ABJD's vs. Other dolls

Oh dear me no. You've quite misunderstood that! And care to name any of these "stuck up companies", hm? BJDs are expensive, yes, but that's because resin is expensive, the moulds are expensive, and staff trained to safely handle a dangerous material is expensive. BJD companies are not making massive profits on their dolls, if that's what you're thinking. The vast majority of the price of a BJD goes straight to the company's production costs. Perhaps if you'd do a little research on these things, you'd recant your earlier false assertion.
And try telling anyone who's ever attended a Volks "naming ceremony", for example, that the companies don't put love and effort into their dolls. I think you'd find a piece of resin embedded in your skull, if they didn't care so much about the dolly's limb.

 

My daughter has the modern version of Barbies and they are very different from the dolls I had 30 years ago. They're lighter and more fragile, even if there are more articulation points. They feel very cheap and breakable. Mattel has done a good job of branding a certain look; you know a Barbie when you see it. A rose is a rose and all that.

Why do I like bjd's more? They feel more durable, can hold a wider range of poses, are easier to sew for because they're bigger (many of them), have a wider range of expressions and features, and so on and so on. I understand they're not appealing to everyone's taste. That's fine. More for the rest of us.

 

But... I have Barbies and they are not at all the same as bjds!

Probably a LOT of different dolls or whatever could be good for doing similar things with. I guess I could play around with LEGOS, too, but that's not the point! I want to play about with bjds. If I didn't, I wouldn't be here.

How do you feel about paying the money you do on dolls when you could do those same exact things with barbie dolls and other less expensive dolls on the market?
Money doesn't matter. You buy what you want and what you can afford. Doesn't matter if you can do the same things with some other kind of item. I can drive a golf cart, but I don't really want to have one to get around in for everyday life! And if I could afford it, I'll pick a BMW over a used Pinto, even though the Pinto does a lot of the same things.

Does this deter you from the hobby in any way?
No. I like BJDs. Barbies are fine, too, but they are not bjds.

Do you have any good defenses about why you would spend the money on BJD's Than regular factory produced dolls?
Yeah. The factory produced dolls (hmmm... not sure if bjds don't qualify as factory produced, depending on how you mean that)... aren't what I'm wanting... or rather , they are different. If I want a Soom Sard, why would I buy a plastic action figure? This doesn't actually make much sense to me...

 

I won't name companies but there are many who charge far far more for their dolls that others do for hand made limited release dolls, made in batches of 100 or less

 

How do you feel about paying the money you do on dolls when you could do those same exact things with barbie dolls and other less expensive dolls on the market?
That really is not a valid question. It is like saying, how do you justify buying an artist print, when you can just do the same thing with a For Sale sign from the hardware store for much less. You can frame it, you can hang it anywhere and you can spend hours looking at it. You can ask this question about anything from clothing to jewelry to furniture. You buy something because you love it. It makes you happy and feel good to own it. Whether it is a bjd or an artists painting, or a piece of jewelry. In the end nothing has value but your life.
Does this deter you from the hobby in any way?No, every hobby has a price unless you are attracted to things you can find on the street. Compared to other hobbies, bjd's are not the most expensive. I have a friend who collects antique lighters, now there is some money spent, and one who collects vintage shoes, she just paid $400 for a pair of Edwardian baby shoes...they will sit in a case, while I sew, play with and photograph my doll.
Do you have any good defenses about why you would spend the money on BJD's Than regular factory produced dolls?
Depending on your taste, some factory produced dolls are much more expensive or the same as bjd's. Mama Chapp for example, BJD's are all handmade, whether they are made by the artist or made in a "factory", each doll is hand poured,hand sanded, hand strung, and hand painted. There is no machine that pumps them out. And the original doll was sculpted by an artist, so hand made from the artists own hands or made by other people, all are hand made. You are very correct April. Some of my defense is, that whether I buy from an artist who makes the dolls at home, or a doll sculpted by the artist and made in another building, I am still getting a work of art. I can then further the artistry by adding my own artistic talents to the doll. And then I refer back to question one.

