Keeping your passion alive

I make collages about my dolls lol .

I know it's silly but it's the easiest way for me to organize my thoughts.

Whenever I buy a new item I add it to the collage

 

I'm good at waiting, so I don't really lose interest in a hobby except my problem is every few years I feel suddenly overwhelmed by what I might be collecting at the time and will give up on it. I did that with funko, non-bjd dolls, and some other stuff I used to collect. The only collecting hobby I kept for years is collecting BTS items. I wanted to collect bjds for years, so I think I won't lose interest with bjd collecting, but I am feeling overwhelmed right now by how many amazing dolls there are. I think I need to slow down on the collecting and take the time to now enjoy having my collection.

Some things I do when I wait for a doll are:

1. Browse for items my doll might need
2. Make a wish list of dolls I want
3. Watch doll related material
4. Plan out my doll wardrobe and other items
5. Think what face up I want for my doll and who I want to commission the face up to
6. Research on other bjd brands

7. Read up learning bjd stuff
8. Researching face sculpts and doll sizes to see which I will like best
9. Think up a story for my dolls
10. Researching resin colors to see what I will like

11. Doing everyday life stuff
12. Playing with dogs/cats/or any other pet you may have. If you don't have a pet then ignore this one.
13. Watching kdramas that really eats up your time. It can really help distract you from the long wait time. I didn't really realize how long the wait times would be for bjds. I thought about 4 to 6 months, but for many of my dolls I waited over a year, but it didn't really feel that long to me. I think for others 1 or more years might feel like forever.

14. Browsing doa helps eat up the time too. The site took me awhile to get used to, so I was on the site a lot.
15. Organizing my doll purchases in my gallery takes a lot of time maybe you should try to screenshot your doll you want. I'm actually really behind on that. It helps with the wait time for me when I go back to my doll gallery and see what I purchased. I can see what options I got for my doll. It makes me excited for my doll to arrive. It helps me see what type of face sculpt I like as well. I was surprised as I was scrolling through my doll gallery that many of my doll face sculpts had a similar look to them.

I hope this was helpful.

 

I've always collected other toys besides BJD, most of those take at least a year (if not longer) to release (like scaled figures of all genres). I don't mind waiting for BJD to be shipped to me, because I have a ton of other stuff that will take much longer. Sometimes, I even forget that I had a specific figure coming, because it took so long to release, or kept getting delayed (without notifications). With BJD, I usually only have one on "pre-order" at any given time. So it's less stressful in a way, and because I have so many other OT pre-orders going on, I kind of forget about the BJD waiting to be made for me. DX

Having said that, I don't normally purchase a lot of BJD anyway and I'll probably won't be purchasing more (unless more mature tiny options are available in the future and one of them tempts me beyond what's available now). I've only purchased one BJD recently, after more than a decade of not having any desire to do so. I don't feel that's going to change, but I definitely don't mind waiting for BJD, because it is more often than not, not the longest I've waited for something to rereleased (I always feel more anticipation for scaled figures/and-or/games to arrive to me, than dolls, to be honest). Not helpful, if you're not a hoarder collector of other OT toys, but maybe turning your focus onto other hobbies might help you keep yourself distracted from your BJD's arrival. (:

 

I might add a few things to the above....
* Sewing for dolls I have
* Making pretty storage for doll clothes, wigs, shoes, props
* Cleaning up the mess from above activities
* Making dioramas
* Developing histories for their characters
* Making doll furniture
( also, I must recommend all the live Kabuki on Netflix!! )

 

Once I've ordered I largely forget about it until I get the shipping notice.

Since my dolls aren't pre-planned I don't do any of the gettig n the right wig and eyes or whatever in advance as I won't know what thwe rigth ones are until I have the doll in hand and am gettign to know who they are.

Teddy

 

I'm like you @Teddy, I don't pre-plan other than seeing a doll I really like and decide that I "need". I keep saying that I will not buy anymore dolls until the ones I have are all properly clothed...right! Once the doll is ordered I don't do much advance preparation. Each time I've chosen a wig ahead of time, the new arrival doesn't like it, so who am I to argue. Now, since there is a big box of unused wigs to chose from, I try on the ones I think look right and see what happens.

I also don't think too much about the order until the shipping notice arrives. The wait time between the order and the shipping notice seems to pass fairly quickly. The time between the shipping notice and the package's arrival seems like an eternity however!

Donna

 

.

Same here - I can usually find the right colour and narrow down the style that way, even if none of those wigs are quite the right one for the new arrival. Same with eyes and clothing... of course, getting around to making or buying the right clothing is another matter entirely...

Teddy

 

I think the first wait was the hardest! Once you have one doll at home, you can always do something for that one while waiting for others.

For me, I have sewn and embroidered her some clothing. Of course, it was my first project, so it was not that nice, but I had to start somewhere. XD

 

I've got the opposite problem of sorts; I can't stop thinking about the new doll! I go perhaps a little bonkers waiting Hopefully my tips on satiating the interest helps keep it alive for ya.

