Dolls that *aren't* for beginners?

Oh HECK YES I would! If I had the money? You damn well BET I would've bought a Benz as my first car. Also woulda been the only car I drove for a loooooong time. But then again, luxury/import cars and their workings don't intimidate me.

To me, that's what it comes down to -- what's your intimidation level with a doll? Would it be something that you'd be scared to touch/pose/customize/take apart? If you're seriously spooked by the idea of getting all hands-on with a certain type of doll, then maybe you might want to begin with something else -- but if you're perfectly fine with jumping in the deep end and messing around with something considered more complicated then go for it. Imho, the only 'not for a beginner' dolls are those that particular beginner feels too overwhelmed by to start with.

To continue the car analogy, if you love Mercedes but the high-tech, high-performance, high-maintenance aspect is intimidating to you...then buy something smaller/simpler to maintain first. If you're too excited by the prospect of driving a shiny E320 to care about any possible learning curve, then by all means buy that there Mercedes first.

(This is, of course, assuming money is no object. XD)

 

i love the way you said that in your post! but i am basically just repeating what everyone else has already said, how un-unique of me.

but definitly not french resin, second hand dolls, or unoa kits. the soom monthlys i think would depend on the person. but i think it is important to go through the process of learning to order from a doll company, and get a dolls with polyurethane resin. mainly because there is a lot of info on how to take care of dolls in that category. unoas are difficult to attain in general, but putting them together by yourself as a new doll owner could be so daunting. i wouldn't want someone to be intimidated by a doll needing more care and then deciding that BJDs are to much work you know?

 

Agreed, i would not want a kit doll or a above 70 cm doll as a first doll.

 

I don't think such a doll exists. I know someone who's getting their first BJD soon and she picked a 72cm Dragon Doll Hong-Li (not uncle so I don't thing extra um...Bits are coming with it) and she's really excited.

 

I actually don't think you should limit yourself unless you want to. Whichever doll you choose, the first is probably going to have some sort if shock value, but it will also be the doll you get used to first and most comfortable with! So if you want to collect big EIDs, get an EID first! If you want to challenge yourself and buy Unoa kits, go for it! It's going to be a learning curve no matter what, so buy the doll you're willing to make the effort for.

 

In my opinion the Dollzone Azura fullset falls into this category. He was very expensive for me at the time (over $800). But he was gorgeous! The photos sold me. Bad move, eh? He arrived in TWO huge boxes. One for the doll and one for his outfit and giant black wings. I tried to get him dressed right but it was just too much. I packed him away and that was that. I eventually sold him at a small loss to a collector in Belgium. He was only my 4th or 5th doll and was way too detailed for me. Gorgeous, fabulous, but not for me! I have never bought another doll based solely on the manufacturer's photos.

 

My first doll was a hybrid. Without a faceup. And the body was one that needed to be taken apart and sueded and fixed up and restrung right away in order for it to work its best. (Mirodoll). I purchased both body and head directly from the individual companies and put the whole thing together myself from scratch. That Mirodoll body and Elfdoll head were the first BJD parts I had ever seen outside of a computer screen in my life. And I had an absolutely incredible amount of fun taking the body apart and figuring out how to make it work better and painting the faceup and putting that hybrid together. It was like building a little person from a kit. I'm sure there are plenty of people who, had I asked first, would have told me that was just not for a "beginner". But it was perfect for me. I personally don't find BJD intimidating in the least, in any aspect. Someone who does, might want to approach it differently. But it's faulty to assume that just because someone isn't an experienced collector, they should limit themselves to certain types of dolls or avoid others.

 

For 'complete' beginners, I wouldn't recommend a doll they would have to sand, drill and assemble themselves - and is rare on top. One mistake... and the whole doll might be ruined...
Nah, definitly not what I'd recommend for newbies. At all.

Other than that... all is fair game and depends on the people, I'd say.

 

I don't know what exactly the best fro beginner but probably something that not too expensive but have good review.

There's a chance that the doll isn't cared correctly and if it's expensive, some will regret buying it, afraid to bring it outside or even afraid to play with it.
If it cheap but doesn't have good review, one can be bored by its poseability or sculpt that isn't their cup of tea.

 

I think it would be a disservice to new hobbyists to say any dolls were "off-limits" as a first doll.

It is true that starting out in this hobby there can be a lot of mental hurdles to overcome, the common fears that have been mentioned repeatedly here: faceups, restringing, yellowing, etc.
But the thing is…if you buy a doll that you really like…then if something does come up (say you need to re-string it) then seeing the doll you love need something will push you to do it.

