Going a bit mad with doll purchases in the first few months

Hmmm. Well, I know the feeling. in the last year, I bought my first doll, received a second as a gift, and preordered a third. I've been focusing heavily on the first two and have been incredibly happy with them -- I've learned quite a few new skills, and gotten so much better at crochet that I'm making my grandmother's christmas present (a bundle of miniature lace snowflakes) this year. Monetarily I'm fine and having fun. I don't really have any advice per say, just wanted to say that you aren't the only one to do something like this.

 

I don't think this is uncommon at all. All of my bjds except two (on and off topic) were purchased within my first year of actually owning dolls, in the beginning its very easy to get caught up in bringing lots of dolls home, but it does kind of plateau after a while. You're not really doing anything unusual, I'm sure many of us have been where you are now, but as long as you're able to take care of other needs there is no right or wrong way to expand your collection.

 

I think it's not uncommon to have a year like that somewhere in your timeline. I got my first two dolls in 2012, my third in 2015... and then six dolls (counting heads and OT pets) this year, because I finally had the money for it. And as long as your have the spare money, space and time for it, there's no reason to worry, in my opinion.

Honestly, dolls are only a problem if you spend more than you have, or cut out time with loved ones, or buy things you don't really want - same as with any other hobby. As long as you keep your real boundaries, you'll be fine.

 

I feel the same way. I'm very self conscious at the rate I'm collecting dolls! I ordered my 1st in May of this year. As of today, I have two tinies at home, an SD in production and I just placed a preorder for another tiny. However, I haven't strained myself financially and I don't see myself making my purchases at this rate in the future. This was partially brought about by taking advantage of sales or limited dolls.

I guess my advise is that try not to feel too guilty if your tastes change? Pre-ordering a lot of dolls before really having direct experience with a full doll comes with the risk of not fully knowing your own preferences. I'm honestly going through this right now with my second doll. I didn't think her magnetic feet and inability to sit would bother me as much as they do. It's disapointing, but it's a learning experience.

 

Haha, I put dates, years included, with my doll line up in my profile. You can see when I exploded. :P I did good to one doll a year, and then madness.
This year it was only supposed to be two dolls -laughs heavily-

 

As others have said, as long as you have the money I think it's perfectly fine. I also got caught up in my first few months ended up with four full dolls in the first year even though I had gone in expecting to only have one. (But since then my circumstances have changed and I've leveled out by necessity... I probably would have bought a few more if I had an extra $1000 or so to spare. ^^; )

But if you are worried about getting overwhelmed, it's perfectly fine to slow down... or it's fine to not slow down. Do whatever makes you happy, as long as it doesn't take over your life in a negative way. For me personally, the main consideration I have to give is prioritizing dolls against my other hobbies and interests; I mean, I technically could afford another doll or two right now, but that would mean taking resources away from traveling, or buying art supplies, or getting new electronics, or going out to eat or shop. Dolls aren't my one-and-only hobby, so even my "fun money" has to be spread out a bit. For some people, that's less of a issue.

 

Well, since I got back in the hobby last year after a years long hiatus, I have already 1 doll at home + 4 more on the way and each of them will arrive with at least one floating head... crazy, I know. But to my defence, I have been admiring those dolls (Dollshe and Fifth Motif guys) from afar for years, so when a sale appeared, I just went for it.

So, even though it may sound reckless to buy 5 dolls in a year, it wasnt really as my heart was yearning for them for long time and I cant be more happy with my purchases. Im planning to get one more doll that fits one of my characters sometime next year and then take a long pause to focus on these guys.

 

Ummgh i dont want to scare anyone but i got a total of 7 dolls this year and 2 more plus a head are being paid off on a layaway schedule.....im kind of embarassed but incredibly happy. Btw this aint my first year hehe

 

Haha I definitely had a year like that last year. It's not a good thing unless you're putting yourself out of your home. Have fun with it! Tis the season to treat yourself. I want to say my final total was 6 full dolls, but I didn't end up keeping all of them. No harm, no foul!

 

If I would have had the money back then I would have bought like crazy too. I didn't, which was good because a lot of those dolls I absolutely wanted to have back then would have been sold again by now.
In the beginning everything is so new, exciting and totally has to be ordered.

While you have the funds, and even though it's a common sight among newcomers, I'd still tell you to lay low for a while.
Finish a doll first, because there's nothing more frustrating than having a bunch of unfinished dolls and realizing you need to size down again if you ever want to finish one of them. Or being frustrated because all you own is lots of heads that are hard to hybrid/get bodies for and you still haven't been able to hold and play with a full doll.

Not to mention that you will realize sooner or later that you have certain preferences. It's better when you do so BEFORE you bought a ton of dolls that then end up on the chopping block again.

 

I did that too! Though to provide another perspective on the whole buying a lot of dolls but having them unfinished thing; I don't regret it, nor does it ruin any of my enjoyment. Basically, my aim was to purchase the crew I knew I wanted (and sometimes you do just know), and sweat the details of finishing them after the main expense of procuring them was out of the way. Part of the reasoning behind this was because of currency fluctuation. At the time, GBP/USD exchange rate was more in my favour. Sometime after purchasing one of the final dolls, the UK referendum happened, and had I waited to buy any of my dolls, the resulting GBP crash from that would have single-handedly wiped out any chance of getting them. I couldn't predict that event specifically, but I'm always well-aware of currency fluctuation. It made a lot of sense to me to tackle the huge expenses first and asap, so I collected almost my whole crew in the space of three years, "future-proofing". In my case I'm glad I did it, because whilst I actually have more money now than I did then, it means much much less when buying internationally.

I'm happy having my crew sit around in various states of completion for as long as that happens to be. They're a side hobby, and they can wait for when I have time and/or interest in working on them. If I'm not interested for a while, it doesn't mean I hate them or they weren't worth it, or that I'll need to sell them, it just means I want to do something else for now. Only you know your own feelings, but I think it's perfectly fine to purchase in whichever order makes sense to you, and work on them in whichever way makes sense to you.

It sounds, from your original post, like everything is fine really! If you're happy with what you're purchasing and you have the money to purchase it, what difference does it make if it's a lot at once? That's actually an ideal situation haha, it couldn't be a more perfect transaction!

 

omg don't worry, I'm doing the same too haha. Like others have said, if you're definite about what you're buying it shouldn't be a big deal. I think anxiety comes along the way, but maybe once you've received the doll you'll be satisfied with your purchases!

 

I am in your stage. The crew I want is small, so I figure that I'll buy them all, then get to the other stuff. So heads, bodies, and then clothes and other stuff. It was a bit frustrating having heads with no bodies, and now dolls with few clothes, but I figure that getting things together this way will lead to less frustration in the long run. But I am patient and have other things to distract me. So yeah, the running mantra in this hobby is whatever works for you.

 

im glad im not the only one having this issue lol i just ordered my first doll last month and ive been going a little crazy buying doll stuff already, i already got her two wigs and a bunch of clothes >___< now im on a no buy til christmas is over haha