Doll Size and Bonding?

Oh, so it's just issues with developing a character? I'd assumed it was some esoteric thing that doll collectors did, probably because writers, character designers and other people in similar professions don't really make such a big deal out of it.

Still, why do people sell their dolls when that happens? Every time that has happened to me with a comic character I've just left whatever I was working on alone for a while and the problem solved itself. Even if that's not how it works for a particular person, why not just remove everything and start over from a blank slate, with a different character? There are so many ways to customise a doll you could fill an entire collection with copies of the same sculpt and have them all look different. Surely there would be some way to use the doll, even if it doesn't work out for that particular character?

Anyway, thank you for the response!

ETA: Did someone delete several of their posts while I was typing?

 

It isn't necessarily just 'issues developing a character' -- Harlequin-Elle was stating what the term meant for her. With another person it might be something totally different. I don't use the term myself; while I am disinclined to part with most of my collection I don't view them as bond-able. This is my view, though, and YMMV as it almost always is with things in this hobby.

People may sell to get a doll they like better. They may just not want something around that they don't care for. Really, the better question is -- why does it matter why people sell? People sell dolls for a bunch of reasons, and all are valid. Very often a doll is bought specifically to shell a character -- in that case, if the sculpt is wrong, why keep something you know isn't going to work for what your vision is? Better to pass the doll on to someone who really wants it than to hang onto a piece of resin that you may or may not even like just because you don't ever want to sell a doll.

Then again, the 'why do people sell dolls' thing is a whole different topic.

 

Hmm.. Well for me it's maybe a little about the size.. I really like smaller dolls like MSD and smaller. MSD is my favorite size! 60cm Sd is okay, but they are almost too big for me, even though I have two in that size. But I don't think the size is what decides the bonding for me, it's the characters I get them to be. I love adorable dolls, and that's why I think my Kid Delf Ani is my favorite doll right now, and also because she is so pink and girly! And I really don't like pink, but it's like the only right color for her.. xD

 

I recognised the description as something that affects many people who create and write characters, that's why I assumed it was also true for most doll collectors and they just had a particular term for it. Still, some idea of what it means is better than none at all, even if it's only true for one person.

(Incidentally, if it means something completely different to each person, can a single term really be used to describe it?)

Also, I wasn't trying to say that selling dolls is wrong, in case it came across that way. I, personally, would just be very reluctant to sell a doll unless it actually had something wrong with it, since they're expensive and and you're likely to lose a fair amount of money if you resell them. No offence meant.

 

Oh, none taken -- I apologize if I came off as snippy at all, it certainly wasn't my intention. ^_^ I get just a little ruffled when the whole why-would-you-ever-sell-a-doll thing comes up, mostly 'cause I'm a really adamant proponent of the it-is-your-doll-do-whatever-the-hell-you-want school of thought. (This is not a universal thought process, oddly enough.) See, to me, I'd rather sell a doll that I know isn't going to work for me and recoup some of my investment than to sit on something that I don't like just because it's flawless and doesn't actually "have anything wrong" with it. The sculpt is wrong. That's enough "something wrong" in my eyes. If that makes sense. This all reminds me I need to decide whether or not I'm selling one of my boys and just get it over with.

The whole bonding thing is one of those issues that comes and goes and everyone has a different way of looking at things. I know doll collectors that would argue that I'm not bonding with my dolls because they stay in their carriers and only come out if I'm taking pictures (which isn't often) or at a meetup. Everyone's viewpoint is so different that one term really can't describe it -- but since it's practically common terminology, everyone resorts to using that particular term.

Good god I should be doing my homework.

 

I'm doing perfectly well from Pukifee/Lati Yellow size (16cm) and up. I actually own dolls all the way up to 71cm right now and I regret nothing! I've found that anything bellow 16cm is way too small for me; I don't feel comfortable handling or playing with them simply because there's not nearly enough "doll" there to play with.

