How do you decide which dolls you REALLY want and which you're just infatuate...

When I purchased my first I just knew. I don't know how else to describe it, I just liked everything about her. She is a (Mnf Celine) she is just so cute and perfect! And I have no regrets at all. And I think I am pretty happy with this doll for the next few years! (:

 

Yes, there is a 'feeling' when the doll is right... as the Supreme Court once said about pornography, "I know it when I see it". I have encountered the infatuation things many times before. It's reeeeally really hard to say no to yourself, but your gut knows what it's doing; your gut is in cahoots with that voice in the back of your head that fundamentally knows when something is right or wrong.

I trust my gut to do my shopping, anyway-- if I let my heart do the shopping, I would buy every doll I thought was gorgeous & would just love to have him in my home. The heart is never to be trusted when you're trying to decide whether it's love or infatuation (and this holds true for people as well as dolls)-- the heart never listens to the brain or the gut. Here's another great quote, from Lydia Millet: "Love may be blind, but let's face it, lust has eyes in the back of its head."

I have a small apartment, so I cannot have them all; I must be content to let myself admire some dolls from afar. There are many dolls that I still have huge crushes on, and many dolls that I'm pretty sure I'm in love with... but they've never made the cut of being actually required at home, of being something I want to spend my too-precious shelf-space on.

Sometimes I do get blindsided, though, which is wonderful. A doll will be released who's something I'd never even considered owning before, but I fall in love so fast and so deeply and it feels so right, I go ahead & buy him... and he turns out to be something my house was missing, and True Love is in the air. Like, say, my Iplehouse Luo, I never thought I needed the likes of him. But the longer I sat without buying him, he just wouldn't let me go, and it made me sad to think of the house without him, and this baffled me, so I trusted my gut & hit that BUY button before Luo the Strongman sold out. Now 4 years later I am still wildly in love with that doll.

 

after years of collecting sometime I still can't tell if I will like until I am physically holding it on my hand. I now learn to just buy from companies I like and afraid to try new companies. I do still buy one or two that I though I will like and then once I got it I was disappointed and right away I want to sale.

 

Some just screamed at me that they were a certain doll. Some got bought because they were pretty. Now they have to have a character in mind before I purchase.

 

I have been infatuated with one doll before and ended up buying it only to find that while I liked the doll and its character well enough I wasn't too fond of the size. I don't really know how I'll know which dolls I'll want to keep in the end because I've only ever owned two dolls before, though I find that I become more attached to a sculpt if I have a character for it instead of just wanting it for the sake of wanting it.

 

Sometimes I'll see a doll and get so obsessed I can think of nothing else. That's when I know I really want the doll. I'm infatuated with several dolls right now,but I'm really obsessed with Doll Love Yueyong. I have everything picked out for her already.

 

I usually know I want a doll when I see them but that doesn't necessarily mean it will put them on my wishlist immediately -unless I long for them so badly I will just make it happen one way or another-. Happened with the Bluefairies that were recently added to my list (because as much as I loved them I couldn't justify getting them when there weren't any characters I could shell in them) and now, three years after I first longed for them they are finally put in order to come home. On the other hand quite the opposite happened with my Dollzone Raymond that managed to hit my list as soon as he was released; when I saw him I knew I had to have him! It didn't matter when or how or who he was going to be, I just had to... And again this goes on with the doll I'm currently saving for, the first doll I was ever completely infatuated with and a pair of years later I still daydream about... Usually my "crushes" are similar long-lasting ones in case you didn't notice the pattern. If I'm having second thoughts it's usually a bad sign.

My criteria to choose are fairly simple; fit into the storyline in a position that is "vacant". Because the story me and my best friend share has many levels and spans our in-story multiverse it's hard not to be able to integrate a doll in it, however we've recently locked the "list of characters" leaving only a pair of uncreated characters pending for a few leftover positions mentioned in the storyline but untouched so far and that's all the leeway we left to ourselves in adding new sculpts to the lot; that way we can somewhat contain the sheer numbers in the list. Sometimes it's a gut feeling when I see the doll that screams just how right they are for a certain character, some others it's plain logic that guides me in the sense that "x character looks just like y sculpt"

 

For me it's definitely just seeing the doll and thinking "I have to have it". Love at first sight, being unable to take my mind off of it until I finally give in and buy it. Pricing can help decide me, but for the most part I just kind of know. My guy asked me to start thinking what I want for my bday, and I was like a doll! (Well, money towards one, I wouldn't ask him to pay for the whole thing out of pocket.) So he asked me to show him which one I want and...I've drawn a blank. I'm waiting for one to hit me like "gotta have it" like the other 3.

