]

I feel very concerned about the consumerism involved in the hello kitty/sanrio community there’s just so many items available and when scrolling on r/hello kitty it feels like people go out of their way to buy so much useless junk

[@amyroll9936]

Exactly. I follow a HK Facebook group and the stalking of stores like CVS/Walgreens/TJMaxx for merchandise is something else!

[@TinyGhosty]

I really enjoy your channel and your perspective. You radiate kindness and intelligence and I feel a sense of community just being here!💜

[@Dollparade321]

I think about this every day as a person who strives to consume very little, I don't buy ANYTHING brand new except some of my dolls. I don't know if my efforts cancel out my consumption, I just don't have the answers. I suppose the real enemy isn't us at all, it's the rich and famous creating more environmental damage in a single week than a doll collector does in a lifetime. I will cherish my dolls and one day they will be landfill contribution- we can't let the thought consume us because we can't win, make sure to enjoy your life and not obsess.

[@denks6100]

i try to be as thoughtful as i can with doll packaging. keeping the art or cool structures and recycling the rest. i was gifted a duplicate doll for christmas and i couldnt be happier! as an artist i can make all the peices into something totally new or use them to restyle other dolls! if you dont wanna reduce, then reuse and recycle!

[@DarlingDollz]

That's awesome! Packaging is definitely one area where I feel guilty buying as much as I do even when I recycle the plastics and cardboards. I should definitely explore more creative options, too!

[@amberdawn868]

I have so much cool art from doll packaging on my walls, especially from Rainbow High boxes. Cutting up the boxes from stuff I already bought is certainly cheaper than also buying a bunch of posters to cover up white walls.

[@Spidrick]

People can make their own choices about what or how much they want to collect anything. I think collectors who may buy multiples of something are being lumped in with resellers who are currently a plague on the community.

[@casin0circus]

idk imo i feel like there's a difference between enjoying collecting something because you love that thing and it "sparks joy" to have it around, vs. hopping on collecting something because it's a trend and want to like, purchase approval from peers or something? like maybe i just don't get the appeal and i'm not the target demo, but rae dunn and stanleys seem like a trend that won't last and have more to do with fitting in or flexxing or something? At least with dolls or kaleidoscopes or vintage cards or whatever the hell, it feels like there's at least something about those things that speak to or have charm for that person, whereas the stanleys and rae dunn stuff feels soulless to me. Am I crazy, or is this not the second or third time in the past 10 years there's been a fad over an insulated cup with nothing distinct about them that people were collecting and bragging about having because of the brand recognition? I wouldn't be surprised to see them being dropped and resold in the next year or so, very different from your grandma's precious moments statuette collection she's had since before you were born and won't let go of till she dies. whatever, maybe there are people who find meaning in what I find soulless, but I'm still gonna judge about it tbh. sorry for being a hater.

[@strayiggytv]

@@casin0circus the problem is unless you're jean grey you have no idea why anyone is collecting anything. You can hate the trend but presuming things about the people who collect is pretty judge worthy too tbh.

[@casin0circus]

@@strayiggytv true, but I don't have to be a mind reader to notice patterns that paint a picture. You don't have to even buy dolls to engage with the doll community, so much of it is just talking about what we love about them and the designs etc. There's at least interesting conversations being had. Same with pretty much anything you could conceivably collect with any amount of character, even seashells or whatever. However, it gets a little concerning when there doesn't seem to be much to talk about other than "look I got the new thing" or "look how much i have" because they're basically all near identical and have no distinguishing character to them by design, and the people posting their hauls and hoards all wear the same "uniform", have the same look, and generally for the most part come across in the same way (of course there are exceptions, but generally speaking) vs how i literally have no idea what i'm in for if i talk to somebody on a random collecting subreddit for something more specific or find a youtuber who talks about their collections that have more personality. It never feels like there's an overwhelming similarity between the majority of them in any one space? But stanley cups, and rae dunn, both function on some level as class and status signifiers. Sylvanians do not. The fact that so many communities for collecting trendy expensive class signifiers have mostly upper middle class, thin, coneventionally attractive white influencers with greige aesthetic interiors could also mean nothing! idk! like people are allowed to be boring, i'm not a cop. I just think there are facets worth examining here.

[@strayiggytv]

@casin0circus basically you did what the video was explicitly about. You found a way to get into others business and justify why your version of collecting is "superior". I mean you said it yourself, you're a hater 😂 Also Sylvania families are really expensive and anyone with a huge collection is signifying wealth pretty significantly for anyone in the know.

