Dolls that *aren't* for beginners?

I kinda feel that one shouldn't start out with a limited edition doll or dolls that are too big (those that are above 70cm) because you are new afterall and you don't really know how to take good care of them (like my case).

But If you're confident and have several good buddies to help you along the way and what not, then I don't really think that there's any dolls that aren't meant for beginners.

 

i agree that Soom Monthlys are not realy for beginners since most are 1000 or more for those... also... i would say, anything about 60 might be a little big (unless your in dreamland because of the sculpt)

Starting small... Yo-sd ...msd... SD might be good. if you wanna do face ups msd or sd. Pukis are small which are awesome but for doing face ups starting a little bigger might be good to get the hang of it.

 

I actually have to disagree with all of those who say a person's first doll should not be an LE or Soom MD. Cause well..my first is a Soom MD. Ha.

I bought a IO off the marketplace and I've been taking amazingly good care of him. When I have questions I have two people that I can go to. I also did my homework and researched, attended meets, and was super careful when he came home. If I'm going to dish out hundreds of dollars for something I'm pretty sure I should take good care of it.

SO. If you do your homework, feel confident in the doll you're getting and know you can take proper care of him/her there is no reason you should be limited to who you can get!

 

Also I agree on the soom monthlys.
They look awsome but might be a little too much for beginners
I'm a newbie myself when it comes to dolls, I knew I wanted a msd sized doll, when he finaly arrived i was pleasantly suppised by his size, he was bigger than expected ( at first I was afraid I might find him too small)

I'm really glad I didnt have to put him together or anything, changeing his eyes for the first time was such a challenge, I felt nervous and was afraid of not being able to put them in straight

 

I totally agree! Who's to say beginner has to equal "lazy, careless idiot." There are people who have owned many dolls in the past, and have been an owner for years. Yet they still ruin each new doll they get either because they don't give a rip about their doll's condition, or don't bother to research proper care.

My first doll wasn't some practice doll/head that cost $100. It was the doll I wanted the very most, and I still have him today. I was brand new, yet I researched how to take care of him, and if I didn't know how to do something like a faceup, I would search the forums or elsewhere for the answer. My first doll isn't covered with gouges, scratches, yellowed, sharpied, or stained.

I think a beginner should get exactly the doll they want, ANY doll. Even if it's a one-off dark tanned fullset. I think they should ESPECIALY get it if it's a limited like soom's MDs. I mean while they're frittering away their time with a random "practice doll," their dream doll will sell out, and who knows if they'll have another chance. It's so easy and simple to find the answers you need on how to take care of your doll.

 

lol. I'm a fourteen year old girl so my mom was a bit...shocked when she found out my dolls are anatomically correct. She got over it but it's deffinitely something the person has to be mature enough to handel otherwise it just isn't for them until they can respect it not freak out over it's minor...parts.

 

I have not yet received either of my 2 first dolls. One of them is the Soom MD, Cuprit, the other is a tanned fullset, so I picked two that have been listed here as not for beginners! I'm going about this a bit different than suggested for beginners for sure! I wouldn't even consider trying face-ups or sanding, and I bought these dolls because I fell in love with them! I'm in my late 40's, and I can assure you, I will take perfect care of these beauties. I wanted my first two to come to me perfect, and my plan is to move forward from there with less expensive items to do face-ups and "play around" with. They're not bombs, they're dolls. Expensive dolls, so I have done 4 months of researching prior to ordering, but beginners should order the dolls that cause them to become beginners in the first place!

 

I agree completely! Reading this thread has really encouraged me that what I'm doing is the "right" way to go about it. What I mean is, I believe that ALL the ways to go about it are right, so long as the information is there and the decisions are careful.

I'm currently negotiating for my first doll, a Crobidoll Nia, secondhand. I'm also going to buy a Crobidoll Yeon-Ho head with the B faceup new from the site. So I'm going secondhand and new at the same time. My boys are already speaking to me - I don't know their names yet, I don't know what kind of heartache or difficulty I'll have with them. Maybe I'll have to restring my Nia as soon as I get him. But I'm asking his current owner to face him up for me, and I'm going to buy what I have to and make the rest, so that when he comes home he is clothed and beautiful for me. And then, after the shipping delay from Crobi, my Yeon-Ho will come in, and....Oh, goodness, I can't even wait. My breath gets soft just looking at his photos. He is The One for me.

