Cheap doll after cheap doll?

I have quite a few so called cheaper dolls,( as well as expensive ones), but I actually really like my cheaper ones, ( mostly AoD-girl, and Demon Garden-boy bodies ) as I think they are good quality for the money. As I like to hybridise too. I think a doll is what you make it, and I don't think that people would necessarily know the difference between my more expensive ones to my cheaper ones. Plus although I do like a bargain too, it's not a case of impatience to get a doll quickly.
They don't make me feel like a second grade doll collector either.
I think it's a lot to do with a mind set. It would be interesting to get two new dolls side by side that nobody had seen before. One to be cheaper and one expensive. It would be interesting to see who actually matched the right doll to the correct company.

 

Alright, I simply just can't quote everthing that Moemi18 has said that I disagree with. How can you sit here and preach that cheaper dolls are bargain garbage , people who buy them are better off buying Barbies, and things of the like. I must add that I have found myself a tad offended because my boy is on the cheaper side of the spectrum. I've also looked around and found that I would certainly engage in buying a BBB tiny elvin child, and other 'cheaper' dolls. I don't like how you have this thought that only if you own a thousand dollar doll and treat it like royalty are you acceptable in this hobby. I have an under 500 dollar SD boy , who I play with and I love. Am I one of those disgracing the hobby? Just let people be, it is their own money and even though you may not like their dolls, mods, face-ups.... just hit the back button. You don't have to dwell on the dislikes that you have.

 

I agree, but I think that sometimes, you should just buy the doll you want. Even if it is cheap or expensive, if it is the one for you then I think you should go for it!

 

Everyone needs to do things their way and be left to it in peace. Its not a hobby with rules so everyone should be allowed to freelance their own way.

 

I'd like to believe that anybody with that many dolls from a less expensive company really likes them, but that's just me. I'd also like to point out that these days? LUTS is pretty damn cheap. I love them, but what I paid for my first Delf is twice what I'd pay for him now. Does that mean I'm settling because I won't buy a Volks doll instead?

 

This isn't something you will ever be able to know just by looking at somebody's account or photos online-- it's something you'd have to actually ask each individual owner. It might be that that collector simply prefers those dolls from those companies, likes their aesthetics best, and is drawn to them. Or, that collector might be economizing, or being realistic about their own economic range & what they feel like reaching for. Or, it could be a combination of factors.

I recently read an interview with the designer Tomas Maier from Bottega Veneta, who insisted that any middle-class customers can afford one hand-painted cashmere scarf for $550, but for the fact that they have been conditioned to want too much other stuff.... His words were: "Just have less". ^^ Sure, that's all very well and good in theory, Mr. Maier! But he does have a kind of a point. Not everybody is willing to reach far enough outside their economic comfort-zone to sacrifice & scrimp for the really high-end toys; but if you want it enough, it is still possible. You can't go guessing/assuming about people's motives one way or another, though, especially when judging a snapshot of a doll collection on the internet.

Am not even going to touch that splutteringly hilari-hideous claim about gore-mod owners having deep-seated problems, either. I think somebody needs to open their eyes a little wider & have a few growing-moments, recognize that the internet is full of people who don't think exactly the same way, then come back and try to participate in a debate.

 

Man, after all the posts I and others have done trying to tone down the notion of elitism in the community, boy does this OP ever undermine us . . .

Unless someone tells you they buy only cheap dolls just to get a large collection, you can't assume that's why they buy the less expensive BJDs. And even then, I see nothing wrong with that. Some people collect like their collection IS a collection, after all. Maybe they want all the Bobobies in a set colour/size. More power to them.

The only issue I see is if someone is settling and buying not what they really want because of price, and setting themselves up for disappointment. That's not because the lower priced doll is inherently bad, it's because they're not getting what they really want, and probably won't get the results they wanted. In that case, they're not doing anything wrong, either. Just something I wouldn't personally advise doing.

You can't judge people by their dolls. People who like gore mods don't have to have a thing wrong with them. People who like their inexpensive doll with a faceup they've done themselves and a clumsily sewn outfit might well be having a tonne of fun and love that doll to bits. That's actually a thing that's right with the hobby, IMO.

In short, not everybody has the same ideas of price, quality, and purpose. If you don't like it, hit the good ol' back button.

 

*cough* Well, I actually happen to have two of those "Cheap" dolls and another 2-3 planned- yes, that's right, planned. It's not that I'm impatient, or broke (although I am), or I just can't be bothered if you will- it's that I LIKE them... weird right? I actually like Bobobie and Planetdoll and AoD and AE ... and Dollzone etc., I have yet to come across a 'cheap' company that didn't have a single sculpt with any merit. BJDs are artistic objects, and as such (in my opinion) they all have potential, regardless of the company that made them. It just takes the right kind of owner to bring it out. And I feel that since I'm paying 3-5 times the normal cost of any other doll for even the "cheap" ones, I think they are well worth the price and effort put into them. I have seen certain dolls scoffed at and discarded as cheap crap, and that same sculpt made to look absolutely gorgeous by an owner that loved it to distraction. I don't think you should ever turn up your nose at something just because it costs less- you never know what hidden positives it might really have.


