How to catalog a statue and figure collection
A collection is easy to keep in your head at ten pieces and impossible at a hundred. A catalog tells you what you own, what you paid, what is still on its way and where everything is. It also turns a painful insurance claim or a sale into a matter of minutes.
What to record for each piece
Record the facts you cannot reconstruct later. Most of them are on the box or on the order confirmation, and they take a minute while the piece is in front of you.
- Name of the piece, character and series or franchise
- Manufacturer and product line
- Scale and real measurements with the base on
- Edition: regular, exclusive or deluxe, and the edition size and number if it is limited
- Price paid, with shipping and customs, and the date
- Shop or seller, and the order number
- Condition: sealed, opened like new, displayed, damaged or repaired
- Whether you keep the box, the art print and the certificate
Photograph it the day it arrives
Take one photo of the piece that you like and a few that prove its state: the box, the certificate, the edition number under the base, and any flaw you notice. A photo taken on arrival settles arguments with a shop, a courier or an insurer.
Keep the photos with the record, not loose in your camera roll. In two years you will not find them.
Track preorders as their own thing
Premium statues are often paid in two parts: a deposit when you order and the rest many months later, usually with little warning. Give each preorder its expected date, what you have paid and what is left. A list of what is due each month is what prevents three balances from landing in the same week.
Keep a wishlist next to it
The pieces you want are part of the collection too. Writing them down, with a price you consider fair, makes it easier to say no to the ones that were never on the list.
Spreadsheet or app
A spreadsheet works and it is yours forever. It gets uncomfortable with photos, on a phone, and when you want to see totals by brand or by year. An app does those things better, as long as it lets you take your data out again.
Whatever you choose, check two things before you put a hundred pieces in it: that it exports to a standard format such as CSV, and that it does not need a connection or an account to show you your own collection.
Make it a habit
Add each piece the day you order it, not the day you remember. Review the list twice a year: update what you sold, what you opened and what changed in value. Ten minutes are enough when the catalog is up to date.