I feel so quilty right now..

I don't really see how stopping collecting dolls would do anything to affect the fishing industry or the agriculture industry...

 

I dont think the bjd industry affects the planet like say... the automobile industry does, for instance. If you're really worried, you should stop driving your car/buying gas.

 

Factory pollution is a problem when factories don't properly follow guidelines to avoid pollution. Thete are ways to produce things cleanly, ways to log forests sustainably, sustainable methods of producing food. I'm pretty sure BJD manufacturers do not produce pollution, because they are concerned about their employees' health. Things that are produced using sustainable methods tend to be more expensive than things produced using non sustainable methods. If you really want to make a difference, only buy fish that has been farmed, because ocean fishing is not sustainable. Don't buy American beef, cattle ranching is not sustainable, it uses far too much water. Also don't buy American bottled water that was bottled in California. That's a much better way to help the environment.

 

Not buying dolls or plastic hangers is a fraction of a drop in the bucket. You would have to be responsible for stopping the guys taking the oil out of the ground, the chemicals chemists make, banning drug research. You get into so many guilty thoughts.

Should I have died in 1986 when I had cancer because I didn't want the radioactive iodine? Would that have helped save the planet? Not really.
Yes it is possible that as a whole, humans may mess up the planet so it isn't as hospitable as before but selling or not buying BJDs won't make a bit of difference. Enjoy your hobby and if your still worried reduce your waste imprint that will make a bigger difference.

 

Are BJDs made in a large enough quantity to really cause pollution? Each one is made by hand, not mass produced on an assembly line. So I would think that our dolls are relatively environmentally friendly. Unless you want to worry about the fuel used in shipping. But that plane or boat is coming here regardless of whether your doll is on it or not. I
have a BS in Environmental Biology and I don't sweat it. I think people get goofy about it sometimes.

 

If they make you happy, they are worth it.
You have to remember that the factories spewing out pollutants make it into the news because they are the exception to the rule that factories need to make sure any exhaust is purified and filtered so pollutants are removed. Fear sells, in a way that "good news! If everyone lowers their water usage, takes showers instead of baths, and eats less meat and less fish, the world will be alright!" Does not sell.

 

Selling the dolls you already have on a whim is very definition of wasteful, IMHO. You have no idea of their new owner will value them like you do, they could end up anywhere- in landfill, for example. Much better to hold on to the ones you already have, and continue to use/enjoy them, if you feel that way. Then at least the resources that went into to making them in the first place are not wasted. You do not necessarily need to keep buying more in the future. That's without even going into all the extra resources that would go into packing and delivering the sold dolls !

This thread might be relevent to your intrests: http://www.denofangels.com/forums/s...l-Impact-of-the-Hobby&highlight=environmental

 

I'm a biologist, and for my degree I was required to study ecology.

We, as humans, are destroying our planet. There's no two ways about it. Forget the "really bad factories", we're using 4 times as many resources as our planet can sustain, driving climate change and extinction of millions of species... and this is "we" as in, the privileged people of Western countries. Most of the harmful things happening in the world are because of our greed (and then we're also exploiting the less economically-stable countries to maximize our profits - it's quite wonderful).

However, at the same time, I don't feel terribly guilty about the BJD hobby. Humans have been making fun trinkets and artistic artifacts since we first gained abstract thought and I think that, while production may be damaging, the cultural development that each new unique artist (I'm counting the doll sculptor and the owner who customizes the doll) piece provides balances it out. In fact, I think the BJD hobby in some ways exemplifies a POSITIVE approach to spending and commerce. We don't, as a hobbyist mentality, cut corners. We don't rush for the cheapest thing that's probably going to kill you from the mix-in filler chemicals only because it's cheap and instantly-gratifying. Because of the costs involved, we tend to spend money only on the dolls we really want, ones that would make us happy enough to drop a good portion of our paycheck, items that actually MEAN something to us. The BJD companies, in turn, strive for quality, pride in their work, and customer appreciation over just generating more and more profits. I think this represents a much healthier economy with a smaller overall footprint on the environment.

