This is little off subject I think but Joan talking about making things with toilet paper rolls & oatmeal boxes made me think of all the fun I had making forts, school houses, or a fine house- all out of the refrigerator or appliance cartons. The ones we got were around a new appliance & had wood frame & heavy cardboard or maybe even lightweight paneling with reinforced corners. They did well in summer rains(I added some kind of roof) & in winter dad had gotten 1 for me to retreat to in the basement. I put 3-4 of them together on a vacant lot & "taught" school, played house with other neighborhood kids or fought off cowboys or Indians as we often changed which ones we wanted to to be. There was a tree on the lot, so we could escape the fort & go up in the tree & be lookouts, of course the lake was right below so we had to watch"on land & sea" it was quite a job & we were very serious about it. Too bad I didn't have my camera yet! I was shy but always road after the appliance truck & asked if I could have the crate, I think we ended up with 4 on the lot, they were very heavy but delivered right to spot I wanted.So disappointed when torn down & new house went up in there. Dad really started something fun by bringing that 1st 1 home tho. Jan

I guess the key to collecting for me is to keep what I love. I don't collect to sell. The ones I hang onto I do so more out of sentiment than value. My paternal grandmother died Dec. 1997, and I inherited the Barbies she had at that point and I completed the set of Barbies. My daughter is a Christmas baby born 2 weeks after my Grandmother died. So for me, the holidays are even more meaningful and personal. I enjoy looking at them...the late 80's ones that have the big hair and big shoulder fashions we all used to wear are such fun. The bride dolls were hers also, and they are just so beautiful, that I can enjoy them. My maternal Grandmother has a great many dolls - and is now debilitated with a stroke and in a nursing home. I was asked to select the dolls I wanted to keep, and I only took home the ones I truly love. Several of the Madame Alexander babies, an Ideal walking doll from 1961 and right now I cannot remember her name (I have it in the book at home - I think her name is Toodle), 3 Shirley Temples and an Ideal from the late 30's that we bought together. I played with Toodle as a chld, as did my aunt who has passed away since. So these dolls mostly have sentimental value and will be loved more than 'collected'. And the Crissy's came from her, which also remind me of fashions growing up. The outfits are a hoot to see and enjoy! I am sorry your Holiday Barbies were devalued. I see auctions often where they go from $300 up to one set I saw that went for $1000. The collections and singles on ebay right now are undergoing active bidding with some singles up to about $70 right now, depending on the year and rarity. My collection includes a 1998 error box, where the pic on the back is different from the outfit on the front. But I will never sell! :-)

I have some in older magazines I have collected. Let me know if you are interested and I will drag them out. Will have to send them slow mail, I do not have a scanner!

LOL Kara - I was just going to ask if moving them indoors for the summer might be a good idea! As opposed to the folks who have to bring plants in for the winter, at least we would still have long days and plentiful sunshine. So maybe they could get plenty of sunlight, albeit through a window, without the wet air. I have to bring in my Aeoniums for the same reason. Winters are dry. Doll - do you freeze in the winters? I don't, so I can return my plants to the sun after the summer rains stop and it cools off a little. But maybe a nice southern window is just what we need. I'd like to hear from others living in humid areas, too!