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Funeral for a Doll

Oct 2, 2009

    1. I have a hard time retelling this simply because I don't like retelling my problems. Any way last August I lost my B&G Loretta Lilly out of my back pack onto the freeway. I had to wait a half an hour until I was finally able to get to her( both freeway exits were closed due to construction :|). When I did get to her I was heart broken. I took what I could find home, and put her in her sleeping bag. As for a funeral I couldn't bury her since I live in an apartment. I said a few words and left her in her bag. A few weeks ago I sent her to a dear friend of mine. Her husband wants to do a mod of her. So we'll see what happens. I'm hoping he can give her new life.
       
    2. I think I would be torn between wanting to re-house the doll in a new body or head and feeling the need to mourn for the doll and get the sense of closure that a funeral would give.

      I really think it would come down to how I felt - i.e. is that doll gone forever or can I re-construct him or her and still feel that connection.

      If I felt that the doll could not be re-built, I would definitely want a funeral or something similar. Something loved would be leaving my life and that deserves some kind of attention.
       
    3. You guys I am so sorry for all of your horrific experiences! ><
      CosmosPrincess I hope your doll is able to be somewhat salvaged.

      I would probably not give my doll a funeral. Depending on the damage I would probably keep it, and figure out something...
       
    4. Hmm this is really interesting. I don't know about the whole funeral idea though! Aha!

      My dolls are shells for my characters. I mean the ones that have characters anyways which is only 2/4 so far, but for some reason the ones that have no characters but just personalities mean more to me. Don't get me wrong i love my two with characters but I feel that because how I write the characters I treat them like that. For example my girl Crowe is very independant so I dnt tend to play around with her but I do sit with her etc. But the ones without characters I feel I can do more with. If something beyond repair happened to Crowe I'd be devastated, she is limited and I do love her to pieces, but I don't feel ivebeen through a lot with her if that makes sence. Whilst if something like that happened To Harper Id cry for ages. He is my sort of "always there" doll. :L aha! He's been there when I'm sad and when Im sick. I just pick him up and I feel safe and secure (sounds weird and sounds like I'm insane but it's true aha!) if he broke, sure I could get the same sculpt but I don't think it would ever be the same.

      But with any of my dolls I don't think I could ever just get rid of them and forget. I still occasionally think of my first doll which I sold. :)
       
    5. ok i'm going to say something that may put a damper on this already depressing subject ...

      I don't think I'd bury my doll. I'd be too worried about the environmental impact it would have ^^; I'm already concerned about the amount of graves we have and how much space it wastes ^^; (please no one take offense to that, its just my opinion)

      I'd probably have attachment issues for a while if one of my dolls were broken beyond repair. But honestly... I think I'd eventually just unstring the doll, put it into a small box and store it away with some pictures I took of him/her. I have a lot of memory boxes in my house. As of now I have two chests filled with things from my childhood and adolescence. I imagine I'd probably put the box in with my other memories.

      but I honestly dont think a doll could be damaged beyond repair unless it really truly was melted, burned, or in a bunch of pieces. At that point I'd probably make a project out of it, or sell it to someone who would want a project ^^;
       
    6. If anything happened to my dolls that could not be remedied, I'd be crushed.
      I have no idea what I'd do. I would probably replace them if I could. I don't know if it would be the same as the originals though.

      Every time I learn of stories like this I think of running out and looking for some kind of insurance. Is there anything like that?
       
    7. I can't imagine having a doll break on me…
      Every time I drop my doll I always panick and check the doll thoroughly even though the drop is from very low height…=_=
      But I guess I will have to bury the doll…feels terrible to just throw it away
       
    8. Foxxian, I read your story before, and it is so so sad! If it was me I'll cry myself to sleep. And the delivery dude is really brainless. A package from Korea and she is a Korean lady? Illogical, does that mean I can only order from Taiwan (my home country)??I understand a naked and wigless bjd is a frightening sight to non-doll people, but the most is she closed the lid and put it away! Wonder why she threw it?
      IcePuppet, your story is so sad. Those evil children. They shouldn't do it to any toy or doll, much less a BJD! I could hang them upside down till they cry now.
      Funerals, ah..I think I'll salvage the undamaged parts and search through the second hand market and plead with the company till I get to fix her all up. Even if it is only one foot left, I'll still buy all the damaged part. I don't think I'll throw the good feet away and buy a new doll. If that's the case, it won't be her anymore.
      Then maybe I'll burry the remaining damaged parts.
      But damaging a doll beyond repair seems unlikely.
       
