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Not Fitting In With Other Collectors?

Jan 29, 2021

    1. .
       
      #21 Gintsumi, Jan 31, 2021
      Last edited: Feb 28, 2024
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    2. I feel very similarly to you. The only reason any of my dolls even have names is for the sake of making their doll profiles. I literally have to reference back to my profile all the time to remember what I named them when I need to, because I don't refer to them by names. To me, they are beautiful objects that I love to paint, practice modifications/restorations on, to sew for and to photograph. They are vessels for my creativity.

      There are dolls I like more than others because I find them more aesthetically appealing, not because of their "personality" or our "bond". If I have ever stated I didn't "bond" with a doll it just meant that, despite my best efforts of changing eyes or wigs, I still didn't like how it looked.

      I don't write characters for my dolls or give them personality traits 95% of the time. I too find it difficult to engage in those sorts of conversations with other collectors, but I respect where people are coming from when they do so. It's just another outlet for creativity that I just don't have a hand in!
       
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    3. You are obviously not alone. My dolls are elaborate action figures that I can art the hell out of with endless possibilities. Once I put them together, they kind of make a story on their own. Thats about as far as the fantasy goes for me.
       
    4. I totally agree. I like them cuz they are pretty to look at. That's why I was out of the hobby for such a long time. I didn't have the space to display them and I just forgot I suppose. My dolls have names but I also don't really use it. might sound strange but their personality is not decided by me but how they look in clothes and wigs etc.
       
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    5. I think that there are so many ways to enjoy dolls, but some are more visible or sharable than others. Someone who likes to display their dolls, but not photograph them or make characters, will probably have less to add to discussion boards about characters, personality, sharing photos, etc. I think a lot of what we see in the hobby is based on what is already being shared and talked about. There are tons of collectors who bond intensely with their dolls and talk to them and tons of collectors who view their dolls are objects or art, no emotional attachment.

      I think that this is due to personal or cultural factors a lot of the time. Some people treasure all of their objects and view them as having spirits or personalities, even things like pens or mugs. Other people view all objects as inert, without personality.

      Dolls are interesting because they are meant to look like us. They are intended to convey something about what it means to be human (or non-human, or animal, etc). But what they convey is a matter of artistic vision (from the creator and the owner) and the experience of the viewer. There is no wrong way to experience art!

      Also my 2 cents: If you look around at any group of people, there will always be differences and similarities in experience. It's up to us which we focus on.
       
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    6. I feel as though I don't fit in with other collectors because I collect a lot of everything and not just BJD related things.
       
    7. You aren't alone there. Many of us have other collections (or collections of collections)

      I have a house full of collections, BJD (of course), other dolls/bears/stuffies, books, fabrics, cards, china... etc. My husband is also a collector so we have his weaponry and armour, military figures, netsuke, plus his own books, fabric, and the like.

      If anything, collecting other stuff too should make you feel you fit in more.

      Teddy
       
    8. I feel exactly the same way, you're not alone.
       
    9. When I first came into this hobby I thought bonding with a doll was sort of a must. So imagine my disappointment when after waiting for half of year for my first doll, I didn't feel any kind of bond whatsoever. At one point I even thought that this hobby might not be my thing, because I had no interest in crafting, photography or any other "popular" doll activities. Eventually, I came to realize that I'm happy with just having dolls. They look nice, I like them and that's plenty enough.
       
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    10. This may be tough, but I do not care whether I "fit in" or not. I play by the rules, yes. But I do with my dolls what I want. I am now at a point where I became really good at crafting things for them and customizing my dolls. To me, my dolls are first and foremost giant action figures. I have a tendency to experiment and try out new things, I do not care much about tradition and "we have always done it like that". I also find lately that not much has happened in doll manufacturing, mostly more of the same. But that is okay for me, I love my crew.

      So I do rarely buy a doll because I like it (it happened...one time), but because I plan which movie character (I do not know, I am not interested in creating my own) from the beginning I choose a sculpt.

      If I want something, I find ways to make it. And yes...I will get my big boys to fly, you shall see. It may not be perfect from the beginning...but we get there, when we get there.
       
      • x 1
    11. Same. My dolls are only one collection of several... I suspect that's more common than you might think.
       
    12. I don't think it's weird, there are no rules how you should collect or enjoy the hobby.
      I even have doubts what I am myself when it comes to dolls. Do I collect them? Do I play with them? The big thing for me when it comes to my dolls is making sure they are of good quality, good looking, well posing and that I can make costumes for them.

      What I find a little difficult when thinking about the whole bjd community is that it is only the bjd community. I have over 20 dolls but only 2 of them are bjds. When I talk about ''my dolls'' I usually think of them all. Although it's obvious many of us collect a variety of dolls, and also that the bjd forum should only be limited to bjds, it still makes me feel like I do not fully fit in.
       
