What is the doll hobby to you?

For me, the doll hobby is an outlet for my artistic and creative side and an enjoyable activity. I think the doll hobby is a great way to motivate people to get involved into different things such as photography, sewing, various craft works and so on.

 

The doll hobby makes me happy everyday when I see them, they are what kind of keeps me sane lol

 

I played with Barbies for a while as a kid because I kept getting them as gifts but overall really didn't like dolls at all until I found BJDs.
To me, the BJD hobby is another creative hobby that combines with lots of my other hobbies (I'm an artist). I've had a pretty rough year so far to say the least and Nadeko is always there to keep me sane and make me feel better when nothing else can. She inspires me to try new things like more to-scale miniature work, sewing, photography, creating OCs/backstories and just improve my art skills overall. She also keeps me company when I'm stuck indoors doing homework and projects, and is super patient when I can't make/buy her things or take her out for photo shoots. She also motivates me to be a more social person (because I want her to have dolly friends).

 

I feel that dolls are something very nonstressful to me. Nothing is urgent, but I enjoy making (or trying) to make clothes for them. I enjoy looking at what others do. I like thinking about what dolls I'm going to do in the future and the props I'm going to make. Its such a non stressful hobby that is completely separate from my real world. I love it.

 

For me dolls work similarly to drawing: they are a way of bringing into the visible world those characters that live in my head. Only in 3D instead of on paper. I don't think I can explain why this is important to me, but I like to see my characters take shape. They are very dear to me and it can make me intensely happy to see them, to pose them, or to take a nice picture of them.

Like many others, I enjoy making clothes and items for my dolls, even though I'm hardly an expert crafter, and it gives me great satisfaction to see a doll/character come together. Creating things with my hands makes me happy and, like Snow said, it can make me forget all else and become really zen. Apart from that, I just like to handle these dolls - and that includes stringing and cleaning them.

I suppose that what it comes down to is that this hobby is a mixture of self-expression and anti-stress therapy .

 

Total creative outlet for me. They bring together all the things (ok, barring singing & dancing - although their characters DO that LOL) that I'm creative with. I'm a costumer, a cosplayer, write & love creating characters, love taking photos & always wanted to do a comic (but I CANNOT draw...). I also have always loved dolls & miniature things. The dolls I saw previous to BJDs just didn't quite do it for me - I did get somewhat interested in the Barbie character dolls when my kids were little (& had them) but not obsessed. I remember wanting a BeBe or a Jumeau (then found out how much they were - trust me BJDs are a bargain in comparison & anyone wondering what our dolls might net for our great-grandkids in 100 years might just check that out). Loved doll houses a lot. Then I saw THESE dolls and OMG. Just exactly what I've dreamed of

 

I am having a chronic depression for 10 years now. Collecting asian ball jointed dolls give me something to focus on. They give me a bit of joy, and I can take my mind off my other worries for a bit when I am busy with them or with something doll related.
And they are also a creative outlet for me. I love sewing clothes, but when I am sewing clothes for myself, I am too much of a perfectionist to the point when I am always unhappy with the outcome. With sewing stuff for my dolls, I am not that much of a perfectionist and can let it go when I make small mistakes. And I really like photographing them. That's the main thing I enjoy (besides just the collecting part) about these dolls and that's also where I want to focus on more in the future and improve my photographs even more.

 

Honestly, they're just another collection for me. I really enjoy hunting them down and putting together the perfect doll for me, but that's no different to how I feel when I used to collect doujinshi, or model horses, or PVC figures or currently feel about comics and original comic art. I really love the acquisition phase and the most fun I have with dolls is the research put into putting together the doll perfect for what I want and seeing that vision made real during the customizing process. I've often grown bored of dolls once they were finished because it turned out I was more interested in the process of making the doll what I wanted than what I was going to do with the finished doll.

They're interesting to me as three dimensional fanart of characters I find very dear and I do enjoy photographing them - I actually enjoy photographing other collections of mine as well, but the dolls themselves are not integral to my enjoyment of the characters.

 

Another addiction of mine….. hee hee

 

My dolls are creative outlets for me, they inspire me and I enjoy creating for them and with them. I also view them as my non human children to dote on (I hope that doesn't sound or seem odd).