EDIT: Good grief. After going back and reading through this thread, I really do have to say that maybe Moemi18, you should try to be a little more sensitive to the fact that we are all different- I think this point has been made, but I'm so disappointed in your assumptions about your fellow hobbyists that I feel the need to make it again- Gore mods and the like aren't my favourite either, but I can totally appreciate one that was done really well. At the end of the day, this hobby isn't just limited to people with talent though, or people without problems, or people who can sew amazing outfits for their expensive collections, it's just about people. Each doll is a reflection of the owner's individual creativity. We all love our dolls, even those of us who take a sharpie marker to them. No one on this forum has the right to tell anyone else that they "have deeper problems" because they like gore mods, or that they "should just save up" instead of buying cheaper dolls. Absolutely no one, and that's something you can't change I'm afraid.

 

THIS. The best way of saving money would be to pick a different but related hobby- like customizing off-topic dolls! :P

I have multiple RS/BBB dolls because I like their sculpts. Going by the posts on the BBB threads, so do most of the people on there- a significant portion of who have more than one BBB/RS doll. While I have other slim dolls in the same scale planned for the future from other companies (particularly in MSD size), in my other preferred size (yosd), there's a very limited number of companies doing non-chunky tinies with any sort of poseability and non-bobbleheads.

 

Why does the OP care what someone else does with their money? Answer me that, Moemi18.

 

This turned out to be insanely more wordy than I expected. >.>

I don't even know if I can talk on this subject, I honestly don't know where my FL dolls fall in terms of affordability, so I'll use my Bambicrony as an example.

'Nicer' and 'rewarding'? I'm going to be terribly blunt about this from my perspective.
Those expensive and nicer dolls you're talking about? I don't like the style.
My Bambicrony is certainly not as posable as a Littlefee, does that make her less 'nicer'? Her resin doesn't have that Volks glow and heft, does that make her less 'rewarding'?

Was my Bambicrony less expensive than those two dolls? YES. Could I have gotten a Volks Yo-SD/Littlefee instead of a Bambicrony? SURE! Did I like the Volks/Littlefee style at the time? NO.

It's not about 'quality' all the time. It's mostly about aesthetics.
Now if her resin was crumbly and pebbly, that would be another story. But it's not. But according to your arguments, I should have tried for a Yo-SD or a Littlefee because they were more expensive.

Lots of people will come in and say 'Yes but there is a quality difference' and I'm not going to argue that (for the most part). But in the end, I don't care if a doll is made from the super best resin, sanded perfectly smooth, has the perfect heft to it with the purest pigments in the world. If I don't like the sculpt the quality of the doll is not going to win me over. I would imagine most people would feel the same.

My biggest inspiration on DoA is actually PeppermintPocky I was telling a friend this same thing last week:
The woman defies the two (perceived) camps of 'cheap' and 'high-end' She has a DoC, an MNF and Soom, while rocking BBB, RS and DZ sculpts in her clan. There are price differences of up to $200 between some of her dolls and she loves them all. Maybe I'm wrong and price does have something to do with her choices, but from where I'm sitting she makes each one look amazing, well dressed with pretty face-ups, without making a distinction based on how much they cost or how well they pose. She buys what she loves, despite the price, despite the differences in posing they may have. I think all collectors should do that, in any hobby. Buy what you love and enjoy, no matter what the preconceived notions.

A few people who know Bambicrony and Littlefee's will also know that they currently retail for the same amount of money. Which would nullify my argument above, except for the fact that I bought my Bambicrony during an event and she was much less with option parts than a basic Littlefee with no option parts. I basically got a 'bargain'. Am I not allowed to try to make her as beautiful as possible? Your opinion seems to be that 'bargain', 'ugly' and 'cheap' are synonymous with each other.

At the end of the day, the reason why people buy 'cheap' dolls is their business. If they want more dolls out of their bucks, I'm fine with that. If they like the sculpts better than the $500+ dolls, I'm fine with that too. I can't judge.

I know this has been said before but: I don't see how anyone can call dolls 'cheap'. You can't pick an MSD up for $60 (if you can: awesome bargain shopping and I commend that in this economy ) $140 is still a chunk of change for a doll, JUST a doll, not factoring in clothing/hair/wigs. To a person who makes $12k a year that $140 is just as much as someone who makes $60k a year and spends $720 on a doll. It's still a chunkachange.

That statement opens the flood gates to an entirely different can of worms.
I admit I've seen dolls with a glitter and caked-on acrylic paint face-ups, wearing sock dresses and a wigs made of yarn and wondered about it. But I have never judged them for enjoying their dolls less than I enjoy mine. It's not my right. I love what Ostrich said.

