Doll Convention and Show Survival Guide
Doll conventions are fun, but they are hard work, too, and there is an art to attending (and surviving!) them. Here are my inside tips for surviving a doll show or convention!
1. Register early! Many of the popular doll conventions fill up almost immediately (for the UFDC convention, even registrants registering the first day a postmark is allowed are not guaranteed to get full registration!). Send your registration, and any requests for event tickets, the FIRST day allowed. For event tickets, follow the instructions precisely. For doll shows, popular luncheons and other events will also sell out quickly, making early registration a necessity.
2. When you PACK your bags, don't forget the following things:
- Comfortable shoes! You will walk and walk and walk between events and in show rooms.
- An extra suitcase...or, if you really intend to buy lots of dolls, an extra trunk! Empty. These items will be FULL of dolls when you return, if all goes well.
- Cash. You will want to make some small purchases at different show booths--using credit cards and checks takes much longer. Also, many booths at the shows do NOT take credit cards at all.m Plus, you'll need a few dollars for your Starbucks in the morning.
- A doll values book.
- Comfortable clothes, but some dressy items, too--the dinners and the final convention banquet can be dressy events! Some people wear long gowns to the final banquet.
- Your hotel confirmation. The hotels for convention are usually FULL, and mistakes on reservations can happen--be prepared with your written confirmation.
- Small souvenirs for your table mates at the final banquet. This is a nice custom that has developed over the years. Not everyone participates (not everyone knows about it!) but a small doll-related item for your table (usually a table of 10) is very nice and very appreciated by all.
- Are you sharing a room? Are you a night owl? Bring a flashlight--I did, and it allowed me to come in after 11pm a few nights while my roomate was asleep, and get to bed without flinging on the room lights, or bumping around in the dark.
3. If you bring dolls for competition, try to pack them securely in a carry-on bag. You can check dolls successfully (I have done it many times, especially in hard-sided trunks) but having the dolls with you can give you real piece of mind. Returning from one convention, I had a change of planes and my check-on luggage (full of dolls!) was lost for 2 days! Thankfully, the luggage was returned to me with the contents unharmed. Leave a bit of room in the carry-on for any very special dolls purchased at convention, for the way home.
4. Be friendly! You can always identify fellow conventioneers by their convention badges. Wear yours at all times, and don't be afraid to walk up to fellow attendees and start conversations (I have made some life-long friends this way!).
5. Scope out some local eateries that are close to the hotel. Hotel food is generally expensive and not very good. You'll be sick of it by the end of the convention, and besides--wouldn't you like to save money on food so you'll have more money to spend on dolls?
6. Put together a personal convention calendar. So many wonderful events, lectures, shows, competitions, seminars, and workshops are scheduled that often things that YOU want to attend will overlap. So, prioritize what you want to do, make a schedule, and carry it around with you. Your schedule can change as you find other things that interest you, or as you make new doll collecting friends. But, at least with the schedule you won't MISS anything that you are intent on doing!
7. Carry the OFFICIAL convention schedule with you at all times. This will include locations of events, maps, and other important information.
8. When you pack up after convention, save some room in your suitcase for the final convention souvenir.
9. If you buy too much and cannot fit it all in your luggage, use the hotel shipping services (usually found in the convention hotel business centers) to ship boxes back to you. Generally, I ship back vinyl and hard plastic dolls and doll clothing--not bisque, although that can be shipped, too.
10. Don't try to do it all! Take some time to "smell the roses"--do some city sightseeing, take time for coffee or drinks with new doll collecting friends, or just sleep in one day! After most doll conventions "convention exhaustion" is a common ailment!.
11. Finally, just be prepared to have the time of your life! Make new friends, learn all about dolls--just soak it all in! A doll convention can be the highlight of your collecting year (or even collecting life!). If you haven't been to one, don't miss the next opportunity. If you are already a confirmed convention-goer, fantastic--I hope to see you at the next one!
************
Did you attend the UFDC National Convention? Did you wish you did? Have you attended any of the other doll conventions this summer--the Barbie convention, the Doll Artisan Guild Convention, or others? Lets discuss in the Dolls Forum!
More about conventions:
Doll Artisan Guild Convention 2000
Back to the Doll Collecting Main Page
©Denise Van Patten 2000
All Rights Reserved.