 

To me, it is the creativity that comes along with the doll. I mean, unless you purchase a full package doll that has a preset wig and outfit (which to me is no fun at all) you have to choose a wig, eyes and clothes for him/her. Its not like barbies where the doll has everything it needs and that's that. There is so much freedom of choice to owning a BJD and I love it. Its great because I make her how I want her to look. I can even take it further and completely change her look with a new face up and body blushing. There are so many possibilities and I love how individual you can make a doll even though there are thousands of the same sculpt.
Its also really made me enjoy photography a lot more, I find that on deviantART, Shiloh is really my only model of interest right now
And also, when I'm having a really bad day and feel down, I feel better knowing that my little Shiloh is sitting on her couch waiting for me And sure, I'll talk to her, too. Its very relaxing to have her around.
And lastly - I think one of the other main reasons for having got into the BJD hobby is simply because of the sheer beauty of the dolls. Each one is so full of life and absolutely breathtaking. I don't think I'll ever get bored of BJD's

This is my baby, Shiloh on an Eater Egg hunt

 

I've been told by many mental-health specialists of various sorts that I enjoy dolls and writing because I like those worlds better than reality, and I like to have a little control 'cause I don't have much in my own life, and dolls and characters are safer than real people and I can connect better with them... And I think sometimes that's true. But that's not what I would say if you asked me. I would say that I have dolls because I love them. I love dolls, I love MY dolls, because they represent interesting people, and because they are beautiful, and because I can make them my own. I love them because they make me happy. I think that's the most important thing, ignoring all the WHY of my liking dolls, and simply saying I like them! I don't think of my dolls as replacement friends for people, I just think of them as friends! I like to take care of them and 'talk' with them, and change their clothes and admire their gorgeous faces... That's the thing, that's what I always end up coming to when people ask me, even when I ask myself, 'How can you spend that much money on DOLLS?' Because they make me so happy. I'm nowhere near as depressed as I used to be, but even so, I don't have a LOT of things that make me really happy. Dolls are one of those things. I could never quit the hobby completely... Maybe someday, when I have children or something, I'll take a break from dolls, but that's all it would be. A break. I'd come back. I'd keep my old dolls in storage. The three things I enjoy the most, one will ALWAYS be around (finding\cleaning animal bones), one I hope will last a long time but I ultimately don't have control over (my lovely loving boyfriend), and the last that is my decision to keep going and work on and love, dolls.

TLDR; What are my dolls to me? They are vessels of happiness. I love them.

 

Dolls are my life. lol That's not to say I have nothing else in my life, I definitely do, but so much of the things I enjoy in life can relate to the dolls.

They are a creative outlet for me, and all of the artsy things I do--writing, roleplay, painting, drawing, sewing, photography...

They are entertainment, as I play with them and work on them.

They are gateways to friendship, as I've met most of my best friends through doll role play and meetups.

They are a place to fit in, as I grew up being the "weird" kid, but meeting others in the hobby have made me realize that there ARE people like me.

They are happiness--if I'm upset, holding a doll or doing something with them helps me calm down.

They are motivation. I can't stand a naked, blank doll, so if I've been lazy and not motivated to do anything creative, nothing gets me back in action faster than a doll that needs clothes or a face!

 

What are my dolls to me?

Perfect beauty, and flawless grace.

Inspiration.

A muse.

Companions.

A surprisingly effective cure for depression.

An obcession, but in a good way... they keep me interested in life, searching for new toys, and wigs, and shoes and stuff for them, and busy teaching myself new skills: doing silversmithing and fine wood working to make them things.

Perfect models. I used to be in the SCA and sew historical costumes for friends and myself.... but people are so rarely willing to show up at 3am when I really need them to come over for a fitting...and my dolls are always just hanging out in their box, dolls never gain or lose weight...and they are F%&*$#! GORGEOUS, they look AMAZING in everything I make for them!

 

What do my dolls mean to me?

They are everything I could never be, they are always beautiful, always perfect, never sad, they look great no matter how they are dressed and can pull off everything I would never dare to wear.
They cheer me up when I'm depressed and when I'm lonely I just have to hold them and everything seems a little brighter
They are my reminder that I do deserve to have nice things in life and that I'm not a terrible person.
At my lowest they keep me moving forward cos I always have some thing to look forward to - a new wig, outfit, props or maybe even another doll
When I'm stressed brushing their hair always calms me down
They help me bring my drawing and ideas to life and are helping me learn new skills

 

Dolls are such a complete creative outlet, they are what brings all my hobbies together for me. I've always done a lot of beadwork/chainmaille/jewelry stringing and clay caning, but dolls got me back into sewing, motivated me to improve photography skills and learn to use editing programs, opened up a whole world of other hobbies I'd never been bothered with (painting, carpentry, writing). It's honestly impossible to get bored with dolls because of the versatility of all you can do with them!