In one of my recent points I offered a handful of tips on how to protect your Barbies. Since it’s tough to limit this advice to a limited number of tips, I’ve expanded on that post to include a few more. Here they are:
Avoid Fluorescent Light
While natural light is bad for your Barbie collection, fluorescent light can be even worse. It can be damaging to dolls, especially to some vinyl dolls which can turn greenish over time if exposed to close fluorescent lights. Thankfully most homes use incandescent light which is much more agreeable to your doll collection. However, be careful when storing dolls in a storage unit or perhaps the downstairs basement!
Keep Your Dolls in Packaging When Possible
Whether you keep your dolls in their original packaging or take them out to enjoy, it’s important to protect them as much as possible. Of particular note is to protect them from the accumulation of dust. In addition, removing the dolls from packaging can also expose them to other hazards like pets, bugs and other things. Although it’s a personal choice, it may be wise to lean toward keeping your important dolls in their packaging whenever possible.
Keep Your Dolls In Closed Cabinets
Although this may not be as important when you’re keeping your dolls in their packaging, it’s still a good idea to store your dolls in enclosed cabinets. This will not only give you the opportunity to display them in an attractive manner, but also add an additional layer of protection to avoid any mishaps.
Avoid Acidic Chemicals
Unfortunately, there are a wide range of acidic chemicals that can damage dolls, their costumes and the packaging in which they come. Therefore if you want to preserve your collection’s value, you need to be aware that acids in the wood of storage cabinets, in some cardboards (doll boxes) and even in wrapping pager may damage your prized possessions. So whenever possible use acid-free tissue to wrap dolls placed in boxes, and avoid dolls and costumes having direct contact to varnished woods.
Keep Packaging Loose
In the attempt to protect dolls, many people believe that wrapping their treasures in air-tight plastic bags or boxes would be a good idea, but this should be avoided at all costs. If there is any moisture in the bag or box, mold can form on the dolls. If you must store in plastic, make sure that there is ventilation so that air circulates into the bag or box.
As every doll collector may know, there are many tricks to the trade and these are just a few that may be able to help you keep your collection in good condition and looking good for years to come.
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No matter if one collects Barbie dolls for personal pleasure, to remember times gone by or simply for a child in their family, everyone will want to protect their precious finds. Whatever your motivation, it’s also important to recognize that assembling a Barbie collection is an investment and you should take steps to protect that investment. Commonly associated with antiques, modern dolls like Barbie need preservation too! As a result I’ve assembled ten recommendations to keep your dolls protected and looking good for years to come; here are the first five:
