Do You Ever Feel Overwhelmed By Your BJD Habit?

you shouldnt feel bad about it. they are just work in progress. you are looking for the right style for them. Is their a certain reason as to why you didnt get them face ups yet?

 

I'm a mom in real life - it has been a very demanding, 20yr long and still ongoing, hard slog. I am very maternal and nurturing though by nature, so because I only had one child in the end, I needed pets too - got lots of those and that was also a very demanding, 9yr long and still ongoing, hard slog! I got dolls to care for as I realised they are perfect for me - undemanding, and they don't suffer when neglected, yet give much pleasure and enjoyment just from being there for me to care for, WHEN I have the time/energy (unlike animals and kids who never give you a break even if you're ill).

Sometimes I start feeling 'oh no - faceup needs doing - new wig/shoes/clothes need buying/sewing - oh no I never photograph my dolls I'm useless etc. But then I remind myself - Hey...you got dolls because children and animals were too demanding FOR REAL - The demands of dolls are all in my head - they don't mind, they won't suffer, they are perfectly happy half naked being ignored for weeks - nobody will report me to the doll welfare people for it LOL - So I would say RELAX and enjoy having dolls to keep you company when you're feeling sick - they still love you no matter what you do or don't do for them - I hope you feel better soon too

 

No need to feel bad about it; dolls are long-term projects to begin with. My IoS Chaos is still just a head despite being my most important grail, only second to the one I'm hunting down now, and he remained blank for a good half year after I finally managed to acquire him and is currently out getting his face done. His body will follow later still since I can't spare funds for it right now. Likewise a lot of my other dolls were works in progress for the longest while, my first doll it took him two whole years of trials and errors to get him to a point I was actually satisfied with... so on and so forth.

That aside hobbies are hobbies, not obligations, they are meant to be escapades from daily life and they won't go anywhere when you're too busy, too tired or too sick to work on them. There's no owner your dolls are more deserving other than you; you bought these dolls because you loved them and should hang on to them if you still do... but in the end that's just my opinion. Your dolls will still be there waiting for you when you feel better and able to work on them. (:

 

I know what you mean, I do look at mine sometimes and feel bad that they don't have faces (or in Chaste's case, a body ). However, they're not going to be upset if you can't finish them right now. Your health is the most important thing, don't let little worries like these stress you out

 

Sometimes life or illness gets in the way of us doing our hobbies and they have to take a back seat for a while. It doesn't matter whether they are finished now, next year or in 5 years time.


I would advise not to sell any of them whilst you feel bad, because when you are better - you might really regret doing that. Otherwise chill out and let your body heal and your energy for other things will return. Best of luck

 

I can sympathise, I've had to take a few 'breaks' from my dolls due to ill health myself, and yes there have been times where I've been unwell and I've looked at my dolls and thought about the endless list of things I would like to do with them and felt a bit overwhelmed

but don't feel guilty, your dolls can wait, I've got a girl who I've been working on on and off on for YEARS, almost the whole time I have been in the hobby who STILL doesn't have a decent set of clothes (awkward size)and still hasn't had her mods finished (time consuming) but she will get there when I get around to it, and that gives me something to look forward to, after all wouldn't it be boring if they instantly came to your doorstep perfect?

 

I do feel overwhelmed when I see so many dolls I want to purchase, but can't. I think doll collecting can be overwhelming as a whole, but you just need to take a deep breathe, relax and figure out what you can and can not do. That's what I do...or at least I'm trying to make myself believe...LOL.

 

I get overwhelmed. I sometimes think I have way too many dolls and I want to scale back. Or that some don't get enough attention. Or some go for weeks without proper clothes, shoes, wigs, accessories... Or I wonder why I shelled minor characters, or get bored with their role play. But then, either one of two things happens---either I do sell them, but end up buying a new, different doll with the money, OR I just stare at the doll and remember why I liked him so much in the beginning and can't bear to let him go, even if I don't interact much with him.

 

i feel ya... I feel so guilty that I can't get Lexx a body right now but... I have to pay bills and afford myself before I can get him a body....

 

It's actually better for me personally to always have dolls that still need alot of work. In two main ways: I feel less inclined to buy more, AND I have something to still plan and think about and look forward to.

I am sorry you had such a bad summer and such flare-ups. Auto-immune issues are hard and miserable. Elve has a super point: your dolls don't mind. They'll wait.
Thankfully many are already sooo pretty without face-ups!
Maybe you can gaze into their lovely shaped faces and plan the color in your head and look forward to the day you have the energy to give them that color...
I am glad you do have some lovely dolls to keep you company specially on the bad days.
Here's hoping your energy wil be there again soon!

 

I feel sorry that I haven't been able to play with my dolls lately, even as I have been adding to my collection. I have more than a couple of them sitting around that need faceups, or need cleaning, or need new faceups, and then the new dolls arrive and they need clothes, and then I see more new dolls being released and itch to spend on them... yea, no, bad. It's overwhelming, but, well, it's all in my head. I'm not sorry for them, I'm kinda more sorry for me. I feel vaguely out of control, and it sucks that I can't even find the energy/motivation to play with all these expensive playthings. XP

 

My Dikadoll Mian Mian waited three months to have a face-up and a year to have some clothing, due to life stuff and not for health issues, but I quite understand... one of the reason I get into the BJD hobby and still mantain it despite my chronical lack of free time is, like Elve, Vulpes and other said, that dolls can wait, but I still feel guilty when I'm neglecting them. I think it's for the vague feeling of being out of control leXis mentioned, too much project and too less time, more than for the dolls in itself.

 

The doll I got blank this spring still has no face up, as I don't have the money for ZM sealer and a mask. She looks fine without one. However, Soom keeps making these awesome LEs that I can't afford...

 

My first doll is on order, but I'm overwhelmed by how many things there are to learn! Which is not all bad--I like hobbies that have a learning curve so there's something to sink my teeth into. And hey, maybe this will be the kick in the seat I need to learn to sew better, because I'd love to make simple outfits...

 

I am overwhelmed with all my layaways and needing to find more places to stack my doll boxes I have no more room but i cannot stop.

 

I currently have one doll with me and he's no where near completed to his image I want for him... and there are 3 others coming soon, so I'm feeling quite overwhelmed whenever I start to think about it... But I'm just going to take my time rather than forcing myself to stress out too much.

 

Don't feel bad, your health is more important than worry how a doll feels. At the end of the day it doesn't really feel anything. Don't be so hard on yourself. When you're well you can do the face ups and really bring them to life! They will understand.

 

I definitely do sometimes. I have currently got around 20 different characters, almost all of whom don't yet have their correct eyes, wigs or outfits. I prefer buying dolls when I can (since I mostly want Limited dolls and so try to avoid second-hand mark-up), but it does make it a bit stressful when I can't play with the dolls I own due to them being only half-complete.

I try to mitigate it by having 'communal' items - at least a couple of wigs/outfits/pairs of eyes that don't 'belong' to any one character. That way I can enjoy my dolls while I wait for them to be finished. Perhaps you could do similar with temporary, unsealed face-ups. They would count as practice face-ups, as well! Just make sure you do seal the heads first, before you work on them, so any temporary face-up done doesn't leave stains.