1. It has come to the attention of forum staff that Dollshe Craft has ceased communications with dealers and customers, has failed to provide promised refunds for the excessive waits, and now has wait times surpassing 5 years in some cases. Forum staff are also concerned as there are claims being put forth that Dollshe plans to close down their doll making company. Due to the instability of the company, the lack of communication, the lack of promised refunds, and the wait times now surpassing 5 years, we strongly urge members to research the current state of this company very carefully and thoroughly before deciding to place an order. For more information please see the Dollshe waiting room. Do not assume this cannot happen to you or that your order will be different.
    Dismiss Notice
  2. Dollshe Craft and all dolls created by Dollshe, including any dolls created under his new or future companies, including Club Coco BJD are now banned from Den of Angels. Dollshe and the sculptor may not advertise his products on this forum. Sales may not be discussed, no news threads may be posted regarding new releases. This ban does not impact any dolls by Dollshe ordered by November 8, 2023. Any dolls ordered after November 8, 2023, regardless of the date the sculpt was released, are banned from this forum as are any dolls released under his new or future companies including but not limited to Club Coco BJD. This ban does not apply to other company dolls cast by Dollshe as part of a casting agreement between him and the actual sculpt or company and those dolls may still be discussed on the forum. Please come to Ask the Moderators if you have any questions.
    Dismiss Notice

Did you start collecting with specific goals?

Feb 15, 2019

    1. Way back when I started the hobby I had this idea that I was going to have a whole collection of white skin doll chateau dolls. That was all that was on my wishlist. That goal did not last long, suffice to say! I realized that I liked having more variety (different companies/skintones) with my dolls, and that the wait time never works out for me.

      Now that I think about it, not necessarily a goal or anything but I don't think past me would have expected for me to keep the collection so small. I'm at 3.5 dolls right now, with plans being to finish the one doll and maybe one other joins this year.
       
      • x 1
    2. I didn't have any goals at all! My only dream was to get just one of the Volks dolls I saw when I was in Japan back in 2010 (but didn't have the money back then) and I didn't even know any companies other than Volks, then 3 years later I got my first girl (SD13 Elena), then I decided I wanted a boy (that's when I started having character goals) so I got a boy the next year, then another boy the year after, and finally I got my fourth doll just yesterday!
       
    3. Intially I just wanted a large boy BJD that I liked.

      <<<< That's him in my icon picture from about 13 years ago

      As I got more, the SD-sized ones became part of a large extended family of children (including some somaller sizes as younger siblings & cousins). I go for dolls I like/find atractive and prefer smiling sculpts. I don't like whiteskin it just looks unnatural and unfinished to me. It only took one (tiny) doll to convince me of that. The majority of mine are normal skin or darker skintones.

      The hardest problem is finding suitably immature bodies for them. Most of them are between 8 and 12 years old so I don't want hugely muscular boy bodies or big-boobed and shapely-figured girl bodies.

      I don't think I've had a an SD sized doll that hasn't stayed. A couple have had body swaps as I've found "better" bodies for their character (or limbs swapped around to make them taller or shorter). I've had a few MSD sized dolls that didn't stay, and a number of dolls of around 8 inches have come and gone becaue I simply can't seem to get on with that size.

      Teddy
       
    4. When you started out, did you immediately have a focus on what you wanted in your dolls?
      I came to BJDs from Pullips, momoko, and action figures, and these dolls already served specific purposes for me. I have action figures which are actual existing media characters, vague characters with a name and a very basic backstory, like age, name, and profession, but little else. They are my "fun" dolls which I can justify because most are cheap enough (relatively speaking) to not serve a purpose.

      As a result, this enabled me to be a little bit choosier with the purpose that BJDs served. BJDs are bigger, and generally more customizable (and easier to customize) than other dolls, so the natural goal for them would be to shell original characters.

      This meant that entering into the bjd hobby, I would only purchase dolls that fit into an existing character, and it forces me to shell dolls if I choose to reshell the character into a different doll

      And if you were vague at first, did you end up selling a lot of your initial purchases?
      I wasn't vague at first, but I did end up selling dolls as I found dolls which would fit the character better. However, I don't really regret some of the purchases that passed through my hands as it helped me learn what features I do like in a doll and what is available on the market.

      I did end up purchasing a PlanetDoll MSD Riz who does not serve the function of my other dolls, but I have not sold her because I like her and I am too attached. I originally purchased her because I liked the sculpt and she was cheap and I wanted to use a cheaper doll to test some customization techniques I had in mind. She also has a friend :frownyblush: who is not an existing character.
       
    5. Yes, I definitely had a focus for my dolls at the start and it has not changed! I am into fashion and wanted to use dolls as a way to further that interest (clothes, outfits, etc). Part of my intent for collecting was making character dolls as well, and I'm starting to put a lot of effort into recreating my favorite video game characters. I've always been an artistic person so it's another great hobby to help me to learn and grow. :) I have not sold any of my dolls and I don't really plan on it.
       
