Possible to do the hobby on your own?

I don't see why not. Collecting BJDs is about the enjoyment you get out of them, and if the community at-large seems to be hindering your enjoyment then maybe it is time to take a step back. You could possibly go on hiatus for a few months to take a good breather and see whether or not you want to come back to the community.

 

Yes you can easily 'go it alone'. I don't have any local doll friends and Fresno manages meets every month or two, but only a few people show up. Nothing like the big doll meets you get in bigger cities. I sew by myself, take photos by myself, hang out the forums by myself... I haven't really made long distance friends with anyone on here. A few people I know personally, I go to the San Diego BJD con sometimes and catch up with them there.

But even the big social scenes come with their own problems.

 

It's really kind of funny how here we all are as bjd enthusiasts and/or collectors, which is a very specific hobby largely unrecognized and there are so many horror stories of rude interactions in what is supposed to be a community for celebrating that which brings us together. If someone has such a severe problem that they must resort to saying something negative, then THEY are the ones who should leave the community and take some time to themselves. No doll starts out as completely unique. They are cast as batches and may be painted to look the same, but once they reach our homes, they have a unique personality which we perceive and encourage. We change the clothes, we change the faceups, we give the doll toys to interact with as we use our own individual expression. It is a completely subjective hobby. No one has a right to denounce your personal expression here. I'm not going to tell you what you should or shouldn't do, because you aren't me. I hope you will disregard whoever was rude and see that you have three pages of people who welcome you here

 

I think if this is something you are confident enough to do on your own you should then totally do it. Whatever makes you happy. If these bad experiences you had were that bad, it's fine to take a step back. Being part of a community should be helpful and resourceful but also safe. If you don't feel safe it's okay to leave. I personally love DoA. Everyone is kind and there are always people always willing to led out a hand. I think since I'm still so new to this hobby people are more kinder with me since I'm still learning and getting used to everything haha. But of course this is my personal opinion. In the end it's your choice on leaving or staying.

 

I feel the same way as Hervoyel does: "I tend to think that at its heart doll-collecting (and customizing) is a solitary activity, so it's a strange question for me - you have to go out of your way to make it social, so it’s certainly much easier to do it on your own!"

I have never been involved within the doll community in my country. I personally met some people who liked BJDs once, during a larger event, and that was it.
It seemed to me like there was some drama going on at the time, and I had no desire to deal with that; also, it was obvious to me from the start that, aside from dolls, I don't seem to have much in common with collectors in my area. Our way of collecting BJDs is not even the same.

I participate in forum discussions occasionally, post a comment here and there, and that is all. Forums and online communities in general are useful for information and for making transactions possible. Also, there are topics and discussions which I enjoy reading about or participating

However, I really like my dolls. I like having them and admiring them. So the lack of involvement with a community does not detract from my enjoyment of this hobby. I am certainly in it for the dolls, not the community - and if the community were to disappear, I would still like them all the same. One can certainly enjoy having BJDs on their own.

 

I'm in this hobby for my personal gratification. I have no friends who like these dolls, I'm not active in this or any community... I've been in this hobby all by myself since 2005 and it's been worth it, my dolls make me happy and the only one I'm pleasing is myself.

 

In my opinion, it's very easy to go this hobby alone. Sometimes I take long breaks from posting and sharing to just shop and browse pretty pictures. I haven't ever been to a meetup, and while I think it would be fun I don't really know of any meetups that are close to where I live. These dolls are for my own personal enjoyment and if all BJD forums disappeared my dolls would still hold their glitter.

 

I do it alone as in I have no friends into this hobby, this is on the only doll forum I use. So yeah it's totally possible.

 

One of the reasons why I got into the hobby was to be able to enjoy it by myself. I know the collectors here where I live and I enjoy our meet ups and love talk to them, but I'll be moving to somewhere else at the end of the year and I don't know if I'll meet nice collectors there. If I have no other choice, I would be glad being on the hobby alone. The most precious moments with my dolls I spend alone with them, taking pictures, customizing or doing the maintenance.

 

Ha, I don't think I really could "go it alone" even if I wanted to! I met my boyfriend though the hobby and love sharing it with him, I even got my mum into BJDs a little bit so I'll always have someone to talk to when there's a new doll that I'm fangirling over. A lot of things I do with my dolls I do on my own; painting, photo shoots, restringing, sewing or making things for them, so it's not really necessary to have someone else with you (unless you're restringing a big doll lol!); so for me being on my own wouldn't be bad, I'd just find it a little lonely every so often.

I'm not a terribly social person, but back when I was just starting out (in '08) I wanted so badly to make friends and meet with other people who also shared the same enthusiasm for the dolls I cherish (and BJDs are pretty much the only thing I can talk about!). Which has ended up with me usually organising the local meets now! XD I've met some really wonderful people at those meets that I would have never known, had it not been for dolls!

