How does your family react to the hobby ?

My mom thinks it's a bit weird that I collect dolls, but she does accept it. The first time I told her I wanted to buy a BJD she laughed really hard, but that was because she thought it was some kind of sex doll :').. She has no idea how much my BJD's cost and I would like to keep it that way. She always says ''it's your money, you can do what you want with it", but I don't feel comfortable sharing that kind of information with her. Occassionally she will ask about it, but I always answer something like ''well, that really depends on the doll and whether you order it with extra's. It varies between $100 and $1000". My grandma absolutely loves my dolls as she used to make her own dolls when she was young. My little sister likes them a lot too and she wants to make clothes for them as she is a Design & Fashion student. My other family members don't know about my doll collection. Not because I'm embarrassed or afraid to tell, but because no one ever asks me about my hobbies I didn't really feel the need to share it with them.

 

I would never tell my family about my dolls, lol.

 

My family seems to think my collecting is normal for me. But I know the expense would shock them. Only my husband knows how much one costs.

 

My grandma is really supportive of me being in the hobby but she thinks the prices are a rip-off. My mom and my dad both think that paying hundreds of dollars on dolls is ridiculous but my mom is trying to be more supportive while my dad pretends it doesn't exist. Lastly my sister thinks the hobby is pretty cool but she finds my doll creepy.

 

My father rolls his eyes a lot, but he's the one who buys my mother more dolls, and encourages me to make things for them. My mother saw my first doll, and was so interested in her that she ended up wanting some too... My older brother has checked out a few and even had plans to buy one, until he ran into financial troubles. My little brother doesn't really care, though.
Two of my friends got their own dolls (which I actually paid for... My poor wallet) not long after they met my first doll, and one had plans, but is otherwise indifferent. The best part is I have a friend who used to be afraid of them, but her constant exposure at my house (The dolls chill in the family room, where we usually hang out) made her start to be cool with them, then like them, and now she's ready for her first doll!

 

(I don't remember if I already replied this topic, so sorry if I am repeating myself)

@Ante , I understand you, I feel the same strange pressure from people. I keep it hidden from people because they do judge how much you spent on them, but it is fine if the same amount is spent on a cellphone you don't actually need, pricy clothes or on one or two nights clubbing.
I never bought my dolls in a impulse or got in dept because of them, so I don't see what's the problem with it, but apparently other people do.

 

1. Goe ahead get one
-- *got 3 instead of only getting one*---
2. you are crazy

I'm not letting them know anymore :P

 

I haven't gotten my first doll yet though I am giving hints to my parents of wanting one. My mom thinks it's silly while my dad just nods whenever I talked about it. I don't think they will care much when I actually get one. After all, I am an anime figure collection and they are quite supportive of that. They even helped me get surprised me with my first Ikea Detolf so that I can display my figures properly. I thought that was really sweet.
My friends are being crept out by BJD. They felt it's too real and will mostly murder me in my sleep. I laughed whenever they try to convince me not to get one. Their concern is so precious!

 

I get a mixed reaction. Mostly positive though!

Mother who disowned me: Hated them but she hated anything that brought me joy.
Daddy: He doesn't get it much but since it makes me happy he's all for it. Whenever I have a girl doll I have seen him straighten her wig or outfit and pat her head! Its adorable. He would also joke about them being cold or hungry. Silly sweet stuff.
Step-mom: Just happy I'm happy and that I pay bills before going crazy with dolls.
Twin sister: She thinks they are creepy but will occasionally have a nice thing to say about one of them.
Little brother: He thinks they are super cool.
Little sister: She's loved them since she was a toddler and always handled them very gently.

Both sets of my grandparents are supportive since my dolls are an artistic outlet as well as therapeutic for me.

My boyfriend doesn't get it but is extremely supportive and will ask about my dolls from time to time and let me prattle on about them.

 

Only my husband in my family knows I have them. He definitely doesn't get the hobby, but he supports anything that I am interested in as long as as I am being responsible about it.

 

my mum is very supportive of me in this hobby (maybe a little to much since she encouraged me to buy more than one doll at a time but since i had the money it wasn't so bad),
she like that they make me happy and that i have such in depth characters for them, through i think she just enjoys me talking to her so happily about something.
my dad on the other has very mixed feeling about them, he gets that i like them and they make me happy but he sees it as a waste of money,
even though he's someone that says if you have the money use it to make yourself happy.
at times he'll let me talk about them but most of the time he'd rather not know.
though i'm always worried when i buy a doll as i hate disappointing my dad but my mums support makes it better.

no one else in my family should know i collect dolls. as its something i still want to keep to myself

 

When my mom saw my first. She tell me, I am child and ask for price of them.

I tell her around 30 $ and she think, it's expensive.

