"Its a doll, its not a real person."

Kind of funny because the context that I speak the same words in means the opposite of what the title of this thread meant.

Of course it's just a doll. Dolls don't have feelings; they are just toys I have fun with and represent imaginary characters.

However, people do have feelings and I think it's just either a very blunt or socially oblivious of an statement to make like the OP's friend did. I normally wouldn't purposely voice a remark that might intentionally hurt someone like that. Always have to test the waters first and then bide my time before cracking a joke over such things.

 

That's... a little sad imho. I like to call my boys "my babies" and joke around/love on them like that, and say things like "poor boy. I just put him in a skirt, I doubt he likes it...but he has no choice >D" But on the other had. I toss them aside, kick/nudge them with my foot across the floor, rip their eyes out, twist their joints, etc. They're just toys :I

 

One of the best things about playing with bjd's, is that it's "play"! As children, we "played", we pretended and made-believe. We had fun, we believed in magic.
As grown ups, the fun of play can bring our imaginations back to life, give us back a touch of the magic we used to believe in, and who knows if it's all about what we are "imagining"? Every physical item on our planet is made of atoms. Atoms=energy, atoms are constantly moving, so every physical item on our planet is "alive", with energy.
My dolls all have their own likes and dislikes. You can say they are "characters", that I make up, but they have their own magic for me, as they inspire me to imagine and to play.
With non doll people though, it's likely best to tuck your resin kids away someplace safe, skip the atom discussion, and keep the magic to yourself!

 

I understand why you got upset, but I wouldn't take it personally, like a lot of people here have said, non doll people aren't likely to get it. I'm fortunate enough to have a friend who traipses around with me and my doll and who totally gets me, but don't let his lack of empathy for your hobby get in the way of your friendship =)

 

Sometimes I talk to my dolls, comb their hair, change their outfits and so on.
I also create a continued story for each of them.
But they're a doll for me, and will always be a doll, not a real person.

 

I think this is one of those things where you have to pick your battles, so to speak. My husband is pretty used to me referring to my dolls by name, as I like to tell him about their characters. One day he even caught himself calling one of my dolls "she"- that was pretty funny!

I have been collecting dolls and other toys since I was a kid as well, so my family's used to my quirks by now. My mom even speaks in this manner of dolls, especially when she's making observations like "Oh she's pretty" or "She looks a little mad!" But as for my friends and family that I'm not so sure about, I'd probably avoid the subject of dolls altogether. I usually feel kind of embarrassed to be as old as I am and still into collecting dolls, so it just makes me feel awkward to talk about it with other people.

 

Of course I don't think that dolls are actually alive or anything, but I've always felt oddly connected to inanimate objects. I name all my electronics and feel like they have subtle personalities, too. I feel guilty if I mistreat any of my possessions because I'm afraid of making them feel bad, even though it may even just be an old hairbrush! Sometimes I apologize when I drop things, too. I get some odd looks at times.

 

You know, I mostly don't give a dam what people think. I't hard sometimes, but it's the easyest way to get through live being different.
And face it, bjd collecting is "different".
I treat my dolls like people, I spek to them if I want to, I cuddel them in public, I refer to them as if alive, when I'm alone, in family or with friends. When I see, someone is really unconfortable with that, and I apreciate that persons opinion enough, I just let the topic drop. I have enough other things I can relat to. But for the most part, the people around me tend to take up my "stange behavior". My sisters ex creeped me out one day, when out of the blue he said something like:
"You know, Jean said he is really angry thet you've kept him in that corner the whole day without his wig." Afterwards he got the wig from the table, got the doll, and put it on.
He shocked me for life that day, because it was so out of character for him....

So summing it up, bent a bit to other wished,coexisting is a giving and taking after all, but not to much, and don't let people hurt you. I would never make it a rule to not speak about a hobby to someone out of thet hobby. One most of the time you don't really know that person, and don't know if s/he is into that hobby at all, two, opening nwe perspectives to someone is one of lifes peasures, at least for me.
(I don't mean anyone should go around spaming strangers with their hobbies, use your brain on that point)