For a very, very long time I was very bad at remembering to pack dolls for local Blythe meets. I would always bring a doll, but it was usually whoever had an outfit change the most recently because I wasn’t about to bring a doll who was wearing the exact same outfit to two meets in a row! I’m a bit better now though. When I’m entering details of a meet onto my phone, I also set myself a reminder the night before. This is immensely useful as it reminds me that I need to have a doll (or two) ready for the next morning or afternoon.

Primrose at a recent local doll meet.
Primrose is wearing Luxie Lou (top) and Blythe Couture (pants).

My processes is now as follows:

• Set a reminder on my phone for the night before a doll meet.
• I (now) pay attention to who was brought to a meet last and try to bring a different girl.
• Then I go forth and dig through the doll clothes and shoes to put together an outfit.
• Lastly, these newly dressed dolls get put into the doll carry bags that I use (the ones I have are by Sew Pixie) and then into my purse or a tote bag for ease of carrying.

Getting the dolls ready the night before means that I don’t have the moments of “Oh no!” half an hour before I have to leave when I realize that my dolls aren’t packed yet. The little act of setting a reminder on my phone means that I don’t have that small amount of stress before going to a doll meet and I am also to take the time to bring a different doll to the meets as well as making sure that they’re fully dressed (you don’t want to know how many meets I’ve attended without doll shoes).

How do you prepare for doll meets? Have any tips to share?

My perpetual shyness when it comes to pulling out a doll in the public has been well documented on BlytheLife. I tend to feel self-conscious unless I’m around other people. Strength (and safety!) in numbers, after all. I don’t tend to carry around a Blythe on a regular basis. They’re fairly expensive, they’re also quite big (and take up a lot of room in my bag), and plus I don’t always have the opportunity to pull a doll out for photos. Despite the last part, I do find it comforting to occasionally have a doll with me.

My regular travel buddy does change from time to time. Occasionally it is a Petite, sometimes it’s a Petworks Usaggie and then there’s my Hujoo Nano Freya (super fun – but still without a name!). Sometimes it’s nice to carry around a doll that’s smaller than a Neo or a Kenner… Don’t let them know that I said that.

Do you carry a doll around on a regular basis? (And who is it?)