    13. It's funny; from my perspective, viewing dolls as dolls always came off as the norm. On the other hand, I've always been severely self-conscious over having a companion doll to the point that, despite her desperately needing a makeover, I put off commissioning anyone until recently out of fear for being negatively judged at how much my favorite girl means to me on personal level. I'm a mushy, sentimental person like that. :(
       
    14. I love my dolls a lot because they are pretty, but I mainly got into buying my own dolls for marketing purposes. I shell them for specific characters and when a sculpt comes around that fits the character more (body type, facial expression, etc) I reshell. I do love all my dolls though. I like buying them new outfits and the few chances to take them to a meet is fun. I don't ever think I'll own a doll because I wanted the doll, it has to be a "this would work exactly for this character" for convention needs. I get more people to my table with a doll display vs no doll. They're my mascots at this point (I only table for my comic btw).

      I reshelled one doll already and I do miss the original doll, but I'm way happier with what I have now. And that's why I try to not go to meets because my love for dolls is different I guess. :c
       
      • x 1
    15. I think this pretty normal for people with the collector mindset, that dolls are a beautiful item that you want to own a number of for different reasons. That's how I am. All of my dolls have loose characters, there's a loosely strung together (pun intended) storyline for all of them, but the only real bond I have is how much I like the doll. I have two dolls I'll never sell for actual emotional reasons, my first doll (a gift from my best friend that hates dolls) and my DOD Sha (who was my friend's first doll and wanted him to go to a friend when she decided his character didn't need to be shelled anymore). I have characters that I'm a little attached to, and I have sculpts that I LOVE and never want to try to find again. But I don't ascribe any moods or feelings or anything to my dolls, they're not comfort items for me, and I usually have them in a case to protect them from sunlight, my cat, and my own clumsiness. My sibling LOVES their dolls, and has deep bonds with the characters and has a strong attachment to the physical chunk of resin for each of their dolls, and selling dolls is TORTURE.

      I like getting them lovely face ups and pretty clothes and wigs and eyes, and coming up with story ideas that I'll probably never write but that's okay, and looking at them in their cabinet and thinking it's nice to have so many rare and discontinued dolls. I like that bjd history is something I can nerd out on among people who've never heard of them and sound knowledgeable because our history is like 20 years long. I've spent long hours researching Volks and old CP Delfs because the OLD sculpts are my JAM. A lot of the collecting hobby for me is finding old, discontinued, rare, limited, retro sculpts. The older the better. It's not about having a doll family for me, it's about HISTORY. And pretty things.

      Don't feel bad about not fitting in. I've been to a couple doll meets and doll cons. I can tell you this: many doll people who are wonderful online are awkward in person. It's hard to feel like you fit in. Don't sweat it if you feel like you're not part of the gang right away.
       
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    16. Definitely,I’ve never felt any kind of bond with a doll and I have no issue letting one go when I become bored with it.
      That being said,I may not be able to relate when it comes to growing attached to a doll-but I do find it interesting that so many hobbyists are able to do so.
       
    17. Looking thru this thread I suspect your approach is more common than you'd thought. I know it's very similar to mine.... I don't have a deep personal "bond" between me and my dolls. I don't view them as emotional support objects, I don't hold them, cuddle them, etc. (I have a fat bulldog for all that!) The enjoyment I get from them is in sewing, crafting, customizing, and in general using them as a creative outlet and then enjoying seeing them on display in my art room.

      When I first started collecting BJD, my dolls really didn't have stories. I thought they never would, but over the years, my mind has ended up spinning very detailed, intricate narratives for each doll's character, without me really setting out to do so. I enjoy the imaginary worldbuilding, and the way it gives me new ideas for how to customize the dolls according to their characters...but I pretty much keep the dolls' stories to myself and it doesn't make me any more emotionally invested in the physical dolls themselves.
       
    18. I feel out of place but that is because I don't like being part of large groups, and I get hyper focused on the dolls I have. I am not crafty, or patient enough to really try making things. I don't make stories for my dolls, I have tried but nothing really sticks. I just like to dress them up and look at them. I have asked myself often why I can't just look at photos and save the money! I haven't figured that one out yet. I also don't "bond" with my dolls. I enjoy them but I don't get too attached, because when life happens if I need money they are the first things to go :(
       
    19. I think a lot of collectors have a high sense of pride in their dolls; it doesn't make you (or them) weird. It may come off as overly complex, but honestly we all show pride in our dolls in different ways. After all, a lot of us have saved for months to own these luxury items. We work hard in crafting things for them or creating literature about them..its just a sense of pride and accomplishment attached to them. :) Having simply a display doll is showing just as much pride as someone who creates clothing for their dolls or routinely does photoshoots.
       
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    20. I don’t “bond” with my dolls either, I didn’t even give them a proper name yet! I have no backstory for them, they’re not characters. I love my dolls but they’re not like my children to me. I mainly use my dolls as pretty decor. I am in the artistic side of BJD collecting though because I enjoy sewing clothes for them and crafting tiny room decor and furniture.