How did you discover the BJD hobby?

Ahhh yes. Mine is a convoluted story that surprisingly adds up in the end! My initial interest in dolls began with a neighbor of mine at the time who had over 200 antique dolls. She told me she would never buy dolls, especially vintage ones, because she knew how hard it was for her to get out of it again! Then she'd laugh and her eyes would twinkle and I knew it was worth it. And I know we all know how hard it is to keep up on maintaining our dolls -- imagine now if that doll was over 90 years old!

This lady was loaded, naturally! Ha ha ha. So I asked her what kind of "modern" doll she would ever consider, if she would ever consider doll collecting in the modern sense of the hobby. She turned me to a website with beautiful art dolls -- porcelain -- handsculpted ball-jointed dolls. I believe this site is still running. Google "enchanted dolls" if you'd like.

These babies were well over 1k (USD.) I always entered contests to win one (every year there is a give away for a OOAK.) But then I got fed up with waiting to hear who the winner was.

I was also at the time beginning to get very good at my primary hobby, which is photography. I went rapidly from scenery to portraits. I decided that I NEEDED a doll to photograph!! I tried to substitue with teddies and pokemon, but I needed a BJD like I needed bath. It was very tolling on me. To this day, I don't know the real underlying truth as to how this works, but I imprint on dolls. They become family. I don't interact with them as people, no. But as a photographic muse, it was of the utmost importance to me. A bit like the pact with the devil and Paganini and his violin!

I began to have dreams about BJDs and which one I wanted. I did this for 4 months. And then I couldn't stand being haunted by them anymore and I got Wren, my BBB Bao. And shortly after, Pip With A Twist came, my PKF Bonnie. Usually I buy my dolls around the very early morning hours, after 12 midnight, because they keep me up with such bad insomnia. If I am in the market for a doll, chances are I won't sleep and then I will wake up suddenly and go and buy it immediately -- once I reach my "wait limit" -- hahaha!

I don't feel right if I don't get at least 3-5 good shots of them daily. I'm possessed by them! I don't mind, though. I think maybe I turned into what it is I viewed my neighbor as. Also....I'm a clothes whore. I gotta gotta gotta buy clothes at all times for my resin babies.

Life is good. My wallet is never full :-)

 

I've been obsessed with the idea of getting my characters into 3D form since... well I can't actually remember a time when I wasn't. After a lot of fustration as a kid, why don't they make fully customizable toys for kids? and a lack of natural sculpting skill I kind of gave up on the idea. Well, gave up isn't quiet right, I didn't give up as much as I just kind of resigned myself to the fact that it would never happen.
Anyways, fast forward years later and I'm surfing deviantart, not really looking for anything in perticular just looking around. I came across this bratz doll that someone had customized to look like one of the How To Train You Dragon characters. It was amazing. I had never really thought you could modifiy one of those dolls that much.
It instantly re-awoke my need to put my characters in 3D form.
I keep searching the web trying to find out how to customize bratz dolls, but I keep getting sites about these bjd things. I was actually really annoyed at first, but of course eventually I caved and started looking at them.
Once I found out how customizable they are and the huge varaity they come in it was pretty much love at first sight.

I've never looked back

 

I first heard mention of BJD's in one of the doll forums I belong to. One look at the pics, I was in love. Loved how the jointing was similar to the antique dolls I like with the added bonus of being able to change their faceups and eyes. A few years later I saw a few first hand at IDEX and hence the slippery slope began..

 

Well I was watching some anime's and I came across Rozen Maiden. An anime about dolls that fight to become "ALice" a real human. And at first I was like oh this is cool. But then I found the Volks website... then i was all MUST HAVE!!!

 

Completely off-topic: Rozen Maiden doesn't show NEARLY enough joints! I started watching the friggin' thing because it has BJDs! XD

 

Somewhere between myself and a friend of mine in high school obsessing over Chobits and Angelic Layer (mainly Angelic Layer) and I thought it would be sooooo super awesome to have our own super customizable dolls like the ones in AL, we discovered Volks. I don't remember exactly how the two connected at the time... but since then, here I am.

It's actually very interesting at how much AL borrowed from Volks, origin story wise, the series was clearly a nod to them. (Ironically I've never finished either series and have yet to actually see Rozen Maiden.)

