Anyone not planning to sell any of their BJDs, ever

I do not plan to sell any of my bjds or vinyls. I do struggle with finding room for new ones because I collect lots of kinds of dolls, if I need to 'make space' I do so with my cheaper dolls. I also never sell a doll to specifically buy another. I select my bjds very carefully sometimes taking years to decide on one. With how much I adore them and spend time building their personalities, I do not plan for them to ever leave my collection.

 

I do not plan to sell any of my completed dolls. I recently sold one floating head which was a practice head I had no use for. All my others have special stories and memories attached to and feel like part of me so I wouldn’t want to sell them. I also see them as a family in a way and I wouldn’t want to split them up.

 

This was me for about the first two years I was in the hobby. I told myself if I was ever fortunate enough to own a BJD, he would stay with me forever.

After a couple of years in the hobby, that changed. I fell out of love with two of my dolls--my first girl and my second 70cm boy. I never had the same feelings for the girl as I did the boys, and her engineering left a lot to be desired compared to my other dolls. The 70cm boy looked nothing like his company photos and was far too huge for my tastes. I spend several months agonizing over it, afraid I'd feel guilty over selling my dolls, but also feeling guilty for holding onto dolls I didn't like that someone else might love. I went for it. Zero guilt. I was able to afford other dolls I liked better. Now, I very frequently buy and sell. Even though the characters are extensions of myself in some ways, I'd rather keep a small group of dolls that I really enjoy than a never ending collection of dolls I only enjoy for a little while, then forget.

However, I have kept one promise: that I'd never sell my first doll. Almost 13 years later, I still have him and have no plans to ever let him go!

 

I don't buy dolls with any intention to sell them. That doesn't mean I haven't sold any, but I buy them because I like them and want to have them in my collection, not because I think they'll be a passing thing I'll have for a few weeks and then sell on to get another. (There are collectors like this, and if that's how they enjoy themselves, that's great! I'm sure there's fun to be had in having tons of different dolls in hand, and cycling them for different ones, but that's not for me.)

 

I’ve learned to never say never. I don’t buy with intention to sell but there’s been more than one occasion where I’ve needed extra money to cover unexpected expenses or due to work being very slow, and selling a doll or two was the quickest way to make ends meet.

That being said, the market is so saturated with dolls now that it isn’t as easy or as quick to sell one on, even the popular or more coveted sculpts. So it isn’t a reliable method to make a quick buck anymore unless you’re willing to take a big loss, in which case it isn’t worth selling them to start with.

 

I said that when I started (2015) and since then I’ve sold a lot. I also said back then that I was going to marry the girl I was with, and now (for good reason) I’ve gone no-contact. A lot of my dolls were from our stories, so some I sold (at a huge loss) just to get rid of that. Some I kept but completely reimagined. But I sold a good half of my dolls, and I now don’t keep dolls that don’t work out—someone else will appreciate them more than me.

One of the first sales of the deluge I did this year was my first doll, and an RP character from a universe I don’t go into anymore. He bought me the doll I’ve always loved and never thought I could have. New leaf, and a huge opportunity for a limited fullset for his buyer. We both left thrilled, and I got Shrike out of it, who I doubt I’d sell. If it ever hurts me to look at her any longer, or even if it ever feels like she doesn’t mean anything as her character, I’ll resell her to someone who’d adore her. But right now, she’s the best doll in the universe, and I don’t foresee that feeling changing.

My philosophy around selling is that it isn’t a moral failing if something doesn’t work. You can always find something that’ll make you happy, and what you sell will make someone else happy. It’s kind of cyclical. My art, be it writing or dolls exists for me. If it isn’t what I envisioned, I can try again.

 

I’ve learned to never say never. Circumstances change. Tastes change. If dolls are creative outlets, then it stands to reason that your collection may change because creative expression isn’t static. For example, I recently just sold a doll I’ve had for nearly fifteen years because I just didn’t feel inspired by him any more - it was getting to the point where I’d get frustrated just thinking about what to do with him. I’m very happy he’s moved on to a home where he’s as loved and appreciated as he deserves, and I have more space for someone new in my collection who I’ll feel more creatively inspired by.

(Plus, you never know when an emergency bill is going to pop up.)

 

I don't buy intending to sell, but I have many times over the years. Sometimes I just can't connect with them, or the connection wanes - especially if I find a better shell for a character. I felt a bit guilty at first, and sometimes I'll miss a doll a bit... but I'm happier knowing they're somewhere getting the love and attention I couldn't give them. And like others have said, I've been able to try out and bring home other dolls - or cover those nasty emergency bills when things are dire. I've totally changed my tastes since I originally started the hobby... I liked YoSD and MSD the most but now I'm into the big boys (65cm and buying a 75cm tonight!).

 

I don't plan to sell any of them, but sometimes a doll just doesn't fit once I have it, so it's pointless keeping them and they get rehomes. I've had one that was in all other respects a very me doll, but she simply didn't click so, after about a year of trying, I gave up and moved her on.

