Taking the kids on an outing

Sometimes I'll take one of my dolls to work - when I got a writing group meeting in the evening and I want to take my doll there. More often than not I'll have him sitting on my desk during the day. My co-workers are used to it by now, I guess. Or they're just not seeing the doll(s) since I'm sitting in a really dark corner (my favourite spot here).

 

I would if I had the guts xD Not that I care what other people think about me and my hobbies, but I would be worried I would get my doll dirty or broken Dx

 

I'd only take tinies with me regularly and only to a place where I know they wouldn't meet any harm.
I'm too scared otherwise. ^^;

 

I have a few times, I've brought my pukifee to work with me because she's very purse sized. I don't know if I'd do that with my larger dolls. I'd be worry about them being dropped or bumped or god forbid stolen.

 

Justin is sitting on my desk right now.

Normally, if I do take them out, it's for pictures at a park or other outdoor location, since my yard has zero pretty picture spots, or to use as reference for prop sizes, fabric print scale, jewelry scale, etc. Normally, except for pictures, they stay in the bag. Though I have had them out and about, and I've mostly gotten curious and positive comments, though there have been some weird or rude ones too. I really don't care, though. My hobby makes me happy, I don't care what strangers think. Since I keep the doll at my side or in my hands, chances of him being stolen or damaged are pretty slim.

 

You know, I suddenly feel like taking Tristan to work soon. My co-worker (who likes to look a my dolls but wouldn't buy any herself) hasn't seen him, yet, and he looks so much nicer now that he's got his proper eyes and a nice wig ...

I've been walking around and riding the Underground here in Munich, too, with a doll on my arm after doll meets. Barely ever got a second look, people just didn't seem to notice. Only comment I got, so far, was my building's caretaker telling me "nice doll" with a smile when I returned back home after a meet and bumped into her.

 

I took mine to the park the other day whilst me and my girlfriend had a picnic, I tend to keep them indoors when it's raining, and one of them is missing a magnet anyway, so she's a little unstable.

 

I've been trying to think myself into taking Willow out with me at some point. I've only done it once to a non-doll meet, and that was for dinner with friends on my birthday (and even then she didn't leave the car for fear of getting her hair dipped in soup). When she has proper clothes, I'll definitely take her out for the sake of photoshoots.

Either way, rock on to those of you that do bring them out! > v<

 

I would love to take Loki to the cinema when we will go and watch "The Winter Soldier". But I am afraid I will be too chicken for this...he looks so striking with his "full on" look.

 

Museum was a fun one, took Avalon once, when he was the ONLY MSD...And then I took Kazumi and Vala on my birthday and had a blast taking pictures with them among the exhibits.

Just remember...Don't linger if your able to pose the doll with the dinosaurs. Pose, snap, run.

 

How do people decide which doll gets to go where? (Those of you with more than one doll that is)

 

*shrugs* I just grab one or ask which one they want me to bring (for meets). Or bring the one my co-worker hasn't seen, yet.

 

I bring one or two most places. People at the comic store I play MTG are forbidden to touch them and know that.
It's a normal thing now, Xanadu and his doll(s). I don't bring people I bring dolls and speak to them here and there lol

 

How hard is it to lug around an SD like that? No carrier?

 

Depends on the company! Larten's an IslandDoll Austin, and he weighs a TON. Arra's a DollZone Aurora and she's no featherweight either. (I put them both on a wall-mounted shelf once and it collapsed :S) But my friend's Iplehouse SID Theo is fairly light by comparison. My Iple YID boy's probably the lightest of my SD crew, too. Definitely lighter than my IslandDoll 60cm girl. I've carried him around conventions all day before and been fine. I tried that with Larten too of course... but GOD my arm was sore later!

As for having dolls out and about, what I've found recently is that the reactions you get are largely governed by the way you carry yourself. When I've had to take Dean into fabric stores to judge print scale, I got a lot of side-eyes and nasty looks--but all I could think the whole time was "oh god oh god oh god people are gonna think I'm weird!" I'm sure I was slinking through the store and I remember looking around to see who was staring. When I had him out with some friends, though, I was more concerned with our conversation than I was with the doll in my arms, so I was a lot calmer and carried him with the same nonchalance I would a purse. We went to not only the craft store but a restaurant too, and the biggest reaction we got was one person doing a double-take and going "I didn't think that was a baby!" If you visibly interact with the doll or behave like you think you're doing something weird, you're going to get a negative response. But if you act like it ain't no thing, most people will just blink a couple times and then go on with their day.

 

Chaeri is my "travel doll". I take her everywhere with me I can get away with. I even take her to work on occasion and let her sit at my desk with me while I take calls (I work in a call center now). She's so beautiful she wins people over wherever she goes, and I've only gotten the "gah, creepy doll staring at me!" reaction once or twice. She doesn't trip the "uncanny valley" response very often, thank goodness. I do get looks sometimes, but I cheerfully ignore them. If people don't get me, that's their loss.

 

I like taking my dolls out. It's allways depending on the weather and most of the times to take pictures. For dollmeets or conventions I seldom put them into a carrier. I have one but it's more a security and prop tansportation device than a dollcarrier.
When I visit my grandmother I take one with me. The smallest one normally gets to go, as her flat is very small and the bigger ones seem to take up to much space.... On conventions it's normally my MSD, he was the one that started the tradition, therfore has the right to come with me. If I go to a specific place, ie. Paris (3 day vacation), I take the doll whoes character is more related to that specific location( For Paris it was Jean, he was born there and spend his former live there, too. He loved being back at the Petit Louxenbourg^^)

I try not to take more than one doll with me at a time, to distracting. I have twenty other things I'm occupied with at that moment, to be able to actually enjoy the outing if there was two or three of them. (Look out for the doll(s), the camara equipment, my personal belongings, people arround, don't getting in the way, the chores I'll be doing being out (I combine tasks^^), oh there is a nice place for a quick fotoshoot, ... just a few to begin with on a normal day out in town)
I don't take them to work because I would have no time to enjoy them there and I'm not sitting at a desk where I could have an eye or two on them.

About the reactions, I think shoesncandles summed it up very well. If you think you are doing something strange, people will notice and react acordingly, if you akt nonchalanged, like the doll on your arm is one more accesoire for your outfit that day, nobody will care. and if, the reaction will be mostly positive.
I get stupid comments the whole year because of my other hobbies and my somewhat unike dressing style, dolls don't make a differece there^^