Rare or popular: discuss your preference

I get (or put on my wishlist, anyway) a doll I like. Now, a doll I like has to be a doll I have seen, so the more popular dolls on the boards are the ones I'm likely to see owner pics of and go "oooh! lookee how neat that facemould came up!" but I try to keep up with the news here on DoA and look at ALL the dolls I can.

I feel a little bit resistant about jumping on the popularity bandwagon, because I know how everyone (including me!) can get swept along by the excitement of it all and maybe end up impulse-buying a doll for the wrong reasons. But that didn't stop me from getting an elf Pepe and I don't regret it at all. But there was a lot of BC Elf action in the marketplace shortly thereafter so I guess I was one of the lucky ones.

 

I dont prefer the one above the other... but when I look at my dolls I see that my taste is different then others. The most popular mold I own is my souldoll Miryu head (dolkot body) But she doenst really get's more views as my Hye or my Fairygarden tiny's when I post them.

The esthatics of the dolls I own are more realistic and less anime as for example delfs. I just like that a lot better then the anime-ish molds a lot of people seem te like.

 

if i like i dont care if a doll is rare or common .

 

Neither. I couldn't give a red rats caboose whether a doll is popular or rare.

My only concern is: How much do *I* want this doll. Does it appeal to me in every way?

 

I'd rather buy a rarer doll than one that's popular.
It actually bothers me now that I thought about it.. but I reason my decision by the personalities of dolls I've already seen. It makes it hard for me to even think about getting the same doll, even if I adored the model greatly.

For example, I absolutely love Unoa L-Bi. But because my friend has had one for a few years and created a personality for him, I coulnd't buy one for myself. I guess it's because I'm afraid that the character I've used to see in her doll makes mine similiar in the end, even if I didn't mean it to go that way. Same thing goes with BF Kyle.

So, for me it's remarkably easier to get a doll that I like, but that hasn't been around so much. Like my Orlando Joey, I only know of one besides mine.
It might also be because the community I'm more active in is so small, that anyone pretty much knows everybody else's dolls. It's so much easier to get a doll nobody else has.

I guess it's about fear of (accidental) plagiarism with me, although I have found myself weirdly opposed to some doll-facturers in general, like LUTS. I realized that now that I found I actually very much want one of their dolls. Seems pretty weird, but.. I hope you guys understand what I'm trying to say.

 

gods i've been super pick in what i want for a body, because all 3 of the dolls we(my mom and me) are going to have,(i only have Aderyn so far) are all charaters from our heads. so the need to LOOK right in terms of the face.also the 2nd girl i get has to have a big bust. that is why i got into the BJDs in the frist place. is so i could make my exalted/common charaters. even my mom is being picky in what she wants for aderyn's twin brother's head.

 

Which is more appealing when buying a doll: that it's rare or that it's popular? I tend to buy what I like regardless of what others think of it. One of my first BJDs was Dollstown Estella. No one seemed to like her and when I went to meet ups, no one even commented on her. Much later she became very popular.

- Would you ever buy a more popular doll knowing that it could get you more gallery views? Conversely, would you ever choose not to buy a doll because you believe it is too popular and you are afraid to be seen as a follower? Neither...I am a terrible photographer so mostly I come to the gallery to enjoy other people's dolls.

- Are you more likely to click gallery threads because they feature a CP doll? Be honest! Nothing wrong with having a favourite company. I am more likely to click on a post that features a doll I am not so familiar with.

- Would you buy a doll that you had not seen on the forums? In the past I bought dolls I had only seen on the seller's sites. Since then I have decided that seeing live pics of an actual doll gives me a better idea of what the doll I order will look like with a company face or a customized face.

 

The thing with me is that i see a doll i love that doll i name the doll i buy it and then realize the fact that there is only like two or three more people with that doll and i am like "yey its not so popular,, and two days later i am like "i wish more kd aru,bf xiao,or doc leya lovers were out there *sign*" but the point is that i dont choose rare rare chosed me!!-____- (kind of unfortunetly)

 

I sort of care whether a doll is limited or not. I dunno, it's a little silly, but to own something special, maybe something not everybody can get, does give me pleasure. Just to own something, knowing there are only 10 of them in the world -- it almost makes you feel special. A little less of just a face in the crowd. It does get a little silly though, sometimes I think there are so many limiteds out there that it becomes a little meaningless. On the other hand it makes me mad that I can't get that doll 'cause they don't offer it anymore. Isn't my money good enough? . But I wouldn't get something just because it was limited, or popular, it's all about if I like the doll, that's it.

 

I don't care whether a doll is popular or rare-- it's all about the doll's appeal to me. I have kind of strange taste in bjd's anyway-- almost all of my dolls are sort of unhappy or pouty-faced-- I think I have one BJD with sort of a secret smug smile (a DZ Hid). I've been told my dolls look like they've made a suicide pact with one another-- which makes me laugh.

 

well my first doll,a yellow lati miel has really nasty expression, I wanted an upset child and I got it my second, an MSD, is nasty as well and special edition...so maybe I prefere rare dolls hehe..but...I think the most important is that you like your doll even if you have few comments on thread or people like it or not, finally, it´s you who have to live in same home and it´s better that you love your doll and let it inspired for photos and dresses for fun !

