If you could go back in time...

Knowing what I know now, yes I would have done things differently and saved money. I have my 'core' dolls that I am very satisfied with and would have liked to skip the ones that did not turn out. But, Real Life still rules and I have learned what I really like, so the 'missteps' will be a lot fewer (because I can't see into the future as much as I would really like to). Saving 'just in case' is very prudent!

 

Super duper personal and kind of sad
I hate to say this, but...
The first doll I ever bought wasn't for me. It was for somebody else. An absolutely beautiful Doll-love Alice.
That person just up and left one day. I wasn't a good enough friend for him. So I'm out the money I bought his doll with (along with many other things), I never get to even see her, and pretty much got my heart broken.
Of course, he would have left with or without my buying him his first doll. It's just an extra stab to the wallet, after the stab to the heart.

 

I'm sure I wouldn't have bought large and heavy dolls like my first choice, Soom Sabik, or later all my Iplehouse EIDs. They are just too heavy for me to handle and I hardly take pictures of them. But at the other side, everytime I look at them, I think I would have missed some great looking guys if I really wouldn't have got them

 

If I could go back in time, I would've gotten a Delf Shine before the Delf line went kaput. >_<

But seriously, I think I made my decision on my first doll in haste. I suddenly had the money to afford a bjd, and I'd wanted one for many years. I knew what company I wanted to buy from, and I had thought I'd narrowed my options down, but when it came down to it, I let other doll-owners dictate how I spent my money. I didn't get an El because it seemed everyone else had one. I didn't get a Shiwoo for the same reason. I didn't get a Shine because my best friend seemed fairly interested in dolls and wanted a Shine, herself. And since, if she were to get a doll, they'd be interacting with mine quite a bit, I didn't want to have the same sculpt. But she never really got into dolls, like it looked like she was going to. But, truthfully, I'm happy with my Jess. Yes, he is bug-eyed, yes he has a somewhat slutty face no matter how hard I try to make that subtle....but I love him. He was my first doll.

 

If I could go back in time my first doll would have been a Minifee... probably a Minifee Chloe as I remember really liking her around the time I ordered my first doll. I'd have bought the full set before it sold out because I loved her outfit.

 

Love this!!

 

I would have not wrung my hands uncertainly at Claude's price. I hadn't yet decided if I really wanted to spend so much on a doll. Not only did I miss his original sales period when I was absolutely in love with him, but by the time that he was re-released around Christmas it was a mad scramble to get him. I should have gotten him at once and if I could I would.

 

I wouldn't change a thing about my collection or how my dolls evolved over the years because that's fun to look back on and it lead to some great results. I would however change my past attitudes and the way I handled my newbie years in the hobby. Lots of crazy fangirlling, shoving them in disinterested peoples' faces and overreacting when people called them creepy.
I'd like to smack myself in the hand for leaving Hansel out in the sun so much during his first year too.

 

If I could go back in time, I would have bought my beloved Soo Angel Elf from Luts while she was still being offered. I actually HAD the money last year, but put it off thinking I'd get her for a graduation present, and now she's "suspended," I'm assuming because Luts and CP are fighting over the Delf line.

 

If I'd known that I would eventually give in and get into the BJD hobby, I'd have bought the first boy that caught my eye, when he was still in stock. I still want a Soom Sabik Elf more than any other doll on my wantlist...but now I don't have the layaway option, so I have to exhibit self-control and SAVE for him *gasp* All while just hoping that he eventually shows up for sale somewhere when I can afford him...

 

If I could go back in time...hmm
I'd tell myself to get off my backside and email Dollti while they were still around so I could get myself a Tinman! Heck I'd buy all of them and the Lion and Dorothy if I could! lol!
Because I missed out on him, my dolly purchases after that were a little... spontaneous, for fear I'd 'miss' another chance to get something that would later be impossible to find; and I've ended up with a couple of dolls I didn't really think about. It's not that I don't like them, but I'd tell myself to save my money for something I really loved instead of splurging on something I just "kinda liked".

