The Deciding Factor When Choosing a Doll - or the things that are the deal makers

(although I've only just bought my first doll, I've had plenty of "close encounters" with confirming cart orders xD)
For me, I'm kinda a cheapo but also I must find that doll worth the price. There are definitely many dolls out there that I could claim to be my "dream doll", but that one grail doll would be a doll that I really love, and has an affordable price.
So I'd prob weigh out the pros and cons. If the only con is the price, then I would most probably save up for it, instead of instantly rejecting it. Many factors, really! ><;;;

... wow im all abt the money. srsly, me. x_x

 

I did tons of research on the doll I ordered last week. I was watching box opening videos, looking at how other people dressed her and did her face-up, as well as looking at similar dolls. She was also being offered at a discounted price, so that probably helped her case.

I think thorough research is what makes it or breaks it for me. I really like to know what I'm getting myself in to, and I also want to know if I'm not as drawn by any other dolls. I was very close to buying a second-hand obitsu the other day for a pretty decent price, but I realized there are so many others like it and that the obitsu I was looking at wasn't my favorite choice. Although her price was superb, after doing research, I realized she just wasn't worth it.

 

I research the company - how their dolls pose, overall quality, wait times, are they reliable? - and look into what accessories I'll need. How easy is it to find wigs, clothing, shoes, etc? I search for real-life pictures online - sometimes the company's pictures (I'm looking at you ResinSoul!) just don't do the dolls justice. I look at box openings to get an idea of packaging, things like that. Basic research, I guess.

But there's also that X factor - some dolls just speak right to my heart. The ones I see and can't stop thinking about, whose pictures I favorite or pin and keep going back to look at again and again. Those are the ones I know I'll bring home - if not now, someday.

 

I'm very particular about sculpts...mostly it's a gut feeling, but I guess there are specific factors I pay attention to more than others? Realistically shaped breasts are one of them, as well as curved lines (as opposed to anatomically unlikely straight lines). Nice fingers and lips are also make or break for me~

 

I just buy them. *shrugs* I see a doll that I like and if I can spare the money and like it enough so that I'm ready to shell out the money I go and get it. The deciding factor more often than not being this exactly: Can I afford to get the doll? And am I willing to spend so much money on that particular doll? If the answer to those two is yes, I'll go for it.

 

Well once I find one that has "spoken to me" so to speak I look at all the pictures I can find of both that doll and any other dolls out there with similar sculpts. I price how much it will cost to get the doll and look at the timing. The summer and around Christmas and the new year are usually the best times to buy as that is usually when companies are having their sales. I usually wait for one of those sales. While waiting I go back and look at the doll again. I have had a few that are still on a waiting list from years ago because the time has not been right to bring them home. After all this if I still want the doll then home it comes.

What attracts me to the dolls in the first place is usually how the sculpt fits in with my doll family. In the end though there are a few that I just look at the company photos and sigh over how beautiful they are and never bring them home. If I am going to buy one it needs to fit with a character and be worth the price.

 

Sculpt is where it's at! I'm particular about noses. The nose has to be just right, and I like both tiny pointy anime noses (like on my Volks girls) and large straight noses paired with full lips (Soom Namu). I am also very particular about joints. If they are big and show gaps when bent, or look really square, it's a huge turn off. I'd rather have nice single joints than bad double joints. I just know it when I see it. And I've learned that impulse buys never stick around, so I have to do my research before I can commit to buy.

 

The head sculpt is the overriding factor. I do what Clorista does and look at all the online photos I can find, especially the ones of the head without a faceup. I have to be sure it was the modelling that attracted me and not just the company faceup! Since my dolls are mostly covered up with their clothing, body and posability are a secondary consideration, though I am particular about realistic hands with a graceful pose. I confess to also being a "headhunter," keeping an eye out for used heads that will fit with bodies I already have.

 

First off...
Do I like the doll enough to want it in the collection?

Then, in no particular order...
Will the doll's sculptural style and scale "fit" with the others I want to display it with?
Is it priced appropriately for the type of doll it is and the condition it's in?
If it's not in great shape, are the required repairs something I can handle fixing myself?
Is there enough money in my "fun money" stash to afford it?
Is the seller a shop or individual that I'd consider reliable?
If it's a Cerberus Project doll, is it Normal resin? (I avoid CP's BW resin like the proverbial plague. <_<)
Do I have display space for it in one of the cabinets?