Watching faceup videos and sewing tutorials is great. I'd suggest using some patterns to make some clothes, but if yours is an odd duck, might be easier to wait until you've got them in hand. Unless you find some patterns for that doll, or ones that you know will fit. (Which, if you haven't already, looking up the doll here in the various forums can get you some nice information, and you can always ask questions!)

Planning storage/display is also a good, er, plan. Mine lived in their boxes at the start before I got a little IKEA cabinet for them! Not hauling them out of their box each time makes it easier to go and do stuff with them. I also got a dollhouse for my OT playline dolls; depending on the size of your doll, space, and budget, you might be able to get a pre-built dollhouse for relatively cheap (especially if you also get Thrifting Luck), it might be pricier, or you might be dedicating a lot of space to them. (Tbh, my pipe dream for my BJDs is to have a spare small closet I can turn into a giant dollhouse for them! I've seen people use display cabinets and such for that purpose, too.)

Speaking of Thrifting Luck, shopping around for fabric and furniture so you've got supplies on hand is a good way to use up a long length of time. I love the "thrill of the hunt," so to speak, especially when it nets a good find. Plus, if it doesn't work out, it's not as much of a blow to the budget as full-price fabric, notions, and especially custom props or furniture.

 

I’ve always purchased the dolls for my collection on long layaways, rolling the payments comfortably into my regular household budget…so I’m always waiting! I won’t buy a doll however without a pre-conceived character in mind. So while I wait, I pass the time refining that character, taking my time with it and just enjoying the creative process. I love research, so I’ll do a deep dive into fine-tuning all those little details like naming, display possibilities, possible relationships, etc. I’ll make decisions about wig and eye options, and make sure those are on hand by the doll’s arrival. If at all possible, I’ll develop a clothing style for them and start working on their wardrobe. I truly enjoy the process of all this early preparation, and it really helps the time pass in a fun way for me.

 

The situation was a bit different for me with my first doll, since I bought him used from another Finnish doll collector. It was not a long wait, only couple of days. I consider myself lucky for being able to get my first doll so fast. Wilhelm, the first doll I ordered from a company, however took a bit longer. I waited for him for 4 months. I was actually prepared for more, so I was positively surprised when I got him after four months of waiting! For me the waiting keeps me motivated. I can manage my personal life better when I know I have something so very dear to wait for.

Some things I do when waiting for my dolls to arrive:
- Right now DoA has been a great inspiration boost to me! I honestly can't wait for my Doll Chateau Enoch to come. I've been very inspired about my BJDs for months now and writing stuff here makes me even more motivated in this hobby.
- Looking at other people's gorgeous photos inspires me a lot!
- I tend to make new doll plans...
- I think about all the photo ideas I have for the upcoming doll(s).
- Sometimes I buy clothes and other stuff for the doll I'm waiting for.

 

I use my camera a lot to make doll stories or scenes to keep the interest alive. Great stories make the dolls you have more alive. I think of them as my muse, constantly inspiring new things. Also, I pass the time by making props and sewing for them.

 

My interest/ energy for most of my hobbies waxes and wanes. Sometimes I have more energy for various things than others, which can in itself also be a problem when I end up having days where I want to do a lot, but can't decide what. With dolls, it helps that they're a more tangible item. I can have them out and see and look at them and be happy to see them.

I also like watching face up videos, or wig styling, mods, etc. It's interesting to me, so that helps too. I don't really have plans for a large collection to being with, so I'm not too concerned if my interest waxes a bit while waiting or even after a doll is here.

 

I've been in the hobby long enough that the waits don't seem quite so long to me anymore, but it still involves a lot of prepping! For me, all of my dolls are physical representations of my role play characters, so I'm picky about how they look and having all the right things. If you don't have a character planned, many of these things might not apply to you. So:

For character dolls:
-write out a character sheet
-role play the character to get a better grip on their personality
-figure out a backstory

For any doll:
-look through wig and eye options and bookmark the ones you like best
-do the same with clothes/shoes
-find or make accessories
-plan what kind of photo shoots you might want to do
-plan for a faceup, whether that be company, commission or doing your own
-if you're doing your own, research safe materials and safety precautions and make sure you have everything you need

And then....sit back, relax, and enjoy other hobbies and activities to keep yourself from checking the status every single day!

 

I have Pinterest boards for each of my dolls and for concepts for dolls that I don't have yet, it's a fun way to pull character inspiration, outfit and makeup inspo together into one place. I also like to write character bios (will normally fill out a character sheet) and write for them a bit to get a better sense of what their vibe will be like. I also like to plan out an 'arrival look' so they aren't sitting around bald/naked when they first get here, lol. So I try to have wigs/eyes and at least a first outfit ready to go!

 

See I’m impatient and I couldn’t do that my first time around. I had to get myself an in-stock doll lol