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

I try not to make any impulse purchases and only buy from my wish list. I also go through my wish list from time to time and if a doll constantly gets overlooked in favor of purchasing other dolls, I'll probably remove it. Still, there's been dolls that I've saved up for over a long period of time that I ended up not liking and impulse purchases that became my favorites. Over the years, I've learned what I tend to like in dolls and what to look for to avoid, but again, I feel like there's always a little risk involved. So, for me, there's no 100% perfect method of knowing the difference between liking a doll and really wanting it, but I think I'm getting better at telling the difference.

 

When I really want a doll, I'm still thinking about it for a long time.

 

It takes time before I really decide to bring home a doll.
I put their official pictures as my phone's wallpaper for weeks to months.
If I ever feel bored, then bye~bye ^^;

I should admit that I ever made impulse buying for a few times.
I usually take photos of each and every doll I have.
If I can't produce a good photo after a few photo shoots, it means that doll isn't for me.
Lucky me, it only happened once.

 

A lot of the time I just get a feeling that I really want the sculpt and then I get them and it works out nicely. :3
There's only one scuplt that I can think of that I liked at first and then came back to and decided that it was only parts of the body that I liked and not the face.
In the end I didn't get her since the only things I'd keep would be the legs and outfit, it just didn't feel worth it to me.

 

I've recently realized that, no matter how much I love the sculpt, if I don't have any project or character that please me for the doll, I just won't purchase it. I want to buy in prority dolls to shell characters I really love and want to custom, photograph... instead of beautiful, amazing sculpts that make me dreaming, but of which I wouldn't know what to do.
A doll is added on my wishlist for different reasons, depending on the doll : one, if when I see it, I recognize immediatly one of the character I want to shell. Two, if the sculpt "inspire" me, like, a new character, or a project or character. Three, when I fell in love with the sculpt and find that it wouldn't be bad for one character.
I need to like both the sculpt and the character, and it's the ones I feel the most the need to have that are obviously my priorities.

 

When I come across a doll I think I really want to buy, I normally just let it rest for two weeks. I avoid actively searching owner photos for that amount of time and put my mind to other things. If that feeling of want still lingers and nags me after and during that 'cool down' period then I know I definitely want it.

 

If I really want a doll, it keeps haunting my mind. I try to look at their pictures over and over and if I don't get tired or bored of them, then they're a doll I would buy. Some dolls just get this immediate 'click' in your head the moment you see them (the 'feeling' some describe here).

I once wanted a dolly real bad though (the Luts Satyrus Yul) and the feeling I got over it was very strong, but because I didn't had the money, I kinda could talk my mind out of it. And kinda looked at to much box openings of it, so I kinda got tired of the sight of the doll in the end. Which was very hard, because I had this immediate bond with the doll just from the pictures. As I had with my first doll. So I guess it can work both ways for me. Either I look just enough to really, really want the doll. Or I look even more untill I get tired of it and convince myself I don't really need it.

 

Do you just get a 'feeling' when you see a special doll?
I do yes, I get obsessed with it and it either passes or I end up getting the doll.

Could you bond with any doll you bought or are some dolls just a temporary obsession?
Definitely no. I am difficult and most dolls don't appeal to me. I do obsess over some of them for a while but then it fades.

Have you ever bought a doll only to find you liked the idea of the doll more than the doll itself? Have you learnt to tell the difference?
Yes...3 actually >_<; all from Fairyland, 2 MNFs and one LTF...the idea seemed great and the sculpts were cute, but when I got them, I realized there was no spark there at all...I've been holding on to them for years now hoping something would come, but I have come to the conclusion that they need a new loving home.
Now I choose even more carefully before I press that Buy button...

And are you satisfied to just enjoy wanting some dolls or do you have to try and buy every doll you want?
I'm ok accepting that some dolls will forever stay in the Would be nice / Want category and I know I'll most likely never own them...

 

For me, I need long term to observe and decide before purchasing. It's up to many factors. (complicated I ) like how much I like him/her and budget (I limit the max. price for each doll because I don't want to be end up that this hobby effects my other hobbies ). I consider a lot about these 2 factors because I know myself well that I'm a type who doesn't plan to sell dolls from collection. So what I paid, is...paid and has no return.

I did many research and collected information for many years before I really joined into this hobby. So...my first doll, I took about 3 months before ordering. But it didn't actually for every doll. I purchased some event head, event doll or adopted from second hand market which took shorter time because if I was too slow, they would be gone. This case, I used my sense and vibe from them to choose which...I can't explain in words. So far, I haven't purchased any doll that made me regret, even though sometimes I feel a bit disappointed because of the quality and problem from company. That's why I don't have an absolute favorite company for dolls (I have favorite company for eyes and face up artist) and purchase them from different companies.

