1. It has come to the attention of forum staff that Dollshe Craft has ceased communications with dealers and customers, has failed to provide promised refunds for the excessive waits, and now has wait times surpassing 5 years in some cases. Forum staff are also concerned as there are claims being put forth that Dollshe plans to close down their doll making company. Due to the instability of the company, the lack of communication, the lack of promised refunds, and the wait times now surpassing 5 years, we strongly urge members to research the current state of this company very carefully and thoroughly before deciding to place an order. For more information please see the Dollshe waiting room. Do not assume this cannot happen to you or that your order will be different.
    Dismiss Notice
  2. Dollshe Craft and all dolls created by Dollshe, including any dolls created under his new or future companies, including Club Coco BJD are now banned from Den of Angels. Dollshe and the sculptor may not advertise his products on this forum. Sales may not be discussed, no news threads may be posted regarding new releases. This ban does not impact any dolls by Dollshe ordered by November 8, 2023. Any dolls ordered after November 8, 2023, regardless of the date the sculpt was released, are banned from this forum as are any dolls released under his new or future companies including but not limited to Club Coco BJD. This ban does not apply to other company dolls cast by Dollshe as part of a casting agreement between him and the actual sculpt or company and those dolls may still be discussed on the forum. Please come to Ask the Moderators if you have any questions.
    Dismiss Notice

If you could tell your past self something what would it be?

Jul 6, 2021

    1. "You fool! You thought you would really stop at 5 dolls?":sigh:|:doh

      Also...

      "Get that Volks 'Rozen Maiden' Suigintou. Yes, I know she's expensive, but trust me, get her now at that price of $$$. Borrow from your parents. Borrow from your aunt. You will be able to afford to pay them back later. You almost have enough! You have no idea how much she'll cost later on.":...(

      "While we're at it, get more of those Volks sofas...":chomp:

      "Girl...the Gothic Lolita phase looks better on the dolls than it did on you. Now Steampunk, Regency-bounding, and Disney-bounding on the other hand, you can do...":whee:

      "I hate to say it, but you never will finish all those BJD clothing projects. You do end up with a pretty awesome sewing machine and fabric collection.":sweat

      "Buying all those materials to make a BJD from scratch as well as its clothing would have been the same amount as buying a standard Volks doll...fully clothed. Just buy one of the standard Volks dolls with clothes, shoes, and a wig, and save money. Heck, buy two with how much you're spending.":sigh

      "Visit the Volks USA Store in Torrance more often. It won't be there forever. Same thing with all those other California BJD stores.":...(

      "I know you're shy, but trust me on this, go to all the BJD conventions you can afford to go to before 2020. Not going to say why, but just do it.":sweat
       
      • x 3
    2. This…totally!:lol: And I’d follow that up by adding not to worry about numbers at all. I wasted a lot of time being concerned about numbers, and constantly adjusting my arbitrary limit upwards until it suddenly dawned on me that all that mattered was filling my display spaces comfortably enough to make myself happy. As long as there was room, it’s all good so who cares?!

      And then I’d give myself a hug and reassure myself not to worry about being on a tight budget…because with time, patience, and a bit of careful planning and creativity, I’ll be truly amazed by what I can pull off in this hobby…I really WILL be able to build the collection of my dreams!;)
       
      #22 PoeticSoul, Jul 7, 2021
      Last edited: Jul 20, 2021
      • x 3
    3. Doll related: to buy this doll that it is now impossible to get :( and to actually get my dolls proper faceups and not do them myself. Oh well, it was fun trying to do my own faceups.
       
    4. Take it slow and don't rush into the new hobby despite the initial excitement. I've spent a lot of money on items that I no longer want and I wish I had been more strict with myself in the beginning. My tastes hadn't been completely refined yet since I was still new and discovering what I really liked, so I bought dolls that no longer appeal to me and clothes that I won't really use. If I had been more picky, it would have meant having more funds that could have gone towards what I really want for my doll collection.

      Don't entirely plan for a doll until they arrive. During the wait for a new doll, I tried to get clothes, eyes, wigs, shoes, and other items ready for them so I would be able to complete them faster. But sometimes the eyes were too small/big for my liking, the wig style/color didn't suit the doll, or the character in my head just didn't match the doll as much as I thought it would. It increases the overall completion time, but it generally saves me more money (and frustration) if I wait until I have the doll.

      Make sure you look at the body sculpt if it is a full doll and the head can't be purchased separately. I was so fixated on getting a head sculpt I really liked that I didn't even think of looking at the body sculpt for my first male doll; I really disliked how young and boyish his body was since I find taller and leaner sculpts like Soom's Idealian bodies more ideal. I'm perfectly fine with making hybrids now, but I really underestimated the importance of the body sculpt when I first joined the hobby.
       
      • x 1
    5. I would tell myself to not worry so much about what other people think about my hobby. I have the tendency to hide my hobby from basically everyone, and I think if I hadn't done that in the beginning, I would feel more comfortable sharing it now. Also, I would tell myself to reach out to other people more. When I first entered the hobby, I didn't have any form of social media, and I didn't make any doll friends. I wish I had taken the time to do so.
       
    6. In regards to dolls I would say to my younger self to pay attention to preorders and doll news sites! A lot of the dolls I really liked were also LE and difficult to find or I missed the preorder by a hair. It can be very confusing for a newb to understand layaways and preorders but now that I know better I wont miss my chance!
       
    7. "You'll finally get Diana in 2020 while you're sick. Have soup ready in advance. Also probably some cola, even though you don't normally keep it around the place. Also, consider just getting her fullset and/or as an SD. You might get the SD version sooner, and you might also be able to find her some actual shoes. The MSD version is going to be pretty sweet and dubiously worth the wait, but she's going to be stuck with like one pair of sandals forever."

      Edit, echoing some other advice: "...also, it was kinda cool to get a doll in 2020 for reasons you'll understand later, but you waited three years for this. Uh. Dude. Consider ordering from literally any company other than Dollshe."
       
      • x 1
    8. Save money for relises ) Or you will be really sad when there is a new relised doll, and you are too poor to buy it immidiately
       
    9. I would have to go back many many years because I started collecting when I was a lot younger. I still have several of my childhood dolls.
      I collect a variety of different dolls not just bjds. I would tell myself to not buy the porcelain dolls as they will loose all of their value over time. I do regret some of my bjd purchases as I realize now that some of them were impulse buys.
       
    10. I would tell myself not to be so nervous when first getting into dolls. Literally, when I went to my first doll club meeting I tried to back out at the last second and my mom had to force me to go and then when I got there I could barely say a word. But I regret that now because they are some of the coolest people I've ever met.
      I would also tell myself to buy stuff when I see it and like it. There are dolls I thought I would think about and then missed and shops (mostly on Etsy) that I thought "that's really cool! I'll favorite it and come back later," and then came back and the shop was closed or stuck on vacation mode forever.
       
    11. For me was to not buy some of the bjds which I thought I wanted/liked but realised after getting them i was just caught up with other people's enthusiasm for them. These were most 1/4 sized as I now know I prefer 1/6 and 1/3 size.

      As mentioned by other folks, priority quality over quantity of clothing and assessories... thought I having a choice on what to put on my bjds would be preferable but when taking pictures of quality and detail shines through in closeup photography.

      Keep practicing faceups, keep that momentum, as so many stops means I haven't progressed.

      And should have kept going with the head sculpting as they were quite good in retrospect.
       
    12. .
       
      #32 Gintsumi, Aug 9, 2021
      Last edited: Feb 28, 2024
      • x 1