A For Life Hobby or a For Now Interest?

I think that it's hard to tell whether it is a for life hobby or not. As I'm only 19 I feel that I don't have enough life experience to know whether it will be a for life hobby. However, I have always loved dolls and have been interested in bjds for about 3 years so it could be a for life hobby.

 

I chose to make BJDs a hobby for life after a lot of consideration. My grandparents had amazing hobby/collections and it seems like just having something you can completely immerse yourself in now and then is great for getting rid of day to day stress. BJDs down scaled my multi-tentacled creativity by at least 1/3, making more room for more everything. That leaves room open for everything; photography (I'm learning!) design and sewing, wood working, clay, collecting and making (and learning how to make) scale items to post them with, everything! Sometimes my dolls sit in on the shelf for a while, but they are there, my little vicarious fashion models.

 

I've been into bjd's now for more than 6 years and can't really see myself leaving the hobby. It has developed a great deal for me too, and I've learned a lot of new skills because which enhance my enjoyment of my dolls. A hobby for life? Who knows! But certainly for the foreseeable future.

 

*Do you feel like your BJD collection is something you will keep and stay active with forever?
-- I wouldn't say forever active with - it's hard to maintain an activity in such an expensive hobby and especially when as you get older, there will be other things to pay for that will probably take priority :3
*Do you feel as though someday you'll loose interest and get out of the hobby?
-- I think that it would happen one day when I no longer look at it as something I must absolutely have OwO
*Can you see yourself passing your BJD collection on as a sort of heirloom (or do you believe with the nature of resin, it simply would not be a pretty situation in twenty years?)?
-- I can definitely see myself as passing it on as a sort of heirloom to either a family friend or to even my own children if they're interested in it :3

 

At first I would have said, "Forever, duh!"

After a 1.5 yr break from the hobby, though, I'd say it'll be an on-off thing for me. Life has many more dimensions that preoccupy my time but I will always return to BJDs and dolls in general. I've had a doll collection since I was 6 and 20 years later I still do so it's obviously not a passing interest. I seem to be more interested in art dolls lately, though, so maybe restricting myself to resin ABJDs may not hold forever.

Not sure what to do with my dolls in the future. I'll treat them like art and give them to someone dear, probably.

 

I don't think of BJDs as being a hobby in their own right - they're just one, relatively recent, aspect of dolls. I've been making/ collecting dolls for over 45 years ( not counting the dolls I had as a kid) and most of my other 'hobbies' ( eg sewing, costume, embroidery) have revolved around dolls. I don't think this aspect will necessarily be around in 20 years time - hopefully it will have evolved. (I can remember artist dollmaker friends of mine starting to make resin dolls 20 years ago when it was quite rare.)

Thirty years ago there was an explosion of porcelain dolls - now they get left on the shelves in charity shops. I don't know how many people still collect the big vinyl artist dolls that were very popular in the 90s. I'll still be making/collecting dolls in 30 years but they could well be a type we haven't dreamed of (however I'm sure I'll also have a few bjds in a box somewhere).

 

Good point. I think of the Gene dolls going for next to nothing on eBay, including the repaints that were so huge ten (?) years back. My doll progression ran from porcelain to Gene to Pullip to BJDs. Everybody is now in a drawer or a box, except the BJDs. For me, they've eclipsed everything else. But who knows, as you say, what's coming next? I think this is one of the main things that keeps me from buying more dolls.

 

My interest in dolls fades in and out. For a year I had very little interest in the dolls on my shelf... I think I was dusting around them one day and realized how cute they are, (don't know how I forgot?) And now here I am again wanting more! I also own some of those vinyl dolls from the 90s mentioned above. They were my grandmothers and so I could never ever get rid of them! I will always have dolls in my house.

 

I have always loved dolls but I did not start this hobby till after I raised my children and I was able to devote time for myself. My grandmother did the same, I remember her porcelain dolls in the livingroom and I thought it was funny that my 65 year old grandma was "playing" with dolls. I totally understand and I find it is very addicting and do not see it changing any time soon.

 

I've been a gamer since I could hold a controller, been collecting books since I could read, and playing with toys my entire life. By now i know myself well enough to know that when I really get into something I don't stop. I know that this is going to be a for life hobby for me just like the others. Probably the only reason I can justify spending this amount of money on dolls is because I know I'm not going to get rid of them.

 

*Do you feel like your BJD collection is something you will keep and stay active with forever?
Im still really new to this hobby but if my record with other similar hobbies that Ive been active with says anything I would say that I would keep my doll(s) but i would be less active/on break *as some have said* with it. Im not much of a seller. Ive had tons of other dolls/toys and I just cant seem to ever part with them even if I dont feel as strongly towards them anymore.

*Do you feel as though someday you'll loose interest and get out of the hobby?
I think I may not be as active as I am now but I see myself as taking a break and then coming back.


*Can you see yourself passing your BJD collection on as a sort of heirloom (or do you believe with the nature of resin, it simply would not be a pretty situation in twenty years?)?
Ive never really given that much thought of anything I own really. My family and friends dont really share my interests as far as my doll collecting hobby is concerned, and since I dont plan on having children theyll probably get lost in the void.

 

*Do you feel like your BJD collection is something you will keep and stay active with forever?
As long as they make them and I can afford them, I will buy bjds.

*Do you feel as though someday you'll loose interest and get out of the hobby?
I don't think so. I might not be able to afford them one day but I will still enjoy the dolls I've got.

*Can you see yourself passing your BJD collection on as a sort of heirloom (or do you believe with the nature of resin, it simply would not be a pretty situation in twenty years?)?
I hadn't thought about it until now but I would totally pass my dolls down the line. I would pass my dolls down even if I believed the stories about aging resin.

 

Do you feel like your BJD collection is something you will keep and stay active with forever?
Something I'll keep forever, yes. I have bought and sold many dolls but that's helped me realize what sort of doll I really want. Fan dolls aren't for me, for instance. They're all long gone. And anything smaller than MSD. I'm trying to keep the collection very focused by sticking to only shelling OCs from one particular project as well. As for staying active...

Do you feel as though someday you'll loose interest and get out of the hobby?
Probably. I've lost interest in so many things I used to obsess over/love/enjoy over the years. It just happens. But I don't really play with my dolls or photograph them much, so even if I lose interest and just keep them for display it won't be much different for them!

Can you see yourself passing your BJD collection on as a sort of heirloom (or do you believe with the nature of resin, it simply would not be a pretty situation in twenty years?)?
Most of my collection is brown-tan resin so I am worried about their long term stability. I've seen plenty of examples of it going green, which seems worse than yellow. I hope that the community in general stays active for the long haul so when my girls are old and green I can still commission someone to airbrush them back to their lovely selves. I'm not sure the dolls are anything I'd specifically bequeath, but any children I might have are certainly welcome to keep them when I'm gone.

 

Do you feel like your BJD collection is something you will keep and stay active with forever?
yes, I tend to stick with my hobbies forever (or at the very least many many years)

Do you feel as though someday you'll loose interest and get out of the hobby?
no, I was in this hobby (without a doll) for 5 years so now that finally have one I doubt that I'll lose interest.

Can you see yourself passing your BJD collection on as a sort of heirloom (or do you believe with the nature of resin, it simply would not be a pretty situation in twenty years?)?
I would have no one to pass it on to as an heirloom but if I die and one of my friends that liked my dolls is still alive I'd will it to them, not sure what I would do in any other situation though but I'll have plenty of time to think it over. I'm sure that I'll still find my girl just as beautiful 20 years from now as I do now, whether she's damaged and/or yellowed or not.