Only allowing yourself to buy "cheaper" dolls?

I was just debating this myself- but honestly, since many of the dolls on my super wishlist are 400+ I think I'm just going to have to save money until I can afford the dolls I want. The thing about BJDs that struck me right away was that you can't just up and get them- it's partly the saving and working hard for the dolls that make them so special- so no, I won't be restricting myself to cheaper dolls. If I happen to have the money and there's a less expensive doll on my list that I want then sure I'll get it, but it's not in place of the more expensive one- it's just what I can get for the time being untill I can eventually get my dream doll.

 

I don't see a problem with ordering a less expensive doll. some of us can not afford to buy 500+ dollar dolls. and if you really love the doll I see no problem with buying it.
though on a side note I don't like the word cheap. even though they cost less; someone did work very hard to make that doll and calling it cheap make it sound of poor quallity.

 

Imho, no one I know irl truly knows the value/worth of my dolls and would probably flip if they knew what I paid for them (frugal bunch!)
Actually for insurance purposes I'm adding up the value and have to put a cap on this beautiful habit somehow...
I think of it like shoes: Sometimes you buy 3 pairs of crumby sneakers each year, when you could have bought one pair of gortex hikers that would've lasted you three years. The price works out the same, but sometimes a cheap pair of Adidas are all you really want and need LOL and then a pair of Vans and Pumas. It's really a matter of preference and affordability. At least we ALL know there will never be a bjd thrown in the landfills!! LOL

 

I'm doing the same thing. I find CP KDFs to be just as affable as Volks' 01 despite the varying costs. KDF dreaming cherry [$275] vs. the SD Megu [non-renewal] [$603]; I'm purchasing the KDF before the Megu as a direct result of her cost. I think it should be noted that the less expensive dolls can be spoiled more easily because they're economical.

I am one of those people.

People's lives vary, some can't afford their ideal doll because of extenuating circumstances. I'm moving out in a few weeks, there are car issues and am currently unemployed.. a Williams is the last thing on my mind.

It's sort of cool that this is brought up because it's a deeply rooted philosophical dilemma. Materialism vs. Idealism. Do you buy the more convenient doll or do you sacrifice, a potentially unremitting ordeal for some, to achieve the ideal? There's no easy answer and it's a personal thing.

But here's my reasoning for why I do it: I'm buying the less expensive ones on my wish list of dolls first. This is because I want the experience of caring for a doll before I get in over my head in resin.

I'd like for it to be known that not everyone can afford their ideal and many never will. I don't think it's ethical to judge them because they find a substitute in cheaper resin. It's an individual thing as to how we cope with our desires.

I think it's justifiable although I don't think terms of "right" and "wrong" can be applied here.

 

Gah, this thread really hit me today. I had all but decided to get a Fantasydoll Nina, and then on ebay this morning I see a DD for a really good price. The DD is not my dream doll, but neither was the Fantasydoll. The DD comes with a wig (in a tollerable, but not ideal color) and eyes.

I think I'm gonna go with the DD. And hold my breath and hope I like her! If I don't, I can always put her on the market, right?

 

I suppose it just depends on your tastes. By the way, what exactly is your dream doll?

 

I'm still very new when it comes to owning BJDs, and I'd be lying if I said that the price for one doll alone wasn't a bit of a turnoff when I talked to owners I saw at conventions. I'm quite lucky that I found this forum, seeing as I wouldn't have heard about Customhouse's fantastic sale and my Junior AI Marco without it, not to mention all the invaluable advice and information here~

I don't think there's anything wrong with saving up for a doll you absolutely love - heck, I'm going to be putting aside a percent of the profits from my plushie/accessorie biz to by my little guy a new friend~ (probably another Junior AI because I've absolutely fallen head over heels for them)

 

Wonder how many non-Americans are replying to this thread and have to pay more because of the low rate of the dollar in their country. My last dolly purchase cost approx. 35% more because the Australian dollar sucks atm. To an American, that doll costs US$480, to me it cost AU$756 without shipping. I kid you not! Not everyone has the luxury of purchasing goods at American prices.

 

I am very guilty of this. I wanted a doll sooo badly that when I found a head for under $80 USD I just jumped at him. That's not to say that I don't love him, but I wish that I had just put the money toward by Hid Boy (DZ) instead of jumping the gamut. I also sacrificed what I view as quality by buying an f-doll body instead of the Dollzone one for the head. I really wanted the double-jointed chest, but a doll for under (grand total) $150! That's amazing! So, long story short, I went and bought myself a boy, and now I don't have any money toward my dream children, and I have a nice (albeit cheap) boy. But I will admit that I have bonded with him very well, so I'm glad to have hm.

 

I won't pay ridiculous sums of money (no matter how much I like a doll, I won't pay $1000 for one), but I don't find that my favourite dolls are that out of reach, or that I have to buy the cheaper ones just because I want a doll.

When I wanted a doll very badly, I found the perfect starter doll for me (she was £180 at the time, but worth much more now) and my collection grew from there. I bought dolls when I could afford them and held back when I had to. There is not a single doll in my collection I regret buying, (not even the tricky ones that pose badly!) and the 'cheapest' was bought because I wanted that particular doll, not because I thought she was cheap.

By all means, use your money however you wish, but it is more important to me to get the dolls I like, and have to save up for them, than get the dolls I can afford right now, and get a doll I don't like as much.

