Attracted to Lesser Known Dolls?

I do tend to like less-popular dolls because I like to be unique, but I wouldn't be opposed to buying a more popular sculpt if I really loved it. Funnily enough, most of the time my tastes just happen to be for the dolls that are less popular- like my MNF DES for example.

 

The popularity of every doll sculpt seems to wane over time. Looking back, I've realized that all of the sculpts I own were fairly popular when they were introduced, and I remember seeing loads of them around- but it seemed like after I got each of mine, their sculpt's presence on these forums (and online in general) had decreased dramatically. I think the issue there is that it takes me a really long time to save up for dolls, so their popularity's passed its peak once I finally get my hands on them, haha. And I don't mind that at all! I wouldn'tve bought them if I didn't love their sculpts to begin with. I think the only downside is that now that they're not in high demand, all but one and a half of mine have been discontinued. :C

I think that the popularity of certain doll sculpts is ultimately beneficial to us as consumers, and as doll aficionados. When more people own the same model of doll, it usually follows that you're able to find more information on that doll's quality, specifications and measurements, posing abilities, etc., and have a great deal more resources available for it. For a long time Volks' MSD and SD10/13 dolls were the industry standard for clothes, shoe, and wig sizing- if you owned a doll (most likely from a lesser-known company) that wasn't close to those sizes, it was harder for you to dress it nicely and affordably.
And when sculpts are extremely popular- everyone's been citing the El craze, for example- people are more likely to push the limits of customization with those sculpts in order to differentiate them from everyone else's. Seeing multiple variations on what's essentially the same doll can demonstrate that sculpt's versatility to people who might've been on the fence or even disliked the doll based on its stock photos. Someone who thought El's stock faceup was too soft might later realize that an El with a harsh, goth-y faceup would be perfect to embody a character of theirs; someone who hated El initially, but kept encountering owner photos online, might find themselves growing to love the mold over time.

In contrast, lesser-known sculpts get far less exposure, have less people available to share information about their quality/measurements/capabilities, have fewer products tailored to their specifications (it's much harder to find clothes and shoes for Soom's Mecha Angels than for Super Gem), generally aren't given as wide an array of customizations as common molds, and carry the added risk of their lines being discontinued or companies shutting down thanks to poor sales, all of which can make people less likely to want to commit to buying them.
There are plenty of exceptions, of course! And it seems like there is a trend of people wanting to branch out and get more unique/less commonly-seen dolls, especially with how many doll companies there are out there these days. I have absolutely nothing against buying lesser-known dolls, but in general I think that buying well-known or popular dolls is "safer", in terms of the resources and knowledge available.

 

I think thats the opposite. i collect all sorts of dolls, and i come here because theyre on topic. once you get past a certain point in collecting, you do it without having to confirm or research much. These days I just buy a doll and therE are no other factors other than liking the doll. Doa never comes into it. off topic dolls are that way because the do not meet the rules. a lot of older dolls dont count as they were grandfathered in. Idont mean to be all lordy, but youve not experienced the crazes, assuming youve only been here since z2011, like el, f16, the initial soom craze, minimees, pukipukis. people would have love them, off topic or not,dolls are popular because people want them, but it doesnt matter how much theyre loved, if its not on topic, thats it. i have, again not tring to lord, influenced a whole heap of people into buying various dolls, because of my devianrt art. these people arent on doa. people influence doa, but doa has the last say. and hey, people deal. AOD is actually pretnty big here sorry this is typed badly, phones are badly XD

 

I'm gonna assume this was aimed at me? In which case, no, pretty much meant what I typed, thanks.

I'm not really sure what YouTube has to do with all this, but absolutely no one in this thread could possibly disagree with the concept of DoA having an affect on the BJD community at large, no arguements on that one I can assure you.

 

I do have to agree with Lulu, she has some very valid points.