 

I just happen to see pictures of BJDs and have them mentioned as BJDs so I just google'd it and found some sites that sold dolls. That was several years ago, back in 06 or 07 I think, and I remember thinking that Id never afford one so I stopped to look at them. 2010 I was seeing BJDs mentioned again and remembered my search years ago. At that time I decided that I just HAVE to have one, so I started to save the money I got by doing arts

I also began stalking a thread on DoA, and probably a halv year later I joined n_n

 

Really interesting to read the posts in here

My story is: Once upon a time, I was into Jrock (really long time ago) and discovered the first BJD ever being the look-a-like of Hyde from L'arc-en-ciel.
I instantly thought they were beautiful creatures (not into that mold anymore) but didn't know much about them and thus forgot about them again.
Years later, I suddenly stumbled on some others, can't remember where and began this time to research a bit. I came to knew a fair lot more about ABJDs and the different companies out there but only really fell for the Dollmore model line. Too bad I was too young and didn't have any money at the time so again, the idea drifted away.

Then, RECENTLY the hobby suddenly came crawling back into my thoughts and so, I once again began to research. This time, the world of ABJDs really opens up and it feels so much bigger and so much more interesting. So I've finally pulled myself together and am saving up for my first baby. I think this is a good way to cure the shopaholic in me and for once learn what saving up means
I've also learned to look at the dolls under the face-ups, look at the bare sculpt and seek owner pictures so many new dolls have found way to my desire, which makes the whole hobby more fun and the option for characters bigger.
So yea.. I'm completely caught up now.

 

I was browsing Flickr for the lulz and was going through a couple people's albums and I ran into a doll.
Didn't know what it was! I at first thought it was a real person. lol.
Asked the person who owned the pic about it and they told me it was a BJD.

A month later I had gone to a local anime convention (SacAnime) and a girl had this gorgeous huge SD boy and let me hold him.
I was hooked.
2 years later and I have my first doll and I'm saving for another. X3

 

I found them through Photography.
I'm more of a drawing person than photography but when was getting into photography, I found a bjd photo on deviantart. At first I thought it was an AMAZING Piece of Digital Art!

Was anyone as Dull as I was?

 

My story isn't cool or intresting at all..I found a picture one day of a bjd draing with crayons I went WOW this is amazing!!! I figured out what it was and the rest is history X3

 

I'm a Pullip collector and found out about BJD's from Pullip forums. I never thought I would be interested in BJD's, given the cost factor, but after seeing so many wonderful owner pictures I fell hard for it. I'm now saving up for my first BJD while trying to decide which one I should get (there are so many choices!).

 

It was a loooooong looooooooong time ago..
Does anyone remember when people would join mailing lists instead of forums? XD;;
I was on this Inu-Yasha fanfiction mailing list.. I'm pretty sure that's where I heard about BJDs. That's where I learned about J-rock, too.
OH THE INTERNET IN THE 90S. How wonderful it all was. ;w;

 

Well I always used to collect American Girl dolls, and then I joined this doll forum for teens and a friend introduced me to Pullips. From there I'm not sure, but I saw them here and there and eventually looked them up!

 

I was in high school in a photography class. A girl had pictures of her BJD. :3 He was so pretty! I wanted to get one, too, but didn't have the money. But my friend got me interested again after a few years, and I was finally able to afford one! Still waiting on him, but I'm glad I finally bought one for myself. :3

 

I was introduced to bjd's by my bestfriend's sister :3
She collected Blythes at first, and I remember thinking, '"Who would spend 100+ on a doll?!" ^^;;

One day she brought her kdoll Kayan out and I was super intrigued by it- it was so different from the huge-eyed blythe and very much more proportionate XD

 

I remember a Lady back in 2003/04 who always posted Pics of her Volks BJDs on Prego. At that time, BJDs were really "exotic" dolls.
A little later i got my first one. it was a customhouse Choa. then Luts Lishe followed. Then Rainman created Ryung. that was the beginning of my BJD experience.

 

I was a little girl and looking through a doll catalog when I came across an add for Volks Super Dolfies. I fell instantly in love with bjd's at that moment. It wasn't until years later that I finally got my first doll, but it was soooo worth the wait.

 

I'm actually surprised in retrospect how long it took me to discover BJDs. I had been interested in manga/anime/jrock for a long time and those hobbies gave me an interest in Gothic Lolita style clothing. I was browsing Ebay looking for Elegant Gothic Lolita dresses when I found a gorgeous dress for around $100. I clicked on the listing and realized it was a dress for a doll! At first I was annoyed, but then began to research BJDs and was delighted to discover that male BJDs existed and were gorgeous. I'd never seen an attractive male doll before. I didn't buy one for over a year because of the price, though. Also, it was overwhelming as a newcomer to realize that the dolls came blank, bald, and nude because I realized that getting them "complete" would add so much to the price. I begin buying Pullips and once I had too many Pullips for my display cabinet, I bought my first BJD.