One fear

I've never had it happen, but it is always at the back of my mind when I order since I buy a lot 2nd hand. I think the chances are just so small that we shouldn't stop us but should push us towards preventions. Using tracking, shipping insurances, etc.

 

This picture+post literally sums up my feelings XD
I'm always worried the post will lose my head, or worse, damage it in some way after I've paid so much for the faceup...
I've sent out 2 heads so far.
One came back unharmed & one... Is still at the faceup artist's X'D
The post office where I live is generally really chill & they've never lost any of packages before.

 

Send all packages insured, tracked and sign on delivery. The sign on delivery will keep the post office from leaving your doll someplace where someone can make off with it. Better to have the artist go to their local post office to pick up your doll and the same for you having to pick your doll up when they send your doll back than it walking off to someone else's house.

Or send it FedEx, while more expensive. FedEx hasn't ever really lost a package. Misplaced in a warehouse, sent to the wrong hub aka mis-short, or shipment delay due to weather/mechanical problems with planes yes. But FedEx has systems in place to avoid miss placing packages. (employee for Express) But again send sign on delivery so you know where your doll is and who's hands they are in.

I don't trust UPS, they have a bad track record for my family and friends. <--- this has nothing to do with my employer this is purely based on personal experience.

 

Ah yes I know this fear, luckily it never happend to me (yet) but it's always on the back of my mind. This is why I always ask for tracking, insurance and putting the right pri e on the package (even if it gives a higher chance that I need to pay import taxes). I would be devasted if I lost a doll. I remember one time I had send out a head to an artist in China. The adres was kind of abstract, and the post office stated the person did not exist. I was so scared my package would be lost somewhere in China since I did not get any shipping updates after that. Luckily I magaed to contact them and it worked out. It was a minifee head so even if I got the money back from the insurance it would be hard to buy the head back since fairyland doesn't sell their head seperate and miyu wasn't a super popular sculpt so secondhand was also a slim chance. That was the closest thing of getting a doll head lost, and hoping to keep it that way

 

I'm currently dealing with this issue... USPS lost my package, claimed it was delivered with no geotracking. I've gotten the run around since. Thankfully the seller has been very helpful throughout this process and filed a claim so I will hopefully get some sort of refund. It freaking sucks because I spent all of xmas money on this doll as my xmas gift to myself. T-T

From now on I'm using my PO Box for packages.

 

Yes, postal service seems to be kind of problematic everywhere. (In our country it's bad. And when it comes to packages from abroad it's only worse.)
For example - I was at home when they should deliver head for Hawke. The postman didn't even bother to stop at our house And left it and other packages of our family in village shop. (They do it, when you aren't at home and they leave you a note about it.) They didn't even left a note this time. I thought they lost it - tracking said delivered but I didn't have it. It was by pure chance that I went to the shop and found out they left it there.
When it comes to face ups I'll probably use the fact that I live in a small country and get the doll to face up artist personally. (I am happy that I know about at least 2 of them, whose style I really like.)

 

I have had a few things get lost in the mail, but surprisingly little, considering I do most of my hobby-related buying and selling online and 90% of the packages I receive are from abroad.

I would still be scared to send a head for a face-up, though!

 

The postal service has never lost one of the heads that I've sent out for faceup, and I always have someone else do it for me - so that's a lot of heads. BUT...they did once lose an entire shipment from Luts, consisting of two dolls, some clothes and a couple of wigs. It was horrible - there are no words to describe how sick I felt when I realized that they really weren't going to miraculously show up. Plus, one of the dolls was purchased as a surprise birthday gift for my daughter, which made it so much worse. So yes...I never really thought about it until it happened, but now, every time I send a head out I insure it for the full price of the doll it belongs to, and I don't stop worrying until it gets from me to the artist, and then safely back home. I'll be sending out a limited head in a couple of weeks that is probably irreplaceable...so it's going to be a rough month after that, lol.