I've been fond of BJD's for about five years now. I've always told myself, "You shouldn't just buy any old doll." Well, my boys aren't going to be "any old dolls." I've fallen for them. I am looking forward to welcoming them and taking care of them. The greatest mods I'm planning are earrings; the faceups, I'll leave to the professionals. My strength is sewing, and I'm going to make my boys the best wardrobe they can have. I know what I want out of this hobby, and I'm already wincing at the price - *but I'm still going through with it,* because settling for any lesser dolls than the ones I best want would be a waste of any amount of money that I would spend on them.

I can't wait to hold them.

 

I'm hoping to get a my first doll soon and I think this has been a big help
I think it really depends on the person, I wouldn't mind getting a big doll, it's more of a challenge for me And besides, it'll be heaps of fun to play with poses

 

I think there is a big difference between being a part of a local doll community or having BJD friends before getting your first doll and getting your first doll alone. Some people don't have the luxury of having friends to ask for advice and they pretty much have to go it alone with their first doll. I think it is those people most people think of when they think of a complete beginner.

It's ok getting a complicated doll with lots of optional parts like a Soom MD or a Volks SD16 girl with those interchangeable legs if you have someone to run to if you have issues with it, but if you're on your own it's probably best getting a standard doll with a million tutorials like an SD-sized or a MSD-sized doll. If anything you'll at least be able to find out how to string them safely and there are loads of sources for off the peg clothes for these standard sizes while you learn to sew for your doll.

Since Soom's MDs are not regular editions, they won't have any tutorials attached, so it will be pretty hard to do research on that type of doll.

 

Most beginners I see around aren't eager to do something themselves - they are afraid to change eyes, really, fearing they "damage" the doll somehow. Restringing or make-up are regarded as something only an "expert" should do.

But then, there are some very enthusiastic beginners, who buy floating head without a make-up, looking for a body from different company, aren't afraid of modding - and are happy with second-hand or limited dolls.

So... it's really "whatever goes". I think former person will be unhappy with "model kit" doll, and latter might think "ready-made" (brushing included) doll boring.

As for size - I myself started with 70+ doll and thought tinies and pukis as too small for my liking. I fell for them only after handling other people pukis. Then again, one friend of mine started with a puki and now looking for MSD )) She literally "grows up" in the hobby.

I'd say - "research" yourself is even more important, then doll caring research. You just should know what you really want, whatever it is. The "rule" about you should like your first doll may be the only one that applies, really. Of course, we can always sell "wrong" doll, but it's not good to begin with disappointment.

 

I think a lot of this really does vary person-to-person. I'm a very hands-on person. I love taking things apart and putting them together again, I love customizing things (even if I'm not very good), and I'm not too afraid of screwing up. While I started with a 'normal' doll, I probably could've handled something like a Soom MD easily.

One of my close friends, on the other hand, she just got her first doll. She's not a very crafty person and the complexity of the dolls can worry her a bit. Knowing her personality (and her price range), we got her a Bobobie Mei. She loves her doll, and I was able to show her how to tighten the strings, along with wiring the doll so she'd stand better, things she probably wouldn't have imagined doing on her own, but were no problem for me.

 

Well, my first "bjd" was a vinyl version. As much as I love the sculpts of these dolls and not having the fear of them breaking, I soon realized that I wanted more. They aren't as posable as resins that I can tell. Seeing the wonderful posed pictures alone tells me that. Also I don't believe they are restringable, and if they are it would be alot of work (warming of the vinyl and such). So these "affordable" starter bjd's were enough to tell me to stop splashing in the wading pool and jump off the cliff into the ocean below!!! I'm actually in the process of "trying" to decide which resin doll I want first. Oh sooooo many choices. One thing I do know is I want her pretty much now. I don't really want to wait 4 or 5 months. At this point I don't care if she is strung and if she has a face-up or not (I have someone in mind to commission - and that would be faster than waiting 4 or 5 months!). If she is strung it would just take me longer to force myself to "learn" the stringing process. If she isn't - well no harm no foul (at least that's what I'm thinking), I can't ruin something that wasn't already there - right? The only thing limiting my choice right now is the fact that I want to get a resin bjd that can use current wigs, eyes, and clothes I already have. But that's not really a problem as most of the bjd's that I like already will!
Now just waiting for my tax return check and watching the waves below!!!