    6. I haven't been able to get my first doll just yet, but I do have plans ! And I too have a very very specific vibe and feeling I want to achieve with my dolls in the future. I have certainc sculpts and other things already planned out to be either OCs or creative dolls !
       
    7. Yes, but that focus went to the wayside almost immediately as I began learning about the hobby... I originally ended up here as an extension of my anime figure collecting, so I was looking mainly at anime styled dolls to dress in kimonos and cosplay and such. But I also have a strong affection for angels/demons/mythological creatures/etc, and after researching and learning about the hobby, was thrilled to find those themes running rampant; I'm really enamored with some of the fantasy-themed sculpts. My first doll does have an anime aesthetic, but I've decided to not limit myself- my second doll is an elf, and my third (on-order) is a more realistic sculpt. I just got my tax return- and my planned doll #4 will again have an anime aesthetic. I already know who doll #5 will be, and she'll be fantasy-themed, but I need to save up some money for her first...
      Focus gone- just pretty pretty things everywhere!
       
      • x 1
    8. I honestly admit that I didn't and still don't have a focus or a main reason for why I wanted to get a doll. I guess I was just really lonely and I was super sad all the time with mood swings and just an overall depressing attitude. I wanted a friend and my doll keeps me company. One thing I would love to focus on my current doll and future dolls is their fashion! I really love alternative and chic fashion in general! Bjds can be super realistic and they basically look like models so it wouldn't be fair not to dress them up like models! :XD:
       
    9. When you started out, did you immediately have a focus on what you wanted in your dolls?

      Mostly. I love to sew and make costumes, but I could only do it for myself for so long. Enter the never-aging ball joint doll and the significantly smaller clothing size ratio, especially the tall, lanky Hound that was my first doll acquisition. I started out being very focused on mature sculpts, but over time, different things have caught my eye because something seemed special about them, and the potential of what I could make them into.

      And if you were vague at first, did you end up selling a lot of your initial purchases?

      Nope! In fact, my Hound is still my alpha male and my precious, gentle-smirking treasure. I came close to selling off one smaller one, but after looking at her over ten years later, I realized what she really needed was a refresh of her look and character... which can be extremely easy with a new faceup, a different set of eyes, and a wig. Next thing I know, I looked at the rest (all of which I have owned for upwards of 10 years or more) and realized who could benefit from some form of either refresh or are best as they are. It's refreshing to look at your dolls after a long time of them sitting in their bags. I found myself reminded of why I got them!
       
    10. I came in with a very specific focus. I'd wanted a posable figure of one of my OCs for years, and after looking at a ton of other options, a bjd was the best starting point to create him. So the plan was to create him specifically, followed by creating other characters from his story.

      Things have, admittedly, expanded a bit since then, and I have some character dolls now in the mix, as well as a handful of fantasy sculpts I just liked. I've had very little come in with no plan, and what did has been moved on. (The fantasy dolls do have plans around them, which have changed over time but still kept them in the collection.)
       
    11. When you started out, did you immediately have a focus on what you wanted in your dolls?
      When I started, back in 2013, I was a teenager and I had just one goal, to give a resin body to a certain character that I used to have as main in most of my one-shot writings and a character I really could relate with. She was a red haired girl named Kerli.
      That was my one goal and I expected to end it there but... XD
      Long story short, I've got 5 dolls now and Kerli's character is changing because I feel I don't relate to her anymore (adulthood is coming for me. Someone please save me!).
       
    12. My initial goal was just to get an SD bjd. Then I wanted a partner for him, so started to thinking about their relationship, from this a whole world and characters with back stories sprung up and then I was hunting for them. I completed them a short while ago with a couple of changes (thought I wanted one sculpt then saw another that fit better usually before ordering). I also have a couple of extra characters who were unplanned for (one was a gift and the other got reshelled before they even arrived!). I thought that would be it but... there's still a few sculpts I adore and I think they'll spawn their own world of characters. I just love creating characters and seeing my idea come to life! I haven't sold anybody and I hope I never want too. Although I do have one spare head who I bought to use their body for another floating head I had and he may well go soon because I never really planned to shell him into a character (poor guy) I actually really like him but I have no plans and never did for him.
       
    13. When I started almost 13 years ago, I thought I wanted to just get dolls and make photo stories.

      I have done that, but now I have dolls that are here purely from sentiment and others that inspire me to do better in my photos as well as my story creating.

      I also thought four dolls would be plenty, all SD13 sized. I am approaching having 12, divided into three groups. Two that are story inspired as well as improving my photography skills. The third just out of love and sweet memories.

      Hopefully in ten years I will be fantastic. Lol
       
    14. When you started out, did you immediately have a focus on what you wanted in your dolls?

      No, not really. I didn’t know I was going to fall down the bjd rabbit hole. I just knew I loved centaur dolls and other doll types seemed to follow. Fortunately, I do have certain traits I like. So when I come across one that I already feel I have, I’m not too tempted.

      And if you were vague at first, did you end up selling a lot of your initial purchases?

