BJDS: A hobby... or *way of life*?

For me it's a hobby. I could understand if you make them for a living and call it your way of life, but for me as a collector it's only one part of my life, and not all that significant in its impact on who I am and how I live (the only thing it dictates is how much money I can put towards my other hobbies).

 

For me it is really a hobby. And not the most important one. But I do love the dolls. A LOT!
Maybe I also did not put enough time to make it way of life, but I doubt that will happen. I love my existing job way too much.

 

Hobby, but maybe in the future a way to support my life.

I believe that a "way of life" is something akin to a religious experience. (Down rabid Athiests, let me explain!).

Look at artists, the immense dedication and time they put into their respective art leads to a climax of almost religious proportion. Those that do more, for example, weekend theater are "hobbyists" In a way. The guy that wins the Tony is a way of life.

If you gain that climax of emotion when you finish a mod, or finally get those Miko robes finished, good on you. If you then go out and do it, forsaking all else, well I'd say that's a way of life.

Guess it all depends on your priorities.

 

It's a hobby for me.

 

Neither. Though I am new to this, I believe it is an art rather than hobby or way of life. The incredibly beautiful photography, outfits, backstories are self-expression in art. I believe that elevates the form the dolls take in our lives to their proper place - ART.

 

Naturally I'd say hobby.. but I'm feeling like its more of a way of life than anything. I feel so engrossed in everything bjd... Its hard to not feel this way, and currently I have no problem with that. XD;
Perhaps It will slow down when I feel my collection is complete. ^^

 

Alright, I'll admit it. It's a HUGE part of my life (love me love my dolls kinda deal)

 

Hobby, but I'm hoping that my interest in it lasts a long time. I do find myself blogging about dolls a lot, though, because I'd finally gotten the courage to hot-glue suede her, and attempted to sand her seams. Felt so accomplished after that.

 

Its a little more than a hobby. BJDs are not collectible. They turn yellow with age. Mine is part obbession. I love my dolls, I sew clothes for them all the time. I am luckier than most. I am retired and I can spend as much time as I want. My husband has his hobby, he is a scullpturer so it all works out great!

 

I have a problem with the concept of that it is referred to as 'way of life' or 'hobby'....I am not a dealer of bjds but do retail in the doll/dollhouse miniature world. For me, it is a way of life and my raison d'etre- reason for living you could say, since I love dolls & the hobby, but also the 'Business' of the doll world as well. It is how I pay the bills, sustain myself...and I enjoy it immensely.

as to the way of life...it is not strange for me to see people include their dolls whether bjd's or non bjd's in weddings, special occasions, etc. Most doll collectors whether they collect bjd's, American Girl, fashion dolls, etc. have a doll that 'travel's with them...are they then strange for making this part of their life? or is it just a hobby? Ig uess my peeve is that people who spend huge amounts on sports, video games, etc. are perceived as that's ok- that's their hobby...but doll collectors are looked at as downright strange if not weird for putting hte same passion into their 'hobby'.unfair in my opinion. I can understand your curiousity on this question though, because I myself have pondered it- bjd collectors are a set unto themselves, apart from other doll collectors.

I know for myself, it is both a hobby and a way of life...

 

This depends on the person for sure! I know I obsess about BJDs alot. And have thought about including them into my wedding. . . Whenever that will be. For me I feel like it is a lifestyle choice. Like identifying as Goth or Prep. I am so proud to say I collect, sew and 'play' with BJD! And people berate me for obsessing over BJD, not because I'm obsessed with them but because they are dolls (also probably because of my line of work - Marine). But, I don't really care.

So I think there are both Hobbyists as well as people who consider their dolls as a phenomenal part of their life.

 

Although I would say it is a hobby for me, but its also kinda taking over all my other hobbies....

so.... really dont know if this is right or not...but the love for the dolls are so real. ..maybe its just me ~~~~>.<

 

I think it depends on the individual, of course. I know of a few people who fall into the "way of life" category. But for me its a lovely hobby.

 

For me it's a hobby, but I don't think it's wrong for someone to have dolls as a way of life. Doll collecting teaches gentleness, self-expression and often includes a variety of artistic and crafting skills. If clubbing, with all its negative aspects, can be considered a valid way of life, I hardly think devoting one's life to dolls should be looked down on.

 

It's more of a hobby. It's something that I really enjoy but it's not something I would want to make my life. It's something to do off to the side when I have nothing else to do. Though I really do like messing with them, making clothes, redoing faceups, and all that fun stuff.

 

its both, a hobby and a way of life

 

Definitely hobby for me. When I was new to the hobby there was a while when I spent too much time browsing DoA and window-shopping for future dolls and wigs and outfits and making plans and whatnot, and I couldn't get BJDs off the brain, but eventually I snapped out of it and it went back to just a regular hobby. Because I decided BJDs aren't nearly important to me enough to be worth spending that much brainpower on them, lol.

I plan to have a handful of Dollfie Dreams to make stuff for and dote on, and I'll oggle pretty resins from afar, but that's about it. I can see BJDs getting beyond "just a hobby" status for some people when they hardly think of anything else, and frankly I'm glad BJDs aren't as important to me as they were for a while. ^^;

 

It's a hobby for me. It's something I enjoy but it most certainly doesn't define me. It's just something I find interesting. I mean, it is a certain part of my life, as anything I like doing is, but it is not the central focus of my life.

 

Er... Kind of neither? My dolls are characters from the story I'm writing/drawing. I love dolls, obviously, but I'm not a doll collector, and the dolls are not the centerpiece of my storytelling effort. They are just one manifestation of my love for my characters and of how important this story is to me. I like being creative, so I enjoy making clothes for them, but I expect my attention to shift from one creative activity (making doll clothes) to another (drawing) and back again. So the dolls are part of an overall creative activity that somehow I cannot call either a hobby or a way of life :p.

 

For me, it's a hobby. I've always liked collecting beautiful things, even before I knew anything about BJDs. But I wouldn't say collecting is a way of life for me - it's just something I enjoy.