Online is easier, I can lurk about and just disappear if I want to have a break from the dramas, or people who's opinions I don't agree with. And sometimes you just need to take a break from it all! The great thing about dolls is that you can put them away for a while, and they'll still be waiting for you when you come back!

 

Yeah, it's totally possible. I've been on my own so to speak for about two years. I don't go to meet-up or spend much time posting on the forums I belong to. I just enjoy my dolls in my own way.

 

I have been collecting BJDs for a bit over four years. I don't have any friends who collect any kind of dolls and its only in the last month or so that I have joined any online community. And although the online community has brought somewhat more enjoyment for me and has allowed me to learn so much, I got into the hobby because of my love for the dolls and enjoyed collecting them completely on my own and would continue to do so without the forums. So yeah I think you can definitely enjoy the dolls and the hobby on your own

 

i think once u feel good. then do it. cause you just feel what you feel

 

My doll isn't here yet - but I believe that once it's here I wouldn't dare to show her to my normal friends.. I believe that they will think I'm weird?

So I believe I'll just do this hobby myself I guess.. with the help of you guys who are probably the only few people I know with similar interests ...

 

Just a word of advice but... don't be afraid to share your hobby with your friends even if they are unable to understand it entirely. If you have it and then they happen to find out eventually they'll think it's even stranger since you'll have treated it as a "dirty little secret". Your friends don't need to know all about the gory details (like what mods you did to your doll or their character and backstory) but it's not that bad to discuss it with them casually and in passing like your other hobbies you don't share with them. Be proud of your hobby and your dolls and all the wonderful things you do with them and you'll see people will find it a lot less weird; it's mostly about the way you put it.

Back on topic; yes I believe it's entirely possible for one to do the hobby on their own although I find that it's wonderful and it makes me happy that I can talk with others about it and post pictures and look at pictures and have little conversation and fun while I'm at it. I suppose it's because I'm a friendly person, however. xP I just love meeting new people and making friends and my inbox is always open for anyone that might want to contact me for whatever reason or no reason at all.

 

Don't let a few bad apples stop you from enjoying the whole pie

I've read too often lately of newcomers in the hobby leaving groups and such because of all the negative talk, it really sucks..and I totally understand why they have I've read some pretty bad posts...I've even thought about it a few times myself. When I get feeling like that I just stop going to the groups for a few days and just enjoy my dolls or work on some projects. I've met some great people here on DOA and FB so I'm thankful that I got into the social aspect of the hobby. If I hadn't I'd still have just as many dolls I'm sure because I just enjoy dolls! Always have always will use to play with all my Barbies by myself so I'm sure I could do the same with my BJDs. I'm lucky to have a great local group as well, they don't seem judgemental and they are easy to talk to. Sorry to hear you are having bad experiences, do what you feel is right for you right now...we'll all still be here if you decide to come back.

 

You've had lots of other responses but I'll still add my 2 cents.

If you feel you'd be happier getting rid of your dolls or just stepping away from the community... go ahead and try it out. I'm a loner myself, I wouldn't blame you But every hobby has people that will give you a horrible experience. I myself almost ragequitted over one particularly *twitch* person in the letterboxing community.

I've wanted BJDs for 10ish years, I just not have my first one and I'm getting into the community BUT I think you could enjoy it by yourself. You'll miss out of stuff, like goodies in the marketplace, possible friendships and information/feedback... but you could totally do it.

And you know, you can always come back to it if you miss it.

 

It's absolutely possible! I sort of go it alone--Of course since I'm here on DoA I post every once in a while, but that's about it since I'm so shy, even on the net. (Plus my dolls aren't really anything special and I'm not really good at photography, so I rarely participate in the sharing business.) I take terrible silly pictures of my dolls for fun and chill with them by myself, posing them in all kinds of dumb ways and getting inspiration from them. They're still tons of fun, even without anyone else to really speak to them about. (Though I am a naturally solitary person.)

If being in a community puts you on shaky ground or you're feeling a little off about something, giving yourself a little alone time might be beneficial. You could figure out that you'd rather enjoy your hobby with minimal interaction, and even if not that you'll likely have cooled down and felt a little better due to your vacation away from the crowd.

 

Hi, I have been interested in BJDs since 2007, and was completely computer illiterate at the time. So I have been more used to it just being me and my dolls. I am an artist and I have sewn costumes for many years, so my dollies have oodles of clothes and weird props. Most of my joy in the hobby is just making them stuff. I only started going to doll meets last Halloween. I live way out in the boonies and have to drive about an hour to get to the nearest meets. I have only slowly learned to use the forums, this is one of two that I look at. I really only have one "doll friend" who is into the hobby. I don't think you necessarily need other people to enjoy this hobby. I ADORE my dolls and would never consider getting rid of them, even if there were no one else on the planet in the least interested in them. The hobby is what you chose for it to be.

 

I think it's definitely possible o go your own way with the hobby. Your dolls ARE the hobby, and you don't need the input from other people to do what you need to do to continue it. It good every now and then to just kind of step back from the community.