      I haven’t sold any of them. I don’t have a certain aesthetic that my dolls have to meet and I don’t regret any of my purchases.
       
    15. When I started I had a small notebook with 6 characters in it. I was going to have a mix of humans and demons all SD sized. A Soony, El, Shiwoo, Lishe (later turned into a soom gena/romantic gena), Miyu (the original sculpt before the update) and a breakaway. I only remember 3 of my character names, the book being lost a long time ago, but I remember the sculpts. I love that I have 3 of the original 6. Though they're in MNF form and two of them aren't the oc's of that time, but different oc's. The other one has had a personality change and a few other character changes but still the same. I still plan to get one of the oc's to go with November (juri14, soony elf) but since the story already has a Lishe, I have to find a new shell. I'm thinking maybe Marcia... anyway...

      I had a plan of six sd dolls. I currently have many more than that and only three of them are SD sized. The rest are msd and tinies. And I have more on the way too... lol
       
    16. Although I am new to BJDs, I am a doll collector in general. I didn't have a goal when I got into the BJD world; I just saw a doll that I liked. When I went to a friend's house, she showed me her BJD collection. I feel in love with a different doll and bought her. Now I am saving to purchase the first doll.
       
    17. When I started out I just really wanted a handsome guy doll to sew clothes for. I didn’t have any real specific sculpt in mind. I’d seen the SOOM guys and wondered about those but it wasn’t until I discovered Dollshe that I knew the sort of doll that I was looking for. When I was younger I really loved dolls like Volks Yukinojo and I think I based some of my plans on those sorts of dolls :)
       
    18. I learned about these dolls on accident back in mid-to-late 2003. I wanted a Volks Dollfie, their 30cm customizable fashion doll line, but I stumbled upon Shirou Tachibana instead. It wasn't too far off, as far as being a "customizable" doll, but the price listed on his sales page did make me take a double-head-turn. I was able to get a few Volks Dollfie back then, and was pretty happy that they were as customizable as I thought, but then I was also intrigued by their Super Dollfie, yet not too willing to pay for one of them -- I wasn't into their facial sculpts, or their child-like chubby bodies. Then I learned about the possibility of owning a vampire-male sculpt when I learned about other BJD companies, which I never got, but my main interest were always being able to customize my own dolls/toys. I've loved dolls all my life and I believe (as a thirty-eight-year-old) I'll always will. However, I was always looking into customizing my own toys. That idea alone sparked many feelings that I've never gotten from just collecting, so that's why I wanted a Volks Dollfie originally, and why I got into BJD, even though I never did purchase a vampire male sculpt. I own five complete BJD, and (a lot of) floating heads, I never sold a complete doll but did get rid of a body once. I don't have any concrete intentions to purchase more dolls, but I do love the ones I own and still plan on customizing them when I'm not being a lazy bum. DX I still get a lot of joy from customizing them, I'm just kind of frustratingly slower in getting things done now that I'm older -- not just because my fingers ache when I sand/shave resin for too long, but because I procrastinate a lot more than when I was younger -- and I don't sincerely believe that's going to change (I'm only getting lazier, so I highly doubt it).
       
      • x 2
    19. When I first started out in this hobby, my focus was entirely on fashion and the strong desire to express myself through sewing and design. So I initially experimented with all sizes, just buying what I liked and exploring from there. Then I discovered I enjoyed building dioramas to showcase them and their fashions, so I decided to focus on MSD size exclusively which were the best fit for the rooms I wanted to create, and sold off all the rest. Then, not surprisingly, the dolls in their rooms began to spawn characters, so it soon became all about characters for me. Everything was going pretty well until Dollzone released their flower sculpt, Anson. I was absolutely mesmerized and inspired by her! I ordered her immediately, and by the time she arrived I’d created a whole extensive character and backstory for her. It took me an entire month to complete her and her display...and once that happened, I looked around at the rest of my collection and realized that she had totally eclipsed them all! She was such a huge presence that her character had somehow absorbed the best parts of all their personalities, rendering all the rest absolutely redundant! It was a total shock to me and something I never expected. But after a week of struggling with it, I made the monumental decision to sell them all and start over from scrach, building my collection around that one Dollzone Anson and her character. Happily, this turned out to be hugely successful and I’ve been super bonded with my collection ever since. I guess, in hindsight, this was all a process of learning and growing in the hobby. My Anson forced me to become far more serious about my characters, and I’ve been able to build a truly wonderful collection that keeps me constantly focused, creative and motivated. And the funniest thing is that this journey has brought me full circle...I now have all sizes in my crew, just like when I first began.:)
       
      • x 4
    20. My first (sold) doll was my own character. Still love that character and his back story, so maybe one day I reshell him. Actual doll is for Shelling my favourite anime character, to make him 3d... he was originally my oc, but I just saw that anime and changed my mind. My next doll is shell for my oc too. I like to have more dolls, oc and character dolls too. So yes, I only buy doll if I had plan for that doll...The only problem is, that I am sooo picky. I rarely find a doll I really like, or match any of my beloved characters...