[@casin0circus]

@@strayiggytv I think you're assuming the wrong tone here. I think if people *genuinely* enjoy something enough to collect it, regardless of if it's stanley cups or toenails, that's good for them. The point I'm trying to make, is that there is more to it than that on a grander scale. It's worth noting for yourself as the consumer, if you're only collecting something to participate in a trend, to signify status, or to "fit in". Is there a narrative around the thing you're collecting? in terms of what it says about you, and is that the point? That's something only the individual can decide for themselves if they're being honest with themselves, but that doesn't mean we can't or shouldn't critique very mainstream trends. They are inherently not the same as niche interests. Sylvanians can be expensive, yes, but they don't function as class signifiers at least not in the same way because they aren't main stream enough for the vast majority of people to even know what they are, let alone what they cost. They don't communicate your income bracket to the average person, and don't go hand in hand with other "aspirational" aesthetics. My criticism of a trend is not the same as me saying it's open season to personally target and bully people for having ugly ceramic kitchenware. It is actually important as a society to have these conversations with ourselves though about it when it becomes mainstream, what the general draw to collect something might be, and if we *actually* want something, or if it's something being sold to us as some fomo lifestyle bullshit to make you feel insecure or poor or whatever. These are complex topics. but also yes, i am a hater! (of the cups)

[@fusetunes]

honestly i agree with you. yeah we can never know the circumstances and i would never say go out and hate on someone’s collection video, duh! but being mindful and critical is important and tbh it’s also fun for me because i like to be more in touch with these issues and how they affect my life and the communities i interact with. no collection is ever ‘necessary’ but there are definitely still ways to make sure it’s coming from a place of love that you can financially and mentally handle, and there is absolutely a more insidious side with how capitalism and influencer culture affects our perceptions of fomo and how much is enough, on top of all the environmental aspects. this is coming from someone whose top favorite movies include frozen so i’m not saying all big corporate products are scary evil bad things that need to be avoided, BUT i do think “just let people enjoy things” is going too far in the other direction. ~nuance~ as they say

[@susanegley4149]

Lol, I thought the Stanley cup convo was about hockey for WAY too long. This conversation happens in the tarot community at least yearly. People collecting when they don't really have the means. There's a lot of people buying back up copies for decks. Which, sometimes I can understand. It might be your favorite, or a hard to find deck. The community that really gets to me is the cosmetics community. They have more makeup than they could use before it all turns bad. Which, I feel fits the definition of being wasteful. It's not a flex in my eyes. As far as the doll community goes there are a couple of people who I watch with the same interest I have when I watch Hoarders. I watch and wonder how this all ends. Do they just wake up one day and suddenly wonder what was it all for? Do they keep it into old age? How does this play out? Oh and let's not forget the content creators who do nothing but unboxings of those cursed blind box toys. We will be buried in the plastic packaging of those shitty little toys. Those creators are making some sort of living by doing those videos , but at what cost?

[@NeurozombieX]

As a comic collector, I see this a lot sadly. People seem to look at a lot of collectors and go ‘you’re a hoarder’ without knowing a person at all or just thinking about how they themselves would feel. Personally I think overconsumption is buying alot of stuff that you don’t feel like you personally need / doesn’t bring you joy. If your just buying a ton of (in my communities case) comics for the sake of doing it and not because your actually going to enjoy reading them, looking at them or supporting the artist. I don’t really know a lot about the doll community but it interests me a lot. I also think a lot of people buy stuff and get that hit of adrenaline but the second they have the item they don’t really feel anything towards it, or seeing their collection grow. Binge buying is definitely an issue nowadays too with online shopping being so accessible, people get that hit of adrenaline a lot of the time and then get hooked on the act of buying, not collecting or buying things you will enjoy. That’s just my take though from someone who isn’t necessarily in the doll community but is in other collecting communities.

[@CodenameSailorEarth]

I'm glad you touched on the competition aspect. I could live 1000 years if collectors never needed competition with each other ever again. My stalker has openly come at me and a few other doll collectors thinking that she needs to be the "only and best" Sailor Moon doll collector in the universe. If she sees another woman with a bigger collection, she will kiss up to them at first and then after a while, she will threaten them, put them on blast, go after their husbands and kids, spread lies about them and then hound them on multiple accounts. It's insane!! Your doll collection is just that, yours! It's about buying what makes you happy. There is no competition when it comes to just making yourself feel happy. As for me, part of my collection is what I could save from childhood as I survived two floods, part is about me giving my inner child what she lost or missed out on, and the rest is just because I like dolls and I sometimes buy dolls just to turn them into Sailor Moon characters because I'm still salty BanDai hasn't made more versions of the characters and that there's a bunch that never got a doll. What another doll collector buys can't affect me.

