Telling Loved Ones

As long as your paying for it with your own money and make it clear it's something your passionate about just break the news gently. I told my mom outright and whilst she was 'concerned' at first..She saw how much joy it was bringing me..And it was far better then being on drugs or other things. And she saw how much of an art it was.

 

well, i'm sure there's a similar post somewhere tho its not phrased quite like this. My mom hates this hobby, thinks i'm too old for it, my dad on the other hand, totally gets it (he still collects model airplanes). I am turning 27 this year. if he says you are too old for them, explain that these ARENT toys, they are art. Also, it is YOUR money you are spending, if you are paying all your bills first (like i pay rent to my parents by buying all the groceries) and use whats left on your doll hobby, they shouldnt complain at all. If the parcel arriving there is an issue, you could always have it sent to a friends house or to your grandparents (most of mine are sent to my boyfriends house, at which point we fight over who gets the doll =p). You know your parents, just explain it in a way they can accept, if they still dont understand, try showing them the dolls you are into. the way i got my dad into it was by taking apart my first doll and needing his help putting her back together. (he helps me with most repairs for my crew, like replacing eyelashes).

 

hahaha, thats how my mom is, she also wouldnt know good music if it pinched her. There's a few groups that meet in cali, its a great way to make friends in the hobby even if you dont have a doll to bring, i really suggest going

 

Oh, it is sad... My young man doesn't approve my hobby, but I have a girlfriend to whom there are parcels. Though I also pay dolls from the pocket (me the earned money), but yet I don't admit to the guy about the hobby, simply gradually I will prepare it for it. I advise you not to hurry and make yet friends, to involve them in this hobby, so to speak))

 

What part of California. There are several of us, as in collectors in California and as far as I know the majority are friendly. Find a meet up in your area and go, meet people, even if you do not have a doll yet. I have yet to see someone be turned away from a meet up just because they have not purchased a doll yet.

 

Meetup finder
almost all meetups will be posted in the subforum linked above in front will be a country image thingy that'll say things like "austrailia" or "usa" but i usually just scroll for city names near me (or rather within an hours travel since there isnt really a LOCAL local group lol, i live out in the boonies <w>)

 

My dad has told me for years I'm too old for toys. I got my first BJD at 21 and have been collecting figures and toys and plush for my entire life. I always tell him growing old is mandatory, growing up is optional. I have a large collection of dolls of all types. I don't live at home, but I live with my two sisters. When my Dad visits he looks in my room and shakes his head and asks when I'm going to grow up. I say never. My sisters don't always approve of my buying dolls, but we all make our own money and as long as we pay our portion of the bills we only tease each other about the volume of packages that get delivered. We all have an expensive hobby.

I don't know that getting it sent to another address and then sneaking it home is really the best idea. My parents always seemed to know when I had something new. (I have 25 My Little Ponies, how did you even know there was a new one up there?!) I would suggest talking to your mother about a plan of attack and the both of you talk to your father. You are legally an adult and able to make your own decisions, though when you live at home still it does make things different, trust me I know. I wish you the best of luck!

 

I think that as long as you're paying for them outright, with your own money, he has no real say in it.. Especially at 21. The fact that your mother is interested too should be a sign to him, though I know some people can be very pig-headed about their opinions regardless. Just make sure if you do get one, he knows better than to toss it like he did your barbies!

My mother probably thinks it's juvenile too (whenever I mention the hobby, even offhand, she tends to tune me out... though she does that to everyone, so maybe not), but ultimately, something I pay for myself that doesn't affect her in anyway isn't really her business, regardless.

 

My parents were kind of like that as well and they don't really approve of me spending $200+ on a doll. But they gave up trying to convince me out of them since I am a good student and don't get into trouble. I just told them it was my hobby like my dad collects baseball cards, my mom is an avid gardener(even though dad does most of the work now because of her joints). They eventually warmed up to them and always ask where they are when I come home to visit. -in college-

As for meeting people go to some of the meet-ups in your area if you can like others have said. Making friends can be hard especially if you are a introvert like me. I only know people from school and work. -is lame-

 

Since my dolls are an extension of my life-long involvement in costuming, my friends "get" it. BTW, I am nearly 63 years old and frankly, at this point in my life, don't give a **** what anybody thinks.