16cm are cute dolls... my only problem is clothing since both of mine are boys. I really wish to own a tiny girl someday to buy her all those adorable outfits I spot all the time. Plus having a tiny Yamato Nadeshiko was one of my dream concepts for a while now!
YoSD has been an awkward size for me at first; I really liked it but at the same time I didn't... so I failed to bond and sold mine and now I've fallen back in love with them.
MSD is a golden medium; while they're not as appealing as the larger dolls to me they're easier to handle and play with, definitely easier to dress and play with/pose in groups. They're also easier to carry around and travel with which makes bonding easy~
I don't yet own a 50cm doll but I'm waiting on a Dollfie Dream Sister Momo who will not be here for a while but will give me a nice crash-test. I have a feeling it might become my new favorite size since, in my mind, it combines the compactness of an MSD and charm of SD.
SD13/60cm is also a lovely size. I own a Dollfie Dream girl and a Crobidoll R-line and completely love both. For my resin boy I love his size, his weight... and I love how easy SDs are to paint and photograph! They have such bold personalities and it's much easier to make them show in photographs.
As for my 70cm SSDF giant... I really love what those 10cm do for him. To me he's simply a larger/taller SD which is wonderful in and on its own and suits his character best. I suppose SD and up get similar treatment? xD;

 

My MSD boy loves to hug and is a nice size to lay on my chest watching TV.
Just got an SD guy and he is fast becoming my "go to " doll. He is always on the couch with me now.
My tiny girl, well, she is just too tiny for those things, and my YO is too restless for hugs & snuggles

 

I started out loving only MSD, but about 2 years ago, I upgraded to SD. I love that size because they have more adult clothing options, more adult proportions, more diverse sculpts and I can sew for them easily. They're also easier to faceup. and photograph. and.....I just love them! over 65cm is usually too much for me to comfortably handle, and sm aller than MSD is really hard for me to paint or sew for. I also don't care for child dolls. I do have 3 MSDs and a Yo-SD, and one 70cm doll that I love dearly, but they are exceptions to the rule. I'll almost always bond to SD faster. I also bond to boys much easier than girls, but that's a whole new topic.

 

I had trouble with my SD boys, I sold one because I just wasn't getting along with him...even after almost five years. I'm getting along with my MSD girl better, but her joints are really snappy. I'm waiting for a smaller doll (DC Faramita) to arrive, I might get on better with handling him. I think handling is my main problem, since it makes them harder to pose and hug

 

Although Tez has already responded admirably, seeing as the point with which you're taking issue was made by me, I'm going to respond too. Even for me, it's not "just issues with developing a character". I've been writing for years and, if I do say so myself, I'm very good at developing characters. It comes very naturally. What sometimes doesn't come naturally is filtering that character successfully into a doll. I can be completely at ease with the character itself, but sometimes it takes me a while to get that character really inside the doll - and that's where the problems in bonding begin.

I also feel you somewhat misunderstand what is to some people an essential element of the hobby. A doll is not a "comic character", even if the character it shells is from a comic. It is an actual very expensive, very emotive, object, within which people place all kinds of powerful and complex emotions and associations. Sometimes the inability to bond with a doll is such a painful experience in itself that the owner finds it just easier to sell it. It's not just about not liking the doll; I have known plenty of people to sell dolls even though they think the dolls are incredibly beautiful, because they just aren't able to bond with it.

To go back to my own experience, I didn't do as you suggest, remove everything and start with a new character, because I already had that character to shell. He needed to be expressed in a physical resin form, and if that one wasn't really him, another one would be. Luckily after some work it turned out all OK in the end.

Red-wolf-ink: Just a heads-up - it's generally considered bad form to make lots of multiple posts. If you want to quote different people, copy and paste.

 

I doubt I'll ever buy anything larger than an MSD. I don't have the space really for huge dolls, and bigger ones than MSD's intimidate me a bit!

