The best way to properly store Dollfie Dream clothing/outfits?

Hello!

I've been busy yet again and with distractions recently. I haven't checked the Doll Dreaming Forums for a long while.

I just need to know on how you fellow DD/BJD collectors properly store DD clothing and outfits?

Do you guys use a 1/3 BJD clothing closet or display them? Or simply put most of the DD clothing inside a large bag?

 

I have always stored my doll clothing in lidded storage bins and baskets, with pieces sorted by tone (black clothing is separate from pastels, etc).  I keep things laid flat to prevent wrinkling.  Shoes are also kept in boxes, small accessories are in containers or tiny zip bags.  If you live in a very damp area or someplace known for longterm storage issues you might have to adjust for those types of issues.  Never had any issues with my pieces!

If you're looking to keep things on display you can find nicer looking bins, but it takes up a lot of space unless you have a dedicated doll room/area that can afford specific theming around the storage.  If the intention isn't to have them on display, utility and ease of storage is definitely the key when trying to keep your extras manageable imo.

I use Volks boxes and store the outfits in their original packaging. It's sorted into DDdy, MDD, small outfits, large outfits, massive outfits and today there's a new box just for Miku outfits.

There are two smaller boxes for DD and MDD outfits currently being worn.

I actually saw a video once where someone stored their doll clothing in binders, using those clear paper sleeves to keep the clothes from wrinkling! I plan on doing this eventually but I thought it was very intuitive lol

Oh, nice! I'll keep these in mind! I've a decent amount of custom DD outfits and a few Official Volks DD clothes and they're currently in a large bag.

I'll do something about this and prevent the clothing from wrinkling and folding!

Thank you for the info!!

5 hours ago, uoub said:

I actually saw a video once where someone stored their doll clothing in binders, using those clear paper sleeves to keep the clothes from wrinkling! I plan on doing this eventually but I thought it was very intuitive lol

I do that with the sylvanian families clothes as they are smaller. So a small A5 binder with clear pocket sleeves.

 

 

2 hours ago, ZandurFox said:

Oh, nice! I'll keep these in mind! I've a decent amount of custom DD outfits and a few Official Volks DD clothes and they're currently in a large bag.

I'll do something about this and prevent the clothing from wrinkling and folding!

Thank you for the info!!

For my larger girls, I have ziplocks and a large plastic box.
For bodies I got a custom made thin pvc box, they are clothed before placed in the box and stored.

Good ideas everybody.

I was putting the Kagamines' outfits away today and I'd suggest that if anyone has outfits that are PVC/vinyl/pleather than ensure you wrap them in tissue paper. This material has a habit of clinging to itself and also to cellophane wrapping.

I've heard some collectors recommend using acid-free materials for storage, whether it be the containers themselves or wrapping the items in acid-free tissue paper. They also make acid-free clear binder sheets if you wanted to go that route! I'm pretty sure this was advice for preserving plastic doll bodies and not their clothes, but an extra layer of protection couldn't hurt. 😅

My clothes and accessories are all in random small boxes, but I'm starting to need more space. I love the binder idea!!

Edited May 7 by fingerfloss

Cryo-freeze- wait this isn't humans. Use a container for clothing or a ziplock bag.

I mostly use a computer bag and have my doll personally stick just her head out of it. The arms aren't attached very well, so she's just sticking out her head to see the world.

Mine have their own wardrobe. Everything is hung up with smaller items like underwear and shoes now in a couple of plastic trays in the bottom. I like to try keep outfits in the original packaging if possible.

pic is from some time ago, its pretty much rammed full now.

Wow, very interesting! That is fantastic!

I'm new to collecting but have everything neatly folded and stored in a hat box on the top shelf of my closet.

Even though I'm new to dolls, I have experience with expensive people clothes. Please do not store clothes in plastic bags!! It can trap moisture and cause molding! It's not just if the clothes are damp either; if you live in a humid environment, the plastic can trap moisture and restrict air flow. Store them in something breathable like cotton, cardboard, or somewhere there is air circulation. You can also buy moisture absorbers/catchers (even gel silica packs) if you're really worried about it.

44 minutes ago, hospitalitydoll said:

 Please do not store clothes in plastic bags!! It can trap moisture and cause molding! It's not just if the clothes are damp either; if you live in a humid environment, the plastic can trap moisture and restrict air flow. Store them in something breathable like cotton, cardboard, or somewhere there is air circulation. You can also buy moisture absorbers/catchers (even gel silica packs) if you're really worried about it.

This is very true... I keep comics and need moisture absorbing acid free boards for the mine but in my kind of humid environment its a lot of work

too wet u get mold and mildew...

too dry the material cracks...

I used to be paranoid about keeping them in MISB conditions but after awhile noticed I am attached only to the ones that I have handled and no longer anywhere mint.

The other issue I had was that my backing boards and silica packs are starting to cost more than the items I am trying to protect haha. 

