I’ve always been told that good things come to those that wait.

Now I’m not sure how truthful that phrase is, but I’ve been waiting to find a good deal on a certain wishlist doll for a very long time now (Sunday Best!). Every time that she shows up in the Buy/Sell/Trade (BST) forum of certain Blythe forums (This is Blythe, Plastic Paradise) I always have the need to check out the posting to see what the doll looks like, what kind of customizations have been done and if I have that little bit of spark of love when I see her. If there’s nothing there, I move on.

Prices for dolls have been moving around a little bit lately, some days you can’t look through threads without bumping into a few for sale threads all featuring a Goldie with “the best hair” the original poster has ever seen in their life (and, to be fair, if it’s the only Goldie they’ve ever seen, there’s not much competition, now is there?). It really is a competitive market. Those who really need to sell their dolls might do it at cut-throat pricing, or offer incentives for those who buy more than one doll or even free domestic shipping, which is a nice bonus if you were planning on buying that doll in the first place.

For me, I like to look at a few different factors when it comes to that certain wishlist doll. I look at:

• price of the doll + shipping to where I live (Canada)
• if there’s been any customizations involved (which includes hair cuts)
• if the original box comes with the doll, or any stock, collecting cards, etc.
• if there’s a stand
• any other flaws (scratches, stains on the body, cracks)

I look through listings with a fine-tooth comb, especially for used dolls. For dolls in boxes that have never been removed, you don’t need to as if there’s all the stock attached or if there’s been any customizations – because clearly it’s still strapped in with tape and plastic little ties and whatnot. But for used dolls, there’s always the possibility that there’s been something that has happened to the doll. Even if you completely baby a doll, there’s always something that could go wrong (Exhibit A: the scratch in the blush of a doll that I thought I take pretty good care of!).

While I haven’t been able to find that dream Sunday Best for myself, I do strongly believe that if you wait long enough, you can eventually find a doll that’s at the right price point* and is just the way you like it. A lot of it is a waiting game. Waiting for out-of-box promotion photos to come out, waiting for a doll to show up on for sale threads or on popular auctioning websites. It’s a waiting game, and for the most part, if you wait you can find someone willing to sell the doll.

Another nice thing about waiting for the right doll to pop up at a good price is that you might find that you no longer want that particular doll. In which case, you could put the money that you saved towards something else (another doll, more doll clothes/sewing materials, doll shoes, something non-dolly related) and you’d still get something that you want or need.

* I mean the right price point for the doll itself, for the most part. I highly doubt that you’d be able to find a Kozy for $10 USD unless you happen to find her at thrift store somewhere. You do have to be reasonable when shopping for dolls. If an anniversary doll regularly goes an amount on the higher side of $500, you’re unlikely to find her for under $100, even if that’s all you have budgeted towards your dream dolly.