Doll research *or* Buying too soon?

i guess i am one of those who did not do research on my first doll, and not much now even after so many dolls....
I got my first over 4 years ago, he was Luts Elf Shiwoo...I paid over $800 for him just body and head but didn't know that was alot of money

After weeks of not able to figure him out, i found this site and posted a thread and people helped me with what doll i have bought.

I guess i am an impulsive person and never bother with research. That would explain why i end up buying so much here and end up listing them here also

 

I'm over 12, but don't act my age ;-D I did minimal bdj research before I purchased. However, I have other collectible items and little common sense goes a long way. Once I found this site, I gathered together my dollie basic tools into a kit.

I was drawn to bdjs because they are lovely and so customizable that, even though other people have the same model, my boy remains unique. As a sewer and knitter, I like the scale of the SDs. It is almost instant gratification to make garments, without the fear of jamming a wee dress into the feed dogs of my sewing machine.

I just received my first bjd and expect to live with him a while before purchasing more. I want to make sure I know how to take care of him. I pondered this past weekend who I should will my Hiro to in the event of my death. After all, the recipient is willing and able to care for my precious boy.

 

I definitely went on a research BINGE before I finally even began looking for the right company from which to buy my doll! I'm lucky enough to have a good friend/roomie who's been into the hobby for a couple of years, and she gave me the tools to jump-start my research, but by the time I started looking for a doll of my own, I knew more than she did! I got us both involved in our local doll community as soon as I could after picking up the interest, so that I could mingle with people already in the hobby and pick up some contacts and personal tips for caring and so forth. It absolutely blows my mind that someone would have $300+ to just DROP on a doll, and then not know what to do with it.

 

I was starting doin my reasearch ( basics on what not to use and what damages them ect ) and my loving bf (blesshim) orderered me an Iplehouse Ryushin, , luckily my friend has a SOOM dia so i know the ver basics (out of sun light and not to smoke near them or DONT USE ACCETONE lol) so now im having to cram everything i dont know in before he gets here...and now im paniking lol how fun

 

Im currently trying to get every little ounce of info i can from anyone and everybody lol, but my boyfriend mistakes me wanting to know everything i can and be informed about this investment as being "too obsessed"... -_- I'm sort of glad he said that because it means i will continuously love this doll after ive had her for a few years. or for that matter many years. i dont plan on selling them and if i do it will be way way later down the line but thats OT. lol i dont understand people who dont know anything about it before getting it, i cant jump into it like you said with no info what so ever. I personally dont trust myself with a face up so im planning on having the company do it, i love painting and such but i dont think i could handle the idea of being able to ruin something so beautiful.

 

I just ordered my first doll 9 days ago. However I've been around them for two years. One of my friends got her boy 2 years ago and then a few of my other friends got their dolls so I've been around them, and handled them for two years. I have not however ever restrung one or done a face-up, but I did hold my friends girl by her S hook will she restring her doll. I plan on having my friend who got her boy 2 years ago teach me how to restring them and i'm going to have her do my next dolls face-up and i'll watch and ask questiuon about what she's doing. I've also in a matter of one week been so active on here that I'm already a senior member. I've been all over this site doing more research and interacting with more BJD owners as I wait for my girl. I'm sure question I haven't even thought of yet will arise once I actualy have my own doll but I will defiently ask before I do anything I'm not sure about.

 

I did a ton of research before getting my first doll, but because I was too impatient to save money for the ones I really loved, I ended up with a doll that I didn't bond with at all. I definitely learned my lesson though.

 

I don't know if you could really consider what I did research. I've wanted a BJD for years, but the only company I knew of was Volks, and they were super expensive. And while all those dolls are very pretty, there weren't really any sculpts that I really wanted. So my want for them kinda died for awhile.

Then I moved for school, and I found a bunch of people that had dolls at my new school. One of my hangups about getting a doll was the size - centimeters really didn't mean much to me. Even when I went and converted it to inches, I still felt I didn't have a good sense of the size of the doll. So when these people had a mini doll meet, I was really happy to see a nice range of sizes and I was able to get an idea of what I liked. So after seeing these dolls, I decided I wanted an SD.

They told me about DoA and I signed up. I found a google doc in one of the forums that had links for all the companies. Holy crap there were a lot! I went through every link until I found some sculpts that I liked, and eventually decided on one that I absolutely fell in love with. I was worried about buying something so expensive, I knew I had to absolutely be IN LOVE with the sculpt before buying her. It's a lot of money to spend on something, especially since I was worried that I wouldn't play with her, or I wouldn't like her, or it'd just be a phase. I was a bit nervous about the whole thing.

The company was doing a Christmas event, so I got a free set of clothes and faceup along with the doll. At that point the company also included wigs with the dolls for no extra charge, so I got everything I needed for the most part.

I did research about how to string, faceups, sueding, and all that good stuff after actually having the doll in my posession. I really didn't have the intention of doing any real mods to her (I love the factory faceup) so it didn't even occur to me to even look into that stuff.

 

i do not know how to do many things, and my first doll is arriving. my problem is i can read tutorials over and over again, but if i don't have the doll in my hands i cannot understand what they are telling me to do! so sure, i may make mistakes, but i will learn.

