One of the things I really love to do here on Confessions of a Doll Collectors Daughter is to spotlight other collectors. This months Collector Spotlight is on a collector you may have seen before. She has a number of doll related social media sites, including a popular YouTube channel.
I’d like to introduce you to Grace aka Pixie Blossom. She was awesome enough to fill out these questions regarding who she is as a collector. Grace not only answered my questions here for the post, but she also edited her own video spotlight! You’ll find that at the bottom of the post. Enjoy!
Collector Spotlight Badge
Q: Tell us a bit about yourself.
A: I am 25 years old from BC Canada. I am an artist and a vlogger and run a channel on YouTube where I review various TV shows and movies, and am an all around fangirl for a large number of things.
Q: How long have you collected? How did you catch the collecting bug?
A: I am a pretty new collector! I have been collecting for about 10 months now…just under a year!
My collection started with my interest in the new My Little Pony show Friendship is Magic. As a fangirl I wanted to collect the toys from the show and so I started collected the new My Little Pony toys. This collection however quickly expanded from just the characters one the show to a wider variety of pony toys until eventually I found myself drooling over…Dolls.
Ponies started my collecting habits, but dolls cemented it. My first doll to kick me off was a La Dee Da, after which I started buying Monster Highs
Q:What do you collect? Describe your collection.
A: The biggest features in my collection now are Ever After High and Equestria Girls. I also continue to collect Monster High, Disney Store, Kurhn, and even Funko POP! figures. I don’t have a focus on a specific brand so much though, as much as I have a focus on dolls that I personally find very pretty to look at, and characters I know and love from my favorite TV shows and movies.
Q: What made you latch on to (what you collect)?
A: As far as a specific brand, my biggest love is Ever After High, and what drew me to EAH is also what draws me to most of my doll purchases. I love the long and fanciful hairstyles, the feminine girly looks, and most importantly the medieval fantasy outfits that looks like they are straight out of a fairytale. One day I’d love to collect BJDs (if only they weren’t so expensive!) which is another great example. I love lolita fashion and anything ludicrously cute and girly.
Raven Queen
Q: Do you share this hobby with anyone? Did anyone inspire you to to collect? (ie: I share this hobby with my mom…) Who would you like to share this hobby with?
A: I don’t know anyone else who collects dolls! However, many of my friends do collect figures, and I know a few fellow bronies who collect the My Little Ponies figures and memorabilia. They view me as a bit of an oddity for having branched out into dolls, but they don’t think it is all that strange.
Q: What are your ‘grail’ items? Have you found any of them yet? Why are they your ‘grail’ items?
A: Junko Mizuno, one of my favorite manga artists of all time, designed a G3 My Little Pony in 2008, and one day I would absolutely love to have it in my collection. As far as dolls though, as unlikely as my obtaining one is, I would love so much one day to own one of the now banned and discontinued Django Unchained dolls. Mostly I would like Broomhilda, but Id love any of them.
As I mentioned earlier as well, I’d love to some day own a BJD.
Q: Spotlight a few of your favorite pieces in your collection. What are they? When did you find them? What makes them your favorites? Tell us their story.
A: I think my favorite doll ATM is the Ever After High Raven Queen. She is incredibly beautiful, I think it’s the gothic elegance about her that makes me like her so much. She doesn’t look like a really typical doll, which tend to be blond and with a mainsteam ideal of beauty. She’s dark and mysterious, and I love that about her.
My other big favorite is my Orchids Girl Kurhn doll. I love Kurhns for the anime aesthetic. They remind me of Studio Ghibli films! She’s so simply and yet so perfect in her simplicity.
Orchards Girl Kurhn (Kewpie83′s note: this doll is so pretty!)
Q: Do you collect in box or out of box? Why?
A: I am an out of box collector, for the most part. I don’t see the point of keeping items in boxes when the entire reason I want them is because I like how they look, and I find they just look so much nicer out of box on display decorating my shelves. I will make an exception however if I were ever to obtain any very expensive, rare or valuable collection items. For instance, I certainly would never unbox a Django Unchained doll!
Q: What is the most fun aspect of collecting?
