Did you purchase a "test" doll before fully committing to an aspect of the hobby?

I knew nothing about BJDs except that I loved how they looked, and I jumped in feet first. I ordered two dolls, a full-set Iplehouse Lion which cost me over AU$1,000 and a DOD Camine which cost much less but was still more than I'd ever thought I'd spend on a doll. In fact, dolls were never on my horizon until a general discussion thread on another forum alerted me to the existence of these gorgeous dolls. So no 'test' dolls for me. Shortly after I'd ordered them I joined DOA and found a whole new world I never imagined existed.

 

I didn't buy myself a test doll, never actually thought about it. In fact I'd fallen in love with a big 66cm girl and the price was way too high in my head at first. As time went I kept going to my doll's company photographs and eventually decided I'd save for her. I wasn't interested in a new hobby but in one doll, so it was her or none.

 

My first doll was somewhat of a test doll. I bought her on sale through DenverDoll. She is an SD size doll, since that is the size i am primarily interested in, but she was much less expensive than some of the bjds I was considering. Since I wanted to do the faceup myself, I decided it'd be best to get something in the size range I wanted, but not quite as expensive as some options, in case something catastrophic were to happen (although I did a ton of research about the proper tools and materials to use when doing faceups). It's nice to have her, because I can practice faceups and wig making on her without having to worry about destroying a $500+ doll. I don't regret my decision at all, and am currently waiting on my second bjd. A boy this time (and quite sizeable, since I realized I do in fact enjoy the substantial feel of an SD sized bjd.)

 

You can consider this a tester doll maybe... I did not however. When I first joined the hobby I saw $500 as a omg thats so much I'd never be able to do it. I started with an MSD not sure if I'd like the size I really wanted an SD, but settled for a really cute DF-h. Small and affordable and I had a character for her right away so I knew I wouldn't regret it later either way. Now i dont care for the price much lol I know for a fact the costs should never hold you back, plus I realized I usually just spent that money on junk o_o most of it i never used or will see again. My first doll I'll never sell her ever she's my little pink lolita (maybe a fairy) character. I found out from her purchase however I dont like MSDs after holding my friends SD i knew that's the size for me :3

 

I jumped right in when I was able to afford it (first job, had the funds at the time, figured why not?) and started out a little bigger than I probably should have. I got a kid delf from luts and he's......... a little much to handle for a newbie like myself. I think it might be because of his horse butt (he's one of the yul satyros dolls that was sold last year). But I've held onto him and now I'm considering buying a much smaller one. It'd probably be more likely to be brought with if smaller.

 

I actually bought a couple of off-topic fashion dolls (Moxie Teenz) as "test" BJDs, but not even a month later I gave in and just bought a resin BJD because she was very reasonably priced and I loved her sculpt.

 

I started out with a tiny. It is true that my decision was influenced partly because I wasn't yet comfortable throwing down $300+ on a kind of doll I'd never owned before. However, the main factor in my decision was that she was the first doll I fell in love with. So...yes, and no?

To be honest, if the first doll I'd adored had been an MSD worth $500, I might actually have gone for her first. Probably after a lot of research, saving, and planning, but yes, it is ultimately about the doll you love. Although I fully understand 'testing the water', is there any point in paying $200 for a doll you just like, when you can pay $100 more and have one you love? I think 'settling' like that might actually set a person off on the wrong foot in this hobby.

 

I knew right away that I would love BJD's, but I did go into it with a blind eye when I got my first girl. I had no idea about the long wait nor did I know anything about the mechanics and when she finally arrived 3 months later, I learned quite a bit about the doll. In all honesty the doll I got was beautiful, but her kicky body put me off bjd's for a long time. It wasn't until that I did some more research and learned about the different body types and how you deal with them that made me came back. So yeah, my first doll was certainly a good tester.

 

Not really, it was more important to me to buy a doll that I knew I really wanted. I bought dolls that I caught myself looking at over and over, which were always SDs. I prefer the aesthetics of more mature dolls (and I love how huge SDs are XD), so I knew I wouldn't be completely happy with something different.