 

My sister ended up getting into them after I got my first one, saving up to get her first one 6 months later with my mom's help. My mom however has used the BJD's as an excuse to buy cute clothing again so she buys my sister and I a bunch of cute clothes, shoes, and wigs as our b-day gifts and christmas gifts now. XD

 

My mother was supportive from the start, she listen to me talk and look pictures, give opinions of what she likes and say the ones she think I should bring up next. She call them grandchildren lol and buy props for them when she sees their size, make clothes and talk about they would or not do. It's pretty cute.

Some of my aunts thought they looked pretty and cool but expenssive. Most people get very shocked by the price and think that's the crazy part. I only had one of my cousins comment they were weird but that's also his sense of humor, he would pose them each time he saw them and I was not on the room and complain their eyes followed him around lol

 

Well, most of my family is pretty cool about it. My husband's family didn't quite get it at first, and I'm not sure they know exactly how much they can cost. ^^; They are more accepting now, and my mother-in-law is fairly interested in mine. She's been wanting to see them, but I haven't shown her yet. Sometimes I'm not sure if I'll ever be ready to get them out around them.

My family, on the other hand, has really enjoyed my dolls - since the beginning. I actually got my mom and sister into the hobby. My mom has two dolls now, and my sister has one. We've started a GO with impldoll, too! By Spring they may have more dolls than me, lol! I'm glad they like the hobby so much. It's just another thing we can bond over. We're all really crafty and artsy, so we love making things for them.

 

I don't have a BJD yet, but I buy a LOT of Hot Toys 1/6 scale figures and other expensive figures/statues, not to mention my limited edition and original artwork collection. I worry about how my family (mother, mainly) will react to my adding another "weird" thing to my collecting habits. She's an artist herself, but whenever she sees something new that I've purchased (be it a print or an original OOAK piece), she immediately asks when I got it (to find out my buying frequency) and how much it cost (to find out how much I'm spending). Then she makes comments like "I could do that for a lot less!", "I can't believe you paid that much for that!", "Do you really like that thing THAT much?", "Aren't you tired of this stuff yet?" and so on and so forth. She doesn't understand and she never will, and I can accept that, but I just don't understand how she can be so rude. Say something nice or don't say anything at all!

My husband rolls his eyes at my art and figure/collectible purchases, and he has his own opinions as to where to display stuff or what he is ok with seeing around the public areas of the house -- but he has also never stopped me from buying something I wanted so long as I had the money to do so. If I can pay my share of the bills, not go into debt, and it makes me happy, then there isn't a reason for him to do more than just roll his eyes. :P Plus I sell from my collections too -- making money from a sale to buy something new is fun too!

 

My mom thinks I spend to much money on them and that I shouldn't still be playing with dolls. Dad thinks they are cool, he doesn't talk about it much. But my sister loves them and wants to get one some day.

 

I am lucky enough to have pretty accepting people in my family overall, but it makes me a little sad when my sisters talk about how creepy they think dolls are and refuse to let me talk about them. I talk about it anyway, but it's a little annoying.
My mom is really nice about it and has helped me order doll parts before, and listens to all of my excited jabbering about them!
My younger brother doesn't really show an opinion about it one way or another, but I'm honestly not sure how my older brother feels about it. I only got really interested in BJDs after he left for the military. He's been away all this time so doesn't really hear about dolls from me...
My two closest friends are also really supportive, which is very nice.

 

My family is supportive with whatever I do. I've always been artsy so it doesn't surprise them when I come home talking about some new inspiration. Reading a lot of these posts make me really happy my family is the way they are. My mum was really the one to encourage me to get my Leeke World Ashley when I was trying to decide. When my sister holds my doll she's always really careful and says it feels like holding a kitten lol. And my dad always asks me questions about them!

 

My mother is incredibly patient and sweet. She listens to me babble about dolls daily, and makes an effort to learn the terminology. She always acts interested in what I'm buying next, is never judgmental about the amount I spend, and has even memorised many of my doll's names.

My best friend is equally supportive, although she largely thinks dolls are creepy she had admitted she finds some of my Pullips cute. She hasn't met the BJD yet, LOL!

My grandmother, on the other hand, is openly cynical and seems irritated that her 26 year old grandaughter is spending money on dolls. She doesn't seem to understand that they're collectibles, not barbies. I don't really care what she thinks, but I do wish she'd at least be polite and keep her opinions to herself when she's in my house >___>;

The surprise member of my family to like the dolls was my grumpy, 67 year old, ex-naval, ex-police officer uncle. He came into the living room, sat down, and looked at my doll display. I expected him to either not mention them, or ask why the hell I had dolls on display. Instead, he expressed a deep interest for my steampunk Taeyang and said how amazing his outfit was that was unexpected!!