1. Take Your Modern Dolls Out Of Their Boxes
Many, many modern doll collectors are afraid to take their dolls out of their boxes for fear that this will decrease the value of the dolls. Well...with modern doll values down, why not throw caution to the wind and debox your dolls! They'll make a lovely display out of their boxes. For the truly bold, throw the boxes out entirely. Phew! Don't you feel liberated now?
2. Play With Your Modern Dolls!
Let's take this new liberation even further--since your dolls have decreased in value, don't just debox your dolls--play with them, too! For those of you who have never played with your dolls because of fear you would "ruin the value," playing with your dolls can mean many things--you can change the doll's clothing, put them in vignettes, change the doll's hairstyle, make jewelry and new accessories for your doll, etc. The possibilites are endless. Again, for the truly bold, you can "repaint" your doll if its vinyl.
3. Do Nothing
Well...OK, so you are one of those few collectors who really only wanted their dolls to increase in value. Or...you aren't a collector at all..perhaps you inherited the dolls or bought them at a garage sale. If so, just keep the dolls stored in a safe place away from strong light and drastic temperature changes. You cannot predict the doll or collectibles markets in the years to come--there is no way to know whether or not the dolls you have will go up in value. So, if you're the gambling type, just hold on to the dolls and see what happens!
4. Sell Your Modern Dolls Anyway
Perhaps you're downsizing your collection. Or, perhaps you are downsizing your life, moving from a house to a condo or apartment. If so, you many just decide to sell your dolls in spite of the down market. Even with the doll market down, you will still get more for most of your modern dolls when sold than just about anything else you own. Clothing? Most of it is nearly worthless after a few years. Same with kitchen appliances and furniture, and there is nothing more worthless than old, outdated electronics. But with dolls, you can get back at least 50% of what you paid; often more. That is far better than for most used items, and better than many other modern collectibles have fared. So...sell your dolls anyway!
5. Buy More Modern Dolls
If you love modern dolls, now is the time to buy! There are bargains galore right now on eBay. You can put together an absolutely large, smashing collection. Buy now before prices go up again.
6. Hope For The Demise of eBay
If you are feeling uncharitable about the lower values for your collectible dolls, blame eBay! Really, the whole thing is mostly their fault, due to the incredible way that they have opened up the market and made it ultra-liquid. So...if eBay crashes and burns, maybe your modern dolls will increase in value!
7. Find Other Outlets For Selling Your Modern Dolls
Back to serious suggestions--if you are really set on selling some modern dolls, perhaps eBay is not your only outlet. Try running ads in the local classified section. Take out a booth at an antique and collectibles mall. See if the local doll shop takes consignments. Be creative--not everybody buys dolls on eBay, and generally you can get more for a doll in a person-to-person transaction without the risks of eBay involved.
8. Donate Them
Finally, if you really mut let the dolls go, you can donate them to many charities. Some charities for children will be happy to take your dolls (as long as they aren't porcelain) and many other charities use quality collectible dolls at silent auctions and raffles to raise money. Think of the time and effort you'll save instead of trying to sell them, and also think of the nice tax deduction you can take!
That concludes my tips for coping with decreasing modern doll values. I hope you've found a useful suggestion for getting the most out of their value, whether the value you get is from enjoying the dolls or selling them.
