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Traveling with your BJDs

Sep 7, 2019

    1. Last time I flew anywhere, I was not collecting BJDs yet, but I did take a bunch of dolls to a Barbie convention about 20 years ago. I stupidly wrapped them in polyester batting, like what is used inside quilts. Well, when my luggage went through X-Ray, I was pulled aside and my luggage was searched. Turned out the x-ray wouldn't penetrate the polyester batting and they thought I was hiding explosives. Exploding Barbies LOL THEY didn't think it was funny and I was given a stern warning about using fibre fill as wrapping material.
       
    2. I just flew with my Resinsoul tiny and had no issues with her in her yellow sleeping bag in my carry on. No questions, no weird looks, no trouble at all! Maybe it was because she's so tiny and her s hook is super small too.
       
    3. I am planning to remove the heads from the cheaper bodies and carry the two with the other more expensive doll up the plane. The reason to do so is because of my camera, iPad and laptop. Alternative is shipping via sea but that takes 3 to 4 months.

      (moving from Japan into Australia)
       
    4. When I flew international last year, I ended up with my biggest doll unstrung in my carry on. I was limited to a backpack for the carry on, so everyone else was in their boxes/cases in my checked bag (fortunately all msd or smaller).
      Everything turned out fine. I wasn't stopped/questioned at the airport and nothing arrived broken or damaged.
       
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    5. I use a backpack with doll wrapped in a baby blanket or two. Parker is my travel doll and she doesn't have eyelashes so I only have to protect her face up. She will hopefully soon have jointed hands so I will most likely wrap them in a way to protect them. We only travel by car, so travel baggage in way of backpack with camera in a sturdy box for her to sit on.
       
    6. I used to travel a lot with my SD boys, but I don't do that anymore. As one of you mentioned: it is very stressful. Security has become insane and becoming more and more insane every year. You are pretty much at the mercy of the security guards. Metal hooks can definitely be a problem. I always took the doll(s) with me on board, never checked them in. The special bag I have fits under the chair give or take 3-5 centimeters. Again, you are at the mercy of the fly attendant. If you have to put it into the storage box over your head, you are at the mercy of the other passengers who try to force their coats, bags, and many bottles of duty free booze into the available room. You clearly don't have most of these problems if you fly business class or first class, but charters and economy flights can be nightmares with dolls.

      On the other hand, I admit dolls improve your travel experience once you are arrived.

      I always used plastic face mask, blanket and a thickly padded bag.
       
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    7. i will admit my experiences might be different due to the fact that i only collect tiny, tiny bjds like my biggest are cocoriang animals. being said so far (fingers crossed getting on flight tomorrow)i have had no issues whatsoever. i make them special “sleeping bags” for outings/travel which are padded and i just put them into my purse. i sometimes get worried about things like the magnets and security not liking them but honestly the fact that magnets are like the no. 1 travel souvenir is reassuring!!! personally i take my dolls out for pictures both at the airport and on the plane. maybe its because i am crazy. but no one has ever really cared honestly, maybe its because they’re too small to really notice? anywho just thought i would share my tips/experience as a tiny collector as i am sure part of why security flags dolls is due to size…
       
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    8. That's interesting, how large were the boxes and dolls/did you check or carry on? If you carried on, it may be because you are only allowed to have two carry ons on the vast majority of planes. I brought my large boy on my current trip, and didn't have an issue even though he's in an ~70 cm tall bag, which is give or take a few cm the same size as his box, so I can't imagine that being a big issue. I've seen people take larger bags than the boxes on planes too, so I don't think size would be the problem. Though if you wanted to bring multiple that could easily be an issue if you also have a personal bag, as it could go over two carry ons then.
       
    9. Hi everyone! I have to travel with my dolls and I’m thinking of just wrapping them carefully and leaving them as they are, but if I decide to remove hands, feet and heads to be sure they don’t get hurt, how would I do that while keeping the elastic in place?