 

Well, you really can't do EVERYTHING that you can do with a BJD on a fashion doll.... But for me, I prefer BJDs because of their aesthetics, easier customization, size, material, and actually, price. Compared to many fashion dolls, a lot of BJDs are less expensive compared to the quality and materials they're made with. Other non-fashion dolls are just crappy quality and often extremely un-posable. I do have a few off-topic non-BJDs at home, but not very many, and for different reasons than simply 'it seemed like a better deal than a BJD' (one was a gift, before I had my first BJD, though she's sadly broken an arm irreparably and lives in a box, one was my mother's Madame Alexander 'Godie' doll, who turned out to be very rare and fairly valuable when appraised, so she's very special to me, and the others are the official 30th Anniversary Star Trek Barbies. I never play with them but they're so amazingly.... hilarious.)

 

I have nothing against Barbies. I loved Barbie when I was a kid,but the dolls have changed a lot since then. I miss the ones from my childhood. BJDs come in a variety of sculpts and shapes and sizes,Barbies are just pretty much the same mold. I would love to have some Barbie style clothes for BJDs though,that is one thing Barbie wins lol.

 

Modding a vinyl doll is not the same as modding a resin doll. Vinyl cannot be sanded, and cannot easily be cast at home. I can mod my dolls in ways no one can ever mod a Barbie, because Barbies are not made from a modding-friendly material.

And your friend is ignoring the fact that Mattel frequently sends out cease and desist letters to Barbie modders who do mods that they don't approve of.

They can do much more than stand! BJDs are far more able to be posed than Barbie. Even the most basic of BJD (with one-part torsos and single-jointed limbs) have a wider range of motion than Barbie. When taking multi-jointed torsos and double-jointed limbs into account, Barbie is just completely outclassed.

I feel very good. I am supporting legitimate artists, who are not involved with a morally corrupt company that undermines competition and abuses the courts for financial advantages. I am getting works of art that are infinitely more attractive to me than any Barbie could ever be. I am paying for something that appeals to my aesthetics, that matches my morals, and that I can work on artistically in the way I enjoy.

No, I find her arguments unconvincing and honestly pretty naive. As though those of us who collect BJDs had never thought to consider buying the most heavily-advertised, mass-produced doll in the world!

BJDs are works of art, and buying them directly supports artists. They cater to a multitude of tastes, and show more creativity than Barbie ever has. They are not related to a company who has publicly attacked smaller artists, or to a company who aggressively pushes regressive, sexist attitudes onto children. They allow more freedom of creativity (both in that they are easier to modify, and in that their creators don't use US trademark to aggressively oppose innovation). I get a lot more for my money with BJDs than I would from Barbie.

 

Barbie type dolls do have their limits, shrug, but I have 13" and larger fashion and character dolls that are nearly as articulated as BJD's and that I have customed even to the point of changing out the eyes. It's really not so different. There are 13" and greater vinyl dolls out there that have really nice articulation actually even to the point of having articulated hips and feet now. Where you can change out the feet, hands, et all. What really opened me up to the whole BJD thing was getting a certain vinyl fashion BJD who's OT and who's name I won't mention here, laugh. I love having her, being able to change out her eyes on a whim. I want more of that, dolls even more articulated, and maybe bigger?

But I don't despise vinyl dolls or find them limited. Far from it. I have made more than one vinyl doll completely over at my whim. Yeah, with a proper BJD I could do even more of that, but that's not to say I can't do almost 90% of that to another smaller non-BJD because at this point I actually can sometimes. Eyes that's the last stickler really, the major reason I ended up going BJD. In order to custom eyes other than with paint with a vinyl doll you have to open up it's head and pretty much destroy it's original head. Maybe de-root it just to put a wig on it too. With a BJD I don't have to do that. I can just pop the head off, change out wigs and eyes as I care to and that's fun.

 

Such an interesting thread. c:

I don't think Barbies can compare to bjds... You could work forever on customizing a Barbie and then it still look exactly like someone else's. with bjds that's very rare.
barbies are also mass production, they aren't made for you they're made for anyone. Bjds when you preorder, the doll is made for you and you specifically.
barbies also don't have joints, which is kindve a big thing for ball JOINTED dolls.

as everyone else said, bjds are works of art. You can take your Barbie anywhere and people won't give you a second glance, they've seen Barbies too many times to care. But if you go out with a bjd, you get looks and questions because the doll is so beautiful and eye catching.