With the best will in the world and no matter how careful you are about choosing the doll, once you have them home with you, the occasional doll might simply not fit in, and there's nothing wrong with moving them along. to somewhere they'd be more appreciated.

I've also learned that BJD of around 7 or 8 inches don't tend to stay - for some reason i just don't play with that size - they get redressed occasionally, then left on the shelf untouched for weeks/months until I redress them again... I've had so many different dolls of that size move on that it's really not worth buying them in that size any more.

Teddy

 

I have dolls from when I was a baby, so I can safely say I would never part with any of my BJD (or other toys). I did sell a body once, because a close friend needed extra cash and was willing to borrow only if it was "extra" cash I wasn't using. I wasn't doing anything with the doll the body belonged to, so I decided to sell the body to help my friend and also let someone else use the body I wasn't. I would never part with any head sculpts, or any other dolls/toys ever, for any other reason or in the foreseeable future. I tend to purchase only things I know for sure I want, but sometimes I like to try things for the first time (when it come to doll purchases). I knew I didn't like toddler/baby dolls from the very beginning of my life, so I should have skipped trying them instead of just trying them out for fun, but I did and that's how I ended up with a BJD I didn't really want. I did keep his head however, and because I modified him, I have no plans to sell him, or any other of my dolls ever again, because I have no plans to try purchasing BJD, just to see if "l like," them ever again. (:

 

Since I started the hobby, I sold three bodies and one full doll. I always kept the heads, and even would have loved to keep the head of the full doll. But as he was an Iplehouse EID, it would have been impossible to sell just the body. The bodies were only sold because I was not quite happy with them (two did not pose very well, the third one was a tad too small for the intended head).

As all of my dolls are very carefully selected, pre-existing, characters from film franchises I love, I have absolutely zero intention of selling one. They are more action figures than dolls to me. I also modded most of them, some heavily. So I do not think they hold much value per se, only for me.

 

I have never sold a doll since I started the hobby in 2013 and I have no plans to either. I have no problem selling clothes from the dolls, but the dolls have to stay. For me they are a part of my personality and I could never give them up. If I ever grow out of this hobby they would stay with me.

 

I have always said that “by telling the stories of my dolls, I tell the story of myself”...and it’s absolutely true. Each doll in my collection is a part of my life story in a fantasy-based way, so I never plan on selling any of them. That being said however, I have sold (very rarely) in the past but only to refine my group. Occasionally a doll turned out not to fit their character as I’d like, and then I’d make the very difficult decision to move them on. But by now I’ve managed to hone my personal aesthetic and haven’t sold a doll in years.

 

I am the worst at mailing or shipping anything out, so I just don't sell anything, ever. I also get sentimental to things pretty fast, and it can take me a long time to part with something (if ever). At this point I feel like a dragon with its own hoard. Must have, must collect, pretty pretties.

 

Never say never. I like my dolls and tend to hold onto them (and have the room to store them), but there have been a few that I did sell or trade over the years, mostly because I didn't quite bond with them. I've thought about narrowing my focus again, but it's such a hassle to sell and shipping costs have gotten ridiculous.

 

The majority of my dolls are second-hand and arrived looking unloved at best, so I'd feel bad rehoming them again. I could probably stand to give them away to people I know would love and take care of them? I've dispensed with other collections that way and remembering how happy the recipients were makes up for any feelings of loss.
If I sell them, it feels like I'm reducing their value to what they originally had as products, when obviously they're worth more than just that.

 

That's exactly what I've done - I've given dolls that were more of a creative strain than a creative inspiration to a friend. I'm in the same situation as well, as nearly all of my dolls are/were secondhand (the others were in-stock).

I have a sentimental streak a mile wide, and while I know that the inanimate objects are not the same as the character I've imbued them with, I still get emotionally attached to physical things, particularly the more I handle them. I do love giving things to people, though, so that helps. My mental health also makes it hard to muster up the motivation to go through everything involved with selling even if I thought I could stomach it. I'd like to get there someday...but today is not that day.

 

I don't intend to sell, but who knows, I might bite my tongue. I'm super picky with dolls so I doubt ill ever have enough to have a changing cast, but emergencies might come up

 

I don't sell dolls. I don't really change my mind on doll stuff--- the dolls I have collected over the last 7 years in this hobby are pretty much the dolls I put on the wishlist I planned out when I started. I don't buy dolls unless I know for sure that I want them and that I have a plan for them that actually means something to me. There was only one exception to this, and even her I kept around for years until she finally clicked when I was shuffling around some hybrids. I also don't change my dolls' characters or basic looks/styling--- they may get upgrades in their wigs, eyes, or faceups over the years, but who they are and what their style is doesn't change. I'm pretty much like that with everything, though...I tend to just stick with things/not change much. I also don't ever spend money on things with the idea that I can sell them later, or buy things I'm not super sure I want to have. So no, I definitely plan to never sell my dolls.