    9. I actually did see a story in the Customization thread about a woman whose apartment caught on fire. She managed to salvage one of the dolls and did a pretty good job of restoring it.

       

    10. Knowing that, I'd probably try to sell my doll to Nefla! xD
       
    11. A doll funeral, while not necessarily practical in terms of resin or other plastic dolls (especially with interchangeable parts), is hardly a new concept.

      I'm something of a doll historian, and particularly in the Victorian era, doll funerals were quite commonplace for little girls who have worn out a favorite and gotten a new doll as a replacement. Many a cracked and limbless wax, china or wood baby was laid tenderly to rest in a flower garden or fallow field with all due ceremony. Of course, after the funeral, more often than not, the doll would be dug right back up again because either her "mama" couldn't bear to part with her or the boys (who traditionally hated dolls) wanted to torment and destroy the hated thing.

      Nor was this a strictly Western practice. In certain parts of India, once upon a time, young girls who came of age were expected to throw their dolls into the Ganges to signify the passing of their childhood.

      As was previously mentioned (I believe by Joselyn), in Japan to this day, once a year, old unwanted dolls are taken to temple and cremated more or less as a dead person would be.

      In closing, I would like to share with you a poem about just such an event as described in my earlier paragraph. This was written in 1899 by Will Allen Dromgorle, and is entitled "The Doll's Funeral".

      The Doll&#8217;s Funeral

      When my dolly died, when my dolly died,
      I sat on the step and I cried and cried;
      And I couldn't eat any jam and bread,
      'Cause it didn't seem right when my doll was dead.
      And Bridget was sorry as she could be,
      For she patted my head, and "O," said she,
      "To think that the pretty has gone and died!"
      Then I broke out afresh and I cried and cried.

      And all the dollies from all around
      Came to see my dolly put under the ground;
      There was Luly Lee and Mary Clack
      Brought their dolls over, all dressed in black;
      And Emiline Hope and Sara Lou
      Came over and brought their dollies, too,
      And all the time I cried and cried,
      'Cause it hurt me so when my dolly died.

      We dressed her up in a new white gown,
      With ribbons and laces all around;
      And made her a coffin in a box
      Where my brother keeps his spelling blocks;
      And we had some prayers, and a funeral, too;
      And our hymn was "The Two Little Girls in Blue."
      But for me, I only cried and cried,
      'Cause it truly hurt when my dolly died.

      We dug her a grave in the violet bed,
      And planted violets at her head;
      And we raised a stone and wrote quite plain,
      "Here lies a dear doll who died of pain."
      And then my brother, said he, "Amen,"
      And we all went back to the house again,
      But all the same I cried and cried,
      Because I'd a right when my doll had died.

      And then we had more jam and bread,
      But I didn't eat, 'cause my doll was dead.
      But I tied some crape on my doll house door,
      And then I stood and cried some more.
      I couldn't be happy, don't you see!
      Because the funeral belonged to me.
      And then the others went home, and then
      I went out and dug up my doll again.
       
    12. If one of my was broken beyond repair, I wouldn't throw him/her away (I couldn't even throw my broken Xbox360 away), but I wouldn't have a funeral either. I'd probably try to sell the doll at an extremely low price (or for free) to someone learning to do mods. Plus, I've seen some amazing restoration projects, so the doll might be salvageable if the right person would operate on him/her. If no one wanted to experiment on/restore the doll, I'd keep it in a box in my closet (like with my broken Xbox360). I'm usually not as sentimental with my dolls as most people, but the idea of a doll in a garbage can horrifies me.
       
    13. Oh, man... That's a really sad thought for me. I do actually have a plan for what I'm going to do if my dolls get damaged terribly, and that is, simply, to either find someone to repair them, or to get them to ongreyelephant's Groteque Cabaret and modding them so they can continue to exist. If I got someone who creates things like she does to mod my dolls, they'd be different characters.... Id probably rebuy the doll, probably the same mold, and be carefuler with them, goodness. But I hope I never have to experience anything like that.
       