 

I had to learn it the hard way, that dolls without characters just don't do it for me.
I have to keep in my story and shell those characters. They're the only ones I bond with.
When I look for sculpts for them, I just know, when it's right. Some characters get a "decent" match listed until I find the perfect one for them.
Other times I have a sculpt in my wishlist I thought was perfect, but then I see one in the marketsplace and I think "No, this is him/her". And then I end up impulse buying them.

 

I knew right away with my first doll that she was absolutely perfect and I needed to buy her (even if it did take years for me to actually do so)

but for the dolls on my wishlist I realized that there were many, most of them actually, that I just liked seeing but didn't have the desire to own them myself
the dolls currently on my wishlist are dolls that I got that special 'I really love this doll and need to buy it' feeling from

I don't think that I could bond with just any doll I bought (but of course I'd have thought about buying the doll for a loooong time before actually buying it), if it's one of those that gave me that special feeling then I'm sure that I'd bond with them quickly
some dolls really are just temporary obsessions and they're part of the 'I like them but not enough to own one' category
I've never bought a doll that I didn't absolutely love and I don't think I ever will, hopefully I'll still love each doll I buy as much as I did when I was saving for them (at least it happened that way with my first doll)

 

I've learned over time that they have to "speak" to me even through a company photo. If I look at photos and all I say is, ooooh pretty, then I probably shouldn't bother. I had a couple of dolls that got removed from my list for that reason. If I can't get a sense of their personality at all then I probably never will, amd they'll just be a pretty face.

 

Well I believe that it generally goes ...we want what we see..... but do we always see a doll that really thrills us??? I have seen a lot of dolls and since I have began with Blythes never gave much attention to the bjd dolls....all that until I spotted an Unoa Sist with the most tender face and that was love at first sight............ so....I think we only buy that thrills us or really talks to us!!! the feeling like you have said!!

 

There's definitely a feeling about it, but I have a real problem bonding with a lot of the ones I've bought over the years. Now I never buy while the thought is fresh in my mind. The doll gets put on a wishlist and I walk away, eventually it comes back up with me either still wanting the doll or not caring anymore. With how small my resin gang is compared to how many dolls have been on my wishlist, I've decided it's probably best to love most of them from afar.

The only time a true "I have to have it!" feeling has hit me was with Little Monica Yuria almost four years ago. Can't think of a reason why I didn't get her then, but I definitely forgot about her for a while. When she popped up again this year I had a "Hmmm... Oh right, I still have to have it!" moment and bought her this time.

 

Outside of the doll being a limited time only buy during an event model or a one time only truly OOAK find everyone has a cooling off period. As I don't keep a general doll fund and usually have to save every time I'm sure I want one that gives me time to think. Being it takes several pay checks to reach the goal that gives the character time to see if it will cool down and not need a doll or combine its aspects with another that already exists. Some times several characters can merge in to one, some times that idea cools off and the money goes to someone else.

The last doll I bought was a child for parents I already had so it took quite awhile to find a sculpt that looked like them. Luckily it was during an event and she came with a tiny doll of her own. It was down to two, I looked at all the angles, and there was one pic that said she was the one.

If bonding is an issue then a cooling off period between idea and buying is a good way to go.

 

"...how do YOU choose??"

I studied dolls by Volks for over a year before a doll caught my eye and told me that it was the doll for me. The doll was the Volks MSD F20. I adopted her in 2008, and she is here to stay. It was part emotional but mostly? It was an immediate "yup, that is the doll for me" upon seeing the doll. She was my "first love" and, as a result, the doll that set the "standard" for my aesthetic and focused my collecting around a single company. This is certainly not the best choice for everyone, but for me it better helps me enjoy the hobby more. It really is a personal thing, but I think every collector has "limitations" of some kind. Some will buy one size or a single gender, etc.

I have experimented with other doll companies but as much as I love other aesthetics they did not last. Everyone, and I mean everyone, will trip up from time to time and get a doll that does not work based on an impulse buy or wanting to try something new or even from an inaccurate photo etc. etc. It happens. It is incredibly hard to remain focused in this hobby, but honestly? Those mistakes help one better focus and build a collection of one's dreams. The "right" collection of dolls does not happen overnight and patience is key.