[@strudel_reviews]

For me my collection has been rebuilt to the Monster High g3 core dolls (excluding core refresh, I like them but I already have the original core dolls) all five of the wild hearts crew dolls, a MyScene Barbie I got at my local thrift store (I found the head by itself and put her on a made to move body) Barbie Life in the Dreamhouse Midge and Raquelle that I got at the same thrift store, my childhood Mattel Winx bloom doll, the A's from Rainbow High,and right now I'm slowly but surely working on building my ever After High 1st chapter collection because I have wanted them for years, and I also eventually plan on getting the Barbie Dream Besties because I think they're cute

[@callalilly4743]

Its a problem. Most of us are in denial about the it. It's become hoarding in a lot of cases.

[@ismaelrodriguez6420]

I can honestly say that I collect for the joy of having these little time capsules that bring back childhood memories. I will also say, that I do not care what anyone else collects. If it brings them joy, then I am happy for them. If a person is lucky enough to find the "rare" midge doll and buys them both, good for them. The ones that annoy me are the scalpers who go out, get both dolls from a location and then post them online for five times the retail price. I really hope they all end up having to keep the doll, because no one buys it from them. That is acting in bad faith. I am also annoyed with Mattel for pulling this stunt. Because that is all it is, a stunt. The official release date of the doll is tomorrow and I am certain that there will be more available at some point. I would love to have her, but if I can't then I am ok with it. Recently I did share the number of Barbies in my collection and a friend asked me if when is going to be enough, my answer was never. I feel that no one has the right to judge why and how many I do collect. But like many have stated here, when the collection stops bringing joy, then maybe is time to stop.

[@WrenMcNally]

I do very much agree with most of what you said. The exception I have is there are definable behaviours that show if someone is suffering from hoarding. The main three things are, is it impeding your space in your home? Can you safely access the areas of your home that you need to. Is it affecting your personal relationships? This one can be difficult to lay out because some people just dont understand the want to collect certain things but basically are you sacrificing most of your relationships over your collecting. And thirdly, is it negatively affecting your money. Do you have your bills paid, do you have enough for food, housing, electricity, heat, medication, ect. The one part I whole heartedly agree with is only discussing it with people you consider your friends, not random people on the internet. You may have good intentions but it really is not helping them. Hoarders need continued support from people around them and mental help most likely. If you are half way across the world and not their therapist chances are this is not what they need. This was a good video though. People really should treat eachother with more kindness. Arguments in the community are not cool.

[@parleymanderson7527]

It’s not only about how much things people accumulate but also how their mindsets are. I think it’s totally fine to have people in a community to have a large collection because personally it’s sustainable for them, it’s dangerous when most of the community is taking about how you should buy more things, framing having large collection as normal ( it’s not for most people) or, most importantly, joking about shopping addiction ( saying things like " I’m totally addicted 😅") or saying it’s for mental health reasons. If we set aside the financial and environmental arguments, fundamentally wanting to buying things over and over again for mental gratification is not healthy and not sustainable because you always have to chase new things to get that "high". I come from the art community and this is such a big problem with lots of people overbuying art supplies the won’t ever use up and are still inclined to buy more because noone talks about how having an art supply addiction is not a quirky thing.

[@markgoldby6502]

Collecting anything is in essence overconsumption

[@sharonthompson672]

Bingo! 6:01 "When does it start being unhealthy?" Because, being an odd, eccentric, idiosyncratic individual my whole life, weird behavior IS my norm. That doesn't make it wrong, just. different. ✌️

[@parleymanderson7527]

Just add to the discussion, I think it starts being unhealthy when people normalize buying things to get that mental gratification or to fill a void in their mind. And a lot of communities even ones based on doing things ( drawing , playing an instrument, knitting, ect) usually jokes about " buying addiction " like it’s a quirk ( saying things like "I’m totally having and addiction 😂") OR they would frame buying more things as " healing your inner child", "treating yourself to something nice".

[@sharonthompson672]

​@@parleymanderson7527 Yes, good point 👍 but I see so much gray area, like, a collector spectrum, from the highly disciplined collector who methodically acquires, curates, displays and maintains their collection to the ADHD-afflicted enthusiast who just wants to be ABLE to get to the point someday of having their pretty things around them so they can enjoy them, to the hoarder who's beyond most help, but still continues to bring "stuff" (collectibles at this point?) into the house, and every one else to varying degrees in between. 🤔 It's definitely complicated and society is so judgy now.....

