Do you feel alone in the hobby? (even with the forum)

At times I do, and then I don't. I have been to a couple of the meetups but it is very hard to get to them since I live about 45 minutes away from the meets. A friend got me into bjd's and I love the hobby. I have alot of doll friends who are collectors but mostly they are into fashion dolls such as Barbie, Fashion Royalty though a few are into the bjd's, only the fashion doll ones that aren't on topic here. We still get a kick out of getting together and bringing together all the different dolls we collect.

I think the time I feel most 'alone' if you can call it that is when I find it hard to explain the storyline in connection with the doll, or planning the next character. Browsing on DoA helps alot and in a way, helps me make wiser choices when choosing a bjd. I find the online forum cuts out part of that loneliness and is a support in a way, with people who would not understand the bjd hobby.

 

I do feel pretty alone in the hobby where I live in Idaho.. I've tried making friends on Instagram and here but I'm having a hard time connecting with anyone? I'm pretty new to the hobby still and haven't done much with my doll, so I think that's where it stems from.

Are you more experienced with the hobby? Have you thought about hosting a meet up in Alabama?

 

I'm a lonely person in general because I have a hard time making friends and initiating/carrying conversations. Especially since my tastes tend to be somewhat niche. But at the same time I really enjoy not having a large group of friends because forming attachments in groups and interacting with people usually means drama will happen eventually. It's a really tricky situation, especially with the drama in the bjd community. It's impossible to stay out of drama if people you know and care about are in the thick of it. To me the loneliness is preferable to the stress, so it doesn't bother me so much.

 

Some times i feel kinda alone because I'm the only one among my fiends who likes bjds. plus talking to people online can be nerve racking because im so much younger than most of the people in this hobby.

 

I would say no as there are so many BJD folks here and on other forums. It is a great community and so I do not feel alone.

 

Yes, I do feel lonely in the hobby most of the time... I still enjoy to see others dolls though and even though no one notices them, I still post and talk about them. It makes me happy regardless. It would be nice to have a friend to talk to

 

Nope! My aunty is into it, too :3

 

I understand you pal. My best
friend is in the hobby as well, but apart
from her and another friend of ours, here in my city, we don't have frequent doll meet. It's a little sad. Thankfully we have the online community.

 

I'm pretty much the same. None of my friends and family know about my new hobby and i don't even have online friends to talk about it yet. I'm currently waiting for my first doll and curious about a doll meet, but too shy to make new friends in the same time. You're not alone

 

I feel alone mostly because I don't reach out to other people. My friends think I'm weird for liking dolls and my family has only started to warm up to the idea of me spending 500$+ on a doll. It's hard sometimes, but most of the time I enjoy having the hobby to myself. I like to be by myself a lot of the time and this hobby feels like something I alone enjoy; and I like it like that. I know I'm not the only one, but I've yet to see anyone around me show interest and the amount of people on the internet is staggering, but it doesn't affect me. I like to feel alone, so I'm okay with the fact!

 

I know other doll people through a local fashion doll collecting club, and one the of the club members also has bjds. I'm glad I found this club, because I feel like some people think adults who like dolls are weird, and none of my other friends or family members share my interest. If it wasn't for the doll club, I would feel lonely.

 

Do I feel alone in this hobby? No, because I know there is a huge community of people who love and enjoy these dolls every bit as much as I do. However, that doesn't mean I'm not lonely.

Several years ago, I moved from Tacoma, Washington, to Hilo, Hawaii. When I lived in Tacoma, It was easy to find people and groups who shared my various interests and hobbies. At the time I moved, I had just gotten started in the SCA, belonged to a live RPG group, and was attending a Science Fiction convention or a SCA event about every other weekend. I had a large group of friends, including one or two really close ones, who were involved in the same activities and shared the same interests. Even if we didn't get together and do things during the week, I still would get to see and hang out with most if not all of them at the SCA events and the conventions.

