How is the hobby affecting you financially? [Poll]

None of the options really apply to me.

I live in a country with high wages but also a high cost of living. Until 5 months ago, I was an intern, so it's not like my wages were terribly high. And I have work and study expenses.

But I still live with my parents, which saves on rent (though the almost entirety of my savings account went to them to make our house bigger so we can rent it out, so you could say that I paid like 5.5 years of rent at once lol), I automatically save a good chunk of my salary in a separate account, I don't smoke, I only drink alcohol in social occasions and those are pretty rare nowadays, I go to movies perhaps twice a year, I don't own a TV, I drive one the family cars (so expenses are shared between the four of us), I didn't travel much, I shop at charity shops for my shoes and clothes (except underwear), wear pretty much the same things all the time and I don't have dependents.

I tend to immediately give up on what I can't have or that is so expensive that I know I would freak out at the mere idea of having to care for it (that's why I don't have "grails": if I covet something, it is reasonably in my reach and not so expensive that I would only dare to keep it in a box and barely touch it). I gave up BJDs when I discovered it as a high schooler because there was not way I had that kind of money or could justify the expense. But I became more liberal with my spending while I was doing my internship as it was a very stressful time for me (lots of my colleagues in the profession burnt out or quit, so as long as my basic expenses were covered (food and study expenses) I spent pretty much all I wanted on hobbies because it would help me to hang in there longer. Now that my internship is over, I notice myself slowly returning to my stingy self. XD

Basically, while I do have some hobby funds and live in a country with a fairly strong currency (which helps when you are buying overseas), I try to make choices so that I can comfortably spend within my means: no layaway, no coveting unobtainable or expensive grails, no "settling" because of a sale or a good price tag, fewer dolls, no unreasonable financial commitments for a hobby (so for me no layaway and no buying on credit) and no allowing the hobby spending to take a toll on my work/study expenses, the expenses that I incur for having a normal social life, or my saving account.

Besides, I probably won't enjoy the hobby if I had to stress about it, so it's better for me not to put myself in such a situation.

Adjusting your choices and expectations is (IMO of course) always better than pining for things that are too hard to reach. Less frustration that way and less chance to make poor decisions.

 

Please don't feel ashamed for having a good job. You work hard for your money, so you've earned it.

If the friends you have are good friends, they also won't hold your financial stability against you. Being on benefits, all of my friends make more money then I do, and some of them have have so much, I can't really wrap my head around that. It doesn't bother me. We're friends: I want the best for all of them. I'm glad they're doing so well, and I'm happy with my life.

As for strangers... Some people are jealous and dissatisfied, no matter how well they are off. That's their problem, not yours. Please don't feel guilty on their account .

 

Being in college, I have to first pay those expenses and then I can start to save for my next doll. I'm still very new to this hobby, but I'm putting a rule on myself to only purchase one doll I really want per year. That way, I can balance my college expenses and hobbies because it can be overwhelming all at once.

 

I'm a senior citizen living on social security and a pension so my budget is very limited. I did very well and saved up to buy my doll. I have only 1 so far. My problem is the little stuff... wigs, shoes, sewing fabric, etc. $10.00 here and $30.00 there individually don't seem outrageous, but because of that I find myself buying multiple things, and boy does that add up! My only justification to myself is that she's my first doll and needs some basic items that I won't need to buy again. But... I seem to have a slight problem with wigs! Lol I want to try them all!

 

I don't have a big income because I am an student, so I start saving up for a while (months or a year).
If I don't have any issue spending that money, I will buy a doll or I buy it by parts. I don't buy a lot of BJD-related stuff and I am patient so it's fine.

 

Similar to @laquaza I have a great job in the tech industry that allows me to buy whatever dolls I want without touching my savings. My doll hobby doesn't impact my finances, though I do have quite a few restrictions on what I buy from the perspective of taste. That said, I don't feel particularly guilty about it - when I started this hobby I was a broke college kid using bits of my student loans to pay for dolls. I'm also a minority in my country, and experience very high rates of discrimination in both my personal and professional life, so the fact that I've managed to succeed in my work is something I'm very proud of.

It wasn't and isn't easy, but it does afford me the ability to help others in my group overcome some of the hurdles and barriers placed in our paths. Dolls are how I de-stress from all of this. I'm very firm about collecting only brown dolls for the forseeable future. My resin gang reflects the strength and beauty that I see in my people, in a way that I never experienced growing up. Seeing our features and our skintone represented as normal and beautiful is a huge breath of air in a world that stifles our ability to simply exist as we are. It also feels in a way - like the hobby is 'paying me back' for my early investment with more representation of different features and darker resin tones. I want to support that more than anything, so that more non-white and non-whitepassing collectors can find themselves here.