I feel a lot guiltier over not always buying locally-grown/locally-made stuff and perpetuating the cycle of exploitation than I do about importing a doll from a small artist once a year. (I don't own or drive a car, so... at least I don't need to worry about that. ><)

 

rehomeing the dolls you dont have a conection with is a very good thing to do.
you keep the ones you love and send the neglected ones off to new families that can give them the attention they need and want.
I love all the dolls I have bought since I found BJDs in 2008 but if I dont connect with them they must find a new home so that I can afford the next doll that I want.
keeping them packed up in the darkness is sad...its lonely...even to a human heart . love them enough to let them go and you will see how happy it makes you . its hard though..I never get used to it.

 

All of my dolls are second hand (except for my PKF Mio), so in a way I recycle XD
Now seriously, you should think for a good while before you buy a new doll and reflect on whether you really really like. For the moment, I find you rehoming dolls is a good idea.

 

Rehoming the ones you have no connection to is a good start. Every doll you re-home is one someone else won't (or can't) buy new, which is one less made.

Then start being vigilant about how you play with them. Instead of buying new clothing for them, learn to sew and make it for them using old clothing you get at thrift stores or garage or boot sales, thus keeping discarded fabric from going into landfills. Instead of buying accessories for them, start making them with used/found objects, thus keeping THEM from going into landfills. And, you will be adding valuable skills to your own skillset.

 

I like to keep my opinions on that sort of thing to myself (*cough* some of my friends think my opinion of 'a plague being a possible good thing to reduce the population for a bit' could be necessary eventually... *cough*), but as for BJDs...it's a pretty addicting hobby, and, yes, sometimes I think 'why the heck do I need all these dolls?!' because most people would look at them and thing 'they're not doing anything...they're just sitting there', but my dolls mean a lot to me and I really love them so I keep them, and I do get more. And I use stuff around the house to make things for them, and my parents own a shop and instead of always throwing out packing materials and stuff...I find creative ways to use things for my dolls as well.

 

Well, there's two different issues here. There's wanting to downsize. Then there's wanting to reduce your carbon footprint.

Selling a few dolls is not going to affect how wasteful you are. It IS good if you want to clear out a few things that you don't use or want any longer--but that's about it.

There are a LOT of things you can do if you want to be less wasteful of resources and attempt to reduce your affect on the planet. That's all very good. Better would be to not feel guilty but to do something positive to promote efforts to save the planet and stop pollution--join causes that inform people, research the things you can do that would help more than just selling a doll, etc.

I know that the dolls are about the LEAST wasteful thing I am doing. I could be a LOT better with reducing my impact and selling a doll would not do anything at all to help. Being informed and aware and actually doing something proactive would help. Even if I sold ALL my dolls, it wouldn't make as big a difference as it would if I tried harder in many other areas!

...

Getting out of dolls would save my bank account, but do nothing much for the planet!

 

Okay April pretty much said everything I wanted to say.

i will just add you could do something small to start like grow your own fruit and vegetables and work from there.

i actually thought that this thread was about sewing originally ie quilting.

 

I don't think that whole "expiring" in the next fifty years thing is true. People have been saying the world is gonna end for years. 2006 because there was a "666" date, 2012 because the Mayan Calender ended on that, looks like just a bunch of "scare to make them go green" tactics. (No do not send me any links, I have finally reined in my paranoia and I do NOT want to see what more conspiracy theorists are plotting)

Also that article was made in 2002, which means that it's irrelevant in today's world. Technology now and technology THEN was like night and day, and we were just recovering from 9/11 so more paranoia was going on then typically. Not to mention the efforts to keep our planet going have improved since then.

If you wanna do something green, grow some plants, plant some tree's, so we have more clean air made by said tree's. Volunteer with rehabilitating wild life. Don't sacrifice YOUR happiness because an article freaked you out.