my collection 2023

The year is 2023. I’ve been watching artists customize dolls (primarily Monster High) for YEARS, and while I have always known the base dolls were pretty, I thought of them more as tools to make the *magic* of art dolls happen than something I would like to collect. If there was ever an itch, it wasn’t strong enough to make me go through with it. I just thought to myself “one day” and that was it.

Until she happened.

The doll that I’m holding personally responsible for my desire to finally act on my want to collect dolls: Monster High Generation 3 Draculaura.

There was something undeniably sweet about Draculaura’s new design that I just had to have, and it got me thinking for a second there that maybe, just maybe, I could have a collection of my favorite Draculaura dolls, including the Generation 1 girls!

I quickly outgrew that idea, but it absolutely had an impact on my Monster High Generation 1 collection. I mean … look at all that pink!

At that point I started exploring a few other options in the dollniverse. Since the Monster High Generation 3 distribution isn’t great in my country, it’s simply more affordable to buy second hand dolls (yay for being an out of box collector!) and avoiding import taxes.

Now do I have some regrets about these buys? Why, yes, yes I do. I think as a new collector, I’m still figuring out what I want my collection to look like, and what my preferences as a doll collector are.

I got Kishiko heavily discounted, but I have to admit … I don’t like mermaid dolls all that much. I didn’t know that until I bought her. She is incredibly beautiful but … I don’t really know what to do with her. I feel the need to rebody her, and that’s how I know her only problem is … not having legs. Oh, well. Maybe one day.

(On another note, most of my Wizarding World collection has been gifted to me, but I can’t in good conscience recommend them to anyone. If you really want these dolls, I recommend you thrift them or get them on sale. They are not worth it, trust me.)

Despite my curiosity about other doll lines, I kept coming back for the one that started it all: Monster High Generation 3.

Lagoona was a gift from my sister and I genuinely didn’t expect to like her very much. I kept seeing people talk about how her hair was too yellow, and her skin was the wrong color, and this and that … Well, I loved her. What an amazing surprise! I wasn’t even going to get her!

The biggest surprise of all, however, was how much I loved Clawdeen the moment I first unpacked my Skulltimate Secrets series one doll.

I can’t explain what happened in that moment, but I really connected with her. And I realized that I couldn’t have too many of her, that was just impossible, because there was something about each version that I loved.

She is just darling, colorful, sweet and creative! There were some things I’d love to change (one in particular we all hated) but it just wasn’t enough to keep me from loving this girl.

And the rest is history.

So that’s the current state of my small collection!

My ambitions for the future are to continue to grow my Monster High Generation 1 pink collection (Rochelle, Viperine and Bonita, I’m coming for you!) and to mayhaps complete my Generation 3 Clawdeen collection (unlikely, but one can dream!).

But for now I am truly very happy with the dolls I own.