Dolls and Your Spouse

I'm not sure what the correlation between dolls and your significant other, but it seems to be a constant negotiation, as far as my collection goes. I've tried so hard to switch to cash only, layaway, and an allowance system, but I still seem to go over my allotted doll budget at times, dammit. It seems to always end up with me negotiating a little more with my spouse.

Ball-jointed dolls really take the cake for me. First, there are the limited edition, once-in-a-lifetime releases, that if you don't buy them when they are for sale from the manufacturer, you'll end up paying three or four times the original retail price. Worse, many manufacturers don't offer layaway options, so you have to put your purchases on a credit card. My weakness is Peak's Woods, and their limited edition tan dolls, The Glamour, just went on sale today. My first PW sculpt was a whites skin Sky, and at this point, I don't find it necessary to own more than one of a sculpt. But I have been wanting to add Briana to my collection for a while, and in tan? How could I resist?

This time, instead of my "it's easier to ask forgiveness than permission" approach, I actually sought out my spouse on the eve of their announcement. I showed him photos, how gorgeous they were, how wonderfully they'd fit in with my collection, and the increase in value of the Vampire Wedding and previous editions of PW tan Goldie dolls. The first response, of course, was, "Another doll? Don't you have enough dolls already?"

Disappointment. It's what deserve for taking the honest approach, I suppose. But fuck. What to do now? I couldn't very well sneak her into the budget, could I?

Once prices were listed, I was able to talk myself out of a gown (though man, do I ever covet that blue dress!), and was delighted to see the layaway option. Plus, my dear spouse went way over his allowance on a bike that is now sitting alone in the garage. Hooray! Another chance, perhaps? (I sound so manipulative, but I don't mean to be, really.)

Again, I sat down with him, and explained what was so special to me about the dolls. He was fairly harsh, as I had gone over budget already this year, which was forgiven a la Fashion Doll Review style, but I could see it was probably a mistake. But later, he sent an email, saying go ahead. And this morning, I put a tan Briana on layaway.

Why dolls? It isn't that I have to have more. I like to collect them, redress them, sand their seam lines and blush their bodies. I even tried a face-up. I love to play with them, take photos, redress them again, pose them in themes, see their beauty. I am surrounded by things I can't control in my life right now--the dolls, I can control them. It's a comfort and joy to me. A little piece of art and beauty in my life, that I can customize to make my own. Does that make sense?