Changing Characters

Hmm... I have considered that happening. If it ever were to happen to a doll's character, I'd just go with it... sell its old clothes if they can't be used, sell the wig and eyes, get a new faceup... etc...
Off topic to dolls but still related (since the question was about characters) it's happened to me with non-doll characters, I don't see why it wouldn't happen with dolls. For me, changes usually only happen in the early stages of creating the character... I'm the type that sees a doll, and then creates a character for it after deciding to get it... And when I see a doll I can add to "the list" (being the list of dolls I have realistic plans to get) I create its character... So usually, their character gets made long before I even get them. If any character changes happen, they're gonna happen well before I get the doll so that I don't have to waste time and money on buying all new clothes and wigs and stuff for the doll...

 

I've only done this - changing a doll from a non-story character to a previously existing story one. I felt a little resistance because I'd never done that before, but in the end it was the difference between bonding and selling him. Sometimes the doll tells you who they are, and you have to listen *L*. Go with your gut feeling.

 

Clover especially has evolved into something really cool, rather then a bland faerie doll

 

I have changed characters, but it's just been in the last year that I've felt comfortable swapping characters around. What started me going was the decision to focus on my main storyline and cut down on the number of dolls that fell outside of that. Most of those dolls ended up having their character changed to one of the people in the main group who still needed bodies. I did find it difficult to do at first -- or I should say, coming to the decision to do it was difficult. Actually changing them over was not -- that felt 'right' and I have no regrets.

When a doll has been a particular character for awhile, the two become kind of entwined to me -- even though I knew the characters could exist apart from the doll, it still felt weird to be contemplating changing them into someone else entirely. Plus the characters I let go where not pre-existing -- they had developed after I had gotten the dolls, so by disembodying them I really was letting them go, as it's doubtful they will appear anywhere else in nondoll form. However, it was freeing too, to feel like I could go in and not be afraid to make changes. I'm honestly happier with my doll family now than I was before.

 

This. ^^ That's the only thing I've done.

 

I've never changed a doll's character, but the characters - and hence, the dolls - have changed on me as a result of being in doll form? xD

That is to say... I got my Minifee, Michiru, with a specific idea of what she'd look like: Black hair, blue eyes, a light and natural faceup, etc. When I found her and after she arrived, though... she changed. Her eyes are blue and green, her hair is a dirty/ash blonde, and her faceup is considerably darker than I'd intended. But somehow, it all still works - it all clicked as "Michiru," even if it wasn't what I intended for her. It worked out really well.

That's the only real example of change I've had, though - pretty much, once a doll of mine has a character, it's set and it doesn't change. I would definitely never be able to change a doll's name or change their character completely unless something seriously drastic happened.

 

Well. I don't have any dolls yet, but there's this one particular girl doll that I want from Luts that's an MSD. At first I really wanted a girl and planned for the girl to wear pretty blacks and whites with dark hair, but that became too stereotypical for me- as I finally decided on getting her with brown hair And foresty green eyes. I want her to be an extremely festive character- like for the harvesty times of the year. Christmas, fall, winter, Thanksgiving- you know, earthy tones. Oranges, reds, browns, greens, things like that.
She would look beautiful like that.
Even if I had originally had her and decided to change her, I wouldn't have a problem with doing it. If it better fits the glove, it better fits the glove.

 

Always give the doll the name & character that seems to "stick" best to him/her. If this means changing just the name, or just the looks, or just the character, or all three-- you'll know when it feels right.

I have friends who've shuttled one doll through several characters, before finding which one he was supposed to be (in some cases, it turned out to belong to their roommate instead!).... or who've shuttled one character through several dolls, before finding the right shell.

I have only ever re-shelled a character once, and it hasn't even happened yet; he's staying in the same sculpt, he's just changing skin colors. ^^ Even this is hard to let go of! But I have a gut feeling I have done the right thing for him. If you know in your heart that a different character would just FEEL more "right" in another doll, then go ahead & change it. You'll thank yourself later... because your gut always has the last word, and it knows what it likes.

Besides-- it's your character, so you can always change it back!

 

I have tried to do this a couple of times, but ultimately failed. ^^; I also have many characters (some more developed than others), and when I decide to doll-ify a specific one out of them all it is usually for a reason. For example, I once got a SD13 Maki to be my monk, Aniketos. When he got here I put him in all of Aniketor's things, but I found that he didn't work for Ani and was far more suited to be my boy Shiva's father. In the end I did not keep him though -- Shiva's father is pretty low on my list of characters to doll-ify, which is why I didn't try and get him in the first place.

