Finally... A place for Doll-talk!

As the title says, this is a place for Everything Dolly!
Any type of doll, any size, shape or colour!
Teenage, toddler, baby doll, ball-jointed, plastic, vinyl or silicone.

As a Mum to three boys, I was delighted when I found out I was to have a daughter.
For all the usual reasons, of course, but also, in the hope that I would finally have someone to share my passion for dolls...
Im not sure she is equally as passionate -give her time, but my five year old LOVES to play with a box of dolls every now and again.
She is, at present, sitting in front of my Barbie furniture, sifting through it, putting things in her Fisher Price dolls house, and talking avidly about the things she is finding. See, for us, THATS what its about...
Not a lot of my dolls are in original condition. Not a lot of this NRFB (Never Removed From Box) to be found here!
Either theyve been mine from childhood, or theyre picked up cheaply and lovingly restored or cleaned up in the hope that I might onsell them (yeah right!) or... well, theyre *saved* now and have a place on a shelf or in a nook at my house, rather than out there in the cold vacant world of the Toybox. I do have some that Ive scrimped and saved for because I simply couldnt do without them... *Riley Kish* cough... yes I have one... and yes, she was worth every penny!
The older I get, the more I realise - I am connected with my dolls and the energy they invoke. When Im stressed, or if Im unable to get into the garden, my other passion, I revert to my familiar energies - dolls.
I look online, I search out information, I read. I knit and crochet, but only ever do I successfully knit or crochet for my dolls. (I couldnt sit still for long enough to complete something human sized!) I may even sew for them if I cant find what I want elsewhere... That might help the endless line of naked vinyl babies we have here!

To *play* with my dolls sometimes just means picking up one, and stroking its hair, admiring its fine detail, then placing it back down again and going on my way. Or it could be that Missy wants me to change one of her dolls for her, and I will sit there fiddling with tiny poppers or zippers or whatever... Wondering about styles, sizes, shapes. Or finding an odd shoe, and rabidly hunting for the matching one :-) If you have Barbies or fashion dolls, youll know what I mean! Those shoes have a way of getting lost... like socks in the washing machine - ya know?

So - This month, Ive just purchased my first dolls online in a loooong time. Not expensive ones really. And I looked around here. Ive been TRYING desperately to de clutter. My extensive Barbie collection is almost thirty years old, and I cant sell them for what theyre worth to me, and I will not give them away... So. Im selling other things instead. And I ll showcase my dolls online. Here. And hopefully others will share their loves, trials, experiences with dolls... If not, I ll yak on, and post photos and links...

Thanks for reading!
Happy Dolling :)