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Do you find BJDs calming?

Mar 9, 2009

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    1. Hello DOA forum goers!

      I'm posing the forum this question because of my own recent experiences being a long time away from dolls. Even before I owned a BJD, I had many dolls. I'm not talking barbie here, people, fixture of the American childhood though she may be. (Though props to barbie for her mad plastic curves, gigantic closet, and freakish amount of careers.) I'm talking Madame Alexander dolls, handmade geisha dolls, American Girl dolls and a couple of kewpies from the time I was a child.

      This familiarity and appreciation of the world of dolls eventually evolved into my love of BJDs and my current collection of 6 of these lovely pieces of art that allow me to express myself at a level that my other girls, wonderful though they may be, did not really allow.

      I moved to Japan and gave them all temporarily up because of spacial restrictions and the fact I had a hard time (read: impossible) convincing my mother it would be an intelligent move to bring any of them along.

      Fast forward five months later: Recently, American economy and increasing culture shock as the big factors, I'd been having a hard time. It became clear to me what I needed to calm me down...

      my dolls.

      You know what's crazy? I ordered a new doll. (Knowing, as I do, that because my mom loves my dolls at home as much as I do I would not be seeing them until I returned.) Received my girl, a gorgeous tiny from Rosenlied, in the mail and been hanging out with her for at least a few weeks now.

      Annnnd voila it's worked! Now that I have just one doll with me I can redirect my extraneous energy to thinking of her "needs" and places I can go with her instead of the things I cannot do anything to change that had been eating my attention.

      I've essentially solved my own problem this way. It was so simple and very much worth my money.

      So in a round-about way what I'm trying to ask the forum here is, do any of you find BJDs to be a source of personal peace? If they do serve as a way to calm you, how so? Do you think they've gotten you through any tough times?

      Just looking for your input so please respond however!

      Peace out:),
      Hitsuzen
       
      #1 Hitsuzen, Mar 9, 2009
    2. I do, especially my first two Sprites, because they have such calm faces. Even my Elias, a DZ Mo-2, while his face is sly and grin-worthy, sometimes it's like he's saying, "Whatever is stressing you out, let me "handle" them. Bet they won't annoy you after I'm done with 'em!"

      Even just sewing for them, combing their hair, I find it incredibly soothing.
       
      #2 Faerie_Speak, Mar 9, 2009
    3. NEVER! :P There are no benefits to holding Xavier and letting him hug me back, no fun tickling Shi Shi's tummy, no joys in girls only time with Jibriel, and I hate taking the Littles out and playing with them. Why did I get in to dolls in the first place?
       
      #3 DollyKim, Mar 9, 2009
    4. Hmm... I am not sure that my boy is calming, but I can uderstand what you mean/how you feel... Knitting for my boy/painting him is calming for me, but he just being near-- not sure...
       
      #4 persiasecretary, Mar 9, 2009
    5. I find my dolls make my life....less calm. With all the buying and customization I can never be calm about BJD.

      But if I'm ever in a bad mood, picking one of my kids up and giving them a hug and playing with them a little can considerably calm me down.
       
      #5 iSparrow, Mar 9, 2009
    6. Oh, I also wanted to add that sometimes the hobby makes me quite anxious-- when I have no money and one of my beloved limiteds appears on the Market Place... or two of themXD
       
      #6 persiasecretary, Mar 9, 2009
    7. When I'm playing with my dolls (sewing, posing, photographing), I become enchanted and totally distracted from any and all RL problems I may have.
       
      #7 linakauno, Mar 9, 2009

    8. This is a very interesting thought and one I have to absolutely agree with. My dolls...all 16 of them...are a great source of comfort for me. I love arranging them and changing their clothes and wigs and stuff...it's very relaxing. I try to focus on at least one or two of them a day and I've found that I tend to think less of my own issues when I'm concerned with their "issues". Although I'm not sure which dress to wear and what pose to have for a photoshoot constitutes an "issue" :D
       
