Do you ever feel like giving up on bjd?

The doll hobby has changed quite a bit over the years, and continues to change even now so I've def had my moments here or there. In the beginning everything was shiny and new to me, there were pictures, meetups, stories, the whole -take them everywhere and do everything with them- times etc and so on. I went through a period of "these are so expensive and I'm so poor wth am I even doing?!" as well as the "Am I even good enough? I don't deserve to be a 'doll-mom' actually" phases. The honeymoon period ended a long time ago for me and life found it's way in. There's always drama in the hobby, drama in life, drama everywhere and it can, at times, put a serious damper on my enjoyment of them, to the point that I question it occasionally. Everyone has a right way and a wrong way to "play with dolls" as far they are concerned and it's easy to get caught up in it at times (just as it is with any hobby, basically), but in the end it's up to you to decide if you enjoy it enough to continue. I'm long past the stage of going to meets or making elaborate photo stories, I can't be arsed half the time to even take decent pics of them anymore, and when I do, it's a monumental task (mentally) to get to the point of posting or sharing because there's always something new, some new trend, someone better at "bringing them to life" than me and when you compare to your own shoddy detailing, it can be depressing.

However, I don't collect my dolls for other people or for approval, and I've long since come to terms with some of them ending up as "shelf sitters" instead of them being active, movable art that I'm photographing whenever possible like I did way back in the beginning. It took me quite a few years to accept that how I started in the hobby as far as my mindset goes is very different than where I am now, but I did in the end and I'm still about them because of it. As long as I enjoy looking at them, I can justify the costs to myself, I can justify the time, and whether or not I should continue collecting them. Like with any hobby out there, you stay in it for as long as it makes you happy, but get out when it stops. I still write my stories, I still create character dolls and I still collect them because I still enjoy them, even if I'm not as vocal/publicly visual about it as I was at the start. In the end it's really the only way you can go about such things ^^;

 

I do not want my focus in this hobby to be on acquisition. I want to focus on enjoying what I have instead of stressing over the thought of what I can't have. It's okay that I won't have every doll I've ever wanted. I'm not worried about it at all. Maybe someday the doll will become available to me, maybe not. Either way, it's pointless and unenjoyable to think about.

Also, it's a huge waste of time to be bitter about people who were able to get the doll you couldn't. Celebrate their successes and you'll have a lot more fun.

I stay far away from participating in social media now. It seems to make everyone jealous and miserable with the goal of keeping you there scrolling and clicking away endlessly hoping for a minor dopamine rush. It's very fun to interact with other people but I feel like these sites seem to bring out the worst in everyone. I see very easily how someone would be want to give up from these kinds of online interactions. I hardly even see people truly enjoying themselves on it.

I have my own website where I post my thoughts and photos for my main audience (future me) and I honestly can't tell if anyone is even reading or looking at my pages unless they send me an email. There's no refreshing to see if I got a like or catering to an invisible audience to try to build my brand. I don't have any fans. I'm just doing what I like, for me.

 

The idea of leaving the hobby and selling everything has crossed my mind many times when I get anxiety attacks DIM is also one of my favorite brands and it is very sad that they will close

 

I don't think I would give up on collecting, but more like take an extended break when bored of it, anxious about the money spent, or just wanted to explore other stuff I like collecting. I tend to alternate my interests every few years. I never get too deep into something that I become an expert. I think I'm scared of being below average at everything so I give up before it gets too involved and keep a distance.

 

I tend to alternate my interests every few years too but this is the only one that has stuck with me since 2011

 

That is true. At first i felt like my world was ending when I first began bjd collecting, which really wasn't that long ago, if I couldn't get the doll I wanted. Now I realize there are so many beautiful dolls out there, so it is okay for me to not have that doll I wanted such as the volks rozen maiden that first made me aware of bjds. At the the time, i didn't know how to buy one and i could not afford one. With layaway it is easier to afford a doll if you can plan for the budget and prepare for the cost. Learning to let go of a doll you loved to accept a new doll I think is part of the process of collecting.