      I’ve used a clip or a piece of wood before to keep the elastic in place while I work of something else, but that was very temporary, with the doll just being on my desk. If I’m moving around, what can I use? I was thinking some kind of big bead?

      Let me know if you have any good ideas! Thanks!
       
    10. I've traveled with my dolls many times, without removing hands, feet, or heads. I wrap them in towels, bandannas or clothing, and that has been enough to protect them. The worst that has happened is eyes falling back into their heads.

      I'm afraid I don't have any advice for those who wish to be more cautious, as what you are thinking.
       
    11. Some dolls have special hand pieces that make it easier to change clothes, so if you are worried about fingers breaking and have those (or fist hands where the hand is a more solid lump), you could swap them out for the travel. Feet are usually sturdy enough, I'd be more worried about the elastic slipping and giving you a surprise restringing scenario.
       
    12. Probably true about the elastic slipping. I’ll just wrap the dolls and call it a day. It should be fine. :3nodding:
       
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    13. I've used keyrings/stationery clip rings to hold the S hooks and elastics in place, if the ring is large enough to sit on the wrist/ankle without shifting. Not for travel but for dressing a doll whose hands/feet were too big to get through the clothing. A keyring doesn't have pokey edges like a piece of wood/dowel rod.

      But I agree with everyone else - just swaddle the doll in a towel and put a face protector on to protect the faceup. I've put swaddled dolls in my backpack that way (even gone hiking with them like that) and they're pretty safe.
       
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    14. Oh that’s brilliant! I never thought about doing that! Maybe I’ll try that if I have a specific head I wanna carry in my purse and have the body in a suitcase or something.
       
    15. I use carabiner clips for dressing! Super easy to clip on and off, you can leave it on to pull the elastic out enough to slip the hand/foot back on too, and no matter how the clip turns, the elastic doesn't slip.

      But for travel...depends on what kind of travel. If by car, I usually just carry the big dolls. Maybe buckle them in the back seat with a towel tossed over them to keep them safe from sun. Then carry them around in a tote bag. For my tinies, I bought sunglasses padded pouches, they work like sleeping bags on the under 16cm crew, so they're pretty safe in a purse or backpack. I get these. They're white inside, except for a black piece of fabric for cleaning glasses. I just cut that out. They're perfect size for my off topic blind box bjds too (basic ones. Mermaid, centaur and dragon don't fit.) I also got a padded insulated lunchbox that I can put all the tinies in their sleeping bags into!
       
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    16. Wow those are all great ideas thank you! I’ll do that for the small dolls and the big ones I’ll wrap in my clothes and probably put in a suitcase. Oh it’s by car btw, it’s just that almost all of these are dolls that have mostly been safe in their boxes so far cause I haven’t had time to do anything with them, so I’m being super parainoid about possibly damaging them. I know resin is not so fragile, but still…my precious babies. :XD:
       
    17. I took an SD overseas on holiday recently. She travelled with all her parts attached, wrapped in a scarf with a face protector on, in my backpack.
      I had to make her kneel to get her to fit (on single jointed legs). She was on the plane with me, under the seat, and went everywhere with me, including a 9km hike.
      No damage whatsoever!
      I would just recommend bringing restringing tools in case you change your doll's outfit and their elastic decides to shoot back up into their limbs.
      Doll tax: Ayame in a cafe

      [​IMG]
       
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    18. Same here. My dolls go all over the place with me - to work in my regular daily backpack, to friends houses and events, on trips and on holiday.

      I only remove their hands for dressing in stuff with tight cuffs (and that's rare, since I make most of their cufs so they can be unfastened to allow the hands through)

      At most, I take the wig off and put it in a net t o stop it gettign messed up in transit.

      Teddy
       
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    19. Ok thanks everyone. I’m way less worried now. :3nodding: And thanks for the doll tax @castironteapot :dance so cute!
       
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