I do have to agree that DoA has some effect on how popular dolls can be, but as people have said it is because more people get to see what people have done with them, which can tempt you into buying a certain sculpt. I do admit i have bought dolls because i have seen what some owners have done with them, and before that i did not consider them. This can be especailly true if the company photo's are not flattering.

However there are other places to see dolls that are seen as off topic on here, some of them are kind of popular and it doesn't matter if they are off topic here. I see pictures of 5stardoll Aiden (who is off topic) all the time of DA and on Tumblr, because people like him. People have also said (more then once) that DoA does have a set of guild lines they do follow to decide if a doll is going to be on or off topic. So it is nothing to do with how popular the dolls are to whether a doll will be on or off topic, but rather how it follows the guild-lines.

Also if i am being very honest: " I like unpopular dolls because they are less common and i want my dolls to be unique," does sound very specail little snow flake syndrome. I get the dolls i love because i love them, i don't care of common or uncommon they are, if they are on or off topic. My next doll i am planning is a very popular sculpt, i want a MNF Chloe. However on the other end i have a doll on my wish list that i have no idea if it will be on or off topic yet. But i am going to buy the doll any way.

Plus in this hobby, if you are creative you can make a doll very unique even if so many others have the same doll. They are customizable. That is part of the appeal.

EDIT: If you happen to like the unpopular doll any way then cool, but it seems pointless to just want unpopular dolls because they are unpopular.

 

I have the exact same feelings as kaschan502~! I tend to like less popular because of uniqueness (and just because my tastes lie there xD; ). But I'm planning on a (boy) mnf Chloe because I fell in love with one I saw here I think that says a lot haha.
I was also thinking about getting a few off-topic dolls, but so happens that the on-topic are priority (and not because they are on-topic but because I have a dolly story and I'd prefer to get more important characters first ^u^ ). So I don't think off/on-topicness has anything to do with what I choose to buy ^u^

 

My first and favorite doll, a Dollmore Huey Lewis, is practically nonexistent around here. The only Dollmore boy I ever see is Kyle Reese. I've seen one or two other Hueys, but that's it! I can't believe it. When I saw him, I thought he was the most beautiful thing ever!

 

I honestly think you need to do a lot more research. YES some dolls are more popular then others, your going to have to learn to accept that and deal with it. You can't really moan about other people's personal taste. Especially one minuet you where like, i like unpopular dolls, then you change to i wish more unpopular dolls got more popular.

Also DoA is not the only BJD site, some people have made valid points on what is popular on here isn't always the case else where and visa versa. If you want to see pictures of a certain sculpt, then look one multiple sites, you are going to find a lot more.

I also really disagree with how you are handling this situation, you keep changing your first post which i can understand some edits, but you are removing previous text which was heavily involved in your original question. Which is not a good way to handle a thread like this. In future i HIGHLY recommend you are familiar with what you are talking about before opening the can of worms.

By all means, edit as you learn better, but it is often best to have those in addition to your original post. But honestly the way some people are in the hobby if you start opening your month and causing a fuss on topics you barely know anything out, and have not seemed to even look into then you are going to get your self a lot of bad attention. It will not end well for you.

In other parts of the forum then people can be more understanding about you not being fully sure about the topic, i ask questions about things i do not know about first. But where i can i read about it first.

 

I buy dolls I like. Popular or not, lesser known or well known, it's just what I like. I have unpopular as well as popular dolls. I don't have the need to be unique or the need to fit in. I see something I want and I get it.

 

The DoA Wiki actually has a great list of a huge number of other BJD-related sites and communities, here. I hope some of these will be along the lines of what you're looking for?

 

I usually purchase my dolls considering only if I like them or not.
during the years, I realized that I have both popular and un-popular (even if I'd say underrated) dolls, both on topic and off topic.

for instance... talking about on topic dolls:
souldoll killian, dollfamily ella and, if we want to give a little look, also the faery collection from soom are all on topic dolls, but not so wide spread at all.
some of other on topic dolls might be very well known, but not so easy to be found either for they're limited, or for their selling price.

