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Were You Afraid to Start The Hobby?

Jul 21, 2015

    1. Spiralling out of control, sounds about right. I've gone from no dolls to 3 since the start of June.

      It took me ages to get up the courage to order my first doll (Little Monica HH) Then my grail doll (LF Ante) became available from a member of another group. Then I saw the Pukifee Zoe and fell in love. I obsessed over her for a few days, couldn't get her out of my head. She took up residence in there. Finally, one night I couldn't sleep so I got up, headed to Fairyland website and bit the bullet. She's been on order for 2 weeks :)

      I have a very understanding hubby. After I confessed my night time buying spree, he said "maybe now I can have a bit of peace!" The cheek [emoji13]

      No matter how fast light travels it finds the darkness has always got there first, and is waiting for it.
       
    2. I was afraid
      i am so glad that i could buy a preowned doll at a good price in my country
      i was to afraid to buy one online ^^°
      i wanted to see and hold her first
      and i am very happy with my two cuties
      but the next one i will buy online , here are so many good tipps and i can ask
      i am so happy that i am a member here ^^
       
    3. oh my! Yes, its the BJD bug. I went from 0 dolls to about... 9..... in a span of a year...... I have no self control (and no savings)
       
    4. Shhhh...I have my eye on a Lati yellow Sunny at the moment.[emoji13]

      A dragon is not just for Hogswatch!
       
    5. I can totally relate to u when i was first introduced to this hobby by my friend I was super afraid on what others will think of me if they knew about my interest in wanting to own a few BJDs but after she invited me to a doll meet and i got to interact with other doll owners i was more open and pluck up my courage to get my first doll. She was a Volks Midi Msd Chloe and is just an absolute cutie. ^^

      I would remember getting stares from many people when i brought her out for my first doll meet as an owner instead of a by-stander and get nervous but due to the fact that i was not alone and my friends were always by me i got over this feeling, there is never a day where i wished i was never introduced to this hobby though i do admit i spend quite a bit of cash, ultimately i feel that it is worth while and it is also thanks to this hobby that i have made so many new friends.

      I did have a passing thought that i might lose passion and interest i this hobby as soon as i got 1 doll but i was proven wrong, as of now I have a crew of 4 wonderful darlings that are just incredible. I guess 1 was never enough because as soon as i got 1 i slowly started to get more and my crew is increasing as the months go by. I feel that as long as u think things through and not buy on an impulse any doll u get will be worth it even if one day u decide to leave this hobby, he or she will always be in a part of your heart that u will treasure dearly
       
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    6. I wasn't afraid of spending too much money as I had been collecting antique Lenci dolls for many years (they can be very expensive too), my fear was I wasn't in to modern dolls at first and that I would be almost "cheating" on my Lenci doll collecting by starting another collection. What I didn't realize at the time was that unconsciously I really wanted to be able to dress and undress and play with the Lenci dolls but of course I can't since their antiques and fragile so the bjds became my "play doll" and I just love them. The Fairyland sculpts will always be one of my favorites, especially in the pukifee and littlefee size.
       
    7. I was never really scared to start the hobby since I knew that this would be a personal hobby. I'm not one to post my dolls and such, so I never worry about what others think online. If anything, I was a little afraid of what others in real life would think of me for owning dolls. I was also a bit nervous of taking care of them, whether I would be able to do it properly.
       
    8. I was afraid to join this hobby. I knew I wanted a doll but I had no idea what I wanted to do with her once I got Her. And like you I was scared I'd lose interest. Especially with me having so many other time consuming money consuming hobbies. I was scared I wouldn't be able to keep up. After I got my doll I started to figure out what I wanted what I could and couldn't do and still I get frustrated. Fall is coming and I want my girls to have fall clothes but I have no money and it's frustrating as ever. And sometimes they do clash with my other hobbies. Do I buy a new doll or do I buy an LED hula hoop. And when my household starts driving me off a clift I start to wonder if I should sell them to get out of this place but in the end I figured I want to keep them I worked hard to get them and I love having them and I will just have to find another way. I don't regret buying any of my dolls and I have learned what I wanted to do with them.
       
    9. Oh man I was terrified!! I remember a lady walking in and telling me about "dollfies" because she thought I liked Japanese things since I had chopsticks in my hair. So I was curious and I googled dollfies and was lead to VOLKS. I about peed myself when I saw the prices and was in disbelief that people spent this much money on dolls. But eventually I came back when I discovered other affordable companies and eventually dove in. I was actually really scared of maintenance and was unsure if I would be able to do things like faceups or restringing. With time I warmed up to those too and am not scared anymore :)
       
    10. When i first saw the prices i was afraid but the dolls were so pretty i couldnt resist
       
    11. I wasn't afraid to start this hobby at all.
      I looked at the dolls for years and I saved up my own money for years before finally being able to get one so I had plenty of time to change my mind but decided that I really wanted my own BJD. Although losing interest was never a concern as I don't go through "fads" nor lose interest in things.
      I tend to only start a new hobby if I absolutely love it and once I start, I may take breaks when I focus more on one of my other hobbies but I never completely lose interest. And almost all of my hobbies connect well together so it's not a far stretch.
      As for the cost, I'm pretty cheap when it comes to most things but when it comes to things that I'm really really passionate about, I save up and have no problem spending any amount if the item is still what I truly want by the time I have saved up enough. The amount of time that it takes to save up for expensive things (in my case always more than a 2 years) is also not a concern for me.
      And as for the opinion of family and friends, the way I see it is that they have the freedom to not like something that I like but as someone that cares about me, they should at least accept/respect my interests; and if they don't well then I guess they don't really care and I 1.) don't have to show them this courtesy either and/or 2.)don't have to associate with them anymore.
      I have a friend who doesn't like dolls and another friend (who doesn't like BJDs because of the price) who randomly started telling the other friend about my doll. The friend talking about the doll is one of the few that does occasionally get judgmental about it but when I retaliate with the same thing back at her she tends to drop the subject. And the friend hearing about my doll, his response was simply to state that he finds dolls in general to be creepy but doesn't really care whether I like them or not. I don't bring my doll around him or talk to him about dolls and he accepts my hobby.
       
