Were You Afraid to Start The Hobby?

I was terrified to enter the hobby when I was a teen - it was really difficult to purchase things online and have them shipped into my neck of the woods in the early/mid 2000s and it was so hard to save up with the limited work options/low wages/fluctuating currency rates back then. I tried for a long while but realised it was not going to happen at that time so I geared the savings towards getting my driver's licence instead in the end. Now, as a much older person with a tiny bit of disposable income, in a much better location in terms of shipping, it doesn't feel like such an "oh no!" any more, of course.

 

Yes, I wasn’t that sure where to start and I was a little bit overwhelmed by all the choices that were out there. I didn’t know about all the things like wait times, doll sizes etc. I also wasn’t exactly sure what doll I wanted.
It took me a long time to finally cave but it was worth the wait once I properly got into the hobby.

Funnily enough a bit later on I had the same feeling with getting tattoos, I wasn’t sure how to find a studio etc but after doing my research properly I became a lot less overwhelmed by the process.

 

For me I had wanted one so long by the time I got my first doll, I knew I'd be in the hobby for life. I mean financially it gets put on hold a lot as a hobby, but I've never really lost interest.

I have had other hobbies though where I have lost interest after a short ehile and after having spent a lot, and I tend to feel bad about it. At least with bjd if you do change your mind about the hobby there is a resale market for it.

I would maybe just say to take your time deciding on the doll you want, the longer you dream of a sculpt the more connected I feel you are with it once you have it.

 

I was not afraid to start collecting dolls. My best friend introduced me to this hobby. At first I was shocked by the prices, but a lot of time has passed and I spend a lot of money on dolls and I like it)

 

At first it was a money issue for me, but even when I could eventually afford one I was overwhelmed very quickly with options. I felt very much like an outsider when looking at websites. Unsure what the numbers and abbreviations meant and what was a good 'first doll'. In short I was worried I would somehow mess up before even starting. For me, I think purchasing my first doll in person really helped dispel a lot of that anxiety.

 

I have had other hobbies in the past and the best part of all of them was the beginning. So, getting into BJDs was really exciting. There's still so much to learn and it's fun to research and find out new things, places to shop and different ways to be creative. In general, hobbies are a luxury both in time and money so I go into them knowing it's an investment but well worth the experience no matter how long or short that may be.