 

My favorite doll is the one that cost the least.

Well, she's my first, but I don't see how any doll could get much better- such nice hands and face~

Most of the dolls on my wishlist are $300 +, but I'm paying for them, because I want them. I buy for the sulpt.

 

... most of the dolls on my wishlist are around $1500 now, since they are volks limiteds... I am saving up for them, but I just come across so many other cheaper dolls that I like and are readily purchasable (both as in their stock and my savings)... I'm a bit of a mix now as I know I should not spend the wishlist money on the other cheaper dolls as they are not the highest ranking on the wishlist and that perhaps part of the reason why I want them is because they are cheaper.

It worries me when I think there might be a possibility that I want to buy a doll because of her price, it doesn't feel right. I'm a bit stuck now as I should be saving up for volks lucas and chris but I realised I quite like KD bory and Litchi and that the price of a chris would cover twin Borys and a Litchi... It also worries me as I am afriad that I might not take care of the cheaper dolls as well as I should have as I might not actually want them as much... it would then just be wrong to buy them in the first place... it really bothers me... and I don't know what I should do now...

 

I think all of the dolls are quite expensive, but buy what you want as long as you can afford it, and afford to eat after. Some of the least expensive tinies i found from this http://www.denofangels.com/forums/showpost.php?p=3873512&postcount=144 post still could buy me so much more different things, thats why I am so torn about buying any dolls. But hey, as long as they make you happy.

 

I have to get in on this one. I have been "studying" BJDs for less than a year, which has given me a great amount of time to really find out about them, looking at people's pictures and seeing the poseability, different faceups, etc.

$612 (Soom's Spinel without shipping) converts to 838,593.00 Korean Won. I don't what that affords in Korea. Supposedly a bowl of Noodles is 3,000 Won. So what does 838,593. amount to?

I'm no snob when it comes to "certain things." And while I definately would not buy store brand over name brand in most cases the idea is just different to me when it comes to these dolls in particular. I feel they're taking advantage. When it comes down to it, the faceups WILL wear off, the resin WILL yellow, the strings WILL need to be tightened/loosed/changed, so why pay $400 as opposed to $150???? Unless it has the face sculpt you want.
Sure a fashion doll from the dollar store is not, and never will be, a Barbie. But resin is resin and the cheaper dolls prove that the expensive ones are priced on name brand alone. They are not better, just priced higher. Period! Sure I'd love a Maserati, but my Hyundai gets me where I need to be. Dolls are no different and it's the face sculpt that is most important to me.
I prefer some of the "cheaper" dolls because they have the right faces, which is very important to me.

I really loathe the fact that it's such an issue. Some want cheaper dolls because they have the right look, others buy them because they are what is affordable. Either way, why do owners/buyers deserve to be judged for it?

 

Well there goes my theory!

 

DanceCat, I was wondering on the bit you said about translating the costs. I went on the Korean AND the English site and thranslated the costs, and when put that way, the doll was $75 dollars cheaper. Now unless I got my costs wrong, this is quite a jump. I used the DOD Libra(HaHa) to see the costing, but it might be alot more for bigger dolls, but this is abit off topic. But i agree $150 is plenty to pay for a doll and seems just about right

 

Hmm. What exacily IS a cheap doll? We all have different views on what is classified as cheap and what is expensive. I'm not from a well-off family and I was brought up to apperaciate the value of money. I work my ass off every day and nearly all my money goes on bills and food.

Now, I'm realatively new to BJDs, I'll admit, but I have always loved dolls and have never seen the problem with owning them at 24 (I'm called childish by my family but it's my life at the end of the day). However, after reading all the responses about the prices that are 'cheap' makes me feel kind of bad that I have 'only' spent £275 ($410) (well, add an additional £150 ($200) on clothes and what not) on a doll that I instantly fell in love with. In my eyes, that amount of money is a lot, especially with the recession and the constant threat that I could lose my job any day now (I'm in retail, which is being hit pretty hard).

So, is it actually classifed as owning a cheap doll if it was expensive to me? It really should not matter to me what others think about the dolls I own - I love them all and that is all that should matter. I mean, I have looked around and none of the really expensive dolls have jumped out at me. I saw the doll I wanted and knew that I had to get her. I guess Im strange lol.

 

Not sure what you mean here Lady Leprechaun. I used the currency converter to find out what $612 USD converts to in Korean Won. It sounds like a lot but I can't find good enough websites that show me costs and pricing in Korea so I can't say if it's actually an outstanding amount or not.

 

That's exactly what I'm doing. There aren't any seriously expensive dolls on my list, but I'm getting the cheaper one before I get the one I fell in love with, because I want to make sure I actually like dolls before spending that many hundreds of dollars on them.


The only time there's something morally wrong with choosing an expensive doll over a cheap one is when it puts the buyer into debt they can't handle. It's not okay to cheat people out of their money, and it's never even a little bit okay to do so for a doll.

 

I agree with the ethics you just expounded upon regarding the purchase of dolls vs. debt/cheating people out of their money. Exactly, I think some get into this hobby too ambitiously and who have the funding to oversight themselves and get too deep into the hobby before they even realize if it's for them. I've seen a few people who's first doll was actually an extravagant purchase of highly expensive dolls; yes, plural. But it's their money at the end of the day. So..

I just think, for me, I need to be sure. Go on a few dates before I'm ready to sleep with a doll, you know?