How long does it take you to complete a doll?

I love this question because it’s something I am always thinking of.

Thinking of the ‘what I have to do next to finish my doll’ and as much as I chip away at my list it tends to grow just as quick.
I love the realism in this hobby and so constantly look for finishing touches that can help with this. I went from synthetic wigs to mohair which I dye and make myself. For me this can take around two weeks due to my full time job and training on the side. But well well worth it, just sucks when you want them to have another styled wig as that’s another two weeks XD
I make 99% of their clothes (sometimes it’s nice to buy things rather than make it if its something special ) but as soon as I’m finished I need (emphasis on the need) to make something else and so their wardrobes are never finished. Though I love to sew so I can’t complain.
Due to a friend inspiring me to try I do my faceups now too and as I've been practicing for the past few months have been improving immensely. I’m currently re-doing two doll’s faces and intend to do more as I can improve the pre-existing ones. So it’s the cycle of when I get better and doing something I want to redo it and therefore my dolls are never complete.
I know I will eventually finish my dolls, but that will be a long process which I am patient for because i have so much fun building up to is and when I get there I like to think my skills have come so far from when I first started. But my worst enemy is time! If I had more my dolls would be so much closer to being finished.

 

I don't consider any of my dolls complete.

There's just too many things to learn & improve on. Face ups to be refreshed, wardrobes to switch up and play with... My goal this year is to learn how to make wigs and eyes.

 

I only have a few dolls that I feel are "complete" however, if I see something that complements them, then I have to have it

 

Complete, eh? I have had my first doll since the end of 2009, and she's always changing. Some of the others are more static, but if I think of changes that help express their characters, I have no hesitations about doing them.

My positive reading of this is that my dolls alter with me; their characters and appearances are temporary, like everything else in this world. My negative reading is that I'm a chronic un-finisher, and this even applies to my doll projects.

 

Usually 6 months to 3 years depending on whether or not the doll is sold out, if I have to wait for parts to pop up on the MP, if I'm commissioning a faceup, how much I'm purchasing with the doll to start off with, etc. All of my dolls are complete at the moment, the only two dolls I've purchased within the past 2-3 years have been character dolls that came with literally everything!

 

It is different then!
Some dolls are completed in a month and some dolls are not completed in over a year~
It is also good to be completed soon, but I am also happy to find their charm.

 

How long does it usually personally take you to "complete" a doll to the point of having everything the character needs and feeling over all mostly satisfied with your customization?

I haven't completed any of my on topic dolls, although some are more complete than others (my MSD Riz, Pip, is by far the most complete). So more than a couple years for a doll.

However, I think at some point, I will be able to call my dolls finished, although I will likely never stop working on them. (Everybody needs a full wardrobe, alright?)

I think this because some of my off-topic dolls (including BJDs) ARE complete. I have several "complete" random character dolls which are essentially action figure kitbashes, or Pullips, or ABS Hujoos.

I don't really feel the pressure to complete. I like chipping away at my projects little by little, because when I shell a character, I better do it right, and their accessories better be good quality. As a result, most of my accessories are handmade, and take a really long time to make.

 

I'd say they are likely never going to be done. I will always be tweaking them one way or another. That is the "problem" with this hobby!

 

Doll completion is part of why I stopped buying very many new dolls. For a doll to be "complete" to me, they need faceup, any mods completed, eyes, wig, and at least one full outfit. Several of my dolls are completed, but I'm never really done with them. All of my SDs are technically finished, but I still get new clothing items for them, or have their faces retouched, or switch out a previous pair of eyes for a slightly better one. It's kind of a never-ending game of evolution. Which is fun, don't get me wrong, but it's hard to split the cost of that with the cost of new dolls (which then adds to the pile of changing/finishing costs).

So that was the long answer, which boils down to "never". The short answer is that some of my dolls I've had complete when I got them, and some of my dolls still aren't finished after several years.

 

Bodies are so expensive! I am waiting for a head atm but I am also preparing myself to get a body for my boy this winter. I already have wigs/eyes... I guess 2-6months in average.

 

Ohh lord. I'm seeing this a lot on this thread already but, it varies! on time, money, and how much effort I'm willing to put into it. I'd say I get "distracted" from dolls a lot, so while one doll got nearly finished pretty much all at once, I've had another for 5 years and he's just now getting worked on. It did take me a very long time to think of a good story for this particular doll, so that definitely plays a huge role in it.

 

My first doll took me half a year to complete because I commission some clothes for him

My next planned doll will be taking much longer because I have just finished making final payment for his layaway and I am still waiting for my chosen face-up artist to open her service, she's really busy lately and her slots are limited. His commissioned clothes are not ready yet either.

I would say commissioning would take up most of the completion time rather than planning and during those waiting times, I continue to plan the next steps.

 

My dolls are never done either...I started collecting in 2010(?) and my first doll is probably 95% done...I've never been happy with his wig. Right now I have 3 heads waiting on bodies, one body waiting on a head, several bodies that need blushing, and at least one head that needs a new faceup...one thing this hobby has taught me is that you better enjoy the creative process, otherwise ALL you will ever be doing is waiting! I think part of never being done, though, is being inspired by other people's projects...the more I see what is possible, the more ideas I get for my own crew. So as long as I keep being obsessed with seeing new BJDs, I will probably never be 100% finished, lol...which luckily, I've learned to live (happily) with...

 

Three months, two weeks, six days, 13 hours and 27 minutes.

Nah, I am joking.

I try to have the basics ready when my dolls arrive: a wig, a pair of shoes, eyes, and a simple outfit.

However like most people I would guess, I never really "complete" a doll. I probably go through 4-6 pairs of eyes, and wigs before I find one that feels right, and about the same for shoes, but clothes, well that's a different story. My first and most spoiled doll probably has at least 20 outfits. I buy BJDs to sew for, instead of buying a doll and them realizing, "Oh, dear, he will need clothes!"
I have been sewing for a very long time, and it is kind of my thing, so it is just something I keep doing, going back and making the dollies more clothes.

 

I try to have their basic stuff ready before they get home (wig/simple outfit) so I guess they're kind of "ready" when they get home but I don't think they're ever "completed". I'm always buying/making them new stuff, trying out new clothes, making up new stories. I don't think my dolls are ever really done.

 

For me, it took about a month because my doll is a hybrid.

 

For one of my dollies it took over a year and a half before I found the perfect dress that completed her look.

 

I haven't actually completed one either, but I'm also not sure I ever would... or would even want to? For me almost anything creative continues to evolve and develop all the time, and that's part of the fun. Plus I'll keep improving my own skills in making stuff.

 

I don't know if any of them will ever be finished. There's always something that I want to change or improve. Even on dolls I've had for many years, I'll find myself repainting them or restyling them as I get better at faceups and such. I've even reshelled a few I thought I'd never change and restarted from scratch. I had a doll for almost 5 years before I figured out what to even do with him. He finally has a character and now I'm just working on his props.

 

I always get to the point where their face and bodies look the way I want...then I neglect to make or get clothes XD I'm only speaking about my MH and Pullip dolls atm but I'm sure it'll be the same story for when I finally get my BJDs. Making clothes is tedious and I haven't come to terms with spending a ton of money on clothes for them yet Dx Especially when I already spent so much on the doll. I will probably end up making very simple rudimentary clothes for them when they arrive just so they aren't naked XD