Long-timers, What trends have you observed?

As far as Volks goes, an original oldskin standard Sara cost ￥52,290 with tax, and one of their first limiteds Miko Sugata Nono cost ￥64,800 yen (but not sure if that's with or without tax). Nowdays a standard Sara costs ￥57,540 yen with tax and a usual SD10 girl limited (Carol) costs ￥81,900 with tax. So prices have gone up, but one must keep it in context; Volks has vastly improved their product since 1999 what with switching to Pureskin resin, redesigning the SD10 body three times now, and improving face ups on standards and limiteds. The limiteds also come with much more quality eyes, wigs, and more elaborate outfits.

 

There are always Elfdoll tinies (who actually have quite a bustline for such a small doll!) and Unoa Lights ;>

I've noticed a proliferation of new doll companies and new ranges (size-wise) from existing companies . . . it's amazing how many new dolls have come out since I first joined the hobby (almost two years ago), and how many previously-inaccessible artist-doll companies (Limhwa, Art-Tong/Doll In Mind, Supia, etc.) have become available to the Western market.

-- Andi

 

As Andi touched on, the difference in sizes of dolls over the years really has been a plus. From the BIG (Dollshe/Model Dolls) to the tinys (Lati/Elf etc). It's pretty awesome to be able to find little 1/12 scale dolls now to fit in your minature houses you had as a kid.

There also seems to be a lot more limited run dolls, I think. More, "For a limited time, OMG YOU HAVE TO BUY IT NOW OR ELSE", but perhaps it's only because I keep falling for the dolls that sell out or are limited.

HOWEVER, the good news is that the dolls in general are MUCH easier to get. I remember when my best friend Tom and I got our first doll in 2002, Tom had to fight tooth and nail for him on Ebay for Kit (a Volks Cecil). And it was crazy! And to buy clothes, accessories and stuff for them is SO much EASIER! We couldn't get anyone to make ANYTHING for my first dolls. Just so difficult. I was buying porcelain dolls and stripping them, PRAYING that they would fit. Well, I STILL do that, but that's beside the point (old habits die hard).

Tons more companies are cropping up with experimental dolls. Happily some with elves and vampires. Some with elaborate costumes. All vying for our business.

And Ebay would only have like two or three pages on there when you typed in Super Dollfie. Heh. Now look at it!

Oop... I hope I didn't go off topic.

 

Ah, this thread has been resurrected/linked to!

Someone may already have said this, but something else has occurred to me in the meanwhile, and has been expressed to me by friends as well . . . I've noticed an increase in attempts to "find the perfect mold" vs. "heavily customizing an existing mold" . . . while customization is still very much flourishing in terms of face-ups and clothing, I've seen a trend away from heavy modification (probably in part because there are so many new dolls to choose from).

However, there are some FANTASTIC mod artists out there who are doing more and more creative things with their dolls . . . and who really qualify as sculptors in their own right at this point, using doll parts in their original sculptures as opposed to simply making surface changes.

Thoughts?

-- A :>

 

I completely agree. When I first entered the hobby, I felt vaguely embarrassed because I hadn't the skills to modify or face-up my doll and felt very much in the minority in a hobby that seemed to be closer to garage kits than to fashion dolls. Now I don't feel that way at all--photographing your dolls is considered "enough," as is designing clothes or jewelry. You don't have to be willing to take a Dremel to your doll's head to be a part of this hobby anymore!

As far as private artists, it feels easier to send your doll out now. There are more customizers, there's more available feedback, and you don't have to be in the "in" crowd to get on someone's customizing list. (You may not have had to be in the crowd before, but when I joined, it kinda seemed that way. Of course, that's probably how ALL newcomers feel!)

 

I didn't own a doll until recently but I flitted in and out of this hobby for years already. What I noticed was...

First, Volks was impressively popular. It was practically all that one heard about when it came to BJDs. At least, for a newbie like me. ^_^; Enter a search on BJDs and almost always, a Volks doll would pop up.

At some point, DoD's minis were everywhere! They were so incredibly popular! Cons would have huge numbers of DoDs!

Companies have gone from specializing in a certain size to producing a variety of sizes. DoD has went from MSDs to SDs. Lati has went from Tinies to SDs. CP is producing every single size available on earth. I'm not too experienced, but I think it used to be that most companies (other than Volks) would produce only one size of doll or a variety of two.

Is it just me or is the hobby very photograph and story oriented now? I'm certainly insane when it comes to photos... I don't think it was so photo-oriented some time ago (correct me if I'm wrong), with epic photostories and written stories... Or at least, it didn't seem so to me when I was looking through LJs...

So I'm curious about the trends in dollmeets... Has it always been the same? Loads of people coming together? Or did it usually happen only like when there's a convention going on? Are there more small meets between fewer people nowadays? For story collaborations or just for smaller photo meets?

 

I have noticed a treand towards more realistic faces instead of "anime" like. I ahave also noticed the growing number of boy dolls being made. When I started ther were very few boy dolls, now they are everywhere!!
I am sure the ABJD market will change in the next few years, but I am not sure what the changes will be. It depends on what people buy the most of really.

 

The biggest meet I went to was a informal one we had a motel. Maybe 8 owners...the smallest will be Saturday, 2 owners. I have never been to a big meetup at a convention, like Otakon for example. So for me, it's always been small meetups, so the same.

 

Its gone from a niche market outside of Japan with only a few "weird people" as customers, and only on serious supplier, from whom it was very difficult to purchase, to practically main stream.

Ebay has gone from the occasional listing to too many pages to read.

Doll companies are too numerous to count. Doll sizes are too numerous to count.

Japan used to be the center of activity. Korea is now the center.

As already mentioned, the trend is towards more realism, less cute, and more males.