When I started, event talking about this stuff would result in a barrage of hatred, so I'm honestly happy to see where things have gone, but I do hate the thought of anyone feeling judged for the work they've done to earn what they need to participate in a hobby like this.

 

You have no idea how much this resonates with me. I just had to kick out a former friend/flatmate (I've taken in out of kindness) for being a racist...
And similarly I have originally decided to only collect tan skinned dolls but as it stands now I do have a WS vampire girl and some NS dolls . But focusing on tan dolls also helps me curb impulse buys.

I do know that I do not really have a reason to feel guilty. It's more of a result of my low self esteem I guess. It took me like 10 years to finish my bachelor's degree in Mathematics due to severe depressions. I am very proud of how far I've come but I guess I am still uncomfortable with displaying my sucess .

 

@laquaza I'm proud of you too!! People never know the real story behind so much of what we work for and earn. I hope you don't feel like I was judging you - instead, I wanted to make a statement against the thought that anyone should have the right to judge others for what they do to get into and sustain a hobby that gives them joy.

And those of us who can buy without worry or regret, have our own stories of struggle and strife that got us to this point. We should all be proud of what we've overcome! And extra kudos for working through depression - it's awful and it's so hard, I see you and I support you friend!

 

At first it was hard. VERY hard.. I worked at bath and body works and my checks were like 200$ If lucky. By November I had made the request to have two dolls made for a total of 1200$+. I was paying 200 every 2 weeks. It seemed like forever but then around January I got a better work from home job with a paycheck of 1,300 before taxes with a take home of about 900 everyone 2 weeks. I live with my mom but even paying my rent which is 200 plus my phone bill which is about 120$ I still have a decent amount left. But even now it’s still expensive :/

 

I'm only now getting into the hobby because I have extra income. Prior to that, I just checked in every now and then from afar.

 

I scrimp and save. I hate buying on credit and have no credit cards. I never use layaways. I have the money to buy extras or I don't. I don't worry about 'having' or 'not having'. I know there will always be 'a better doll' than the last one I bought and it doesn't bother me.
I cannot work at the moment, so the last doll I bought is through selling the oldest I had and a few heads. I sell things through ebay and use the money to buy myself 'extras'. It isn't much but it gives me a sense of purpose.
I was lucky with my last doll as a few clothes and shoes that didn't fit my other 1/4 are perfect for her. I had cheap eyes that turned out to be exactly the thing. The only purchase I made was a pair of knickers .

 

I've been thinking of trying wig making. I used to spin wool on a spinning wheel to make yarn and have quite a bit of wool roving left. I thought I might begin with that.

 

I don't do layaway because I don't like the feeling that I'm buying something I can't afford. I do sometimes buy stuffs impulsively then spend less on my other living costs, but never buy out of debt. Nowadays I'm trying to be more organized with my spend and to set yearly amount of money for my hobbies.

 

I primarily buy on layaway and I try to be careful about how much is outgoing in any given month. Once in a great while, if I find a good deal on the marketplace I'll splurge. But that's rare and it has to be a doll that really catches my eye.

 

Fortunately my income is steady and I’m a very frugal person by nature. I’ve run a busy household all my life so I know how to keep the bills paid. What made the most sense for me was buying on layaway and folding those monthly payments into my regular budget. In this way I could bring home about 3 dolls a year without any pinch on my finances. That may not sound like a lot, but after 15 years in the hobby...well, you do the math!

 

I try to save a little sum every month especially for buying BJDs so i have money if one of the dolls i want gets a preorder. (i only buy artist dolls)
If there is a doll i want that I can’t buy in one go and i really want it i just order with layaway if that is an option.

 

I find this a somewhat awkward question...but when I first started in early 2006 I was a teen, and therefore bound to my part time job income, or what was leftover after paying my car bills (I came from a lower middle class bg, so parents instilled a healthy hardworking work ethic on me)

Now that I'm an adult working full-time, I'm "comfortable," and can afford dolls with a bit of frugality involved. Though not always and not whenever I want. But I've been building up a lot of doll items recently since, thanks to the pandemic, I haven't been able to travel abroad as I would have planned to do

 

When I first started in the hobby, I had a relatively stable job. Unfortunately, due to COVID, I was laid off and tried really hard to avoid DOA and looking at doll sites because it's really hard to avoid buying. I have managed to find a part time position at the moment, which allowed me to splurge more than I should on dolls and doll clothes. I do find that due to shipping/customs/exchange rates that I quite often cheap out on doll clothes and accessories, which I then regret because I now have a number of clothes, wigs, eyes I got on sale but never use. Other than my intense occasional splurges, I do try to keep an eye on my spending. It helps that I have limited space and I like 60cm-70cm+ dolls, because then I always force myself to think about whether or not I really need to add more to the collection and if I have the space for them.