Dolls and your own body image

Wow, what an interesting topic for discussion.

I actually just bought an Unoa Lusis faceplate, A. because I absolutely think she's adorable, and B. because her round nose and fuller lips remind me of myself. In general I dislike dolls who are too thin in the face and have very pointy features. Perhaps it is a kind of reverse projection of body image than the kind you mentioned? I'd rather a doll look more like the imperfect, bubbly me than a super angular runway model.

I've been exercising to keep off the much-feared freshman 15. I like to think that my dolls (in waiting) and I are like reflections of each others' souls, not each others' fitness.

 

I do wish I looked more like my dolls. they are so beautiful and perfect.
they don't make me feel worse about myself nor do they inspire me because they are dolls.
but I must admit I am a bit envious of how easy to make them completely to your like. a little bit of sanding here and there and VOILA!
while I would have to pay thousands of dollars to become closer to what I want to be

 

Interesting idea, but I must admit, I found your initial post rather disturbing. I would hate to want to look like one of my dolls because a) come on, they're dolls! and b) the whole point of my dolls is fantasy and escapism. I don't want them to look like real people and I don't want real people to look like them. The opposite is true.
Likewise, I don't dress my dolls the way I want to dress- I dress to please me and my dolls dress to please them. My dolls and I are seperate entities and I certainly don't take fashion tips from them or vice versa. I really dislike that idea, actually.
My dolls are all based on Gothic characters, and I would go so far as to say that I'm more attractive than they are... sometimes! Because my dolls were not created to be beautiful, but to be their characters- one is a zombie, another a ghoul, etc, and while I adore them, they're not conventionally beautiful. In any case, I don't even think about them in terms of which of us is more beautiful. The entire idea is alien to me.
So no, I have never wanted to look like my dolls, and while I can understand the viewpoint of being jealous of these perfect beautiful creatures, I do not share it or even really empathise with it. To tell the truth, I kind of feel sorry for people who feel bad because they think their dolls are more beautiful than them. For me, it's hardly the point of dolls. For me dolls are embodiments are their characters, they are a means for me to practise my creativity and to make them look as much themselves as I can. To feel jealous of their looks or want to emulate them, personally, seems ridiculous.

 

they may be dolls, but a lot of them are sculpted to look very human and a lot of people try to make them appear as human as possible. they are kind of human perfection. sculpted with the prettiest features. so I don't see how it's disturbing to want to look like them. it's not worst than looking at a magazine and wanting to look like a top model.

 

Me, I haven't gotten my first doll yet, but I'm working my way towards her. . . and she sort of happens to be similar in appearance to me to begin with. I have very distinctive features, and while I am currently far from perfect, I am working my way back towards that. Not so much due to the impending doll, but for my health and own happiness.

That said. . . I know for a fact that once I get my doll . . . I'm gonna want to look like her >_>. I used to do a lot of cosplay, so I'm used to changing my appearance to look like characters or whatever. I don't really see much problem with it - for me anyway. I keep within my body type (which is curvy) for the most part, with a bit of help from corsets here and there. . .

I couldn't ever see myself getting cosmetic surgery. . . unless they one day figured out a way to make your hair grow in red and curly. . . till that day, I'll stick to makeup and costumery.

Such a cool discussion question though!

 

I wouldn't say I want to look like a BJD, body wise, I know that that's never going to happen.

I am kind of jealous of the body that my first BJD is going to have though. She has such cute curves!
And my body is as straight as a pencil.

 

Sure, but that doesn't mean I want to look like them. For me, the problem I have with a lot of dolls is that they're TOO perfect. I can look at pictures of a beautiful pristine doll got up to look like some perfect porcelain princess, and I can think, that's a really beautiful doll, but does that mean I want to look like it? No. I wouldn't even care for the doll, to be honest- I find the perfect flawless look very boring.
Except that at least a model is human, no matter how some may actually look like dolls. A doll without character is just a piece of plastic, and I can't understand wanting to look like a piece of plastic; the desire to throw away your own imperfect, complex self to look like some smooth lifeless hunk of resin- to me, that idea is disturbing.