 

To be honest, I think I bought my KDF Ani out of infatuation. She's my first and only doll and I never really fell in love with her sculpt after I got her. That's why I'm planning on getting a KDF Nana head now that I know what kind of sculpts I like better.

 

The dolls I'm infatuated with usually stay on my wish list. The dolls I want, I buy. I have a number of dolls on my wish list/want list/wait list and I could have bought them but some other time limited dolly booted them out of the way.

For example I was all set to pick up Iplehouse Harace but then a marketplace find popped up for a doll I wanted for a couple years and plooff Harace was out of the picture.

There's also a sort of hard to explain nagging feeling that I've learned to listen to before I consider buying a doll. But I always sleep on it for as long as I can.

 

Honestly, I decide if I really want a doll by imagining if I can deal with seeing it everyday and taking up some space. I'd rather buy a doll knowing I'll I won't mind putting time and effort into it rather than having another pretty face.

 

You're not alone, Sheyda! The same thing happened to me when I bought my first doll.

The trouble with feelings, I find, is that they might fade. Feelings, strong as mine can be, can also be a passing fad. I wouldn't want to risk being in a situation where my infatuation begins to wear off while the doll is in-transit, or when they have barely arrived for a week, because I'd feel very bad. The money I've spent on them could've been used on another doll, or to add to my current crew's wardrobe, and these thoughts generate their own regrets. In addition I would have to take the extra trouble of selling off a doll I've barely played with, which is a shame, really.

Furthermore if I had every doll I liked added to my wishlist I'd have a lot to save for!

So even if it's love at first sight, I'm quite cautious, and tend to wait at least two, three days (or months if it isn't LE) before deciding for sure that this is the one I really want. In the mean-time I turn the idea over and over in my head till it seems certain that my love for the sculpt doesn't leave.

Well said.

 

I'm honestly struggling to decide if I should make a purchase right now... I love the doll sculpt, but I'm worried that I'm making the purchase too soon and if I really want/need the doll.

I still have a few days before the event ends, so I will decide then.

 

This is a really interesting topic. One I'm dealing with at the moment. Keep asking myself, "Is this the one I really want to spend my money on?".

 

I actually just sold a doll that, at the time of purchase, I thought was just the prettiest thing ever but when she arrived, I ended up having no feelings for her whatsoever. We didn't bond at all, despite the fact that she had at least two wonderful ensembles, a pretty face-up, etc. Just... no click. At all.

When I saw IH SID Edan, though, I instantly fell head over heels which is the first time I've done anything of the sort with a doll. I saw him and absolutely had to have him, despaired when I thought I couldn't because he was just so darn pricey and rejoiced when I was told he'd be my combined birthday/Christmas gift for the year.

Money is a big factor for us when we look at dolls. Even if we see a doll we like, we often just admire it for a while then continue on with our 'window shopping' because we can't afford to buy a doll every time we see one that tickles our fancy. Sometimes, though, we see one that we absolutely must have and that's when we make a budget and see if we can't purchase it. No binge buying for us XD

 

At first I sort of picked them randomly or got dolls that were in stock. Now I'm making a list of dolls that catch my eye. Since I have a finite amount of money I have a lot of time to think about what I really want while I'm paying off a layaway or saving up. This has really cut down on my regrets when I get a doll.

 

I usually go by the promotional pictures, if the doll catches my eye I will do some research, check for other collectors photos or feedback. Once I bought a doll without seeing any photos (not a bjd), I bought her because I was collecting dolls from a particular artist. She was one that rarely came up for purchase so I took a chance. I didn't like her, she is still in my collection but I will never be as attached to her as I am with some of the others in my collection.

 

When I saw the first doll I'll be getting (I don't have him yet), I just knew. I absolutely fell in love with him. I'd been in love with dolls before, but not like this. I knew I had to get him. Oh god, this is starting to sound like romance novel...


Also when I really really want something, doll or not, I can not stop thinking about it. And I think I've been thinking about him every day ever since I first saw him. I'm kind of obsessive.

 

If I suddenly become infatuated with a doll I see for the first time, I forcibly make sure not to impulse buy unless it's a specific style that I am after. I let time go and see if the more I see the doll and think of how I'll use them. If it's been a week or 2 and I still have the same intensity as when I saw it for the first time, then it's one worth buying in my books.