    14. mmIt would be really hard for me to let go. The majority of my dolls are portrayed as immortal and self-healing or at least able to get to a gifted healer. Should one happen to become damaged beyond repair I would probably fix what I could within my very limited ability to work with resin. If I couldn't make it disappear, then it would become a scar or some kind of serious injury that wouldn't go away for whatever reason. Personality would evolve to go with the injury of course. Story would evolve too...but I know I could never bury any of my dolls unless maybe it was a final request and they were going with me
       
    15. This topic is scary! Lots of horror stories! D;
      If something happened to one of my dolls, I would probably just give it away to someone that wants to practice mods, and what not... or sell haha!
       
    16. Hearing FOXXIAN's story makes me glad our previous mail-carrier left for good. I think he had some kind of grudge against me for having packages from China all the time (he was Chinese, but that doesn't exactly explain it at all...) Gegaish was chucked over the fence. I remember. I wasn't worried though which was naive' of me... see... I figured he'd be sooo snuggly wrapped since he was coming from the company... truth be told, he wasn't snug ENOUGH to be chucked around, but he was fine. My cousin is actually the one who scared him away.... after he caught the guy throwing a package and BARELY missing that idiots car, he was redder than a tomato. My cousin ranted a whole week about having wet dreams about beating the snot out of him. It was hard not to laugh....that's the idiot that I live with, but I imagine he's even scarier to strangers. Even someone as muscle-brained as him knows you'd better be nice with that package.. even if it's just protecting his car. Hmm come to think of it, he's had no real reaction to the dolls, unlike the rest of the family. Not even a negative one. It takes a special type of jerk to call a fine doll garbage, and special meaning WELL beyond the point where I'd start using the word 'hate' toward them. lol.
       
    17. Holy ... why would that lady even throw it away? I mean, I'm glad the delivery guy got punished for it, but what about the woman who threw it out? Did she get her ass arrested or fined, at least? I mean, I know opening someone else's mail is a US felony, but what about tossing out a big package like that, especially when it's worth so much money? That really sucks.

      As for me, I've been lucky and so far none of my dolls have been damaged beyond repair. But, really, with all the skilled artisans and customizers, I'd think a doll would have to have some pretty substantial damage to be considered "dead". Plus, even if a part is damaged beyond ability to fix, some companies will allow you to buy a replacement part for it, like hand or a foot (and in the case of Dollfie Dream and Obitsu 1/3 scale, legs, thighs, arms, ect...). Assuming it isn't a limited or discontinued hand or foot, of course. I restrung one of my tinies yesterday and the whole time I was worrying about accidentally snapping off one of his delicate fingers, thinking how am I going to replace his hand if it breaks? He hasn't been in production for over three years now!

      Edit: And can I just add that I love that poem? It's so cute! The ending made me laugh.
       
    18. In the event that one of my dolls were destroyed to a point where they couldn't be saved, I would go through the five stages of grief and then I would either keep them to try to mod/experiment on myself or send them off to someone who wants them for whatever reason (the same reason, I'd wager). No funerals will be held here, though I would pay tribute to them in some way. I think that my husband would make some fairly immense sacrifices to help me replace the doll, assuming it's replaceable and not a Limited or discontinued doll. Maybe the new doll wouldn't be exactly the same, but I think that I could love it like I loved the first.

      If it were a Limited doll, I'd need therapy for the rest of my life.
       
    19. I have always held funerals for my deceased pets, and attended funerals for my friends pet hamsters, so I would see nothing strange about a doll's funeral. God forbid one of our beautiful dolls should be so completely destroyed as to need one.
       
    20. If one of my dolls were seriously damaged, I would try to replace it or the damaged part(s). If necessary to replace the entire doll I'd try to sell the damaged doll or discard it if it was unsaleable.

      I would not have a funeral or ceremony.

      I have a very damaged teddy bear that I would never-ever replace, but I don't have the same intense emotional attachment to my dolls. I don't have characters for them that I would try to maintain as a new doll, but I don't need to have their physical forms around just for sentiment's sake if that form is no longer the way I wanted it to be. I wouldn't be satisfied with my dolls if they were broken or damaged, because I want them to be as nice as I can keep them. For that reason, I would replace them. If they could not be replaced, because they were limited or hard to find, for example, then I would "retire" that doll and move on. I will still have my memories and photos even if the physical doll no longer exists.