 

I agree that I tend to be drawn to dolls that look like me rather than dolls I wish I looked like. They are all mini-me's in a way.

I agree that hobbies are supposed to be fulfilling! The second it starts inspiring counter-constructive feelings, I'd drop it like a rock!

Thank you for sharing your wisdom! You've really made me think.

 

My dolls are, so far, all representations of characters that existed before buying the doll - whether my character or someone else's. And none of those characters look like me at all. I have issues with my body image, but at this point in my life I'm not very hung up on it. I see my body as something that gets me around, performs tasks I need it to do and sometimes gets in my way by becoming sick or injured. I'd much rather spend time looking at something idealized and pretty than looking at myself in the mirror and dwelling on my own imperfections. It's not that I'm particularly comfortable with my body the way it is, just that I'm not all that interested in it either. My mental attributes are more important to me than my physical ones, I guess.

My dolls, on the other hand, are pretty to look at and can dress in various styles of clothes that would look absolutely ridiculous on me. Sometimes I do joke about them having nicer things than me, but that's part of the fun. Why spend too much money on a trendy outfit for myself that I'd feel extremely uncomfortable in and perhaps only wear once? I'd rather use it for something I can enjoy - whether that's a practical and warm winter coat for myself, some new books, or clothes for my dolls, who don't complicate my life by gaining or losing weight from month to month.

 

This is an interesting discussion topic.

For my answer I must say I wouldn't want to look like my dolls because my dolls are representations of characters I've created in my head recently or years ago. They already have a part of my soul in them and I love how different they all look. I am attracted to a certain beauty of the dolls, but I know I'll never be able to look like them. Firstly, I am not tall, secondly, I'm not very curvy, and lastly, they're my brain babies and I don't want them to be copies of me, just of my ideas.

My dolls are beautiful in their way, as am I in mine (at least I like to think so). I may not be pretty to everyone, but I'm certain someone will think that I am and I shouldn't drastically change myself to look like some ideal. It took me literally all my life to get to a healthy weight (in high school I weighed under 90lbs at 5'1") and now I'm at 114 lbs. My mother may tell me to lose my butt and work out more, but I am happy with the way I look. Clothing finally fits me (even if they are XS - XXS) and is no longer super baggy. Pants are still a challenge though...

 

I don't think there is anything wrong with wanting to look a certain way. People are allowed to look however they want and express themselves in a way that makes them happy. It's a personal matter, really. Especially if looking a certain way will give one more confidence, and the ability to enjoy life more. Tetra was just saying that her dolls inspired her to get back to her previous weight, and be able to wear clothes that she used to really enjoy. May i ask, what's so wrong with that? I have read back, and noticed people talking about having greater priority for "other" things as you get older, but to me, that is too generalized and completely subjective. I think someone can regard their physical appearance and still maintain a high sense of integrity. I love fashion and people who have a great sense of style inspire me. I don't look down on supermodels or athletes because they worked hard to get the bodies they have, and they are honestly attractive to me. In fact, I'm more disturbed by someone who would put their dolls before themselves, in any circumstance. I don't think wanting to reach your full potential is synonymous with trying to be "perfect."

 

burpieez: I agree with absolutely everything you say. though to me "full potential" and "perfect" is the same. I kinda hate it how my mother keeps telling me that there is no such thing as perfection because to me there is. one can obviously not please everyone at the same time, but there will always be someone who will think you are 100% perfect, be it yourself ^_^ (to me someone perfect is someone who you don't notice the imperfections or they just really don't bother you because everything else about them is so beautiful )

 

@sahoma: I guess what i meant by full potential, is wanting the best for yourself. I believe everyone can do things to enhance and emphasize their own unique physical beauty without having to conform to what society conjures up as beauty. I did gain the freshmen 15, and i sought to lose it not because of what others thought, but because i personally knew i could do better and be happier with another result. YET, keeping in mind that i have my own body type and knowing i could never have anyone elses body, but my own.