 

I would say get a standard sized doll for a starter doll, just because depending on if you like males or females you could be in for a lot of frustration with a first doll. My big girl is my first large girl and I had an idea how hard it would be to find clothes for her, but never realized how truly annoying it is until it was time to look. No company makes anything she would actually wear in her size Anything that I would want has to be commissioned or made myself.

Something like that would've pissed me off if I hadn't already learned that "people just don't get big girls". They buy big guys, so there are lots of 70cm guy clothes, but to find the same styles for females is almost impossible.

Also, I would like to think that a not so good starter doll would be one made of french resin, just because a new owner might freak if they didn't know what they were getting into when they bought it.

Doing your homework on the size that you're after, the company you're purchasing from, and what the doll's made of probably determine a large factor in how good or bad your first experience is. When it comes to size, I think you should go with something similar to what you're used to, unless you're really sure you can handle something that's a big jump in either direction.

My good friend saw my 60cm dolls and freaked at how large they were, because she was only used to 1/6 scale resin kits. *shrug*

 

By that logic, no one should get a soom MD or something with more complicated stringing. If the stringing is so much different than your average doll, then your average doll owner wouldn't be able to restring it right? If someone who knows how to restring a standard doll can apply that knowledge and figure out how to restring a more complicated doll, then a beginner can look at a tutorial for restringing a standard doll and apply THAT knowledge to restringing a more complicated doll.

It's like saying someone who's first learning to drive should never try to learn a stick-shift. Sure it may be harder or take more time, but it will have a lot of payoff in the end, and if they can do that, they can do anything.

I feel very strongly that the type of doll a person gets should depend on their likes, their personality, and what they're willing to do rather than their past experience.

 

No, it means that some completely new beginner who has never seen or touched a resin doll before might find a huge doll with complicated stringing a challenge they wouldn't appreciate first time around. Some people do like a challenge, but other people don't, especially with their first ever doll. YMMV.

Clearly your average doll owner, by privilege of actually owning dolls, will have handled BJDs before and will have a good working knowledge of how to put them together, but someone who has never seen a BJD in real life probably wouldn't. There really isn't a substitute for stringing a doll yourself, no matter how many tutorials you read. There are also people here who have got their first doll with no research whatsoever and are surprised when the Unoa-sized jeans and the 7-8 wig they bought won't fit their new SD.

I'm not saying complicated dolls are off limits for anyone, but I know what its like to come into the hobby and buy my own doll when I had never had the opportunity to see one myself beforehand. If I bought an odd-sized doll simply because I liked it and did no other research whatsoever, and on arrival found it was pretty limited in what it could wear, I'd be pretty disappointed.

Also, most people in the UK learn to drive manual cars, I don't know anyone who drives an automatic. So from a British perspective, should we who drive predominantly manual cars buy predominantly complicated dolls?

 

I learned to drive a stick, not an automatic. I have owned automatic trans cars and have always felt like that wasn't really driving!
I drive a stick and ordered complicated dolls, I've never seen any reason to limit myself, thinking I "can't" do something. My mother raised me with the mantra "you can do anything you want"! And I do. Sucessfully.

 

I feel there aren't any dolls that aren't suitable for beginners. If you like it, buy it and find out on forums how they "work". I never restring my own dolls, because that's the only thing about BJDs that I find hard, and I met some friends on the forums that can do it for me. Anyone can do that I believe.
We all had to learn in the beginning, right?

 

Yes, some people dislike a challenge, but others like one. This has absolutely nothing to do with being a beginner, and everything to do with personality. There are many long time doll owners that have never restrung their dolls, done a faceup, etc...

I disagree. A detailed tutorial can show a person exactly what to do. Restringing is not a complicated process at all. If you can put beads on a string, you can restring a doll. It takes no timing, no intricate movements (like painting a faceup would), you really don't need to have owned dolls to do it. Also, being too lazy to do research has nothing to do with being new. I agree that there are certain personalities that shouldn't own certain dolls, but to assume every new doll owner is lazy and stupid is very offensive.

