When you are an adult collector, there is what we like to say "going down the rabbit hole" as an expression. It refers to finding out about a new kind of doll that wasn't in your collection before, and suddenly you are facscinated with it. It starts as one, but being adult collectors as we are, the more we learn about a doll's history and particular characteristics, that ONE can multiply within your collection as you collect variations of that same doll or within the same line or by the same company manufacturer. You find yourself diving into a detective world, where you are examining stamps on the body, what the makers tag looks like or if there isn't one, looking for certificate's of authenticity, and maybe even talking with other collectors about a doll your found or are wanting to buy. What some people don't understand is that these things are commonplace in all of collecting - and I don't know why there is judgement on how many dolls are in our doll rooms and what that is supposed to mean. It's not a type of insanity and we aren't trying to play out our childhood. It's much more simplistic than that, and anyone who is a serious collector can recognize it. It's an appreciation for manufacturing, it's about collecting fashion, it's about sweet faces and nostalgia, it's about creative outlets, and so much more.
As I'm diving down my own rabbit holes, I realize that there is a generation that did research on dolls that is fading away. You might see this as you are researching a particular type of doll and you come across someone who has done massive research into the specifics of a doll or brand and it looks like they abandoned their website, or maybe they aren't alive any longer and the website just sits there with many links broken or pictures missing. It saddens me, as those of us who are collecting dolls from yesteryear still need to know about the history of their dolls. This is why there is a section of our Forum that is dedicated to doll brands, because I feel it is wasted effort once I learn about a certain doll and learn about all that history, and not share it with other collectors. Maybe I will have somewhat of a doll library built up as long as I'm a collector when I'm done. At least that is the goal. I do know that my doll group seems happy to have me speak on every doll I research, so I'm definitely getting a lot of public speaking out of the way!