did it take time for you to adjust to the hobby?

@Teleri and retired belly dancer too!!!!!! Wow! Always fun finding people with so many of the came things in common here! Love me some DoA!

 

I used to be a little worried about posting when I first joined too, but it's really not that scary when you get used to it. I've found that the best places to interact are the photo sharing threads that are in the discussion area tab, the BJD games area, box openings, introductions, waiting rooms, and galleries. The general discussion and size-specific discussion threads can move quickly and you might feel like you're being ignored. Sending PMs to other members is a good way to make friends too! If you see someone's doll that you really like, send them a PM and let them know! It will make their day, and you just might make a friend If you see someone who is in the same area as you, send them a message to tell them you just wanted to say hi. Everyone I've talked to on here is very nice!

 

I was very nervous at first because it was basically just me in my immediate area with a doll. And once I joined the forum I was very nervous about messing up somehow. But now I feel much more comfortable in the community! I'm always very active here but it did help to make me feel more connected and I've even begun to connect with people in my area. uwu

 

I was so nervous about posting at first that I may have set a record, it took me over two years to get enough posts to get into the marketplace. I think that I thought everyone on this site was really, really young and they just wouldn't be interested in what some middle aged lady had to say. I persevered and found some people in my area though, and now I have a few people I can talk to about my dolls, and that is just so ...COMFORTABLE!?!

... There really are Trekkies everywhere. The most fun thing I have ever sewn for Halloween was a commanders uniform.... in a 3 months infant size onesie! I really must run up a set of Star Trek uniforms for my BJDs!

 

I am new to the hobby as well and I know I am still trying to adjust, and trying to come out of my shell so to speak. I have no idea why I am having trouble speaking with others, but I do. I want to meet everyone and make new friends, but I will be honest and say my Internet social skills are lacking.

 

Technically, I am still adjusting

I am extremely shy, but I am slowly getting over that. It took a couple years, but I am much more confident online, at least, and am not so afraid to interact on here or in other BJD groups on other social sites. Physical meets would be another story entirely XD I've never been to one, but I would like to, though I am sure I'll be that quiet, awkward one off to the side who just kind of smiles and waves until I can get up the courage to talk.

 

I've been in the hobby, or rather owned dolls, since 2007 but I'm finally attending my first meet tomorrow and I'm actually kind of nervous. I've never chatted or met with other owners, so I'll just have to see how long it takes me to adjust too

 

I'm still getting used to the hobby and I've been in in for about a year now. It helps to be here and on Dairyland because I can talk to people that understand. My local friends don't really get my hobby, but they understand how I feel. As an anime and gamer fan I'm used to having odd hobbies though. The more I talk online about the hobby though, the better I feel about it and hope to go to a meet at some point.

 

I kinda have to dive headfirst into things I like or I'll be too scared at a later time to voice those likes. I love anime and cosplay and I broke it to my parents that I love these pricy dolls that I CAN pay for the day after I bought my first doll. Their reaction to my dolls was basically the same as cosplay (why pay that much/Why not be yourself?!). The thing is...I AM being myself. It's not that I'm not satisfied being me, but sometimes it's nice to not have to be ME for a day or two. It's the same with my dolls. They let me live through their stories and faceups.

I don't normally tell people I don't know well about my hobbies unless they ask or I get to know them a lot better.
After about a year my sister got into the hobby too, which is kinda cool. My best friend loves them too and has three of his own. If I didn't jump into the hobby the way I did then I'm not so sure I'd have the friends I have who are in the hobby. It's also let me grow as a person.

 

I'm sort of socially awkward under the best of circumstances, so joining a whole new community hasn't been super-easy for me, especially with all the lingo and layers. Most people have been amazingly patient with me when I asked patently obvious questions. Others haven't been, so much, which leads to fussiness and sad facing.

I have no regrets, though. This is a wonderful community, and I'm thrilled to be part of it, even as it consumes my house.

 

I'm always nervous about joining in on a new community, especially when it's hobby based. I always feel like I'm being 'judged' if I don't know everything about a topic. That's why I did a lot of research before getting more involved in the BJD community itself. Even now, it's only been since last year really, since I've started, so I still run into a lot of stuff I'm not very knowledgeable about, but I've met some really nice people to talk to. Even have my very first doll meet coming up (which I'm super anxious about going to), now that I know there are actually people in my area (sort of) who are in the hobby as well.

 

I'm a shy person in general, so it took some time getting used to other people. But the shyness only lasts the first few moments, because I find most people in the hobby are welcoming and happy to share their experience with others~

 

I have never made friends in this hobby in all the 10 years I've been here...I don't know what it is but it bothered me in the beginning and now I don't care.

 

I'm new to BJDs and I'm always shy but the friends I've made on other doll collecting forums have been really sweet! I'm hoping to make friends here :3

 

It didn't really take me that long to adjust in the hobby. After all, most of my friends already know that I collect dolls, so when I bought my first bjd, I don't think any of them were surprised. xD
Although, none of my friends collect dolls, though some are interested in the hobby. I'm kind of [painfully] shy when it comes to new people, so I haven't really been seriously considering going to local meet-ups, then again, with my hectic school schedule, I don't really have the time to go to them, even if I want to.
I try to be active on here, as well as on a local forum, but so far, I haven't really had much of a conversation yet with other people. x'D

 

I was actually drawn into the BJD world through my off-topic travel doll. She's not typical of that particular doll (cloth, not wood and her character is far more modern than most people style their dolls.) I sometimes felt like I was just being tolerated in the group devoted to those dolls. But for whatever reason, several people who were into BJDs started reading my blog about her and her adventures - and liked it. I felt more welcome in the BJD world than in the other doll's world, even before my first BJD arrived.

 

I've been here for a while. When I first joined I had no job no spending money and parents who were not ok with me spending money on frivolous things. So I lurked and admired from a far. Plus it didn't help that I was younger then. Now I'm older, I've moved away from home and have my own steady paying job and I got Greta last year. I don't have any doll friends and it's a little lonely not having anyone to share with but I'm doing ok with that. I tend to lurk anyway being so shy. But sometimes I wish I had someone to go out with and just do dolly things! Doesn't help that I moved from bustling Seattle area chock full of doll people to no where Montana.

 

I guess I was lucky that the people I've contacted online for help in getting started and now when I'm encountering this or that problem, have always been very excited talking about anything BJD-related. Only good experiences! I don't want to start a conversation with people who aren't in the hobby yet unless they are very close friends though. Too complicated and not worth the fuss explaining, and I don't like the feeling of having to justify myself. But, if anyone of my not-so-close friends or colleagues at work would approach me out of the blue, I'd be more than happy.

 

I'm having a hard time adjusting to the boards more so than the hobby. I have multiple things I collect so hobby hopping isn't hard for me but I have never been on a board with so many restrictions and rules. Then again, none of my other collections deal in the high prices that BJDs do so consistently so I definitely don't have a problem with it. Another thing I have never dealt with before is the hard stance on recasts. Coming from a background of Transformers where they are not only welcome and actively sought but have become a market all their own. Once again, don't have a problem just commenting on the differences. I am mostly a lurker by nature anyway and tend to not go to meet ups of any kind due to my schedule so it's not like I have to step out of my comfort zone.