Following up the end of that discussion :

 

Can't people just choose the mold they think fits their character best, whether it be expensive or not-so-expensive (relatively speaking), and leave it at that? o.o*

 

So, what is considered cheap? Is a pukipuki doll cheap since they're only $140 and Armaleias Inkling is $320? Is a luts KDF cheap because they're only $240? And is an Idealian cheap because Lusion Doll Dahlia is 1300? Is an Idelian cheap because a fullset Chrom is more expensive?

And really. I could mod a Chrom. I could mod him to hell and back if I wanted to. I can buy 10 and let them rot in my drawer or maybe I should shove one up my genitalia and masturbate with them. (sorry mods and underaged) And nobody should give a rats butt about it. Cause it's my doll and not another humans life.

I need to calm down now, this feels like being on /b/.

 

QFE.

Even as someone who isn't a fan of the dolls most 'cheap' companies make for various but largely aesthetic reasons I couldn't help but boggle at the OP's 'You don't spend enough money to be in my hobby GTFO' attitude.

As many others have said, what someone does with their own money is their own business, it isn't for you or me or anyone else to decide that they're throwing it away or try to make judgements on their motives for buying their dolls.
That and everyone has their own approach to the hobby and what they take away from it, I'm not going to tell someone to get the hell out of the doll hobby because they don't photograph their dolls the way I do mine, it's none of my business what they do or don't do with their dolls. There is no set way in which someone should participate in or enjoy the hobby, telling someone they're 'doing it wrong' is beyond arrogant not to mention ignorant and close minded.



I have to laugh though, we where all wondering where the perception that every owner of more expensive dolls is a snobby, elitist asshat came from and well, yeah... thanks for that Moemi18

 

Is it just me, or is this entire thread against the debate guidelines??

 

I'm joinin' the party here don't mind me...
But in my opinion, dolls are like children. Even with this being the expensive hobby that it is, I don't think it's fair to begin to put a price on things or call people's dolls ugly. It's like calling someone's child ugly, it's just something that doesn't sit right with me :/
Especially because even if you DO have cheaper dolls, whatever your motive for buying them was, there has to be SOME amount of love there, because even the cheapest dolls arent "cheap"

When I first started seriously getting into this hobby a few years ago I fell in love with SOOM (now I will be poor forever) but I marked off their dolls as unattainable for me, so I watched from the sidelines and searched around for something more affordable. I almost bought a few middle priced dolls, but I felt extreme guilt when i went to hit "buy" because I knew I was settling for something I didn't want. I fell in love with Soom's MD Amber but could not afford her, so I decided about a year ago that I would look for her on the marketplace. From then on I had either missed a chance or I couldn't justify paying thousands of dollars for a blank doll, and if I did, I would be afraid to enjoy her, and play with her. Some people just can't bring themselves to pay that much, and "too much" varies from person to person. For someone else, $600 could be too much, does that mean they cant enjoy cheaper dolls? Not at all! I just bought the LE Soom Amber for about half the price I would have paid to get the MD one with fantasy parts. Does that mean I am settling for less? Nope. Will I look at her and wish she was the other version? Nope. Will I love her just the same if not more? Yes, because there is no guilt attached. Even though neither of them are on the "cheap end" as you would say, it is still the same situation.

I hope that all made sense ^^;

 

HEEEEHEHEHEHEHEHE!! Well, at least we have an example of the (seriously) minority view, yes? People are always asking for examples and she (or he) obviously was just doing us a public service by providing us with one. Yep! That's the ticket!

*snickersnort*

Oh but on a serious note:

Yes! Thank you. It's one of my favorite pastimes. I couldn't even begin to give you a decent reason other than "it's fun for me." And really that's what it's all about, isn't it?

 

Second this. It seems to have turned into one massive troll-fest.

From the guidelines:

 

Not really seeing this as a troll-fest. *squints* There are a lot of BNFs in here....

It's a fair question the way it was worded - up to a point. The main issue, though, is what constitutes "cheap".

 

I'm confused as to why anyone would assume just because someone has five "cheap" dolls they were settling. I'm also confused as to why people always cite "resin quality" when it comes to costs. I'm sure there's a difference in resin quality everywhere, I'm not disagreeing. But, there's always a lot of assuming that makes me wonder why no one ever assumes something positive like maybe they were buying them because they were perfect for the character they were embodying or maybe they just loved the sculpt. Personally, I'm collecting dolls to embody pre-existing characters. Meaning, while I could possibly save up to buy every high-end doll there is, there's no point if they don't fit the character I have in mind. And if a so-called cheaper doll fits the bill, so be it. We're all in this hobby for different reasons. Why assume anything except their want for these dolls? Unless they proclaim otherwise, I don't get the point.