 

When I got into the hobby (I was 21) and told my parents I wanted a 600$ doll...they just stared at me as they had never heard of it before.
I have had collector hobbies my whole life, books, figurines, video games etc so it didn't really come as a surprise though.
My mum got very interested in it (she has always liked art and nice things, as has been collecting antique porcelain cups and figurines for years) and was browsing sites with me for hours to look at the photos, and once I had settled on my choice (a DOT Ducan at the time) she even paid for it (as a birthday gift).
My dad just shook his head and decided it was a "Women...*rolls eyes*" thing. I think to him it was just like us buying shoes and designer handbags haha.
Mum got into it more and I knew she wanted one too, but she'd always rather help me dress mine etc (she's the type of person to think it's ok to buy family something expensive, but is very hesitant to spend it purely on herself, as she's extremely unselfish). She was always very supporting and with time Dad too tried to show interest in it, and look at them and ask me questions (though from a safe distance haha)
I did manage to thank Mum in the end for that very first bjd by getting her a Luts SDF Fullset doll she'd been eyeing for ages as a surprise birthday gift.
We've been into it ever since

I think if you save up you can do what you want with your money, you're out of age after all.
Just break the news slowly to your dad and have your mum there for support. People shouldn't be able to forbid you to spend money on something that makes you happy.
People need a creative outlet, if for you it's dolls, go for it. I hope your dad will come around

 

Before I started collecting dolls, I already collected anime figures. I lived with my mom, so she knew about my somewhat unique interests :P (there aren't many people that are into the same thing around here). When I told her I would like to buy a BJD and showed her a picture she at first laughed at me, asking if I wasn't too old to be playing with dolls. But that's how she is. Whenever I tell her something like that she doesn't really know what to say, so she kinda makes fun of me (not in a mean way though, she's just very unknowing when it comes to anything that's not considered ''normal''). For example, she thought BJD's were lifesize, like a sexdoll, so I can imagine that she found it weird. I try to involve her in the whole process and explain things to her and I always notice a change in her behaviour. She'll even show interest and ask me stuff about my hobbies :P. My grandpa and grandma don't mind it either. Especially my grandma, I'm 100% positive I inherited the collecting gen from her xD..

I have a couple of friends that are into BJD's/DDs as well and most of my other friends are into anime, fantasy and/or collecting, so they have no problem with it. I'm not afraid to share my hobbies with other people, like coworkers, even though I'm a little shy about it. I just don't want people to think I'm weird, but so far I have only gotten positive reactions. My boyfriend has no problem at all with my dolls either. He says that while he himself would never be interested in owning a doll, he does understand why I'm attracted to them . And he just let's me do my thing. As long as I manage my money and am able to pay my bills and food, he'll support me in my hobbies ^^.

 

Most people have some kind of collection, and I've known perfectly normal people who collect all kinds of goofy things. My dad used to travel a lot on business, and he had a big collection of swizzle sticks from various hotels and restaurants. Pretty funny.
I think a positive thing about the BJD hobby is that I can't imagine anyone taking it from "collecting" to "hoarding." Now, I just hate hoarding, where people just want to amass huge amounts of something but don't take care of them or even give a darned about the individual components of the hoard. I had a relative by marriage who was like this. She collected dolls, but they weren't anything nice, just these cheap stupid dolls that she bought by the truckload. Two entire rooms in her family's home were filled with the ugly things!
In part, the price of bjds prevents people from hoarding them. You'd have to be a billionaire to have a truly massive collection of them. But I think it's also the fact that you have to wait a while for them after you order them, and they generally don't arrive "finished"; you have to put thought into eyes, wig, character, etc. In short, you have to truly care about them and get involved. Things that people hoard are generally things that are quick and easy to get and don't require a lot of thought.

 

My grandmother tells me I'm too old to be having BJDs, as well as my mom and dad... At first. Then the first one arrived and then the second one and so on so fourth. My mom became curious, she occasionally comments on their outfits and wigs. It's funny to think how I managed to convert her even without explaining to her what they are. xD I'm pretty sure my relatives are alright with them (since most of them have been to Japan). One of my relatives who's lived in Japan actually tried to explain to my grandmother that BJDs weren't really for playing. Especially when the part when my aunt explained the "those cost a lot more than your standard barbie." Though the other thing is, I cosplay and my parents thing that's a lot weirder than collecting dolls. According to my lovely grandmother, "At least the dolls don't leave the house unless there's a meet up." xD

When I bought my first BJD, I actually warned my whole household that I'm expecting a big potentially heavy box to be delivered via UPS within the week. I agree with everyone that have said that it should be fine since you're buying a BJD with your own money. As for meeting new people, I didn't have to look far. Las Vegas already had a doll group meeting regularly and I managed to convert a few of my friends. xD;