 

I have a Souldoll Painter Neve whom I absolutely love. But I've maybe seen one other Neve on this forum. Also Souldoll isn't really that popular either. But I don't really mind all that. I got her because I loved the mold and the face up. I don't doubt that owner pictures help but she was one of those impulse buys and I'm so glad I did it. I guess most of my dolls are dolls you don't see much on DoA. I have a DIM Bbjorn. I've seen maybe two or three of those around. Also I'm seeing more Lati M's around but when I first got mine I saw only a handful.

 

I go for what appeals to me and LE dolls are usually way out of my budget.

 

When I buy a doll I don't think about whether it is a popular company or mold, I just think about whether I like the doll and if I think that it is worth the money. I would guess that most people feel this way.

I like very popular dolls and not so popular ones. My wishlist has Lishe and Hound on it, but it also has dolls I don't often see, like Kana (from Angell Studio), April (from Buddydoll) and Sky (from Peakswoods)

 

I would like to say "It doesn't matter if it's popular or rare" like so many have said. I believe that the sculpts I like are ones I simply like because I like them. But in practice, I think I usually prefer the rarer sculpts. (This is not necessarily evident in the dolls I own... rare sculpts are often on the pricy end, and I usually decide on buying the ones I like that are in the middle of the road number-wise.)

The reason I prefer rarer dolls, and shy away from popular ones, is because I like to believe my ideas are fresh and new. I like to get my own idea for a doll, and when you see the same sculpt so many times, there is a good chance someone's will have a similar appearance to your own. I also like to look at unusual sculpts. They are exciting to me!
Rare dolls give a feeling of originality, uncharted territory, and fresh starts. A sculpt only seen once or twice when given a new look could turn out HUGELY different than previously immagined. You really never know the doll until you work with it. It's either an amazingly awsome discovery that's way better than you immagined, or something challanging to make look amazing, since it's not what you originally thought it was. To me, popular dolls are comforts. As the sculpt is seen often and in many styles, it is already partially predictable how it will look in one style or another. It's easier to be sure you'll like it, but it's also more likely someone else has tried it.
For me, rare dolls are like wasabi-goya, while popular dolls are macaroni and cheese. I like to think I'm the sort with adventurous tastes, and will get the wasabi-goya if I haven't tried it before rather than going with the tried and true mac 'n cheese. While this does not always prove true, that same value shows in my preference for the rare - whether I own it or not.

 

- Which is more appealing when buying a doll: that it's rare or that it's popular?

Honestly, my answer is I like what I like. I don't care if the mold is popular or isn't seen as much, as long as I love the doll and connect and bond then I really don't care. The company that my currently "only child" is from I don't see very many dolls or owners for, same with my friend who bought from the same company. Rarity and popularity really isn't a factor for me.

- Would you ever buy a more popular doll knowing that it could get you more gallery views? Conversely, would you ever choose not to buy a doll because you believe it is too popular and you are afraid to be seen as a follower?

No, that is something I would never do. Again as I said above, I like what I like. The more popular molds however do start to look the same after seeing a lot of them, I'd much rather have something differeny.

- Are you more likely to click gallery threads because they feature a CP doll? Be honest! Nothing wrong with having a favourite company.-

Not really, I'm more drawn to smaller company threads. I'm biased, I love AOD and Angell-Studio. I'm more drawn to threads for them more than anything, I have an AOD and I'm hopefully going to be bringing home an AS Kana as a roommate and kind of like an older sister for my girl by the end of the summer.

- Would you buy a doll you had not seen on forums?

I'd rather be able to see owner pictures first before I actually decide. I did that before I ordered my Rao and spent a lot of time on DOA before I did, and I'm glad I did. I love her all the more now. My friend actually did, she ordered an AOD An and we have hardly seen any pictures of that adorable boy on the forums which is such a shame.

 

I like seeing the dolls in the forum. I changed my mind many times due to images members posted of their dolls (different face ups, wigs, clothers). Obviously, i would go for anything I personally like, but as soon as i see a doll for sale that i think looks gorgeous, i come here and search for more images.... get frustrated when i can't find them.

I like to know what i'm getting... so popular ones always seem more appealing but just cos i've seen their potential. Nothing to do with getting more hits or anything like that.

 

I kind of like the idea of getting a less popular doll and making it into something totally unique, but you could really do that with more popular molds as well. One of my dolls the most frequently seen, but most people seem to appreciate him. I do like my new boy's balance in popularity. He's a popular mold, but is a special edition of him. A happy medium, perhaps.

 

It doesn't really matter to me as long as I like it. ^_^; I have an El, which is a very common doll, and then I have an AR Diana that you hardly see among the forums. I think she's an underrated doll but that's ok because I love her to pieces.

I think that as long as it catches my eye then it doesn't matter if it's rare or popular. I don't think that people can really be seen as "followers" in a hobby like this.

 

Hmm. I really don't think either factor is such a big point for me. I'd buy a doll because I liked the way it looked or how it appealed to me.

So that's basically that. Factors such as a doll being rare or popular don't really seem to affect my opinion.