    12. Not afraid in the least. When I discovered BJDs I wasn't aware that owning them was considered a "hobby" at all. I very naively bought my first doll without much of a thought … Didn't know it came with a big hobby community, dealing with other people's opinions on owning a doll, lots of new things to learn and all its future brothers and sisters …
       
    13. I was afraid to get into this hobby. In addition to the parade of various crafts I've explored over the years, I was (am still am) a collector of 16" fashion dolls. I found bjds in Haute Doll Magazine. The more I dug into the dolls, the more interested I got, but the price was a turn-off, as was the waiting for the dolls. I mulled for months. My hubby was very leery and I had to promise him I'd save up and pay with cash. I spent months on DoA reading the discussions and checking out the galleries trying to find a sculpt I liked that wasn't Freak Out My Hubby Expensive. I still have and love my first doll, B&G Rin and have added a small army of other resin beauties and I've been able to pick up most of the dolls that have struck my fancy.

      I was worried that I'd lose interest while waiting 11 months for my Dollshe Bernard or during the extended period off-line due to hand issues but my love of my resin crew hasn't waned. Who knows? I may get bored of my beauties but I don't see any reason to worry about that - I'd rather enjoy the time I have with them.
       
    14. Hmmm... I guess my answer would have to be yes, I was definitely a bit scared to join the hobby. I found it through tumblr, which as some people may be aware, doesn't always have the nicest of people representing the bjd community. But, I had fallen in love with the pictures of the dolls people posted. As I kept looking at them, the more and more I found that most people in the community are very sweet! So, just a bit nervous, I joined doa and have been sort of silently lurking ever since. Sometimes, I'm still a bit nervous, especially as I am now waiting for my first doll, but I think that will settle once she (finally)arrives.
       
    15. Sure I was! Spending so much money on a doll was a scary thought, especially when I had never seen the dolls in person. I was terrified of how the resin was actually going to feel, wondering if it were going to be like holding a glorified Barbie. Of course, I was totally wrong! I still sometimes get a bit nervous before ordering a doll, but that's only because I worry I won't like the sculpt in person.
       
    16. I'm currently kind of afraid to start the hobby due to a few reasons... Will I be able to make my own faceups eventually? Will my first attempts be met with ridicule (I've been part of other expensive hobby communities - mostly fashion - where making fun of newbies was an issue)? What about the fact that I adore resinsoul dolls (it sounds like the anti-RS people are a small minority, but I think they do exist, and I would hate to meet one at a con or something...)? Will my family make a big deal about the price (they shouldn't because I plan on using mostly money I didn't get from working, like gift money, nor do I exactly plan on telling them the price, but they might ask and they might react)? Most importantly, will I be able to properly maintain and store my dolls? Will the fact that I love SD dolls be an issue in terms of storage? I don't know! Lol
       
      #96 la-toxic-schrei, Oct 29, 2015
      Last edited: Oct 29, 2015
    17. I was never afraid to start the hobby. But spending so much on my first doll? Yeah, that was scary! It was worse in the old days when I started, though (2004). I had to go through an English-speaking rep for a company that did not have an English website (although Luts had first started and were selling their dolls, too). There was no Paypal, so we had to do bank transfers, which I barely understood. I had no idea whether it was safe or what would happen if something went wrong! So there were worries other than just the cost, which was bad enough.

      But you see, I just HAD to have a bjd! I HAD to do it! That was anxiety-making, too! The whole thing was a fear trip like you wouldn't believe!

      And worse, I had trouble with my order. Got sent the wrong doll. It was limited so I wasn't sure I could get a replacement. etc., etc. Seriously... one of the worst times in my life! I'm surprised I didn't get a stomach ulcer!

      ...AND then I ordered another doll about a month after my first one (the actual one, not the mistake one) arrived!!!

      ... ... AND 11 years and a bazillion dolls later I'm still here!
       
    18. I was.
      What I was scared of was that I'll ruin the doll. I had read about BJD's from several sites and it seemed that only thing you can do with them was to store them in the dark or they would be completely ruined.
      Luckily I bought my first BJD and found out that they are not that difficult.
       
    19. I was abso-freaking-lutely terrified to join the BJD hobby. In my head I always saw it as a "risky venture". The money, their fragility, their aging--but then I got my first doll and broke one of my biggest rules: never get a doll that is more than 65cm. I bought a 72cm Ringdoll boy!!! haha, ohhh boy. And breaking that rule made me lighten up about the whole hobby and the fears went away. My two dolls give me something to look forward to everyday. It's only been three months but their impact on me has taken away fears and given me a lot of happiness. I was also afraid they would just be decoration on a shelf, but they're not. I make recorded skits with them, made my first sewing project for my Ringdoll Menghe and will be traveling with my Withdoll Cathy in December. So definitely not just decorations!
       
    20. I was pretty scared to start the hobby all those years ago. I liked bjds for a few years before I even got the nerve to ask my parents for one for Christmas. I was afraid they'd hate bjds or that I'd get scammed or the dolly would be too fragile to even hold or just pretty much anything. Luckily, my parents were pretty cool about it and bought me my first dolly for Christmas.