I considered a dry box. The ones where people keep cameras. Anyone used that for storage before?

2 hours ago, hospitalitydoll said:

Please do not store clothes in plastic bags!! It can trap moisture and cause molding! It's not just if the clothes are damp either; if you live in a humid environment, the plastic can trap moisture and restrict air flow.

What if you punch a hole in the plastic bag?

20 hours ago, ragnamuffin said:

What if you punch a hole in the plastic bag?

Theoretically that could work! It would depend on the humidity level, how often it's taken out of the bag, and if there's air circulation in the storage area (or lack thereof, like with overcrowding/stuffing). I live in a high humidity area with no central air conditioning, so I have to be cautious.

 

22 hours ago, HongBee said:

too dry the material cracks...

Oof yes, I imagine paper goods are a lot harder to keep climate controlled! Lol at the cost of protection materials being more than the items. It's always like that, isn't it?

Edited May 11 by hospitalitydoll
typo

The way that this thread has me marie kondo-ing my entire doll wardrobe at 12am....

I'm folding and putting them in a set of large plastic drawers for now (kinda like rubbermaid storage bins but drawers) so hopefully that will be ok? I'm gonna have to run to the store to get tiny little storage bins to put inside to organize the socks and accessories, but hopefully this should be better than plastic storage bags right? I've seen most people on den of angels say that they put their clothes in plastic storage bins, so it can't be too bad?

(as a plus, I have way more room for more doll clothes now >:3c)

 

I'll keep these in mind, I need to store my DD clothing and outfits in a better way to preserve them.

 

Thank you for the info and advice!

On 5/7/2024 at 1:22 PM, Stupid_Hoomun said:

Mine have their own wardrobe. Everything is hung up with smaller items like underwear and shoes now in a couple of plastic trays in the bottom. I like to try keep outfits in the original packaging if possible.

pic is from some time ago, its pretty much rammed full now.

I had a similar set up many many many years ago. My ex bf built it for me and when we broke up I trashed it. I messed up. I should have kept it! It was so massive though. How did you build this? I would like a similar set up again.

7 hours ago, OolongTea said:

I had a similar set up many many many years ago. My ex bf built it for me and when we broke up I trashed it. I messed up. I should have kept it! It was so massive though. How did you build this? I would like a similar set up again.

It's a bathroom cabinet that I bought on ebay. It was flat packed with everything needed to build it. I just left the middle shelf out and added a length of wooden dowel for the clothes rail.

I store most of my clothes in small bins organized by type (uniforms, tops, bottoms, outerwear, shoes/socks) and fit (mdd vs dds).

As a secondary storage solution, I recently took delivery of a mini wardrobe that came with a few hangers. It doesn't hold much, but it really livens up my space. 😊

i’m not sure what to call it but i like the cardboard dress form (?) that comes with stock outfits. i have spare outfits on those stored in a simple daiso container. 
 

i know volks doesn’t sell just the cardboard dress form but does anybody know if there’s a seller/ shop that makes something similar that i can put the outfit on while in storage? 
 

i hope this made sense 😅

i’ll take a picture later if it’s still confusing~

6 hours ago, amiamitchi said:

i know volks doesn’t sell just the cardboard dress form but does anybody know if there’s a seller/ shop that makes something similar that i can put the outfit on while in storage?

The Japanese dealer Polka Dot makes metal hangers in a similar shape. It’s not quite what you want, but it could still function the same way if you put the outfit on it and pass the hanger part through the top of the bag where the hook normally goes.

The problem with this method is that they don’t sell them regularly and it could get quite pricey depending on how many you need. From an economic standpoint, it would make more sense to make an outline of the official pieces and either cut them from cardboard or digitize and print them yourself.

22 hours ago, ragnamuffin said:

The Japanese dealer Polka Dot makes metal hangers in a similar shape. It’s not quite what you want, but it could still function the same way if you put the outfit on it and pass the hanger part through the top of the bag where the hook normally goes.

The problem with this method is that they don’t sell them regularly and it could get quite pricey depending on how many you need. From an economic standpoint, it would make more sense to make an outline of the official pieces and either cut them from cardboard or digitize and print them yourself.

i'll check them out ty!!

i think one of my friends has one of those cricut machines that cuts through different materials so maybe i can see if i could get a few cut out of a study cardboard if i muster up the motivation lol 

I currently store most of my doll's clothes folded in a bin, I tried an doll dresser (made for 18inch dolls) and it looks super cute and is technically functional but it was on the cheaper side so the drawers can be quite annoying to deal with, falling out far to easily and it also didn't fit much so now I only store my girl's underwear in it lol

I actually built my girl an old-school kinda wardrobe:
 

Unfortunately, it's already pretty full, haha. 

I used a bathroom cabinet from Amazon and drilled holes on the sides to screw in a painted wooden dowel. The little drawers in the bottom is just a $10 acrylic make up organizer. ^^