When I moved to Hilo, I went from an average of one SF convention a month to pretty much zero conventions. The SCA in Hawaii turned out to consist of a handful of members on the main Island of Oahu, and maybe one or two people on some of the other Islands. They don't even have their own kingdom, instead they belong to the kingdom that is California. So all the big fun events like feasts, festivals, tournaments, and such, all take place on the mainland, in California. What few SCA activities that do take place here, such as local guild meetings, all take place on Oahu. That means about
$500.00 in round trip airfare, just to attend say an Archery guild meeting...not a workshop...or shooting practice... No, I'm talking your basic meeting, with the last meeting's minutes read, a treasury report, old business brought up and discussed, new business brought up and discussed, etc. I just can't see, spending that much money every month in order to just go sit through a guild business meeting. What would be the point anyway, when all the really fun guild and SCA activities will all take place in California. I can't be making two or three trips to California every two months just attend SCA events, it's just not feasible for several reasons.

That's probably the biggest problem with living here. It's so isolated, especially if you live on one of the other Islands instead of Oahu. Oahu has the biggest population, that's where Honolulu and Waikiki are, so that is where everything happens because that is where most of the people live. I live on the Island of Hawaii, usually referred to as The Big Island because it is the largest Island in the Hawaiian Island chain. There are two main towns on the Big Island, Hilo on the wet side, and Kailua-Kona on the dry side. Note, I said towns, not cities,...towns!

I live on the Hilo side. Let me give you an idea of what Hilo is like, imagine the most rural small town America place you can think of, one that is in the midst of farming and cattle country. Now mix in a very rural Japanese small town, say a little farming and fishing community. Add a commune or two's worth of old hippies and New Age neo-hippies, toss in a handful of assorted immigrants, and sprinkle with surfer dudes and dudettes. Finally, turn the clock back about five to ten years at least, and you've got Hilo! The last big event here was when they opened a Zippy's restaurant at the mall.

Hey, at least it's better now than when I first moved over here to Hawaii. We actually have our own Anime convention, on Oahu of course, and it's a darned good convention too! By our second or third convention the number of people attending was already in the thousands, we outgrew the hotel, and had to move it to the new convention center. While here in Hilo, they've actually got an Internet cafe now, and free WiFi at the new Safeway store. Still no decent bookstore to replace the Border's which closed though.

Now, if I could only find one or two people here, on this Island, that had some of the same interests and hobbies, maybe even including BJDs. It would just be nice to have someone to hang out with and talk about stuff with once in awhile, maybe go watch a movie, eat lunch, shop for stuff we can use for the dolls or for cosplay, meet up at the park for a doll photoshoot, work on cosplay costumes, or doll clothes, etc. I really miss that.

 

Yes, I feel all alone at this point. Except for the people of this forum and my mom, there's no one I can talk to.
And I feel that if I try to talk about BJDs with someone, it will not give much importance.
I really wanted to be able to talk about it personally, keep a close friendship with someone who likes both BJD and dolls in general how I like.
Alías, I feel that I'll never meet anybody who likes the same things I like in general, music, arts, movies and TV shows, crafts.

 

I wouldn't say I feel alone so much as "limited," perhaps. I've only met one other friend of mine who is interested, and a more cynical side of me is convinced that its only because he's interested in me. Other than that, my friends are supportive, but none that are into the hobby enough that I feel I can really talk to about BJDs . Considering I'm still new to this site, I'm kind of struggling to get a feel for things, and still don't feel comfortable enough to reach out to anyone in particular. To be fair, I haven't really communicated with many people either :/ Haha, I just imagine that kind of thing can be solved with patience and continuous searching, though.