      #8 Krissy, Mar 9, 2009
    9. Definitely! I don't know what I'd do without them. I first discovered them late 2006 and in January 2007 my then 3 year old daughter was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour. A few months later I got my first bjd. From the moment she arrived I had something else to think about, when worrying about my daughter got too much.
      I now have 15 bjd's and although at the moment I don't have much time for them, just the evenings when the kids are in bed, they are a great comfort to me. So yes, I'd say they do calm me. :)
       
      #9 pippin, Mar 9, 2009
    10. Oh, for sure! I find them so calming to play about with. They're very soothing to look at, too, like a beautiful illustration or painting... I can get totally lost in watching them! They're a wonderful distraction, as I believe they can be both a passive activity and an active one, too... I can pose them or dress them, and then just sit back and watch them and feel happy about it :D
       
      #10 kateb, Mar 9, 2009
    11. I find that anything I do with my dolls relaxes and calms me. I suppose that's what a hobby should do! Like others have said, it's easy to get very involved and lose myself totally in what I'm doing; whether it's changing eyes, clothes,taking pics, etc.
       
      #11 Landlocked Mermaid, Mar 9, 2009
    12. I find comfort in plushies (stuffed animals) I currently own. I know I will get the same effect from when I get my doll in. ^-^

      Hobbies such as collecting dolls always gives me comfort. :)

      Plus the idea of doing make up for my dolls gives me a great calming effect in expressing my creativity.
       
      #12 fragile, Mar 9, 2009
    13. Mostly they're calming...
      But I seem to avoid restringing or redoing face-ups so sometimes when I look at them or try to get them to stand it's a little stressing because I know it's all my fault they are this way. ^^;
      And sewing gets annoying when you're out of pins. Since I'm mostly sewing clothes for my boys and girls there are hundreds of pieces of unfinished clothes floating around and eating up all the pins... :sweat

      Laoky
       
      #13 Laoky, Mar 9, 2009
    14. I don't do this often with my dolls, but I do it with my plants. It's a similar idea. I realize they'll never actually interact with me. But it's calming to take care of something else for awhile. Especially when you realize the small things in life (like a little extra water) are the most important.

      (It's probably as maternal as I'm going to get. :sweat)
       
      #14 Ostrich, Mar 9, 2009
    15. Exactly! Doing anything with/for my doll makes me forget about anything that's bugging me.
       
      #15 crossingback, Mar 9, 2009
    16. Yes, my doll does calm me.

      I am chronically sick and I live through a lot of pain everyday. Becoming more involved into the doll hobby has helped take my mind off my disease. My sickness used to consume me, but being consumed by dolls has helped a lot. It is calming to knit, sew, or make jewelry for my doll -- it makes me happy.
       
      #16 Squishtaru, Mar 9, 2009
    17. Mostly calming. I tend to just waste time on them whenever I feel annoyed with something and it seems to work just fine. o_o
       
      #17 NorikoChijinu, Mar 9, 2009
    18. I have always found my dolls calming, and will often sit one or more near me or on me whenever I need a lift, feel ill, depressed, or have generally had a rotten day. This always helps a great deal.

      I have also used my dolls to help me through hard times in other respects, such as taking a job that is less than desirable as this economy makes work harder to find and harder to hold, I promised myself that once my bills and other expenses were taken care of i would put money asside and buy a new doll as a reward, hence my Lu Wen is on his way home. Just the thought that that new member of my family arriving made it better, and he will be a happy thought whenever I think I am fed up with crappy jobs.
       
      #18 effigy, Mar 9, 2009
    19. My dolls are definitely calming for me. When I'm stressed I'll often just pick up James and give him a hug or carry him around with me. When I'm upset over something I just sit there cuddling him. He's particularly useful if I'm angry, too. When I'm angry I have a ton of energy, but I can't do anything productive because my movements get too abrupt. Picking up a doll (typically James) helps a lot, because with them I have to be gentle, which forces me to relax. I also love just setting them all up around my room when I'm working on something. Last night, for example, they were all chilling out next to me on my bed while I rushed to finish some psychology homework. So yeah, definitely calming ^.^
       
      #19 keiko-chan, Mar 9, 2009
    20. yeh. I love just sitting at my computer and talking and just sitting there with Azure.
      It's nice and Calm for me.
      No worries.
       
      #20 AzureRedemption, Mar 9, 2009
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