I enjoy all BJDs. I like many BJDs. I love quite a few. But, there are only a very, very, very select few I want to have come live with me. With time, I have discovered I love "cute" but "pretty" for girls and "dramatic" but "calm" for boys. I love "anime" dosed down with "realism". I do not like too "anime" or too "realistic", but rather a combination of both that has a particular balance. I like my girls "girly", not "womanly". I like my boys a little "feminine". I also like imperfections like mismatching eye holes, large eyes, pronounced lips, etc. Something needs to define the doll as "unique" from the rest of the pack and call out to me not only on am emotional level but also as a nice compliment to my existing collection that does not change the stylistic dynamic. For instance, I love SD17 Claude. His huge nose is beautiful to me. But, his features are too "realistic" and not "anime" enough. The balance is off and it is workable, but it is not the best fit. So, I wait for the next doll. And, I never settle. I would rather not get something at all then get a substitute. This can be great when it works out, but sometimes it does not and then it can be incredibly disappointing.

Now, I am truly satisfied with my collection even though I know I will inevitably add other dolls. But, my style of collecting is to have a few dolls and a lot of clothes/wigs/etc to better be able to transform the dolls I have. Others will buy one doll, style it and never change it. Then? They repeat the process. How one wants to collect will shape how one chooses to buy, I think. It is a personal kind of thing and it really is up to each person to find his/her own path within the hobby.

 

My answer is very backwards from most people. I have unique circumstances. So far, ... um, I buy them anytime I love one, which is frequently. But only during company promotions, or for extra reasonable cost. (usually). I see grand possibilities in ALL OF THEM. There have been a few, that I was just too infatuated and curious to wait for any kind of special financial incentive. That would be my Doll Chateau, and Kaye Wiggs. For two years now I've focused on collecting and exploring every sort of doll I can. There are only a few categories I've been able to put last and try to ignore. I've seriously overwhelmed myself, but this is my personality. I have been on a buying/exploring quest. Much more focused on the sculpts and artistry of the doll than in clothing them and developing stories for them. But that is hard to resist because I have an active imagination. It has remained child size and didn't shrink as I grew older. So I can't help but to notice their personalities, and tag along a little with them on their adventures.
'
Now I have the huge job of almost setting up shop to work on them, as I am a portrait artist with all kinds of ambitions for my village of resin. Gradually in the rest of this year, I am going to have to choose the ones that just won't leave me --> And the ones that seem to want to travel. WTB lists have helped me a lot. See, backwards. When I know someone really wants a particular doll or sculpt I am likely to see if we can work something out. I've just toyed with them so far -- [...er, the dolls, not the buyers!]. I'm trying to enjoy just having a hobby without getting all intense and perfectionistic. A first for me. Going to meets and enjoying them casually. Learning a lot from on-line photography of them, company web sites, and from the friends I've made at our local meets. Also some from friends I talk to here. AND, from stalking threads and galleries here...

My camera is crap for now, as I spent all I possibly could on dolls. I am almost ready for my next phase, where I believe the ones with stories to tell me will become evident. I've sort of looked at my house as a resin/youth hostel. Final adoption issues are still in the air.''

The simplest answer I could give is that now they are here, and I am going to follow the muses of my imagination. I'm not so much after beauty queen types. I like anthro and characters and faces for fantasy best. Right now anyway. HOWEVER, I am currently working with new bodies I've discovered and they call for more realism. Constantly something new to explore. I didn't think I'd have much interest in male dolls, but they have become so much fun too. My collection will most likely be an ever changing adventure.

 

I've had a grail doll, I've had a doll that made me cry when I first saw pix (in a good way!) and I've had many many others that either I just wanted or were impulse buys. I've bought dolls that were temporary obsessions, then lost interest and sold them. I have dolls I haven't bought that I do tend to obsess over. I think I'm finally at a point where I think harder about things before diving into it. I've been overwhelmed with too many dolls because I did go with sudden "I must have this!" and regretted it. My biggest problem is creating new RP characters and trying to shell them immediately. Then I get bored quickly and regret it. From now on, I think I'm going to MAKE myself play that character for at least 6 months first before shelling them in a doll. That should fix the problem. That, and the fact that I should find that perfect sculpt for my character, instead of settling for something easier to get that isn't as nice, then reshelling later to get it right.

 

I'm not even sure... I just get this feeling, like I'm so in love with the doll I need it in my house where I can cuddle it and develop its character, etc... But the problem is, I feel this way with EVERY doll I put on my wishlist! Or rather, every doll I feel this way about gets put on my wishlist! However, the more time goes by between putting teh doll on my wishlist and being able to buy it goes, the more the feeling wears off, IN GENERAL. The dolls who I still feel that way about, I tend to get, and even if I make a mistake, I can sell them, sad as it is. Sometimes, it'll just be a matter of what I want more, like I have two dolls I love for similar prices that are both available right now, but only right now, and I only have enough money for one. I have to choose, but more often than not, I don't end up trying to get the other one later. It's a vibe thing.