That Magic Feeling - Where Has It Gone?

[tuneful87]

When I first started collecting vintage MLP, it was the most amazing feeling ever. There was this new and exciting brilliance to it, not to mention the stirring of wonderful childhood memories. As the years progressed and the ponies piled up, that feeling began to decline.

So I started collecting LPS. Same thing happened. Then I moved on to Monster High. With MH, it was different. As a boy growing up, my mom had gradually culled my doll collection - Barbie and Ken went off to be missionaries in Africa (AKA the town dump), Ms. Piggy went off into storage, even the ponies got tossed here and there. When I bought my first monster, Gloom Beach Frankie, I felt so, so damn good. Liberation. Freedom. The feeling was perhaps even better and more amazing than the one I got when I first started collecting MLP. I loved, loved, loved GB Frankie. Then I got Signature Frankie and Lagoona. Still the feeling was strong. It was just around Halloween, and the monster feeling was at an all time high. Autumn is my favorite season, too, so that made it all the more special. (Coincidentally, I started collecting MLP and LPS during autumn as well).

Almost a year has passed since I bought GB Frankie. I have more monsters than ever before - 60 now? I can't keep count. But that new, magical feeling is gone. Perhaps I've ruined it myself by removing their stock clothes and hairstyles - even GB Frankie is no longer GB Frankie.

So, I wonder, will that feeling come back? Has this happened to you with your collections, doll or otherwise?

[SparklerGirl]

I've gotten kind of burned out on MH myself, but since branching out to other types of dolls I've started to get excited again.  Maybe just walk down the toy aisle and see what else pops out at you?  Most of my MH dolls are still MIB, so maybe it's just the accumulation of them over time.

[PandaBerryInSpace]

That's pretty similar to what happened to me, honestly. I started collecting ponies last year, and it was a lot of fun. I also collected Littlest Pet Shop, because they were cute... I lost interest in LPS pretty quickly, and then, I started collecting Monster High. Monster High was my favorite for a while, and I ended up giving half of my pony collection to my niece out of sheer boredom with them. (I still love customizing, though!)

But, then, I got my first Pullip... And I acquired a Byul and a Tangkou, and it kind of occurred to me that I had very little interest in collecting Monster High. Maybe it's because I kept them in their stock, so I never really "played" with them, and I think factors like bad faceups and glue seepage also contributed, but I'm finding that I'd rather focus on different kinds of dolls instead.

[Cwk123]

I think it happens from time to time. I collected beanie babies years ago and was a MAJOR collector. I also started collecting Barbies, LPS and Strawberry Shortcake...then beanies fell to the back burner. I kept going with Barbies but lost interest in LPS. Then had a baby and didn't collect anything or even care about collecting for about 2 years. Then started again with Barbie. Sold all the LPS and some of the SS dolls. Then started with MH, then Lalaloopsy...then lost interest in lalaloopsy...currently going strong with Barbie, MH, Brtazillaz, La Dee Das, Novi Stars, Disney dolls. Still display SS dolls, too. I really don't need anymore collections! Haha

[justkitter]

I've been thinking about this alot lately.  I miss that minty new feeling EVERY doll line has.  You can dress up Frankie a thousand and one ways but she'll always be Frankie.  Even with all the face up differences, she's still the same doll.  And that gets kinda old.

I thought my dying interest was due to my completionist way of collecting.  When you buy EVERY doll, and something new comes out every week, you have no time to bond properly with each release.  I keep all my dolls in stock, with factory like hair, so it can't be them not looking like themselves (at least not for me.)

I've been hearing this same story over and over again, and when I do, I cringe.  When I think back to all the time and money I've wasted:(  And other's time and money:(  I cannot let this sad feeling grow!  Hopefully Mattel will come up with something to spark that old loving feeling

[Zombelina]

The loss of the "magical" feeling of collecting MH hasn't happened to me (yet!) after around 15 months. But it isn't weird that it does happen, that we fall out of love with a collection. People are always changing, interests develop and wane, tastes alter. Which also means that even if the feeling is gone now, it may still come back (and go away again... and come back...  )

I don't think how you collect/enjoy a collection will necessarily doom you to fall out of love with it... again we're just all so different! I keep my MH dolls mostly in their stock and just tweak outfits a little when new fashion packs come out--like I'm always evolving each doll into her most ideal outfit (for me). I'm still nuts for them all, lol. I do pace myself, and only get the dolls I REALLY love (which is most of them so uh), and I don't unbox a ton at once. Even if I acquire a lot at once, I'll hide a few from myself in my closet... I do give myself time to bond with each new addition.

I suppose how long we enjoy a collection also has to do with what drew you to it in the first place. For me (always a Disney doll collector), MH was the exact kind of doll I'd be wanting for years--I'd search for "goth" dolls etc but lines like Living Dead Dolls were too disturbing for me (I adore cute, I'm basically a bubblegoth ) So finding MH was like finding MY dolls, if that makes sense--they're just precisely the kind of aesthetic I've loved for years/my whole life. So perhaps that is why their appeal is still as strong as ever for me, they are just fundamentally who I am.

ETA: Just to clarify, any reason to collect something is a good and valid reason, whether it's out of the briefest spur of the moment whim or the deepest identification. No such thing as a "better" way to collect, all that matters is that it appeals and is fun! Just pondering why some collections stick with us and others fade. I've had plenty come and go myself.

