Once you have made the decision to start a porcelain doll collection, you will need to prepare your home for your collection. Before you rush out and start to fill up your home with your new porcelain doll collection, you will need to take the following factors into consideration.
Location
Porcelain dolls will need to be placed in a suitable location out of direct sunlight where the clothes and accessories could become faded over time by overexposure from the sun. If you live alone, you will have more autonomy over where to place porcelain dolls. But if you are married, you will have to take your spouse's views into consideration. Many men would prefer not to have their bedroom filled to capacity with their wives' collection of porcelain dolls or find that their game room has porcelain dolls perched on shelves. Think carefully about where to store your porcelain dolls. Do you intend to show them off as guests and visitors arrive? Consider placing a few in the hallway or the living room as people first walk in.
Porcelain doll collectors who are also pet owners will need to be very careful when choosing where they will place their porcelain dolls. Pets can sometimes jump on shelves, cabinets and elsewhere and this could result in the irreparable damage to a porcelain doll collection.
Storage
Not only do porcelain doll collectors need to find the right location for their porcelain doll collection; they also need to store the dolls correctly so that they do not gather dust or encounter damage from improper storage techniques. If you have a small home, you will need to make the best of the room available to you. But in the meantime, keep dolls secure in the boxes they came in until you have room for them.
For dolls that will be prominently displayed throughout the home, consider investing in a few porcelain doll glass or plastic cabinets. These will allow dolls to remain dust-free and dolls can either be stood upright using doll stands or can be placed in a sitting position. Antique porcelain dolls require extra special attention so that they remain in mint condition in case you decide to sell them someday. If you buy any googly eyed dolls and you choose not to display them throughout the home, the best way to store them is face down, which might seem odd. But this was a technique that an antique dealer taught me, to help preserve this unique feature of some older porcelain dolls.
Before you purchase your first porcelain doll, make sure you survey your home closely, work out where you can place your porcelain dolls and take into consideration the various methods of storage. Be sure to also take any other family members into account so that your porcelain doll collection does not take over your entire home.
