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How Important to You Is It That Your Doll be Absolutely Unique?

Mar 28, 2010

    1. Recently, I was talking to a BJD pal about a doll that we're both interested in. Said doll is not a limited run, so I've placed him "down the line" in the list of dolls I definitely want to order, but I definitely want this doll. My pal is in a similar situation, and when we were initially discussing our mutual interest in him, Pal says, "Well, if you're going to get him, then I won't, because I want you to have the experience of having a limited/one-of-a-kind/rare doll [I forget the exact wording he used]." This surprised me, because I'm not even a little bit concerned about this. Among other things, our styles are very different, so--while we may have the same sculpt in the same color resin--our dolls will likely look completely different.

      At the same time, I've seen discussion in the Group Orders forums about people interested in getting on the Waiting List for a MnM order that is currently closed. One DoA-er said something to the effect of, "I'd rather the next group not use the same mold that we're using, so that ours is more unique". (I'm paraphrasing, and may have misunderstood what the person was trying to say, but that was the gist of what I got from their statements). Now, this is surprising to me, because MnM's are only produced in lots of 10 of each sculpt each year (I'm talking about the custom orders, naturally). Assuming all 10 slots of every group order are filled, that's only a potential 10 new dolls of that sculpt entering the world every year. To me, the idea of essentially forcing another group to go through the whole process of submitting pics, approving previews, and everything else that happens before casting, well, it seems quite selfish, to be honest. And that's not even taking into account the time and skills of the sculptor who has to actually create a whole new sculpt, when they could very likely use the one from the previous group, which is probably still entirely usable.

      All of this brings me to these questions:

      How important to you is it that your doll be absolutely unique?

      Why?


      It's possible I'm missing something here, which is, of course, why I'd like to hear other thoughts on this topic.
       
    2. I don't think it matters what doll sculpt any two(or more) people have. Everyone has their own style and almost every doll looks different because of each owner's specific likes or dislikes. If someone besides me were to do a Sist that was a Deathrocker I would think it was awesome.

      So I guess it's unimportant to me because I know that my style is my own and no one can copy it making it look exactly like mine.
       
    3. I was actually just wondering this myself... Someone I know has a doll whose sculpt I really like, but would it be weird if I were to get her too and we'd both have the same doll as our first and only BJD? I'd feel like I was copying her...
       
    4. I own a couple of Els, a School A and whole tribe of Shiwoos... some of the most dirt-common sculpts in this hobby.

      Honestly, if I were the least bit concerned about having Super-Special Unique Little Snowflakes, I would never have bought 99% of my collection.
       
    5. OT: The MNM system is 10 heads because that's all the mold can handle without degrading the quality. Each set of 10 heads even while using the same source will be different.

      How important to you is it that your doll be absolutely unique? Why?
      I have 4 of the same mold. 2 of another. So yeah, not really worried there. Mine are unique but it's not because I try extra hard or anything for that purpose. It just makes me happy. I've even owned two El's so generic as possible there ;)
      So all in all, everyone's doll will carry a bit of themselves but there is possibility it will be repeated or 'generic' or 'sterotype' it's just not that important to me.
       
    6. Ha! Between me, and 2 of my friends...I believe we have about 20 els/lishes/breakaways (which are all very similar and essentially the same mold just modded slightly for each) between us. And of those..a very large number are dark eyeliner, and black haired. There is only so many ways you can make "dark eyeliner with black hair" look different on an el/lishe/breakaway, so yes, at times some of our dolls look very similar. So really, I couldn't care about "uniqueness". I buy my dolls because I like them. Not for, as Brightfires put it, "Super-Special Unique Little Snowflakes". I think the more popular a mold, the more open it is for customization, and the more interesting it is to see what people can do to have a bit of uniqueness. There's only so many times something can be done differently..but I like to see what someone does to the doll that is most popular that makes it stick out. And then eventually that will be copied and repeated, as long as it's a good concept, and I will have plenty of eye candy..until someone comes up with a new way to make their doll stand out. I've seen people freak out because some doll of the same mold has a faceup that makes it look like their doll. But I can find 20 other dolls that also have similar properties. Unless you hacked off your doll's nose and put an arm in it's place and attached eyeballs to it's chest..I can almost guarantee you that you are not original or unique, and I like that it gives me so many options to look at to see what a mold can be.
       