All dolls have quirks. We learn to work with them, that's what we all learn to do in this hobby. Hehe. Buy whatever doll you want! ^__^

 

I find that there are some dolls are more difficult to handle than others though, so I wouldn't recommend them for newbies. Some dolls are definitely more "user-friendly" than others.

What the average newbie wants is a doll that will stand and look good right from the box, and won't require painting or other fiddling (restringing, etc). Fitting into a variety of clothes that look good is a huge bonus here. Buying something that needs work means a high probability of getting frustrated because the doll won't stand, etc., and that means giving up on the hobby entirely out of sheer frustration. Buying something that is hard to fit for clothing is likewise a huge issue; if there's no clothes, someone who can't sew is going to have a problem.

 

personally, I think second-hand dolls are perfect for beginners. Sid's second hand, and as such I felt a lot less worried about accidentally ruining him because I didn't pay as much as i would have for a brand new doll. It made me feel far freer to experiment with him- and from knowing pretty much nothing about BJDs, I restrung him, blushed him, gave him a faceup... Although I'm nowhere near professional level (I can say that again > <) I really do think it was liberating.

 

I'd probably warn a real newbie away from a DIY kit-type doll, just because there can be a lot of work involved in making those "ready for prime time" so to speak, but as long as they know what they're getting into, I don't think I'd try to talk them out of a large doll, one with a lot of fiddly parts or one that might take some practice or simple adjustments (restringing or wiring, for instance-) to learn to pose.

 

Any dolls that come in kits. Unoa, Soom christmas kits, etc.
More expensive dolls might need to be avoided if you're not confident that you will stay in the hobby or you don't have a lot of money and there are cheap dolls you want...

 

First MSD was second hand so didn't feel like I had to handle him with kit gloves, second MSD was a hybrid I put together myself, third MSD another hybrid but second hand...Actually all three MSD's are second hand, none are new...I kind of like that pattern to be honest. XD; Makes me feel like I have to worry less because they've already seen a lot.

 

For me, I would choose a doll which is already assembled and has face up because from my experience, I'm really bad at doing face up. All the results look so terrible that I shame of myself. And for assembled doll because...for newbie like I, it's hard and quite dangerous to assemble them together. I wouldn't want my first doll being a victim because of my lacking of practice and BJD knowledge.

 

Personally, I think a beginner should start out in any way they like, be it a standard doll, a hybrid or a doll kit. Yes, of course hybrids and kits can be very complicated to assemble but that shouldn't discourage a person to try their hand on it.

I get where people are coming from they they voice concerns like: "What if the beginner messes up and damages this f****ing expensive doll beyond repair and loses interest etc.?!". However, there's a huge but in there for me.
This hobby is darn expensive, there's no way around it. And if someone's interested in picking it up, I (just speaking for myself here) would assume they'd make sure to educate themselves on this matter first before making uninformed purchases. Being good informed is a key here and if they are and are willing to tackle this, go for it. But if they did not inform themselves and messed up - well, that's their own fault. Fail and learn. Or fail and give up.

 

I don't think any doll is off limits, you're only limited by your own comfort level. Granted, you should have some basic knowledge under your belt of what NOT to do, say, you don't draw on your LE doll's face with sharpies because it would be harder to replace. As long as you're careful with your doll and understand what you can/can't do with it, then anything goes!

 

I think everyone should get whichever doll they want. It shouldn't matter if you are new to the hobby or not.

 

I wouldn't get an expensive doll unless you were ~*true love*~ dead set on it. Get a doll that you really like obviously, but if you're spending $500 you'd better be darned sure of what you're doing. This is a weird hobby that isn't for everyone and you might not know that until you actually get your doll. I'd probably also get a doll on the smaller side, partially because you can get a really nice doll for not as much money and partially because display/storage is much easier for smaller dolls. I would probably recommend a doll at least 15 cm because the really small dolls can be tricky to fiddle with and I probably wouldn't recommend a doll much over 40cm unless you really want one. I think the best thing you can do is to see whatever dolls you can in person to get a feel for what size they are and what they really look like. If the person you're talking to has time, ask if they can show off the body, how it moves, and what the inside of the head looks like. Handle it if they offer, but don't ask. The stuff I've bought online feels different from what I expected, not in a bad way, but it can be really hard to see if you like a face sculpt unless you're looking at it from multiple angles and there's a difference between knowing something is 12 cm tall and seeing a doll that is 12 cm tall. Also I would highly recommend getting a doll with a faceup and get a cheap head (doesn't even have to be resin, even dollar store fake barbies would be a good start) to practice on until you're comfortable making them.

None of these are hard and fast rules, if you've got your heart on a giant Volks doll or a pukipuki go for it, but if you just want to start in the hobby and are looking for something to try that's what I would do.