How known is TOO known?

I think that doll collecting of any sort attracts only a very small percentage of the population in general, and collecting odd expensive dolls attracts even less, so I doubt if this hobby will ever be very well known. Doll collectors seem to know about them now, since they have been around for a few years, but most people are like my husband, who knows nothing and does not care to know anything about them because he simply isn't interested in dolls. I collect what I like for my own amusement and don't care what anyone else thinks about them.

 

I think I'll be the rebel and say that I'll be very upset if BJDs ever become popular! I like to be different, I make it a point to be different, and when I bring out my boys for an outing I like to get the stares. I like it even more when you get the rare non-BJD doll collector or the BJD-interested person say something about them and their uniqueness. But can you imagine going to the local card store with one of your little ones on your shoulder and you see the nearest few people carrying them too? I would feel overshadowed, like mine are insignificant and not as good as others'.

It wouldn't be the first time I would have to punch a wall with the notion of "I was doing it before it was cool," infuriated that I have been mocked before for my strange hobbies and then they're the next new norm.

It would, however, be wonderful for collectors. All your old doll models, like Soom MDs or MNMs and especially the Volks, would raise through the roof! New, rich collectors would want to buy buy buy old models as if they were cars or beanie babies.

And uniqueness, as in individual aesthetics? There's one doll that sticks in my mind as being unique and striking and remerable, and that's the AIL Elijah that's named "Muse." Now imagine that someone else likes that same doll. They want one. They get one. They try to customize just like "Muse." Then what? The original has lost their uniqueness as now so many dolls will look the same. Not just copying, though, there would also be coincidence.

...Also, if they raise in popularity, I can easily see knockoffs becoming more readily avaiable like fake Coach purses or sunglasses.

EDIT: But this is discussing hypothetical situation and not the likeliness of it happening. There's a good point that one of the ditzy money-wasting celebrities like Paris Hilton would buy a few to tote around like her purse dogs, and though I'm sure they wouldn't be as mainstream as items like huge bug-eyed sunglasses or coach pencil-cases, I don't doubt that celebrity exposure would raise the awareness of BJDs' existence. We'd certainly see more from the youth, because they are very impressionable. The youth around my area emulate those new TV-show girls like the Miley Cyrus gal and that Hannah Montana girl. Can you imagine the impact that those two would have on the youth? You would think the price of them would deter a lot of people, but what about overpriced things like clothign from Vogue or brand-name shoes and purses?

 

I actually get very annoyed at people who are mad when their "odd" hobbies or fashions become popular. :/ Liking something just because it's unpopular is just as silly as liking something because it's popular and cool.

That said, naturally I will not care if BJDs become that popular. But part of that is because I know they never will be. Can you honestly imagine Paris Hilton carrying around a doll? Please. We're a bunch of adults that play with dolls- that will never be cool, LOL.

 

Realistically, I don't think that's going to happen.

See, most adults, even if a celebrity were to do it, would probably not carry around a doll. In the US, it's really more of a little kid thing or a doll collector thing to do.

Also, realistically, lets just say they got popular amongst kids. I really don't think that they're in the price range for a lot of kids to have them. Even American girl dolls (about 1/3 the price of most MSDs) are considered expensive to give to a kid and those include hair/eyes/clothes/a book.

Now in the case that it does every become super popular, I probably wouldn't care either way, however I am really starting to like how people recognize me as being "the girl with the doll" when I go to stores (even without my doll) or through acquaintances. I suppose it's something that makes me a tad unique and that wouldn't be there if a lot of people had them.

 

I tend to agree. I suppose being little known can have a sort of mystique, but really--there's always lots of complaining about people only getting into the hobby because they're jumping on a bandwagon. However, only being into something because it's not 'cool' (or whatever) seems to be the same thing in reverse--both standpoints boil down to doing things because of what other people are (or aren't) doing, rather than just doing something because it's something you love. There's a certain amount of hypocrisy in that. I really do think it's better to just be yourself and if it makes you different fine, if it doesn't oh well. No one should have to strive to be different any more than they should have to strive to fit in. We are who we are, in this case people who love bjds, and why should that change if more people happen to join our ranks?

Now having said that, it's true that small communities and large ones both have their pros and cons. However, being happily involved in any community no matter what it's size will always entail learning to navigate it in away that allows the hobbyist to pursue the things that they like best about a hobby. Even if there is a lot more people involved, it is always possible to find subgroups where you'll still get the feel of a tighter nit community and find the people you have the most in common with.

 

um, california has done a local news report about BJD's, Volks specifically, you can find it on youtube if you want to see it.

 

Hmmm... if my mother ever happens to run across a news story that mentions prices ... well, she might be a little shocked (I'm well and truly grown up and fled the nest, so she has no idea about my finances). She thinks my Sard is wonderful, but she never asked what he cost (thank goodness).

 

At least people wouldn't look at me like I was mental when they see me with my doll! That would be great...

 

I'm not insecure enough to need to collect because something is kool or disparage because something is popular. I loathed being dismissed as "trendy" back in the 80s so I'm not about to do it to others.

I collect the things I collect because they make me happy, bottom line.

Added: It's a rather expensive hobby to bandwagon really, so I'd not stay up nights worrying about that...

 

I'd be sad if they got really well known because to me, going out and getting funny looks is half of the fun. I live in a part of the country where no one talks to anyone they don't know if they can avoid it, but I've found that my doll can be a real ice breaker, so I've talked to a lot of strangers because of him... if they were really well known, it wouldn't that way anymore...

