How much do you think you've spent in total on your dolls?

I thought I wanted to figure this out, and then I started feeling a little queasy. I should probably get better homeowners insurance in case of a fire or something.

 

I'm glad that I'm not the only one with a high number.

Let's see...I started wanting one in about late 2005/early 2006, so investing in lots of doll related magazines (mainly "Haute Doll"). I tried "making" my own doll so the cost of the materials for that failed endeavor was the cost of a Volks MSD or a naked SD10. Once I got my first doll in 2006, I tried learning how to sew for many years (so wasted money on attempts at sewing projects that never went anywhere except for human clothing and baby quilts eventually and lots of fabric, ribbon, and lace later) that was equivalent to the costs of several Volks dresses and shoes or a few LEs with fullsets. Lots of dollar purchases for BJD sized things about the cost of a few standard SDs. If I were to honestly round to the grand total to up to now (the year's not over yet), it is a little to a lot more than the down payment for our house as first time buyers in California with good credit pre-pandemic. So somewhere around @Iron_Dog 's amount and @Teddy 's amount. I also don't drink, smoke, do recreational drugs, go clubbing/bar hopping/party, or do sports events. I'm kind of wholesome in that I prefer hanging out with close family members and a small group of best friends where our primary form of entertainment is eating good food, talking with each other, watching comedies, and maybe meandering around a pretty place window shopping or admiring a museum/national park.

I have to say though, it's 15 years of anywhere from zero income to maybe one to two incomes depending if both my husband and I were working at the time or not. Right now, it's one income as I've been disabled for the last few years, but we've definitely learned how to budget and to live within our means especially for situations like these, pandemic or not. But oh...to kind of think about it...heh.

 

I have a spreadsheet, but have never added up the totals. On bjds its probably not that bad, but some of my other dolls, yikes! I've been very ill for the past decade and have barely left the house in that time though, and without something else to focus on I would've gone insane or lost the will to live. I've learned so many new skills from making thing for my dolls as well so I consider it money well spent.

 

Roughly $8,000~
That does not include any accessories, wigs, clothes, etc.
I have been in the hobby since 2006-2007, so I don't think that's *too* terrible. But...I should probably get insurance on them.

Oh, and I also buy REALLY old dolls or ones that need work done on them. So I seldom spend too much on the doll itself because I know that it needs work. But I do keep a spreadsheet for reference.

 

Between my two, I'd say 4K. I also made investments like getting a sewing machine to learn to sew them some clothes, so I think it might be a bit higher than that. Clothes, eyes, wigs, face up, chairs, gloves, storage totes. Gee, I need to get more totes.

 

I've just created a spreadsheet last week (just for the dolls themselves) and in a year I've totaled around 7k . And about half of that amount comes from the last few months (*cough* 3 Volks SD fullsets). I guess if I consider everything (like faceup artist, clothes, shoes, wigs, ...) then it's probably more like 8k in total.

But I just said "no" to two very tempting dolls this weekend and I am generelly getting better in dealing with FOMO. At least so far I don't regret any of my purchases . Also I don't do layaway and I generally don't use my savings for hobbies so I do feel comfortable and in control right now.
I have an FCS order planned in August but as she has been budgeted for and all. Mostly I just need to remember that just because I could, doesn't mean I need to.

 

I started a spreadsheet about 3 months ago and I only bought my first doll last October so it wasn't difficult to track my spending. However, it made me realise that I needed to slow down and keep a budget on how much money I actually want to put into the hobby in total.

For me my spending on dolls is probably quite low (under 2.5k USD) and I only recently splurged on my first clothing set ($150). What drives makes it an expensive hobby for me is the shipping costs. Sending anything to New Zealand can brutal price wise and it's not necessarily money I can make back if I sell a doll.

 

I know I have spent more than two thousand dollars. Maybe more, who knows

 

People mentioning spreadsheets, I used to do this with my dolls prior to collecting BJDs but haven't done it recently so I've no idea really. It's all the extras that hike up the cost of owning a BJD such as the clothing, shoes and accessories and the storage. I can't seem to stop at just the doll and clothing/shoes. They have to have a place to live, furniture, accessories such as toys and books and bedding, miniature toys for the Lati Yellow etc. I decided after buying a few cheaper items that just didn't fit quiet right that I would only buy clothes and shoes made especially for each doll. I've spent more on items of clothing for my dolls than I have done for myself.

 

I don't want to know. I have over 60 dolls, and currently they all have wigs, eyes and (if necessary) shoes that I have bought.

Still, there are plenty of hobbies where the expenses can go through the roof. I'm currently having some of my needlework re-framed, and I think I could buy a Soom Idealan full set with the money I'm now dropping at the framers'. LOL!!

 

I haven't updated mine that recently so it's missing my most recent dolls, but I was definitely up to £10,000 / nearly $14,000.
That's just on the dolls, any extra parts (hands etc), wigs, eyes and faceups. It doesn't include clothes or shoes.
I had it added up for insurance, not that I think I'd ever be able to replace my collection.
I suspect I'm way closer to $20k now thankfully this is my "main" expensive hobby! (My next most expensive is sewing, so that crosses over a lot )

 

I totally feel you...my crew have casual clothes and shoes to mix and match, but then, they needed a wardrobe (thankfully made from a medicine cabinet). And then, casual clothing isn't enough, so I am crafting their "special outfits" (basically embroidered pieces, a bit of leather armor if I dare). But beautiful clothes won't be enough if their hands are empty, so they need to have props and I have still some to craft (including a 1/3-sized loom, a bow, a crown and an herbalist vials!). And then, where would they store their stuff and chill out? That's what I was thinking when I found an antique sofa set (thankfully affordable) that I couldn't resist...

...yes, all the ancillary items definitely take more space, time and money than the dolls themselves! The cost is more spread out, in my case at least, they definitely added up to be more than the dolls!

 

Probably enough to fund a 1 months overseas trip

 

Counting all the dolls by themselves and not including the money I got back after selling some of them, I've probably spent... about $3k in the past year. Which is both less and more than I was expecting. I don't have a lot of expenses so I'm not too unhappy with that number.

 

I made my numbers not that long ago in a spreadsheet as a mean of keeping track of everthing I have.
In the ten years that have passed since I decided to purchase my first doll, I have spent around 4K on dolls (including shipping), clothing, wigs, accesories, face-ups, furniture...
Looking at all your numbers, it makes me not feel that bad about myself xD

 

OOOH MY what a question lol Hmm… I have a somewhat feel of about 9-10k.
It is A LOT of money in my opinion when you add it up like that, but I also haven’t had a hobby in like 13-14 years and therefore spent 0 on a “hobby” or anything for myself really that was considered a hobby or fun. And when I look over other hobbies… they never really come cheap lol
That being said, we weren’t able to travel for like 2 years now (covid) which is where we usually tend to spend money - so I used my saved vacation money for dolls instead as well
So I have no regrets, I love this hobby, and its nice to treat yourself every now and then. As long as it is do-able and I am financially responsible to have everything covered and some money saved, I don’t see myself stopping lol

 

I made an excel list including all the dolls and accessories which indicates that I have spent 100 K dollars already which is really bad. I could have bought a house with that money already in my city

 

I don't want to know...I probably would be able to get an exact number...but rather not do it. I'm not spending too much on dolls in my opinion, but putting all the prices together would make quite a high number.

 

Somewhere between $4-5k? Maybe $6k? Somewhere in that range. It’s spread across so many years that I’m not sure, plus I’ve sold and traded a lot and all that.

 

I'm a newbie. I'm sure not showing THIS to my husband!!!!!