 

Good point, Kidra Risirthid- for kinesthetic learners, it's much easier to learn with a doll in hand than it is just by reading print on a page/website. But at least you're putting forth the effort to find the tutorials early! Bookmark them so that when you DO have your doll, you can jump right in with him/her! Also, try to go to some doll meets in your area (if you have an active local chapter) - most of us are pretty friendly and will be more than willing to help/demonstrate for you. Then, when you read more tutorials, you'll at least have a better idea what they're talking about while you wait for your dollie to arrive!

 

Hmmmm, I used to buy on impulse......but now I have learned to do my research first!........My advice is "do the research".............

xen

 

I did a ton of research before I got my doll, and I'm glad I did so I can help my friend out. I was considering just lending a hand, but I ended up guiding her in her own research; she knew nothing about sizes or how to find clothes and hadn't planned to do any research.

 

My friend has a whole bunch of them. She's been collecting them for a couple years and I've always been interested in them. So I'm fine. I know what not to do and any dolly-care goes to her (Faceups and other stuff)
I think a lot of starter-people do buy prematurely if they haven't had previous experience with dolls. But still, I think it's a small learning curve if you're mature. And the internet is a powerful thing. You can learn pretty much anything you need just by typing in a few words.

 

Well I'm sorta new to this and my friend got me into it. Yes, I guess you would say I jumped on the wagon but my carrying bag has little supplies r.r No worries for me, I will gather things along the way and I have an unushual luck of never finding out what I want to know if I look it up. So my unushual luck brings it to me within time. Always having some money is important to me So if i spend money on a doll I always make sure I have extra left just incase if anything horrid or stupid happens. Would shurely be treterious if I was broke and my doll was too, hah. (btw I havent even got my firsdt doll yet but shes coming ^w^) ~Bobobie Mei~

 

i jumped right in and bought my littlefee bisou in the end of nov and he is being shipped tomorrow so i have done some research but im still looking for tips ive leard the basics of the bjd but thats about it so ill probably post when i get him to let you guys know how im getting on with him

 

I first found the boy I recently ordered from Volks over a year and a half ago. I really didn't know anything about BJDs - their basic care, face-ups, etc. - so I was hesitant, to say the least, to buy such an expensive doll. However, now, after a year and a half of researching tools and techniques, I would say I am prepared, admittedly not fully prepared, but I know what I'm getting myself into. The drawers of my newly-proclaimed "Dollie Table" are stocked with magic erasers, MSC, pastels, acrylics - you name it.

Now, I've seen differing reasons as to why one would buy a BJD without having done much to any research prior, most speaking about how you can't try techniques without having anything to test them out on. However, for argument's sake, let me present my case. These dolls are quite pricey, so I'd expect one to want to know what to do with them, by researching and asking questions. It'd be a shame to buy your dream doll, and have its beautiful sculpt ruined because you were just testing different chemicals to remove its face-up. Unless you are, of course made of money, in which case, have at you. Your money is yours to do with as you please.

 

I found bjds about 6 months before I bought my first doll. I'm a very impulsive person, and I was afraid my interest would go away (safe to say it hasn't, I might be in for life.)
But during those 6 months I read though tons of info on them. By the time she arrived, I had all the correct supplies for faceups. But one great thing about this hobby is that you can always learn something new.
If someone didn't do any research beforehand, its only their doll that would suffer... and dolls are not alive. Its not like someone buying a pet, w/out doing research, not being prepared to house and feed it.

 

When I finally decided I wanted to get a BJD, I definitely did some research since I know they're going to be so much different from the vinyl dolls I'd been used to, and especially too since they cost about 8-10 times more than said vinyl dolls. So after I finally made the order and was waiting during the "Before Shipping" stage, I did some more research to occupy myself so as not to obsess over how long it's gonna take before I finally receive the doll.

 

my first two dolls were only bought about a month apart. My elfkin Phoebe was just so i could have my first bjd. she ended up being almost too tiny for me. Aubrey was an impulse buy ((even though i'd wanted another doll)) she's a sprite i bought from the MP and as my first MSD she's almost too small as well.

My mother has told me she is gifting a doll of my choice to me ((as long as she agrees to the price)) so i wanted to think long and hard about what i wanted. I knew for certain i wanted a boy, and at my first doll meet a few days ago i discovered that i am totally in love with SD's. I love the weight of them and height and everything. So with that in mind i found on DoD that i am in love with DoI A&D Version 1.

so from now on i will really have to research the dolls i want.

 

I researched half a year before I found and was satisfied with my choice in ordering my first boy. It may seem like an impulse buy that I'd get my next two within two months of having him, but I've loved DOD as well as the molds T.Too and Bee-a for four years, so it seems natural to get the ones I've pined over.

If (and I most likely will) I order form a different company next I will take some time researching about their dolls if the company is new/unknown to me. I now want dolls that fit my original characters, so it takes more work and research to find the right one, but when I find them I know right away. I guess I do my fair amount of research and planning beforehand. I want them to have the right clothes shoes and eyes for when they arrive if possible and I'm so ready for my next two to arrive!