 

I'd be a little sad if collecting BJDs became more mainstream, though it wouldn't stop me from collecting them, since I think they're absolutely adorable! Things turning mainstream has deterred me from things I used to do though. For example: I started wearing this cute black lace poncho on 'dress down Fridays' at my school (we wore uniforms), and after a few weeks, EVERYONE was wearing ponchos and telling me that I was a sheep... the same thing happened when I started dying the inside of my hair a darker color than my top hair... -_-'

 

I'm sure that those of us in the BJD community who actually care for the dolls not as a fashion accessory, but rather as friends, or even part of the family would be snatching up all the unwanted and unloved little boys and girls that were victims to a 'fashion craze'. Though as it was mentioned before, it's probably unlikely as our little guys and gals are rather expensive, and that would probably deter much of the populace.

 

I wouldn't mind if BJDs got more mainstream/popular. Seems kind of improbable, but hypothetically speaking.

If the market was bigger, there might be more physical stores. More brick-and-mortar shops would be nice. All the physical shops I like require a plane trip (being in Hong Kong and all...)... I really like poking stuff before buying it. Looking at online pictures just isn't the same!

I think the worrying about uniqueness thing is kind of... I dunno... where are you supposed to draw the line? Minus maybe casting your own or heavily modding your doll, and LE1s, there's already multiple molds of your doll out in the world. And unless you have all custom OOAK clothes, by coincidence, there could be someone dressing their doll similarly. Dollzone Megi is kind of popular, but like hell that's gonna stop me from buying one (actually, all the owner pictures kind of tipped me over the edge for one... Yay alternate photo angles!)

Though being popular might make there be more counterfeit dolls on the loose. That would be awful!

I don't really care for the "I liked it before it was popular" statement. I find vaguely amusing people's mercurial tempers. They liked it "before it was popular" and once it's "mainstream" they start spewing venom like it killed their mother. I mean, sometimes when I get into an anime before it's licensed, I might get tired of it by the time it's mainstream in the US, but hating it for its success seems like a strange sentiment to have. If the BJD companies can get more business, good for them.

And as mentioned above, owner photos help me decide a lot when I want to buy a doll. So having more owners taking photos of their dolls ain't too bad. I don't really care if there are more band wagon jumpers. I'm hardly obligated to make friends with everyone in this hobby.

 

The only analog I can draw from my own experience is when anime got popular. Sure I might grump a little about the influx of immature fans, but I really don't want to go back to the days of trekking out to the specialty video store to pick from the five series they carried and paying five dollars extra to have it subtitled. Oh, and by the way, there would only be two episodes on the tape.

I can't help but think that with dolls I'd feel the same way. A greater ease of availability would outweigh any loss of the fun of an exclusive hobby.

That said, I don't see any hobby where getting a doll under $300 is considered "inexpensive" getting overly popular any time soon. And as others have said, we are adults who play with dolls, it just isn't that cool.

 

If the BJDs got more mainstream that we could find any sorts of articles for them anywhere and anytime, wouldn't there be less pleasure to obtain these objects ?
Would we always have this small beating in the heart, this excitement when we see and find at least ?
Would we be as happy as now of what we have or wouldn't it lose a little of its emotional value (as for all common things) ?

I think I prefer not. I prefer the BJDs to remain a real passion and not just of the business (even if it is naturally connected ).

 

This topic has come up a few times in other discussions, and my response remains the same... I collect BJDs because I like BJDs, period. I don't collect them because it's a "secret, cool thing to do". If every person in the world had a BJD, I'd still collect them. I'd be downright happy to be able to find BJD stuff more easily, that's for sure!

Now... I will admit that sometimes when a hobby gets too large and aggressive, I'll take a step back from sharing my hobby with the public. That's what happened with anime and with certain books that shall not be named (because it inevitably starts a fandom/anti-fandom war). It doesn't mean I stop enjoying something in private, but sometimes dealing with fandom can be a bit too much for me.

 

I feel L Mikia's pain ... I liked anime when I was a tween and teen and was teased MERCILESSLY and had a horrible time for years, and suddenly around the time I was 17 or 18, suddenly anime went totally mainstream. By then I was growing out of it anyway because it was starting to get pretty crappy, but yeah. I still hold that grudge with me too ...

Anyway, I'm not one of those people who stops liking something just because it's popular. It kind of irks me when something I like suddenly becomes popular though. Because with that comes a certain amount of ... trendy disrespect. Fads are there to be used and abused, and it would be sad if bjds became like that. I already see a bit of that in the hobby, because some people are fickle and latch onto new subcultures and whatnot. I've known a lot of people like that and see those types of people in the doll hobby and know people who are the kinds of people who would get a doll and be totally into it for about 6 months and then it would sit in the closet on a shelf. Bjds becoming a new fad would see much of that happening, IMO. Like really expensive furbies or tamagochis or something else that was really popular to own for a bit and now no one buys or cares about ...

 

Though I don't collect things or do things because it's a cool, different thing to do (I certainly did not get involved in this hobby for this reason), I often find when things I like become popular, I slowly lose interest. I don't honestly know why... I guess I just really enjoy having something that everyone else does not, not even for the sake of being unique, just because. SO for me, I fear BJDs becoming common place things, simply because I'm afraid of losing interest

I can't see it becoming wildly popular anytime soon though. I mean, Kerli had one in her music video, and it's done nothing to help BJD gain popularity xD... I thnk it'd take a global star, like Paris Hilton, to make it popular. Like her and carrying around little dogs.

 

I would hate for it to become a fad. Mostly because of the potential aftermath. After the fad went out of style there would be a flood of dollfies who's owners had decided they weren't cool anymore. And that would be sad.