 

Does the face look like there's something "more" behind the eyes/Does the doll have the capacity for depth? If not then it won't come home. Most of my dolls tend to have faces where the focal point is the eyes. You can't help but be drawn to them. I want a doll that looks like it has something going on behind their eyes; like it is thinking, feeling, and could even be breathing if you let your mind suspend disbelief. If a doll looks like there's nothing going on up there besides air, s hook, and elastic then it's not a candidate for me.

 

The big thing for me would be.....weather or not the resin-color would match.

I tend to prefer to hybridize my dolls and many of my floating heads share bodies with my other dolls, so Resin matching is important to me. If it's close enough then I will keep the doll in my collection.

 

I gaze at many dolls, but few end up in my cart and fewer go through the checkout. I think the deciding factor is whether or not they stay in my mind.

Lots of dolls are pretty and look tempting when you're sitting around browsing the internet. But when you go to sleep, when you're walking/driving to work, when you're on lunch break and have a moment to yourself...the doll that's still bouncing around in your brain then is the special one. She's taken root and won't go away because there's just something about her.

My friends tease me because I use that phrase a lot. They've given up asking me why I want a certain doll because the answer is the inevitable there's just something about them. It's very hard to explain! But I do know that each of the dolls I've bought, it's been because they took up residence in my head and didn't leave until I gave in

 

The deciding factor for me is seeing a doll's profile. Most dolls look beautiful from the front, but I won't buy a doll unless they look good from the side.

 

My thoughts exactly! If a doll keeps haunting me for a long time, then I know it's safe to press the order button.

 

The deciding factor for me is the face sculpt AND the body sculpt. So many times I love the face, but am 'meh' on the body, or vice versa.

They both have to 'click' for me to bring the doll home. I have tried hybridizing, but it was to stressful to get all the requirements met. When I do find the right one, I feel so happy, as it's getting rarer, as now I'm getting more deliberate in my decision making. Thankfully, gone are the days of impulsive purchases! Now it's research, research, and a willingness to walk away if there is that little voice of doubt.

 

It took me four years of looking, thinking and putting it off to buy my first boy. It was intimidating. I don't think I will ever love another as much as him. However, he isn't the only one, because he needed a friend.... It's now been a year since I purchased Jeremy, I'm developing a pattern. It starts that I think one is nice. I'll see an owner pic or one modeling some type of clothes, accessory, randomly somewhere.... I'll be interested enough to find out what it is..... I'll look for other pics of the sculpt.... I'll either love it or decide it's just that particular one doll that I like. So, when I do find one that I really like, I dwell on it, looking at photos, lurking in threads. I know it's gonna happen, with two more, but I just haven't made plans yet. I've given up on only having a few, I'm gonna have as many as I like! It's all a matter of when! Funny thing is, only the DS Saint is a popular one. I don't avoid popular sculpts, but I suppose my tastes aren't as popular. I really like Chinese aesthetics so far. There is one deal breaker though, if it's a boy, and his bits are detachable, they can't be easily detachable so as they fall off easily. I find that very unsettling.

 

It's pretty easy for me: Do I start thinking about a character when looking at said doll? If yes, is the body as appealing as the head? If yes, do I have the money to spare? If yes, then yes. If any of the questions are answered with no, then no. ^^

 

Does the doll match one of the characters I'm attempting to shell?
Does the head sculpt aesthetically fit with the other dolls in that family?
Is the body aesthetically pleasing and a reasonable poser?
Is the size appropriately scaled with the others in that family?
Does the resin come in an appropriate color for that character?
Is the price something I would pay to shell that particular character?
Is the company reliable, or do they have a history of being a little on the flaky side? (Or, is the seller reliable or do they have problem transactions in their history?)

If I can say yes to all those questions, then the doll can come home. Admittedly, there may be some exceptions (there's a small family of dolls that are types rather than specific characters; there's a secondhand doll I brought home who's the wrong color and will have to be modified), but for the most part, all dolls these days must match all points on that list.

 

Most of the time, what really seals the deal for me is the face--but of course, there are other deciding factors as well. Aesthetically, I'm not a fan of double-joints (mostly in knees, especially in elbows), though I hear they do hold a better range of motion than single ball joints. And secondly, which I suppose is still on the subject of joints, would be how natural the doll looks posed. If they only look good standing up straight all the time, it's really not that exciting after all.