Again, being too lazy to find out anything about the product you're buying is a personality issue, and not part of being new. I think first time owners will research MORE than someone who owns multiple dolls would. Since it's their first time.

That's not what I was saying at all. It was an analogy. If you buy a Sard, learn to blush and restring on a Sard, then later on down the line, standard strung dolls such as delfs will be easy for you.

 

bolded parts are mostly what i'm referring to.

Now lets try this again, since my net window freaking crashed when i had a nice response going. >>;;

Some people like a challenge, and some people don't. Those some people who liek a challenge are the ones who are gonna buy their first doll blank and go head first and try their faceup. and *gasp* omg, removing a head.

Re: stringing. Restringing is a part of the lives of these dolls. It happens. Sometimes, it HAS to happen. Sometimes the string snaps and you're forced to restring, scared or not. No, i agree, theres no replacement for doing it yourself, but that also doesnt mean that a person's first doll has to be something with the simplest stringing. Everyone can learn. Its not that hard.

anecdote: My friend and i ordered our first dolls at the same time, and she got hers first, and he was TIGHT. So, the first night i saw him, only about three weeks after she got him (and didnt do much with him) we were gonna restring him. Note: I'd never done more than held one for more than a few seconds. And that was only once, a few months prior--and she'd only seen her first when she got him! Imagine that, her first doll, a limited Delf Lu Wen--with pesky extra knee joint parts! (please note: extreme sarcasm is present) We unstrung him, thinking we could loosen him, only to realize that theres no extra string after the knot ends, and he was so tight we couldnt get him restrung. We resorted to using craft elastic, which failed miserably, but held him over till we got him restrung properly. Doest hat make us horrible first dolly owners? No, it means we were willing to dive right in. (Also note, she got him blank ^.~)



...and in regards to the last part, "If i got an oddly sized dolll.....i'd be really disapointed" why would you be disapointed? Would you be disapointed that the doll was an 'odd size'? That you couldnt get clothes? Or would you be disapointed in yourself because you'd failed to do the research prior to shelling out 100-700+ for a doll you bought based on looks alone?

I feel that if someone is willing to spend that kind of money on something, they'd better be willing to find out why they're spending that much. (and btw, "odd size" is basically ANY DOLL IN THIS HOBBY. Our dolls are not barbie/fashion doll sized, nor ar they '18-inch'/american girl sized. Just a thought.) If someone's gonna buy their first doll without doing research, without checking out what they're buying, then they're kinda...dumb? Sorry if thats offensive to anyone....but here and now, knowing what these dolls are, whats inside, how they work, and, omg, that their hair comes off and you can take their eyes out!, would you honestly not do research prior to buying? Or, if you DID buy one, to find that your pretty thing from the internet came with no hair, no clothes, and was weird and strung....wouldnt that stop you right there and make you check it out? Or would you just drop it, thinking it'd be okay, or pull out a sharpie to do the makeup? Serioulsy now.


To keep going with the car reference that you brought up.....Would you buy a car that was selling for a very high price (compared to other cars, like these would be compared to most dolls you'd see in toy stores) if you didnt nkow what was under the hood or why it cost so much, but just based on the color or shape? *and by under the hood, i don't mean knowing exactly what the engine is or does or how it works. I don tknow that. i dont WANT to know that. But i mean, if you saw an *insert awesome/macho car here* and bought it without finding out that it had like....a really old and dead engine in it (ie, lols, it wont run. ever.) and without asking anything about it or checking up on it.......now that wouldnt be very smart, now would it?



Oh MAN this is long ><;;

tl;dr: Y'know. If you're gonna spend the money, know what you're spending it on. If someone's willing to throw out this kind of money for something they don't know anything about....then they get what they deserve. If they're not willing to do the research and find out just what they're buying, so be it. let them.

and on the thought of "shoulds" and "should nots" for who should get what doll from what company......should *insert company here* deny someone a purchase because they didnt read the right stuff? Should they have a test first? Multiple choice: What should you NOT use on your doll: A) acrylic paint B) MSC C) oil pastels D) chalk pastels. nah. that'd be kinda silly and really intimidating, don't you think? XD