    7. Thank you for this info! :) I think part of my brain knew there would be an issue w/degradation in cases like this, but I just didn't think of it.

      THIS!

      Some of my favorite dolls to collect have been Bratz (before they got shut down because Mattel was jealous they were outselling Barbie) and Living Dead Dolls. In both cases, all the dolls use the exact same head & body mold (except for Bratz, which had different heads & bodies for Boys vs Girls, but other than that, they were all the same), but the way they're styled makes them all so different! I really appreciate what a person's imagination and creativity can bring that will create interest beyond something being "just another XYZ".
       
    8. It doesn't bother me if someone else has the same mold I do, or a similar one, but I do prefer having a unique/less-common mold because it makes me smile a little to think that I have this gorgeous doll and they're so unique. :3 But it's not a big deal for me. (It just happens, coincidentally, that I seem to be attracted to molds that not many people seem to have... it's not intentional, though.)

      The only time it matters is when it's myself and my best friend; since our dolls tend to visit one another and "hang out" with one another and such, we try to avoid buying the same molds. The variety is nice :P

      But I totally agree - what someone does with their doll is what makes it truly unique; two dolls of the same mold can look so different depending on how they're dressed, what wig they're wearing, faceup, and so on.
       
    9. I think to some extent, since this hobby is all about customization - with eyecolor, wig, face ups and other types of little extras - many people strive to make their own doll different from everyone else's vision of a mold. As if having someone else with the same look as your own would some how diminish your own creative inspiration, and making you less...special, for a lack of a better word. Just as we strive to make ourselves distinguishable from other people in the things we do and the way we are, to be individuals, unique and special, so too do we try to make our dolls.

      Personally, while I know I want to find my own look and feel for my dolls, not based on anyone else's style and look, I don't worry too much about whether or not someone else ends of having a similar vision to my own vision. Just as perfect strangers can have similar looks, so too can some dolls. It happens and I don't really worry about it myself.

      However, I have known some people who get very posessive about certain molds that they love. I have a friend who would have felt very weird and a little disappointed had I bought her "holy grail" doll when it came out. Even though the dolls would have ended up looking very different, as we had different ideas on style, it would have somehow dimished the specialness she had with this mold.

      And I do have the same molds as some of my friends. Even with my own "holy grail" mold, I have a friend who managed to get the same mold. While I have never had an issue with others with the same mold as mine, the only little tickling thought that has given me pause on the idea is the fear of "is theirs better-looking than mine?" It hasn't happened yet, but I know I'd hate to end up coveting someone else's doll of the same mold because somehow they came up with a better idea that was more attractive to me.

      As of yet, I still think my dolls of each mold are the best-looking ones out there. :)
       
    10. I could care less.
       
    11. I think that my doll is one of a kind anyway. Her personality shines through more than any other doll I've ever seen, and that's all that matters
       
    12. Well I was personally a bit dissapointed when someone ordered one doll at the same time with me and put exactly same coloured wig and eyes for his/her doll that I had planned on using. I ended up choosing different eye colour and I'm happy that I did, because these fit my doll much better. And now that I think about it, I wasn't that concerned about the fact that the dolls would've looked similar, but more about whether it wouldn't looked like copying if I had used the eyes & wig I originally planned to use.
      However I can only agree with ZombChan said, I bet there're actually tens of dolls with the same mold and same coloured wig and eyes than the one I have. And to be honest, I still don't think that the dolls look the same, there are so many other things that effect the dolls appearance and style, clothes for example make a huge difference already and also the wig style affects rather much. Something as simple as the angle of the eyes can also make the doll's expression look completely different.
      And back to the original question. Of course it's nice that the dolls would be as unique as possible, but as long as I like my doll and feel that it's as I want it to be, I no longer care if someone has a doll that reminds me of mine. There are so many same molds around and as already mentioned before, it's great to see how different they can still look like.
       