 

In the nine years I’ve been in this hobby, I haven’t been brave enough to send off a head for a face up. I do realize the odds of a head getting lost/stolen is low and the majority of the hobby has no issues. But, well, yeah, the result is blank dolls. I worked so hard to pay for them, I don’t even want to risk loosing even a head!

 

Do you have doll meetups? I know a friend of mine hands over head directly at a meetup and then gets them back by the next meetup (usually-if not the one after that). Her area has very frequent meetups (I think monthly).

 

i worry about a head getting lost or damaged until tracking shows it's arrived where it was sent. but nothing bad has happened yet (and, God, i hope nothing bad ever does...). i do have a couple more heads that will need to be sent and one i'm waffling on getting a proper faceup (she doesn't look terrible, just kinda... incomplete) so i'm sure i'll get more stressful moments in the future. i do find a lot of artists that are awesome and i love their work but they're overseas... and that makes me really hesitate.

 

Ah, I never thought about getting a package lost. Now, this is one of my fears too lol. I have never bought second hand or sent a doll off to an artist, but I do hope so in the future. I'm not cheap when I comes to paying for insurance or tracking so I think it'll work out fine, but now this fear will be planted in my head too lmao. And that comic is just yes!

 

In all my years in the hobby and owning...more dolls than I care to admit over that time...I have only every sent five out for a faceups. One was handed to a friend in person, so doesn't really count. Of the other four? First time, I was absolutely terrified! I sent him fully insured and requiring a signature, asked the artist for her real name, address, phone number and other contact info, and she was nice enough to give me all of that. I was anxious from the time he was dropped off at the PO until he returned. The next two went together and I was a little anxious, but not too bad. The last one, I didn't really worry at all. They all went out with tracking, full insurance and required signature.

I think outside the country might be more worrying for me. If you pay for the best shipping methods, it's unlikely anything will go wrong, but in the off chance that it does, it's going to be much harder getting it back, since I've dealt with issues before where USPS says it's out of the country, not their problem, and the other country's postal service is saying the same thing. Still, I'd be more anxious about the artist disappearing than losing the head in the mail.

 

I always, wanted to at least send my doll internationally for a Face up,'coz I've been seeing a lot of artist that can truly bring out the best of my dolls' character. But yes, this what fear me most. especially that our new post rules is really strict. and shipping will cost me more than the face up. so the best suggestion I can give is to trust your local artist friends, and let them work the magic.

 

Every time I do it ! Last time I selected a USA artist and was much more relaxed! also there is sometimes a communication issue with artists that don't speak good English.

 

there are a few face-up artists I adore, but they are outside the USA and things can go wrong shipping abroad and tracked international is such a steep price and sometimes the tracking doesn't even work! Like one time had a package that scanned exactly two times between China and the USA it was like "it exists" and "it was delivered" in the tracking despite being ems.

I've sent a doll out for a face-up domestically like once.

 

I don't have have an artistic bone in my body, and I buy mainly secondhand dolls (many of whom are blank). I either get lucky purchasing a doll with a face-up I love, or I bite the bullet and commission someone.

At first, I was really nervous sending my dolls out. Many of them are discontinued and can't be replaced easily or at all. Initially, I didn't want to send any of them out of the country, but also...I'm on the extreme east coast of the USA. I could send a doll 2800+ miles and it would still be in the USA. And honestly? Distance doesn't matter; there's always going to be an opportunity for your doll to get lost if it's not in your hands. It's very intimidating at first to take that chance! My advice: get full insurance always and don't let fear stop you if this is really something you want to do.

After so many years in the hobby, my dolls have been all over the world. I try never to work with the same artist twice because there are just so darn many good artists in this hobby I want to commission them all! I confess I keep a long list of all the artists I like and what doll's style would fit them best so I have a ready go-to when the time/funds/stars align.

Once you get over the initial hurdle, it does get easier. I won't pretend I don't still get nervous about sending my dolls out sometime but it's never enough to stop me. So far, everyone has always come home...and looking waaaaaaay better than before.