How did you convince yourself it was worth it?

Dear Verdigris, I am new here and I am just reading your posting. So did you find an answer to your question? Did your dolls arrive in the timeframe expected?

Having my BJD is worth it to me because she makes me happy.

 

This is my absolute dream hobby!! My 5 girls are a huge part of my life. The best money I’ve ever spent. Before finally getting a bjd after wanting one for 7 years, I collected designer handbags, shoes, and clothes. Needless to say, I sold most of that stuff off to get my girls and all their items. Best money I’ve ever spent.

 

I always says that I never ever spend any money on another doll... Well... It's not working. I buying a doll the third time... Buying something less exepensive is not working... I always buy what I like. Worth it or not? Who knew? My first one can't did it, but my actual doll makes me happy... And I hope that my new doll will make it too...

 

Honestly? It's really hard to justify spending so much money on anything at all, at least for me. But I always end up thinking "Is there anything that would make me any happier than buying this?" or "Am I lacking anything at the moment?"

For a long time, I always had a hard time with that second question: I didn't find myself having the money to spare on a doll, even if I was completely sure it was something I wanted. But when I finally saw myself financially stable I didn't have any more excuses. And after paying for my doll I really felt some sort of guilt but remembered that I had been looking at the hobby from afar for so long and my interest had not faded away...

It was expensive, sure. But having my doll with me sure beats any guilt. It's something I have spent so much time thinking about, just being able to look at a BJD up close feels sort of dream-like at this point, even if it may sound cheesy. Sure, it was expensive, but I prefer to have him around rather than spend all that money in random stuff that wouldn't fulfill me as much. I was never one to buy many things for myself, I only go for what I'm truly in love with!

 

I constantly feel guilty about the cost of my dolls. Every penny spent on them could be better spent elsewhere. There's no doubt about that. Even when there are no necessities for myself or my family I could have donated the money to a good cause or helped someone else with it. So why buy a chunk of plastic that might have fed someone else for a month or longer?

There's honestly no way to justify the spending of money on luxury items. I see many people saying the items make them happy and that's enough. While I absolutely agree on that and feel like people should do what makes them happy there will always be people to undermine that logic as well.

On that note, I believe ball-jointed dolls bring lots of happiness to their owner and often other people around as well. I'll never judge what other people do with their money as it is theirs to do with as they please. As said I do feel guilty but I also just know they're worth it for me personally.

In short, do what makes you happy! Everything in life comes with a cost so you might as well pick out the things that make you smile.

Seize the day and spread the love~

 

I do have quite of the "I want it, I got it" attitiude. I've been chasing after these dolls since 7 years now (I'm 22 nearly 23). Removed myself from a bad poverty stricken family situation, moved to Germany and it all went great from there. My significant other is a generous man, I get paid to study as a prosecutor, sell art drawings I do on the side. So if I have money to spare and nothing else I need, food, rent, and bills coming first of course, I don't mind spending on the dolls I love.

 

You just have to know from the start that it was worth it

 

I convinced myself it was worth it because of how long I stalked this hobby without ever making a purchase. For years I window shopped and lusted after dolls, but even when I had more then enough money I didn't buy because I wasn't sure I was really into it. well after more then 5 years of consistently being interested, I bit the bullet and bought one. Actually 2 They haven't arrived yet, but I'm sure it worth it.

 

I've not been the best with money. It wasn't a thing I learned or had any interest in managing (here for a good time not a long time etc) but this year was different. So I bit the bullet and bought a doll. I'm still a bit feckless but I like pretty things. I just believe he will be worth it.

 

One of the things that prompted my nosedive into this hobby was seeing a head for sale with a face-up by an artist I admired. That felt like one of those now or never moments so I went for it. Didn’t need much convincing at all. It’s still one of my favourite purchases so I can say that it was worth it.

I’ve spent a fair amount of money on other hobbies (anime, art, gunpla, cosplay) so maybe I’m just a bit desensitized to it now I also have income now and a good amount of savings, so spending some money here and there won’t hurt me in the long run.

I agree that BJD is an insanely expensive hobby. I try to mitigate the impact of the costs (i.e. my guilty conscience) by spreading out my spending and kinda just avoiding what I consider expensive sculpts (price tag can really make me put down a sculpt lol). Reducing my guilty conscience in this manner helps me to be ok with the overall costs.

 

For me it was waiting for the right doll. I just kept looking until I fell in love with a sculpt. I started really slow, my first 3 or 4 dolls were just me browsing company websites and the marketplace slowly until I fell in love with something.

I will say all of my first dolls were either second hand or limited, so there was that 'now or never' pressure and I felt like I would regret passing them up. I'm not sure I would have ever made the leap without that. Even now I tend to just keep putting off dolls I want that aren't limited or second hand because they'll still be there later.