But if by chance I had a doll "change characters" on me, and I wanted both characters equally, then I'd have no problem with changing the name. I think calling a doll a blank slate is a good way to put it. ^^

 

Part of creating is changing and growing as you grow. You wouldn't keep a character you made when you were 5 exactly the same and draw it the same way when you are 25. You change your style and likes as you grow so your characters will change with you.

And companies are notorious for touching up photos. In person the dolls look different from the photos so you can have a very different idea until you actually have the doll in your hands.

When I first got my DOT Camine I kept him in his default wig with a pair blue eyes I had around and dressed him up in cute and somewhat fancy clothes. I started to feel I didn't really like that look on him though and wiped his face up to see if that helped, but I just ended up changing it all. Since then I've given him a blonde and black wig, green eyes, a faceup that looks like he's been in a fight and bruised knuckles, and he wears much more average clothes. The only thing still the same are his boots and his name. And I'm more than ok with that. I like him much better now.

 

Not only have I changed characters & names, I even renamed two dolls using names from two earlier characters & when I did the new incarnations suddenly became much more defined characters yet having nothing in common with the original characters using those names. Another character has gone thru three different shells & with this last one changed her name as well as her body but the basic character remained the same.

Our dolls are an extention of ourselves & as we grow & change it only makes sense that our dolls do too. While I don't start with a preplanned character in mind I've still found that my dolls often morph into something quite different from what I originally thought them to be. While I wouldn't want to change the concept of the entire universe my dolls comprise, I have no problem changing names, charcters & appearances within it.

 

I don't have a problem with switching names or characters, but then I plan for my dolls to embody multiple characters. I'm a little on the cheap side, and so instead of getting a whole new doll to create a new character, I got a new head and pair of hands, and had them dyed black, and all it takes is a clothes, eye, and wig switch, and it's a different Drow character.

 

I've changed dolls' characters in the past, but for the five girls I have right now, they've remained pretty consistent since their arrival. Chae-ri loves to cosplay as different characters (which is good since she has eleventy kajillion wigs), but even when she's dressed up as Mina or Hell Girl, it's not Mina or Hell Girl, it's Chae-ri dressed up as Mina or Hell Girl (or whoever).

 

People can get used to everything, including treating something in a way they'd never done before.
So, changing a character is possible - not easy, of course, but possible.

 

My doll collection is a passion of mine. And I learned a long time ago to follow my creative passions wherever they may lead me. The freedom to pursue my creative interests is what gives me joy and makes me happy. So if a doll didn't quite fit the character I'd created (and something more fascinating came to mind) I'd happily go off in that new artistic direction, knowing my doll would be more than happy to follow! It has only happened to me once, but by following my creative heart, I wound up with a doll that was much more wonderful than I could have ever dreamed and I can't imagine her as anything else now!

 

I have changed characters a couple of times. My Obitsu Gretel hybrid spent a short time as a kitsune named Aki, but it just wasn't clicking. So I switched her to a circus performer named Colombine, gave her a different faceup, and it instantly worked so much better!

I've had a few "floating heads" that went through several different characters before they found the right one, also. I generally don't get a body for floating heads until I've fully settled on a personality (and appropriate matching body type).

Every time I've done this though, I've given the doll a completely new look - new faceup, eyes, and wig. That makes the transition into a new character much easier for me! It would be hard to keep the appearance the same but switch to a new character.

 

This happened to me with my first doll and, thankfully, just months after buying him. The thing is that I bought the doll because I liked it, but didn't have a character for him so I just gave him a character of a story I was writing. Of course it didn't fit, and I mean it didn't fit at all, so I started from zero again, new name, new character, and see what would happen. Now I'm really happy with my little fluff of pink (opposite to the tough fighter that was the first character).

 

For me, I don't think I will ever be going through a change like that, where a doll will suddenly become someone else. I have a character in mind that I want to put into doll form, and can spend -months- looking for the right mould. It's almost part of my little routine, and happens every time I sit down and think, "Right, for future planning and saving, I'd really like to finalise this character". I think where I spend so much time effectively trying to find the perfect mould.. I can't associate any other character in my head with that doll. The two I have are so perfect for their characters, I couldn't change them.
The furthest I've got is having the doll form influence some character changes. For situations where the wigs and eyes can't match what you have in mind, and suddenly what you do buy works out better. Taking one of them in particular for example, he was just supposed to have plain white shoulder length hair. I couldn't find a wig with the right style, the closest I could get was one with a waist length extra under layer at the back. I planned to trim it off, but once I did have it - I realised it suited the character far better. :3