 

Seconding Nayru- I'm always on the hunt for dolls that have the features I like best about myself. I happen to be on the taller side, and naturally slim (although I haven't had babies yet! XD) but I'll be the first to admit how much pressure I feel from society to be slimmer. I'm a size 6 and up until recently, I was desperate to be a size 4 (I eventually got what I wanted, but people said I looked ill and I ended up gaining back around half the weight). I love my dolls though, because they are beautiful- and somewhere in their beauty are the things I like about myself. It makes me feel really good to look at them and see that I'm not wrong to like the things I like about my own looks. I dunno if that makes any sense, but my dolls are very dear to me as self esteem boosters!

 

Have you ever felt that You wanted to look just like your dolls?

Well, not exactly like them, since they have some very stylized proportions. However, I do sometimes feel extremely ugly after looking at dolls online for a while. Then I wish I could have a little more of their idealized appearance.

Have you done anything about it? (Whether that is weight loss or gain, cosmetic surgery, clothes, hair, or other body modification)

No, not really. I think owning dolls has made me more apathetic to my appearance, actually. I feel that I can express my fantasies of costume and aesthetics through them, rather than with myself.

Do you feel resentful of your dolls that you may never look the way that they do?

Not really. I enjoy their beauty, and for me, simply having the privilege of owning my dolls is a kind of access to gorgeousness that I never thought I'd ever have.

Do you feel that there is too much pressure to conform to how these dolls look and in effect, the way that our society sees beauty?

If anything, I think the most idealized sculpts take their queues from norms of attractiveness that are already in play elsewhere. So, I don't think there is much pressure to look like bjds, but that bjds generally mimic the cultural trends that are already pressing everyone to look a certain way.

However, I also think that there are many people in the bjd hobby (and doll makers too!) that are interested in more than just culturally determined ideals of appearance. Some of them seem to enthusiastically reject these norms, often with very rewarding results. In these cases, I think bjds can actually help to free us from unachievable ideals of beauty.

 

I am into the dolls now because its frustrating trying to cosplay at my age (50s) without looking ridiculous - especially anime. Plus, w/the dolls I can dress them to cosplay male characters that I want instead of convincing my friends to dress up...dolls do what I tell them LOL
I'm more likely to get inspired to find a guy that looks like one of my dolls (Iplehouse, anyone?) than try to look like one myself LOL Although I'm finding losing weight at my age ain't as easy as it used to be ~sad~

 

I was never someone who bashed Barbies because of how they looked, so I don't resent my dolls for why they look the way they do. I just don't see the benefits of it.

I've been trying to lose weight long before my dolls for health reasons, and my dolls have never made me feel inadequate because... they're dolls. I can understand envying real people (in a not-serious way) for how they look, or all that they do, but not dolls. To me, dolls just aren't meant to be taken that seriously. They're not meant to look like real people.

 

Honestly, this is one of the reasons I refuse to get a full female doll. I love their heads, but I am not interested in their perfect bodies. I'm sick of the "perfect" ideal of a female. I would much rather focus on the "perfect" ideal of a male, which is very ignored in Western society.

 

What a great topic! I've been thinking of this often.

I do have some problems with my own body image, but I swear it has nothing to do with my dolls. I've been dieting way before I knew about bjd's. I could never even think about getting inspired to diet by looking those pretty bodies - actually I've never even seen what's so beautiful in them. For me, they really are _dolls. I can't compare them to real people, they just don't look same. But I find it really irritating when other people automatically think I love thinness becouse of my hobby. Like, if I happen to say "oh look, how cute legs that girl has!" to my friend, she's like "....you've spent too much time with your dolls!" My dolls are dolls and have nothing to do with my beauty ideals.

I love odd, even grotesque doll bodies, like those with extra-wide hips or big, saggy bellies. For me this hobby is more like playing with imagination and having possibility to different styles and body shapes, just like many of you have said.

However, I also think it's great if some of you are getting inspired to healthier life becouse of your dolls. Just don't let it go too far!

(Okay, I'll make a confess. I love it when someone looks at me and my girls and says we look the same. But for me it's same as people saying I'm thin.)