((I'd also tell myself the winning lottery numbers! xD lol!))

 

Oh yes. If I went back in time, I would have split the then not-out-of-stock Minifee Luka fullset and probably got my doll a lot cheaper. >:'( With a faceup too. Derp. XD

 

I bought my first bjd because she was 1) small, and 2) relatively inexpensive. I had never even seen, ,uch less held a bjd before, so I had NO idea what to expect, I just wanted to see... Unfortunately, I have not bonded with her, so she is back in her box, but she was definitely my "gateway" into the fantastic world of bjd, so I have that to be thankful for!

 

I think I would have kept my self from buying one of my tinies. I love her face but i hate her body. It single jointed and gross. But it's been really hard to find the right size body for her :/

 

Nope, I wouldn't change a thing. All of the I dolls currently own are dream dolls of mine, and I've only needed to sell one tiny and a head so far. I found out I like larger dolls so the tiny had to go, and the one head was not quite what I had in mind. I would have made the purchases regardless. I am lucky I waited to save for everything I really wanted.

 

If I could go back in time, the main lesson I'd tell my self-in-the-past is to buy the sculpts I like, and then make up their characters. Instead of trying to shell an imaginary character that already exists. This would've saved me much frustration, and money too, as all the dolls I bought as shells for existing characters have been sold already.

I would also tell myself-in-the-past not to hype up BJDs as the One True Hobby that would fulfill all my hopes and dreams. Ha, I definitely had lots of unrealistic expectations when I first started (because of various life circumstances), and ended up being somewhat disillusioned and burnt out. But then again, I don't think I would've got interested in BJDs if my life circumstances weren't the way they were... who knows.

In any case, I don't have regrets (not even for the dolls I bought and sold), I definitely learnt a lot through this experience. And I still love dolls, so it's all good!

 

well... when I first saw a doll I really want to buy, I thought it was too expencive, so I bought a tonner doll. Then one more, then one more. Soon I realise, I spent on them - though i didn't actually like them - the exact amount, the doll of my dreams cost but alas! it was sold out already

 

I think I would have held off and done a little more research on dolls. I bought one that I could go see in person, but I think I would tried to do a bit more research on different brands and types. Also, I am in the process of trying to make one, so far it is going excellently. (I did a lot more research on this... a lot more) And maybe I would have tried making my own first.

 

If I could go back in time, I wouldn't change ANY of my doll purchases. So far, I've been pretty good at selectively choosing my dolls and only getting the ones I obsess and pine for. But, I WOULD change how I was at the beginning of the hobby. I have this problem of taking random things WAY too personally and, for awhile, I guess because I felt insecure about the cost of this hobby and how much time I was investing in it, I took A LOT of random things as personal attacks. I allowed myself to feel bad, doubt being in the hobby, doubt buying my first doll, HATE my first doll (who I actually LOVE), and it was just miserable. And it went on for a rather long while. It was actually quite depressing and I'm constantly surprised I am still in this hobby sometimes.

At the moment, that would be the only thing I'd go back in time for. We'll see if this changes in the future.

 

There are a lot of things I wouldn't buy if I had it to do over. Mostly wigs... extra hands... clothes... eyes... Strangely, it's not the big purchases I usually regret ($250 for a really awesome outfit), it's the small stuff that adds up over time ($500 for a whole box of clothes $20and $40 at a time but they never get used). I would not buy expensive jeans except from Mio (those /always/ get worn). I would not spend $$$ on shoes that don't get worn. Again, perhaps strangely, I don't regret that one awesome pair of shoes that only goes with that one outfit... it's the fourth pair of white loli shoes that are SD size when I really need MSD.

But wigs... wigs are my biggest regret. I might buy 10 wigs before I find one I really like. That means each wig I like costs something like $200. @_@ If I sold off the others, it would be different, but they just sit there, unused.

I really really wish there were a dolly consignment store you could ship things off to and let them get sold. I just don't have time to deal with selling all these different wigs and clothes. Or even better yet, that I'd identified earlier what I really like and not wasted so much money in the first place.