What do you think of "starter dolls?"

I think the bad thing about a starter doll is that if it's not the owner's style of a doll, it could completely put the owner off of any possible future BJD purchases, or even the hobby itself. The good thing is that it's less financially devastating if the owner dislikes the doll. However, I do believe it's more important to choose a quality doll you love rather than a cheaper "starter" doll you aren't quite sure about. Because there's always the option of reselling the doll in the 2ndhand market, so imo, it's not too much to lose when you choose a more expensive doll and don't end up liking the doll.

 

Well, dolls are expensive anyway, but if you are going to spend your money, I think it's better to do it on a doll you are going to like. Otherwise you'll end up with a pretty doll you don't play with, and might end up hating.

Now, that said, my first doll was a small 1/6 plastic one, so I guess it could be called a starter doll, but I actually bought her because I loved the sculpt and wanted to make a character in that size. I'm struggling with faceup because I had never done one before, but I don't mind if I have to re-do it a zillion times, I simply love my little one.

Now, I'm not against starter dolls either, I think it's a good idea. But I know myself and as such I know it's not the kind of thing that works for me.

 

i think as long as a person does their research, they won't have to get a starter doll. i guess that people do make mistakes like using a wrong product on the doll, but still. it can be avoided. i don't think a starter doll is necessary. depends if they're into experimenting maybe?

 

I got a Teayang Rayne as a "starter doll" and was, at first, not very happy with it. Sevral things broke while just trying to get it out of the box. His knee and shoulder don't fit properly into the joints, and one of his calves is splitting. I love him of course, and I can't really complain because he was cheap.

I do not like the idea of starter dolls. The cheap dolls are cheap for a reason. When Rayne started breaking, I thought I had done something wrong, like I had been too rough. Now I'm kind of afraid to handle him at all. Cheap dolls are cheaply made, which means they are more easily broken. More pricey dolls aren't easy to mess up, and, unless you're modding, what is done to these dolls is permanent anyway? The better made dolls are often more robust than we give them credit for. Quality polyurethane resin is used in construction.

If you really liked a more expensive doll, why buy a cheaper one just because it's cheaper? If you prefer the cheaper ones, that's cool too. Buy the one you like.

 

None of the dolls I ordered have arrived yet, but I did buy a "starter doll" as my first doll. I discovered BJDs through my figure collecting, and even though I thought they were absolutely gorgeous, I wasn't sure if I wanted to take on another expensive hobby. When I first started looking at BJDs I wanted an IpleHouse EID or Soom Monzo, but the prices made me VERY hesitant about purchasing a doll. I had never held or seen a BJD up close in person before, so dropping $700-800 on a doll I wasn't sure how much I'd like wasn't something I wanted to do. They look amazing online and I really desired one, but since I never handled one before I wasn't positive whether or not I'd like them that much IRL. What if I end up being disappointed with the real thing and BJDs turn out to be not my thing? It was too risky for $700-800, so I tried to resist purchasing one.... until I saw AH Ryan on sale for 50% off. The price was a lot more reasonable, so I decided to get him as a starter doll so I could just get a sense of what BJDs are like and determine how much I'd enjoy them. I didn't fall in love with his sculpt at first sight, and he didn't "wow" me right away like some other dolls I want... but I do think he's beautiful. Especially after I ordered him, he grew on me even more. I wouldn't have bought a starter doll I personally didn't find attractive no matter the price... even when looking for a cheap/starter doll, I think it's still very important to only buy one that you find beautiful and genuinely want, or else it's a waste. IMO buying Ryan as a starter doll was a great idea for me, so I could test the waters and then decide if I want to drop that 7/800 for one of my wishlist dolls.

 

I don't like the idea becasue many people at first think they are only going to get one doll. While most people end up getting more it would be important to consider that, if your only going to get one, you should get the one you really want. I started with a Migidoll Ryu as I don't beleive in "settling" for a cheaper doll you don't want ^^

 

I personally thing it is up to the personality of the person. I didn't buy one, and I don't regret it. But I never tried to customise the doll myself, and I got help with stuff like restringing..... I see a lot of people with really expensive dolls who don't look after them (messy hair, flop back a lot and slam into the table, poorly fitting clothes etc.) But to be honest, I don't think a starter doll would improve their situation, they just maybe don't mind if their doll isn't perfectly looked after........... :shrug: I think whether their first doll was cheap or expensive, wouldn't change how they look after their dolls.

But I think if your wanting to customise a lot, paint faces, maybe even mod the doll... then definitely buy a cheap one! lol XD I wouldn't ruin a $700 if I could buy a cheap $50 and practice the technique before I buy something more expensive. Face-ups aren't so bad true... but modifications especially, really require some sense of how the resin will behave. It isn't something you want to jump straight into on an expensive doll.

So... mostly I think buying a starter doll is a waste of time, unless it is purely for practicing customisation with. XD

 

Heh. I think, now, that my first doll could qualify as a good 'starter doll', but at the same time he is absolutely the doll I wanted. He's just really easy to pose and he seems very solid. I think I would have been a bit frightened of handling my doll if I had bought, say, a Minifée as my first doll. They are so slim - I'd be afraid of breaking them. My Dollzone MSD is very simply a very comfy doll, if I can put it like that. As a first-time doll owner, I couldn't be more pleased with him.