Lots of rambling, but esssentially I don't think anyone should feel bad for falling out of love with MH or any other collection--it's ok to change interests just like it's ok to keep them. I don't really know how to recapture the "magic" feeling if you do want it back though--I think maybe taking a break would help... Like SparklerGirl said, maybe one needs time to recover from burnout. Absence makes the heart grow fonder and all that... 

[partypony566]

What you have to do is the age old ' store them away for a couple of months and you'll miss them'. I go through this phase with ponies-sindy-monster high.... I always get back onto though, and you will too.

Perhaps it's that you have too many, and that alone has made you lose interest.

Also look in into some different dolls. Ellowyne Wilde dolls are AMAZINGLY stunning and the clothes are gorgeous.

[tuneful87]

Wow, so many quick responses! Thanks!

Cwk: Ah, Beanie Babies. I think mine are all in my parents' attic. Poor things. I really must rescue the survivors one of these days...

grzan: I definitely don't feel that I've wasted my time or money! I still love my monsters!

Zombelina and Party: Yes, perhaps a break would be good. Maybe I'll try to hold out until Wydona Spider is (eventually) released!

[Chi]

I know that feeling.. I'm going through it right now as well. It's probably because I'm constantly ill lately, but I also feel like I have nothing to look forward to with MH for a long time. The joy of running through the toy aisles has died down and I wish it would come back.

[Zombelina]

for everyone feeling MH blahs. You know what, I also think it could be that we haven't seen any new leaked pics in a long time And we know what to expect for quite a while... some new hints/surprises would be magic for me, too!

Anyway, even the undead need to take breaks now and then, after all 

[kamakazee82]

it happens and usually for several different reasons ...

too many/too fast ... mattels production AND our rabid buying lol

issues like struggling to find them before they dissappear and trrying to find them for a decent price and not support scalpers, and quality control etc etc

tastes change ... it just happens ... literally and fugratively ... the human taste buds change ver 7 years or so ... i wish our passing fancies would last as long lol

burning the candle at both ends ... i think part of it may have to do with ANTM ... too many irons in the fire and some of that stuff can take away some of the simple pleasure and enjoyment of it


i have ponies (focus on g1's and 4's), monster high (really just trying to go after the ones i really like, which is TOUGH let me tell you!), Pullips (mostly Taeyangs), and glass stuff and some times my interest wanes in one and picks up in another but i cycle through em all and try to not let myself get overwhelmed with any one thing lol

but yeah it happens. i still get a magical feeling when i come across ANY g1 pony or a MH doll i REALLY want (oh my god when i found venus and robecca ... i think my heart almost exploded lol) just give it time and maybe take a break. put em away for a bit but don't get crazy and get rid of em all or anything 8hug*

[tuneful87]

On a fun note, I just saw the girl below and had to buy her. Isn't she cute? And such good fashion sense too. Her name is Eyevette. I mean, come on, that's pretty bloody brilliant, right? (credit goes to seller for the name!)

visitors can't see pics , please register or login

[pukunui]

Sounds like the novelty has worn off for you, Tuney. I know just how you feel. I've more or less abandoned my pony collection in favor of Monster High, and I recently moved my MH collection to a different spot to get them away from the curtains that were knocking the ones at the back over, and they barely fit in the space and so all of a sudden I'm getting these horrible guilty "What have I done?!" feelings when I look at all the dolls I've got. I only have 24 or so, but that's still a lot compared to what I had just a few months ago. I didn't spend as much on them as it looks like I did either, although considering all the outfits and other accessories I've got now, I have still spent a lot ... not quite as much I spent on D&D and Star Wars miniatures, though. Yikes! 

But still ... I'd recommend just shelving them for a while. Too many times now I've decided I don't want something anymore (be it a CD, a book, a toy, whatever) and have sold it or given it away only to come to regret it down the line. Unless you're desperate for money to pay bills or literally have no storage space, I can see no reason to get rid of them just because the "magic" is gone. It can come back. It maybe just needs a bit of time and patience and space.

It's completely understandable in your case because you haven't just been busy collecting them, you've also been busy with the whole America's Next Top Monster competitions. "Familiarity breeds contempt" as they say. It could just be that you're spending too much time with them.

Anyway ... that's enough from me. Got more groceries to unpack.

[SwordPony]

I've been in the same boat as you. I was collecting ponies(G1s) like crazy. I had over 300 or so. And then it just hit me. They weren't making me happy anymore. I had found Pullips and they are what makes me happy. So I sold off the biggest part of my collection. I keep all my childhood ponies. I just can't let them go.

Pullips are very expensive. I looked for an alternative. I found MH and I loved them for awhile. But like with my ponies I feel out of love with them. And I've gotten rid of almost all of my dolls. I'm keeping two for the sake of keeping those girls I love. For what I'm paying for 3 signature MH dolls I can save up and split a Pullip with someone.

Pullips are a wonder for me cause I get that loving glowing feeling when i get a new one. And I have to wait so long to get a new one that it makes them that much more special to me.

[pukunui]

The happiness we get from things is only ever temporary. Lasting happiness comes from somewhere else.