[@Wendigo-Bait]

I'm gonna be honest, is the point of collecting not overconsumption? Like the goal is to have it all, so... I don't necessarily think it's a bad thing as long as you're not throwing into the trash

[@rubyv1350]

Not everyone's goal is to have it all. That's not the only purpose of collecting. Lots of people prefer a small collection and intentionally set limits. The purpose of collecting for those kinds of people is to appreciate and care for what they have and the enjoyment the dolls bring. Not everyone needs to be constantly acquiring new dolls or have a massive collection. People can if they want to, but I disagree with the idea that the purpose of collecting is overconsumption.

[@swiftieinabottle]

I don't understand why anyone would buy two or more of the EXACT same doll.

[@neb.9489]

Some people like to have two so they can keep one in the box and one out of the box

[@Iroh12345]

With the Midge example, it's extra silly because every store only got two and nobody knows if, where, when there will be more. Normally I don't really care if people buy doubles, it's just not something I usually do myself. But with Midge, I get the frustration. (And I'm not even in the US, so there's 0 chance for me!)

[@TinyGhosty]

I have my favorite g3 Draculaura doll because I rarely touch or play with my displayed dolls. I love having a spare because I can redress her in extra RH/SH clothes and put her on my desk and even take her out of the house without having obsessive thoughts about "ruining my doll." However, I do understand what you mean when completionist collectors have 2 of EVERY doll with 2 outfits just to have every version displayed. Especially when they make videos and complain about the ones they don't like.

[@drippycity4135]

Like the others said, if they buy multiple of the exact same thing, it might serve different purposes. One to display, one to play with. And in the OOAK community, one or more specifically for styling

[@psychotophatcat]

I have three Victoria Whitman dolls from Rainbow High because thanks to her specific rooting, body blushing, faceup, and freckles, each doll looks quite different to me. I have one in her normal outfit, another in a handmade one I bought from a doll clothing designer, and a third in her box to keep in mint condition in case one of my others gets messed up. I never totally understood duplicates until I saw her; she's my favorite all of the entire Rainbow High series and restyling her to my own aesthetic makes me happy.

[@Somethingawful777]

Honestly I fully agree with what you said. I really appreciate you opening my eyes some to this conversation.

[@adamtijerina8029]

Overconsumption isn't really a conversation about what's unhealthy. It's about the environment

[@arianafox365]

I have a magnet on my fridge that says You can’t make everyone happy. You are not an avocado I think about it a lot

[@SpookyDeerArt]

fandom has become so, so horrible to exist in and people being meaner and jumping to make callouts and put people on blast for the slightest thing, no matter how inconsequential, only makes it worse. the adoption of therapy speak and diagnosing strangers on the internet with mental illnesses and further co-opting those same words to wield them against even more strangers when they buy the rare thing you also want for your collection- or heaven forbid, *two* of the rare thing- it's all so exhausting and frustrating to exist in and around. thank you for pointing out the important rule of minding your own business because it really seems like everyone has forgotten it- but also thank you for mentioning that we need to be kinder. the world is already so horrible, putting a stranger on blast for buying two of the collector midge variant isn't going to make you any happier in this horrible world. not to get all preachy, but for the last few years i've actively dedicated myself to being kinder online- i wouldn't say i was overtly cruel all the time before, but now i actively seek out and reply with kind words, especially in the small fandom space i'm in. it's genuinely made me happier and i've met wonderful people that way! if you're not too shy to quote tweet a stranger and ridicule them for owning multiple calico critters, you're not too shy to say kind things instead. i feel like the caveat of not tolerating the intolerant is obvious, but it should probably be said anyway. step back from communities and online spaces that you find make you upset regularly and try to find places you can share kind words. and block people who annoy you.

[@strayastray7319]

The only thing that worries me about collecting is how broke I get sometimes. It is one expensive hobby. OH! and the space needed for them. But I love my dolls and the doll community. The dolls bring joy but most of all talking about dolls, watching doll video's like yours and reading comments of other doll collectors like me. Very fulfilling.

[@lilhonor5425]

Really appreciate your thoughts on this. I really feel uncomfortable with people throwing around ‘shopping addiction’ and ‘hoarding’ at people they don’t know. Honestly it feels like it just contributes to stigmatizing and misunderstanding mental illness. I also find a lot of these conversations about overconsumption seem to be predominantly focused towards women and or “women’s hobbies”. While I don’t think women are immune to criticism over their consumption habits it’s interesting to me that I just haven’t seen the same attitude towards like guys who collect sneakers for example.