At the same time, though, I don't feel like I'll need to 'upgrade' at one point. I like my Dollzone boy so much that I just want more Dollzone dolls in the future. I feel like they're 'right' for me.

What I did do, though, and what I can advise any anxious soon-to-be doll owners to do, was buy a practice head. I think that if you want to get acquainted with bjds, a practice head is not a bad thing. It will be cheaper than a complete doll to start with (because even the cheap ones are not so cheap that you'd buy them just to see if you like them - or at least I don't think they are) and you'll get a feeling for the resin (or you won't, and then you know bjds may not be your thing). I bought a cheap, poorly modded head off the marketplace and I've never been afraid to handle it because it wasn't perfect. And working with this head made me feel very comfortable with resin. I'm happy I got this head, even though he'll never have a body and some will consider that a waste of money.

 

I had a starter doll and it was a good thing--I am a very hands-on, have- to- experiment person and I made all my newbie mistakes on that doll, from chipping ankles, dropping it while stringing it, sharpie, acetone, you name it. It was a slight factory miscast, IMO, and and even buying it was a drama (I got if via ebay from the factory, which was a Chinese startup at the time.) So I got the worst of the hobby all at once and still decided I loved bjds. After a time I saved up more money and bought more dolls that were closer to what I wanted.

( It's also taken me years to figure out what I wanted in a bjd! I'm glad I worked my way up or I would not have had as much fun. It's true I would have saved a lot of money -- but this way I have handled 80% of the dolls that are out there.)

 

Like others have said, I think it's better to get the doll you love the most than a cheap doll to experiment or to see if you like the hobby. My first bjd was my Chiwoo Elf and he will never leave me cause I absolutly adore him. The best thing to do is taking the time to research about the hobby and to chose the right doll for you.

 

I agree with a lot of the posts I read when they said "When I was looking for my first doll I wasn't thinking 'starter doll'."
It was the same for me, I had been advised if I was thinking of getting into this hobby that I should get a less expensive doll, and to look on sites like Junky Spot and Denver Doll, so I did and I just happened to completely fall in love with the Bobobie Weylin (quite literally 'fall' almost fell off my chair )
I love my doll, yes he's less expensive but as what some would call a 'starter doll' he's perfect.

 

I think you should get what you want. My first BJD was a Volks which I know many don't consider a 'starter' doll as they are more expensive. I bought her about 10 years ago, and still have her in good condition.

 

I think you should get the doll you want, the one you fall in love with. The starter doll itself could be a waste of money if you don't love it and/or could turn you off from the hobby. :<

 

Honestly, I'd have to agree with this. Not everyone's going to make huge mistakes and even if they do, why does the type of BJD matter?
Sure, it'd be smarter to damage a cheaper doll rather than a more expensive one but most, I'd assume, purchase dolls because of how they look and because of how the doll itself 'speaks' to them, if I may, as opposed to purchasing BJD's based on price and rarity.

 

I don't see a major problem with owning a starter doll to practice with. So much goes into the art of BJD that it can be nerve-racking to start out and want to try face-up and sanding and sueding, so something along these lines isn't a bad idea. However! I feel like you may wanna try for something you could learn to like, as you are gonna be laughing at yourself in the end, when you buy your dream doll and figure out that you are far more attached to a doll that was just supposed to be a test run haha...

 

I got a "starter" doll as my first doll, a simple MSD just to get me into the hobby but I still love her just as much as my other dolls but I think it was a good idea to start off a bit smaller so when I got my second (SD13) I wasn't as over whelmed as I could have been.

 

I think that since this hobby represents so big a monetary investment there's a pressure for one's first doll to be perfect. I'd like to view a starter doll, not as a doll you can break, but rather as a doll you can afford not to be perfect and everything you ever wanted right of the bat.

Three years ago when I got my first doll I looked through the list of pretty much all the companies that were out there. I sorted out those whose aesthetics I didn't like and carefully considered the rest. Since they were so expensive I had to consider very carefully. She had to have the perfect face, the perfect body (at least 10 companies were thrown off the list due to body aesthetics alone) and of course she had to have a perfect character to go with her, after all expensive = too precious to just stand around being pretty.

When I got her home she didn't fit the character she was intended, the body was more difficult to deal with than anticipated and three years later she's still not complete (though I'm taking steps and measures to get her there).

Since then I have acquired an inexpensive Resinsoul doll. I do like their aesthetics, if I hadn't I wouldn't have bought her, but since she was relatively inexpensive I didn't feel the same pressure for her to be perfect. She can switch name and concept every couple of months and I don't feel guilty. And if she was to just stand around in my cabinet looking cute that'd be ok.

Long story short:
If I had the chance to start this hobby all over again I would love to do it without the pressure of perfection. A starter doll, I feel, might have enabled that.

 

I had a 'starter head' for a long time. My first with an actual body and head was the cheaper (because I had/ve little money) of the ones that I wanted. I don't regret that at all -I practiced faceups and mods before trying them on my loves... Though I am very attached to the head.

 

From a person whom does not own a bjd yet, I think it all depends on what the person feels comfortable buying. When I am 14, next year, I hope to get a Fairyland Minifee for my first. I think people should get what they want. If they have done LOADS of research first, they should be fine. Buying a more expensive doll.

 

it all depends on the person and your finances, i am just buying my first a bobobie sprite or a resinsoul mai, i like the faces and they are quite cheap for bjds,