 

To give my younger self credit, I had much less apprehension about pouring hundreds onto a doll because I was already involved in other costly hobbies (e.g. anime and manga, art, books). I was used to spending money to expand my collection and for supplies. Buying my first doll was a lesson in learning I could absolutely save up for larger purchases if I wanted it bad enough, and after seeing how artsy these dolls were and the license of full creativity they came with, it was sort of a no-brainer. Plus a friend was interested, and that lead-in made it seem less financially bold than if I were the only one who thought this was a justifiable price.

I've been in the hobby for so long I have no idea what I would think if it were introduced to me later on in my life. I just can't imagine what else I would be interested in.

 

I kinda felt like that at first.... would they really feel like they’re worth spending that much money on? But now, 3 years in, I think I actually do the opposite! For example, if we eat out a lot in a particular month, I feel guilty and think “damn, I could have bought a whole doll with all that money!”

because, you know, I clearly have my priorities in place.

 

Its worth it to me because they make me happy, calm me down. Most importantly they are a creative outlet. I see them as art but also as more then that, I can't imagine not having them.

 

I did not convince myself. In fact I think is that if you have to convince yourself than it is in fact NOT worth it. I skipped ordering a doll so many times - just last year I sat over a prepared order, all in the basket and thought about it for two days... And I did not order the doll. I am happy I did not.
At that moment of my life I had the money, but I did not feel financially secure enough to justify spending that much on a thing I would enjoy but did not ultimately need - there are other enjoyable things I could get, that would bring me as much joy a the doll and would cost a fraction of that BJD.
Why did I end up ordering a doll? (well 4 dolls by now really) Because I did not have to convince myself any longer - I so a doll I wanted very badly, for a price I was comfortable paying, and yes that "comfortable price" has gone up for me since last year - I feel like I have enough of a financial buffer and everything is in order, so I can spend that much on "extras" for myself without any guilt.
Buying an expensive doll for no other reason than my own pleasure feels like a reward right now, something I deserve for working hard and staying on course, I have no reservation and no hesitation spending the money required and no need to convince myself.

So my answer is simple - don't convince yourself. It will only make you feel guilty, pressured and uncomfortable in the end. The purpose of having a hobby is to LOWER your stress levels, not raise them because you are forcing the issue. When it is really time for you to have a doll you will not feel any need for "convincing" - buying one should be easy and enjoyable, no guilt attached.

 

I didn't have any interest in buying anything for years so actually had money to indulge. I bought my first 2 boys with that money and will buy nothing else now until Christmas because of life budgeting etc.

It means that I'll basically have to customise everything for my boys myself and it will probably be cringe in the beginning but you never know, I might end up doing something like opening an etsy shop in the future because I had to make everything myself at this stage.

 

The thing that helps me to not feel guilty about spending money on dolls is to have a “fun money” stipend. Every month, my husband and I give ourselves a decent amount of spending money that we can spend on whatever we want. We have monthly budgets for everything, like groceries, bills, medicine, mortgage, retirement, etc. So our fun money is not dipping into important things. It’s the money that will not hurt us if we spend it.

We can save that money and let it accumulate, which is usually what I do. And then I spend it all in one go on a doll. But I don’t feel anxious about that purchase, because I know that the bills and savings plans are still on track. Big spending only becomes an issue if you aren’t taking care of your bills and stuff.

 

I have done some sculpting myself and one of my favorite parts was painting tiny details. I also love customizing things in general. I am also an artist and stumbled upon youtubers who did faceups and was absolutely enthralled. I love the idea of customizing a little sculpture and the fluidity of its appearance it was a way for me to try styles that I couldn't pull off or was too afraid too. Then I joined the community and while some parts were bad most people were in general so kind and willing to answer questions. All of this made BJDs worth it for me. It was a combo of painting, sculpting, tinkering, and the poseability that for me was so worth the costs!

 

I noticed that with my dolls I express myself a lot more and they also help me with anxiety and when I am feeling down. I am not a very social person to begin with and I am perfectly fine with this. I have discovered that I am ok with having one or two friends that I talk to maybe once a month and then there is my family and boyfriend who are there everyday. I discovered that I can socialize fine I just don't like it, I am not interested in it and that is fine. My dolls are basically the friends I don't have, and that is wonderful because they are an extension of myself. The have their own personalities but they also have a few things in common with me, just like real life friends. To some this might sound sad and creepy but I don't care. I am happy this way. My dolls make me happy and that is enough to convince myself that is worth it and to keep doing it. After all, I am not harming anyone or myself.

 

I don't have to convince myself. Everyone has their vice and this happens to be mine. It makes me happy and that's good enough for me.