 

Well, I've tried all sizes thus far and must say yo-SD size feels the best in my hands. They're not BIG, like MSDs+ but not entirelly tiny to the point of being able to do so little with them, in a sense. They're super easy to carry around, even in a bag and they are a comfortable size to paint, unlike tinies (I haven't tried it but I don't think I'll like it much haha).
Smaller than 16cm is a no for me, because just like Soenatte, it feels like there's not enough 'doll' to enjoy. It's still a cute size but not as fan to play with. I COULD probably stil own it, but I would just look at it more than play with it, although I don't really mind that much haha.
MSD+ feels kind of big for me. Due to the story my dolls' characters are in, I'm afraid I can't really collect only yos and there are a lot of SD sculpts I love (my two grail ones are SDs). I still enjoy playing with my MSDs a lot. They're still a comfortable and easy size to play with, their head size is a liiitle troubling somehow to paint though? It's not small but it's not exactly big and clear either...might be just my imagination though ahaha.
Well, SDs scared me at first haha (SD10 to be exact ;;;;; ). I took me a bit of time to get used to the size and I still don't feel it's comfortable to play with in comparison to MSDs and yos, but I certainly like the variety of sculpts and clothes available for this size! They are also plenty cuddly, whereas MSDs and yos are not XD
Normally, anything over SD17 is a no for me, although I'm planning for only ONE. SD17-70cm is a little on the uncomfortable size for me, very cuddly tho! I guess the guy I'm planning might sit to be stared at more than be played with, but as I mentioned, I don't really mind that? I like to play with my dolls, but I don't mind just starring at them either ^ ^~

 

I do not think that its an issue for me, I have been able to bond with all of my dolls.

However, I do find my smaller boys (60cm ish) easier to hold than my largest one (70cm). Less joints...smaller size, so I tend to hold them more. I could see how that could be a barrier to bonding for some. Any smaller than 60cm though and they wouldn't fit in my lap like the ones I have do now. I wouldn't mind getting an msd sized doll, but like my larger ones I think they would end up sitting beside me instead of in my lap.

The only other thing I could think of that might be a barrier to bonding for me is dolls not being photographed together. I am picky about the proportions of my props. As of now all my dolls can be photographed together interchangeably. I could see myself not having as much interest in a doll so small or large that it wouldn't look natural together. I think it would get neglected, unless I had more than one in that size.

 

There are so many beautiful SD-sized sculpts but they're too large for me. Most of my collection is MSD-sized--small enough to be easy to handle but big enough that it isn't too difficult to do maintenance on them. I do have a couple of (off-topic) tiny dolls which mainly sit on my desk to keep me company, but I prefer slightly larger dolls.

 

I know I absolutely cannot handle MSDs. Doll-sitted one or two, played with a couple, tried owning one for awhile, and nada, nothing, no connection or desire to pursue. Which is a pity, because there are quite a few MSD outfits that I love, but to buy an MSD to act as a mannequin? Ahaha, no thanks.

I'm quite fond of my Yo-sd-sized dolls, and the one 16cm doll I own, but they are more like reaaaaaally expensive table/shelf decorations, with each doll getting one outfit, and one set of wigs and eyes, and that's pretty much all I do with them. There isn't much 'bonding' there, since they spend most of their time in their various boxes, coming to work with me only once in awhile so that I can have something pretty to look at when I need a break. They are just too small to really play with for me, but they tend to be cute and they don't take up space, so I've ended up with way too many.

I love my 70cm dolls best of all, because I find them the most expressive. They look more like piece of art, blending aesthetics and engineering. I love poring over the details in the sculpts, I love elegant jointing solutions, and I love how they look interacting with human-sized things. They're like... pet-sized (or cat-sized, really, because I've always liked cats), as opposed to doll-sized, and since I am utterly incapable of taking care of a living animal, my dolls are like pets to me.

I have a fairly average relationship with my SD-sized dolls. Like the tinies, they tend to be kept around just for the pretty.