A: The best moment I have found in collecting is the experience of buying a new toy/doll. Finding it at the store, getting it home, ripping it out of the package, and taking a bunch of pictures of it. This is the single biggest thrill in collecting…. I do enjoy looking at dolls I want to get in the future online, and I do enjoy having them on my shelves to turn to and admire from time to time, but by and far the most fun is had when you first break a new item out of its package.
Q: Do you have any personal stories you’d like to share that deal with your doll collecting? (ie: Do you have a convention story? A touching backstory on one of your pieces? Share whatever you feel comfortable sharing, anything dolly related!)
A: The most special doll in my collection is my oldest toy. I was given D as a baby and have had him my entire life. I don’t have any interest in collecting baby dolls, but D has a lot of sentimental value.
D
He is an Uneeda doll, though he’s had his body remade at least once during my life. When I started doll collecting, he was in very rough shape as I had scribbled all over his face with markers as a kid! I got him cleaned up and bought him new clothes and now he looks more presentable.
Porcelain Doll
The other doll in my collection that doesn’t necessarily “fit” is an older porcelain doll that came from my grandmother. She’s not worth anything (I checked!) but she was left to me in my grandmothers will after she died. She had a small collection of porcelain dolls, and left one to each of her granddaughters.
Porcelain Doll (Kewpie83′s note: Again, so pretty! What a great gift to be left with!)
Q: What advice would you give new collectors out there that feel they need to ‘hide’ their hobby?
A: There’s no point in hiding it! Anyone who might care (ie casual acquaintances, co workers, etc) probably will never see your home, and anyone who will be seeing your home (friends and family) probably won’t care! Even so, if you are about to invite someone into your home who you worry won’t react favorably to seeing your collection, a gentle warning ahead of time might be nice. But if someone really cares all that much about what your hobbies are or laughs at you for it, I would question whether you really need that person in your life or not?
Q: Give me 3 tips (in general) on how to cultivate a great doll collection.
A: Hmmm… I’ve just started, but here are the general rules I use in approaching it.
1) Pace yourself! When I started, I instantly wanted anything and everything I saw. It was very hard to curb the impulse to buy everything in sight right away. Instead, let yourself really get to know and enjoy a new doll before you buy another one. That way not only will you avoid going broke, but you’ll appreciate each one more!
2) Pick a focus, or a theme. As an example, when I started in on Funko POP! figures, I knew I would be doomed to become lost down a rabbit hole if I didn’t pick a theme, because there are SO MANY awesome POP! figures. So I decided my POP! collection would ONLY include Princess characters. This can apply to any collection. Don’t feel obligated to buy absolutely everything in a line, stick to the ones you REALLY want.
3) Budget. I’ve quickly learned this can easily be an expensive hobby. Shoot for sales. Make careful purchase decisions.
Basically the gist of all three of these is: don’t rush it. Don’t feel like you need it ALL, NOW. Start slow, and only buy dolls you know you’ll really enjoy looking at all the time months from now.
Q: Are you a doll customizer? Talk to us about what you do!
A: I’d like to be, but I only have so much time. I like the idea of customizing, but I also like the idea of a specific collectors item! I think it largely depends on the doll, too. A BJD for instance is specifically designed to be made your own, so I think I’d customize something like that.
Q: What kind of future do you see for this hobby?
A: I don’t think it will die out, but I don’t think it will be the same as it used to be. There will always be collectors around, for everything, and there will always be those who want to track down rare and valuable items, and there will always be those who want the latest characters out from Disney and Mattel.
But I don’t think that modern dolls will ever age into the same kind of value as antique dolls did. With mass production as huge as it is now, I think most people will find that modern doll collections will never be worth anything. Because of this, new doll collectors shouldn’t get into for the idea that “someday my collection will be valuable!” Only get into it if you REALLY LOVE looking at these dolls all the time. (Kewpie83′s note: Totally agree!)
Q: Links to your blog, flickr, etc.
Blog: http://pixiecollections.wordpress.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/PixieBlossom2012
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PixieBlossom
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PixieBlossom2012
Don’t forget to watch the video spotlight, edited by Grace herself!
What a great look into a fantastic, enthusiastic collector. Thank you, Grace, for sharing your stories with us! Grace, feel free to grab this badge for your blog and link to this post, so it is easy for your followers to find!
Blog Badge
Do you have a question for Grace? Leave your kudo’s below in the comment area! If you want to be the next spotlight post, click here for more info.