 

I didn't get a tester doll, but I didn't just jump right in either. My friend had her dolls, so I knew what I was getting into. I had been eyeing a doll here and there, but I could never decide. Then I saw my first doll. She was a limited, so I couldn't put it off forever. Even then I almost didn't get her. My friend and I decided to spilt the cost and share her. She did ended up becoming just mine in the end. XD

 

No... I guess I just felt that if I didn't love it, I didn't really want it. All of my dolls are tinies though. I don't know how I'd feel about spending so much on a very large doll.

 

No. I think that this is impractical. Test doll is quite expensive too. I see no reason to pay money for unnecessary things.

 

First time I held resin in my own hands was my first boy, and yes he was a practice doll, inevitably, in the sense that I did make handling mistakes, faceup mistakes etc. But even though he was expensive as a Korean SD, he was the only one I wanted and I regret nothing.

 

My test doll was an off topic cheaper and smaller doll. I bought her before I found out she was off topic. She is still part of my collection, and I don't think any less of her.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

My first doll was a test doll, a BBB Sprite. I still have her and she's still one of my favorites. But there was no way I was investing 300-500 dollars in a hobby until I saw if I really liked it.

 

I bought my gateway doll and a few friends on layaway. Then, while I was paying them off and waiting for them to arrive, I bought a secondhand doll so I could have some idea what it would be like to handle a BJD. Having him around to play with made me feel more confident about handling the other dolls as they've arrived. He's not my favourite doll, but since I'm not as emotionally invested in him I have room to make mistakes while experimenting with him.

 

My first doll, I just saved up for the doll that I really wanted at the time and got him instead of getting a test doll. I knew myself too well to know that if I got a doll I really wasn't interested in "just to see" that there was a chance I wouldn't be happy with it either way. I'm very finicky. I really need to like a doll to keep it around lol. 9 times out of 10 when I make impulse doll buys they end up not working out for me and just get sold eventually. I still have my first boy too. I've thought about re-shelling him and if I ever do I'll probably still keep his first sculpt. I think having a test sculpt works for some people and for some it doesn't. For me, I just felt better with saving up for the doll I wanted and diving head first in with a sculpt I was pining over.

However, if I were going to start mods, I would probably buy a test sculpt for that just so I could practice and everything before I moved on to doing them on my dollies because I'd be afraid I'd make some irreparable mistakes and stuff.

 

I didn't bother with a test doll XD I bought a souldoll kanguk as my first doll and then bought an angelheim luka the pan as my second doll (also second hand) who arrived first :T I suppose in a way he could have been a test doll but I had already been to bjd meetups and knew what I wanted.

If it was something like faceups, mods etc I would definitely get a "junk" doll to try on first ^^

 

In a way, I guess... When I discovered BJDs, I fell in love with two at once . I bought the MSD (my absolute darling - he still is!) first, as I wanted to know if I would like resin dolls as much as I expected to, and if I could handle them properly. Since I was absolutely smitten with my boy, I decided it was safe to buy the other doll I had fallen for, who was an SD girl. So there was never any, "I actually want an SD but I don't dare to risk it", and no settling for second best - but my first doll was still something of a test case. He is the only full-set doll I bought, too. Not because I intended to keep him that way, but in case I turned out to be rubbish at customising and making clothes. If I did buy such an expensive doll, I wanted to be sure it would still be a nice thing to display and admire if I failed at turning it into my character. My second doll I bought blank and naked. I would never have dared that for my first.

 

Kind of? I discovered BJDs and 1/6 vinyl dolls at the same time and decided to go with vinyl dolls because they were way cheaper but a year or two later I decided to get a BJD also and then BJDs ended up replacing the 1/6 dolls completely My first BJD was chosen after months of deliberation and looking at every doll, website, and photo and I decided on Luts/CP Yder which was my absolute favorite and ended up diving right in with sewing and faceups.