 

Barbies are stiff and don't pose very well.

 

Bjd's are sooo much more realistic looking than barbies! Personally, they don't even compare.

 

Really I wish I could fall in love with cheaper dolls but they just don't do it for me. So why plunk down $20 for something I won't enjoy? I'd rather just save up for a beautiful BJD, While there are other dolls I love, even those aren't inexpensive. I have no idea why I only like high end dolls but the BJDS are just so special.

 

Although a lot of the techniques, accessories and activities around them are similar, I really don't feel that you can compare them. Bjds are more expressive and more poseable, with a lot more options for customization. I still have a great deal of fun with action figures and ponies, and they have the bonus that they're more durable and allow some rougher play, which is great if I want to play with actual children.

If anything, I think starting with the cheaper toys will make you a better BJD owner because they're more resilient and you can practice your techniques with less fear of damage or permanent alterations as they're more replaceable. By the time you're confident to transfer your skills over, you'll be more self assured and have a stronger technique than if you had immediately tried on your BJD.

Of course, I love toys of all sorts, and like to keep a good balance through all kinds of things so I can shift smoothly from one thing to another based on my mood.

 

Really interesting viewpoints here! It looks like a few collectors of other dolls have already pointed out that yes, you can pretty much customize another doll (even Barbie) to the extent you would a BJD, though they're not necessarily meant for it and the results would be mixed depending on your level of skill/familiarity with the type of doll you're modding.

Most dolls are either 1) aimed at children and are usually built for play, or 2) aimed at the mature collector and meant more for display. I guess what makes BJDs unique is that they're kind of a mix of the two, with a clear emphasis on customization. However, I don't particularly think this means BJDs are "superior" to all other dolls, just that the mixture of play/display/customization really really appeals to me and I find them very beautiful!

 

I collect both kinds, and find interest in both for different reasons. Fashion dolls are terribly fun to collect, but they are much harder to customize. They also are not made of as nice of materials as most resin dolls and their accessories. Fashion dolls also do not pose or stand as well as BJDs do.

One of the biggest differences for me are wigs and eyes. I wish more fashion dolls let you swap wigs or eyes, to make customizing into a character easier.

 

Well, you can't really modify regular factory produced dolls. If they're wigged, you can change the wigs & have a repaint done. But you can't do much with actual modding though I have seen some great scalped Barbies with molded on hair. Still, I simply have no attraction for most factory dolls. I do love my Ellowynes & Kish but they don't get stories & a universe all their own like my BJDs. Also, you can't change eyes on factory dolls unless you get into a bunch of cutting the doll apart as many of them have either fixed eyes or painted eyes.

I've often wondered why the dolls I like are usually the expensive ones. I just can't seem to be satisfied with regular play dolls so I don't buy them & mostly get BJDS. There's an indescripible something about BJDs that I just don't find in other dolls.

None of my reasons make much sense or are based on anything tangible. There's just a special feeling that goes with these dolls.

 

I have had some other dolls (Taeyangs, Barbies etc...) over the years but now I only have bjds. To me they are works of art and other dolls just can't compare. From the ability to be customized through to their amazing joints system and poseability they are just on a whole other level. Also for photography I find nothing else comes close they are just beautiful. I have friends that have other dolls and I like seeing what they have done with them but for me it is only bjds

 

there is one general thing, that in my opinion is great advantage, that bjd dolls can be hybrided. All parts can be swapped according to the taste of the owner

 

I just came across this older post looking how Barbies and other fashion dolls are being compared to BJDs. I would disagree that Barbie dolls are of lesser quality than ball jointed dolls. I found a couple of issues with BJDs which does not let me put these dolls on a very high level - yellowing and hazardous material. But they are beautiful, and let your imagination fly free. However, all my 12'' so called fashion dolls have the same effect on me - I have collected them through the years, and each of them was bought because of its unique beauty. Nowadays you have a big variety to choose from, from ''usual'' blue eyed blondes to celebrities lookalikes with very realistic and striking facial features. And it doesn't take special science to customize your doll if you want to. My little BJD girl is just as dear and beautiful to me as my other 12'' dolls.