[@torosmoon]

this is such a nice, nuanced, and good faith video. just wanted to say thank you for that! 💛

[@astelshusband2459]

I collect anime figures, including nendoroids and I know a collector that buys 3 nendos of the same character (only her favs tho). 1 for opening and carrying around, one for posing and one to stay in the box forever. She has a purpose for each figure and I have never seen her re selling. Idk, I think it's part of the collector mindset to buy maybe doubles or triples maybe if something were to happen to the figure you opened

[@coolfashiondollshow]

Yeah I agree doll collecting can very competitive and I feel like it's very often where collectors will buy a doll that is hard to find and sought after just to show it off even if they don't even like the doll. I've gotten to the point where I think it may be best to just buy dolls you actually like and want to have regardless of brand or how sought after the doll is or how hard to find. Buy what you feel would make you happy and don't worry about other people and what they buy. ❤

[@Tatuziii]

I thrift or buy dolls secondhand if i can One thing i like about transformers is that they aim to be more plastic free, look up war for cybertron siege figure packagin and compare it to war for cybertron kingdom packaging, in those 2 yeats between they minimized plastic Sure im not biggest fan of open window since people steals heads but a smaller plastic window just so you can see it is good

[@organdonor8110]

I collect horse models and I caught myself buying more and more, just because I found them in nice price or I bought a horse in different coat that I wanted, because the one I wanted was not avaliable. I ended up not bonding with the models and being unhappy because I had models that i did not like, and that took my money and space on a shelf. I ended up selling a lot of models because they were just empty fillers of my collection, that I just did not enjoy. So i think that buying things just because I can afford them, not because i really want them, is overconsumption. That's why in my "doll collection" I only have two dolls. One Smartdoll, and one cheap 60cm doll, from aliexpress. And I could buy more dolls if i wanted to, but then it would end just like with mu horses, that I would have lots of dolls that are just sitting on a shelf and watching me adore my one favourite doll, and I would end ub selling the unused dolls too. Taste also changes, and sometimes the thing you liked is no longer as appealing to you as it used to be, and there is nothing wrong in selling things. You had your time enjoying having something in your collection and now it's time for someone else to enjoy the things you no longer like.

[@QueenAusetHeru]

I love how he advocated for minding our own business ❤😊 that's my take on it 🤷🏽‍♀️

[@sungexpression9093]

When two midges are per target, I do think is fair to say getting two is a little unfair. It’s not a crime though. Mattel is responsible though

[@brianmoore4891]

i personally think its not for me to choose how people get silly little dopamine, dolls are different from like cups because you can do so much with them, also i personally collect the santa set from the jewelry store baileys (they have reindeer and a sleigh and a mr and ms claus and its so pretty i love them) and i also collect nutcraker type statues/nutcracker related materials)

[@abbynever4992]

Their dopamine is in part fueled by marketing tactics that aim to get people to consume more than the planet it self can handle.

[@caspianshows]

I love this video I also think its vital us collector's view each other as collaborators

[@GUAGA0612]

This is exactly why I never share my collection on socials anymore

[@leo8812]

I have a similar collecting style where I just pick the dolls that I like the best. I have a completionist mindset for some specific things. For example, one day I would love to own every Historical American Girl Doll. I feel like this is a long term goal that I can one day achieve. I love buying dolls, but I’ve started to downsize some of my collections so that I can enjoy the dolls that I love the most. I’m trying to get out of that “comparative” mindset. I love seeing others collections, but it can make me feel like I need to have a doll that… I end up not loving!! I think this was a great video and covered a lot of my thoughts on this topic too 🩷

[@morphinpink]

I don't think buying multiples of one doll is overconsumption necessarily. Overconsumption is in the attitude people have, the way people feel they need and want every single release. If you have multiples of a doll you love that's one thing, but when compulsively buying toys without examining you even genuinely like it that's where you can really see the overconsumption. Collections take time, curation and intention. The way a lot of people collect things now do it as an aspirational competition and that IS overconsumption imo

[@april2664]

Your new end card + bgm is super cute 🫶

[@Hamsterz2006]

6:54 i collect rocks can i get the moral high ground

[@vespiaries]

laughs in fellow rock collector … the arguments i have seen about ethical mining practices are on par with this doll collection disc horse

[@ScholarBot]

This is interesting. In the tarot community, it's fairly common for collectors to buy two copies. That 2nd copy is usually purchased as a backup copy, collector copy, or to be gifted.

[@megdelaney3677]

💗Great video!!!