What I've Learned from Dolls

Devoting yourself to a hobby helps you learn a whole subset of skills in areas you never thought you'd be good.

It dawned on my that I learned to bargain shop looking for dolls, good dolls that were usually much more expensive.   I carried those skills over to grocery stores and to a new awareness of coupons. After a while, it's second nature to hunt for bargains.


When I was about ten, my family and I used to spend Christmas in California.  We went to after Christmas sales at Pool, Patio, and Things, Sax, Bullock's, Emporium, and Macy's   I couldn't believe what I could find at 50% off.

Soon 75%  and 90% off became available.  Like my mom, I bought gifts for next year at the holiday sales.


If any of those bargains needed painting or sewing, I could easily fix it.  I learned these things and more repair and craft techniques from dolls.

When I taught contract law, I reviewed stories of how the big doll companies were built.  I learned the definition of merchant/expert from Article 2 of the UCC, or Uniform Commercial Code through studying antique stores and dealers.


Of course, I picked up on archaeology, sociology, history, literature, art, and music through dolls.  Even my cultural geography textbooks talked about costume doll and crafts, as well as textiles involving dolls and doll making.

Through dolls, I learned about display, management and organization.  Dolls and collecting earned a few lines in my dissertation, and in the intellectual property courses I taught.


Through the study of dolls, I learned a lot of life skills, but also to appreciate beautiful things, handmade crafts, and human expression.   I learned a lot about research of all types, and used that skill in all my jobs.  I learned social media because of dolls, and learned to observe carefully and to think outside the box.


Having the dolls to study and collect has saved my sanity o ore than one occasion. I suppose we all need a passion what Barbara Pym called something to love, what Woolf referred to as "a room of one's on."  Mine happens to be filled with dolls.