I also happen to like dolls that here are considered off-topic, and I own few of them. the fact that they're off topic doesn't make them lesser known. I think that simply everything depends on the public that's looking at your doll.
an Asella's MrPinou is off topic. he might happen to be not known at all here in Italy, but very well known in France. everything's quite related to other people's knowledge I'd think, imho.

I have a little the taste for unique and rare dolls, here and there. I've to admit it ^_^
it makes me feel a little special. but I wouldn't buy a doll I don't like only because it's rare....

 

I've found myself attracted to dolls that are less known and dolls that are more well known. I really don't think it should be a matter of whether or not the dolls are on-topic, off-topic, lesser known, or popular. It's more an aesthetic choice than anything. In short, I'm perfectly happy wanting both a DoD Homme Ducan and an Illusion Spirit Adrian--I like them both, popularity be darned.

 

I don't like a doll because it's unpopular, but I find a lot of the dolls I fall for are very difficult to find outside info on. It's just the way it is. I kind of think of dolls like fashion: just because something is the height of popularity doesn't mean it's the only cool thing on the market and whatever is The Thing will eventually give way to something else. Whatever the trends, you should buy what you like and enjoy it.

 

I prefer to own things that are unique or at least rare. This goes to all areas of my life. I refused to get an iphone for YEARS even though I knew that was the only phone that could do all the stuff I needed, just because everyone has one nowadays, so I stuck with Nokia till the end. Same with my dolls, I prefer uncommon dolls rather than having to share the same sculpt with someone else.

 

This is a topic that comes up quite often. Just some of the existing threads:

http://www.denofangels.com/forums/showthread.php?310117-owning-the-not-so-popular-molds
http://www.denofangels.com/forums/showthread.php?467288-Forum-loneliness-because-of-rarer-dolls
http://www.denofangels.com/forums/showthread.php?110226-Do-you-value-a-BJD-more-if-it-is-hard-to-get
http://www.denofangels.com/forums/s...ts-do-you-avoid-them-when-choosing-a-new-doll
http://www.denofangels.com/forums/s...t-because-it-seems-like-everybody-else-has-it
http://www.denofangels.com/forums/showthread.php?417758-Is-It-BAD-To-buy-Popular-dolls

 

I've never had an affinity for lesser known dolls. I guess I'm pretty mainstream >< My aesthetics match completely to DOA standards though oddly enough (I guess I found a great forum for my tastes ) and since most of the molds I like there's at least 8 owners of on DoA -w- I like being special but not this time I guess ^^

 

Like someone else said, buying on-topic dolls has the advantage if you later decide to sell the doll. Even if there are other sites, posting on the DoA MP is great because more people will see it and the feedback system is very helpful. It's also a good place to find dolls second hand at good prices. For this reason, I prefer on-topic. I would buy off-topic dolls too, but I'd be a bit more hesitant. It's not as easy to find information about some of the off-topic dolls I'm interested in (such as porcelain BJDs).

As for popularity, I really wish I only liked the popular dolls, but some of mine are fairly uncommon (Infinitidoll Aiden, Napidoll Angz and Naya, Crobidoll Camille, Peakswoods Punky Beetle, Infinitidoll Kay). I buy what I like, but I think popular dolls are easier to buy/sell on the MP. For instance, if an unpopular doll you like is discontinued, there's a chance you'll never get to own it. I bought my Napidoll Angz because very few people had her and I knew Napidoll sometimes discontinued sculpts. A few months later, she was discontinued. Also, as others have mentioned, there are more owner's pictures/reviews for the popular dolls. I wanted a limited doll from the company Sweet Gale, but at the time there were no reviews for any of their dolls, so I missed out on getting him.

I definitely wouldn't completely avoid a doll just because it's unpopular, though. I see very few dolls from Marchen Waltz on here, but I adore their sculpts and would eventually like to own several of them.