Losing Interest In BJDs?

I think these feelings come naturally with any hobby, really. There are times where I'm really into stamp collecting then I don't do anything with it for years. Then something triggers it again (another cool stamp, rediscovering unfinished projects, etc). Same thing with my other hobbies that have nothing to do with BJDs. Likewise, there are times where I'm on Den of Angels at all hours for days/weeks/months at a time and then I just stop depending on what life throws at me. Same thing with my dolls. I go through periods where I pick a few to hang out with me and I craft/sew/buy something for them, play with them (dress them, do photo shoots, write stories), maybe even go on an outing with them (pre-pandemic) in a public place, but other times they just sit where I last left them gathering dust. I have a friend that goes back and forth with the hobby with anywhere from months to years inbetween of not doing anything with BJDs/DoA then getting back into it again then off again. It's very cyclic I think for us.

The whole negative association thing is so totally real. I myself for the first time haven't really bonded with a new doll and I am realizing it's because I have guilt over how much I paid for her. She's a secondhand doll and I usually am a first owner or get limited editions that are usually worth the secondhand market costs. Even though she was on my Grail list for a few years, I think it's because I saw another one go on sale for less around the same time and I felt bad about paying higher even though I technically got more with her (full set, provenance/proof that's she's legit, all accessories, default/no modding, etc). It's getting easier with time, but I have known other BJD owners sell even Grail dolls from their collection if there were any negative association with them (health problems, traumatic events, financial costs, reminder of exes, etc).

Sometimes, changing things up a bit helps. Like giving a doll a new wig, outfit, eyes, shoes, and/or face-up if you really feel a negative association with one for whatever reason. Or maybe do things with the doll that creates happy memories like watching comedies with it or hanging out/video calling loved ones with it. Over time, whether changing it's look or creating happy memories with it will create more positive associations with it. And if the negative feelings are still there, nothing wrong with stopping the hobby for a while or selling the doll. Do what's right for you, that's all that matters.

 

I have been inactive for something like... 4-5 years at this point. Other than occasionally seeing something on the marketplace I can't resist, I don't actually do much with my dolls. I have a bunch waiting for clothes. My Follshe David has been needing his wig finished for 6 years...
I have some very old orders from Dollshe coming in and I'm trying to get back into the hobby so that I can try to feel some love for them and get them some eyes/wigs/clothes.
Instead of just having them sit on a shelf for 6 years waiting.

I'm not sure what would make me feel involved again. Though I know I miss taking photos with my partner and making stories and such.

Maybe someday that spark will come back.

I have thought of selling them many times. But every time it comes down to it I just can't bear the thought. I loved them all for such a long time. I guess I'll just keep hoping.

 

I was pretty uninterested in the hobby during the pandemic (I think because my mental health wasn't the best) but very recently I've fallen back in love with the hobby and even purchased a new doll (With plans to buy bodies for my floating heads) as my mental health improved I was able to find joy in the things I loved once again ❤️

 

That is just natural with any hobby really where you have moments of disinterest but become interested in it once again.
Me personally I started becoming interested in BJDs once more recently after I commissioned my FFXIV character into a 11cm doll. Now I want to shell him to a bjd!

 

My interest slowly returned after an almost 5 year hiatus. I'm glad I didn't sell any of my dolls, but unfortunately not all of them are with me now.
In any case, I like my old-fashioned stylized dolls even more now - my taste has not changed.
What has changed is that for some reason I didn't want to take as many photos as I used to. Just enjoy the doll being displayed and do some crafts. So the interest is back, but the details have changed.

 

I've been disinterested in my bjds lately. I think it's because, to me, my dolls are very closely tied to a place where I was happy. I haven't been able to spend much time there for three years and I've been pretty down as a result. I'm also a little short on space at the moment so most of my dolls are in storage.

It is what it is.