Research Files, Twitter, and Anne Boleyn

Another week draws to a lazy, sultry close. We had wonderful unseasonably warm weather, and violets and grape hyacinths bursting forth. My viola, which sprang two years ago from the remains of an annual, is growing again. I've protected it with garden spikes to avoid lawn mower devastation which took place last year.

My classes are studying capital punishment again, and I admit I love discussing The Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death with them, as well as bringing out my CP toys, the headless historical doll of Katharine Howard, all the Anne Boleyn dolls [not headless or gruesome], the toy guillotines and Halloween prop electric chairs, the Joan of Arc paper dolls, etc. My favorite passage about these toys comes from a book which quotes Goethe in a letter where he asks his mother to buy his two year old son a miniature guillotine. Mamma is shocked and "reads the riot act" to the great poet. That in itself is worth reading to a good English major.

My thoughts drift to what do we as researchers do when we come across these little tidbits? Granted, we store much on our computers and flash drives, but I have another method involving portable research which works; the travelling file [not to be confused with travelling pants, gnomes, or other nomadic objects].

This method works for any form of research, and three-ring binders will work. I ususally keep one year's worth of information in these research files, say 2009-2010. At the end of the year, I go through them and store in file cabinets or shelves the information I want to keep. I share the rest with other collectors, or recycle it some way. If one selects the binder route, I'd spring for nice white binders with page inserts for covers and spines. I also love the clear plastic page protectors and dividers of all types. My other method involves buying a small accordion file, any type, or a plastic case for storing scrap book paper. [This is why I don't join a scrap booking club; they would not appreciate the unspeakable uses I find for their supplies!]. To tailor the research file to doll collecting, you need the following besides the accordion files and labels for each section:

1. Two or three good fashion catalogs; I like Neimann Marcus, Chicos, pages from the fashion issue of Vogue, which usually is out by August or September.

2. Two or three of your favorite doll catalogs from 2009-2010. These can include inserts from Target and Toys R Us, auction catalogs, toy catalogs, mail order catalogs, doll house catalogs, etc.

3. A list of sources including locations of doll shows, museums, favorite websites, directions to locales, doll exhibits, antique shows, flea markets, doll conventions, etc. which you want to attend during the year.

4. Your receipts and cancelled checks spent on dolls for 2010; these can be copies if you need the originals for your taxes. By the same token, I like to print out and keep eBay information and listings for dolls that I have bid on, and certainly purchased. The same goes for ETSY and other online auctions.

5. Temporary inventory forms if you need them, so that you can keep track of new acquisitions.

6. Copies of specific articles I find useful for dolls I'm working with during the year. These might include patterns and directions for making dolls and doll parts. Newsletters and other clippings are also part of this file.

7. Related historical materials, e.g., sources on regional costumes for foreign dolls, copies of vintage materials like Godey's, paper dolls, including copies or Internet printouts that I find useful for historical background, children's literature, or historical location for dolls or their makers.

8. Address information for people connected in the doll/antique world.

9. Miscellaneous information relevant to your individual collections.

10. A good field guide or price guide, like Miller's or Denise Van Patten's excellent guide book. [harder to store in a binder; then you may just want to scan or use relelvant pages or newsletters from Denise's About.com site.]

Label each section as needed, e.g., to correspond with those described above.

Sort the materials accoringly, and make sure you can carry the binder or file easily. A nice, eco-friendly tote like those sold in discount stores, grocery stores, and book stores would do the trick. Keep it in your car where it is accessible if you go to a library, museum, or other site away from home to work.

Have Fun!

A note on collecting; if you find printable/copy free materials on the web, print them, and keep them in a binder. My favorite is Marilu's Paper Doll Page. Not all of these sites stay up forever,and while they may never acheive great value, Internet printouts will make interesting future collectibles. For the price of ink, one can have a fantastic paper doll collection. Great for those on a budget. And, you know what they say, "When the going get's tough, the tough surf for paper dolls!"