    13. How important to you is it that your doll be absolutely unique?

      It's not really important to me as I don't browse the gallery her a lot and I don't share a lot of pictures of my dolls online. If I like a certain mold I'd love it if other people buy it too. It's great to see what kind of different things people make of the same mold. If someone decides not to buy a doll, because someone else bought it before them, then possibly it wasn't about the way the mold looks, but how special the mold would make the owner look. Some people are in it for the praise and some people push the "dolls must be unique" too far.
      I've heard some say that others couldn't buy a certain mold, because person X already had the mold (it concerned a non-limited standard mold) or even send unpleasant PMs with accusations of copying to someone who had dolls of the same mold as some other people (it didn't happen here at DoA). I think that's pretty sad, because there are so many ways to make a doll special. It's not only the mold that makes a doll.
       
    14. I'd like tho think my dolls are unique, and many people have said so. I have quite unpopular molds and so I love it whenever someone gets one of them and makes them their own.
      I'm not going to back out of buying a doll because person X has it aswell. Some awesome people in my country have Zaolls, and I'm waiting for one, but I'm know they will be all individual dolls. I just like to think of it as having similar taste. One of these people also has a Citron Blue (I believe it's called), and even though I love it, I;m reluctant to get it because I have no clue what I'd do with it, so unless I have a concrete plan that won't seem like I copied someone else, I might get it.
      The only time I would be irked is if someone were to copy one of my dolls on purpose. But people on here are to creative to go around copying people's dolls.
      If you don't buy a doll simply because someone else has it too, I'm not sure you're in the right hobby. You can never be 100% unique, unless you have a costum made doll, and even then it's almost impossible.
       
    15. Not really because even if the dolls look the same, their respective owners develop individual personalities for them and they still end up becoming completely different characters. It's really uncanny how unique each becomes :)
       
    16. That actually doesn't matter to me.. because I always think my dolls are unique because there aren't that many people who collect dolls :)
       
    17. I don't care if my dolls are unique or not. The only thing important to me is that they look good. Well-dressed, nice face-up, beautiful well-kept wig, those things matter, not whether or not I share the same mold with 20 other people.
       
    18. The only thing that matters to me is crazy teenage girls firebombing my house for "copying" their "style." Didn't happen with BJDs, but I've seen it happen with pixels. (Wajas, if anyone knows what that is.)
      I don't intend to have dolls that look just like Jane Doe's, but I don't lose sleep over coincidence. Especially since all four of my resin crew have default faceups, so their uniqueness is limited to eyes, wigs, and clothes.
       
    19. This hobby is pushing a lot of my self-imposed barriers and hang-ups. Usually I like having something unique, I like it being my own. This extends to essay thesis's, Research papers, etc. I fell in love with the LTF Ante sculpt the moment I saw it, but the inside of me had an epic battle because 'everyone has one' and I really didn't want to be one of the thousands who did. It took me a while to realize that even if the doll sculpt is something that is popular, each one can be different based on mods, face-ups, hair, eyes etc.

      So it's a little bit of both: It is important that my doll be unique to me. Not that she be a limited, or one-off, but that her look is 100% unique to me and my tastes, even if she is a sculpt everyone loves and has/wants.
       
    20. Let's use Pukis as an example. I have 11 of them and the Puki thread is bursting at the seams with literally dozen of the little buggers. There are only 16 total unique sculpts and guess what? Not a single one of the Pukis that have surfaced on the Puki thread looks alike. They're all "unique and speshul snowflakes". Even when you take a limited doll and you tweak it with new eyes, new wigs, different clothes, different props, they no longer look like the same limited doll. They're unique and different. Honestly, in the three years I've been here, I've yet to see two dolls by two different owners that looked alike.

      Besides, why does it matter? Unless you interact with other doll owners on a regular basis, who's really going to know?