 

Occasionally yes... A bit. Mainly because I feel that I'm into the same hobby as everyone else, but my preference and style is different. I love dolls with teeth, mature curves, and large breasts. Absolutely adore them, when it seems those are a huge turn off for a lot of others in the doll community. I have IH JID girls that I sometimes like to dress as boys, or in a punkish tom boy style. Which to me feels like it doesn't quite fit in most places. I've noticed others who will just get a guy to dress in guy clothes, or a guy to dress in girl clothes, or a girl in frilly/ sexy clothes. Frilly things and dresses have always been suggested for my girls, but its not their style. The girls have even been mistaken for guys at times (regardless of their bust size... Feels like my real life.)

That, and I feel that not having an actual camera, and not wanting an actual camera to take pics of my girls, deters others. I still have fun taking pics of them, because I want to remember the moments I've had with them.
Its silly, I can't help but feel judged sometimes as an odd one out. Even though we are all into the same thing, I feel like I'm doing it all wrong.
Sort of like bringing a hoodless and doorless black jeep to a car show.
It might just be in my head, I'm pretty shy and awkward in real life. However, I see a doll and then I feel more comfortable with them. Like i can see the person through the doll. Still feeling new to the hobby, when there is so much to like and love about it. Sometimes my awkwardness might come off as rude, but I never mean it to be. When I compliment someone's doll, I mean it.
Just can't help but feel I get pity compliments and weird stares that I can't see from the other side of the computer.


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Wow, JRya, Hawaii has changed I guess. Mind I was on Oahu 20 years ago, but the SCA at the time was VERY active there (military, you know). So was the beledi (belly dancing) one (my other huge thing at the time). The Big Island, yeah, Hilo is a small town At least there's an Anime convention (even if it IS on Oahu) - do you take dolls to it?

 

I do...

My closest friends are not interested in dolls at all.
Some other friends enjoy Pullips, Dals, Byuls...
And, irl, I only know some people here and there who are into BJDs. People I barely see, and don't talk much with.


It does get lonely.
My friends share my excitement about my dolls, of course - not because they are interested, but because they care for me and like to see me happy. But it certainly isn't the same thing as having a fellow collector to chat with, someone who really is crazy about this hobby and would like to share this part of their lives with me someone who really understands what is like.
I do wish I had a closer connection with a BJD collector, to share our anxieties and our wishes, discuss doll plans and our views on controversial topics, etc. ... It would be fun. I'm not that great when it comes to making friends online, it's more comfortable meeting people offline... That way it is always easier to see if we "match" or not.

But BJD collectors aren't that common.
There isn't a big BJD community where I live... It's more like several small, isolated groups of friends, and lots of lonely cats like myself. Now and then there are some doll meetings...mostly for Groove dolls and Blythes (these last ones don't interest me in the least, to be honest), and you can take your BJD if you want. I don't remember any major meeting only dedicated to BJDs or anything, but perhaps I'm just uninformed.

I feel guilty. I don't want to sound ungrateful for my blessings ;p My friends are wonderful. They love me, and I love them; they have always been by my side whenever I needed, we always have so much fun together... And hopefully that won't change any time soon!

But still... I do admit that I would love to "click" with someone who would share this particular passion with me! Then we would both feel less lonely, for sure...

 

I do. I was gone for quite some time and when I came back most of the people I talked to are long gone, and the one I talk to outside of the forums has forgotten about her dolls and has been considering selling the ones she still has cause they have been in storage for years. I still see a few people I interacted with here, but most of the time I think they don't even remember me. ^^;;;

Ok, that's sad.

 

It's strange because I'm relatively alone (I've just started in this hobby and haven't been to any meets yet, and the people directly around me don't really know about BJDs or own any), but I don't feel lonely. Of course I'd like to reach out more and make some friends in this hobby, but I'm just enjoying the hobby quietly by myself and for now, and that's good enough for me!

 

My other hobby is figure collecting, and I know a lot of people who are into it-I've given figures as presents quite a few times. BJDs, on the other hand...I really don't know anyone who likes them. I fell head-first into the hobby, so I'm kinda hoping I can get my buddies into it, too. And I'd love to meet more people on DoA- still haven't found my footing here, yet.