What role do dolls play in your life?

Well, I built a roleplay universe with an ex that spanned 16 years - starting when I was 16 myself. These characters and their world and their stories are a part of me and I love them with all my heart. I loved them enough to keep in contact with her through a lot of awful stuff so I wouldn't lose them, even though it was very unhealthy to do so.
We were rping about 35-40 hours per week (which wasn't enough for her, incidentally), and although my husband didn't mind me rping that much I felt like he deserved my full attention when he was home with me because he works such long hours. He deserved my time and she didn't. Eventually I got up the courage to cut things off, ending both the roleplaying and the toxic relationship we had.

I wanted so badly for my characters to live on, and that's when I thought of dolls. With them, I can shell my rp characters and add in new ones for them to interact with through photo stories. I'm so happy that I found an outlet for my characters because I love them so much

 

My 2 dolls have helped pull me back to a little happiness in some really rough days with battling with minor depression/esteem issues/social anxiety. Just by looking at them or setting them by me as I traverse the internet, they give me a little calm happiness. They help me to think creatively at times as I love thinking of stuff to sew for them/different wigs or eyes etc. They keep my mind off stressful times for a bit when I just sit and think of things to do with them.

 

I guess dolls are basically my favourite art form right now. Sometimes I feel guilty because I've let drawing slip as a hobby in the last several years, but then I remind myself that I've done so much work on my dolls in that time (and I do make most of their stuff myself). The fact that you can always go back and add things, change things, make their visual design more layered or more textured or more complex over time, is so satisfying to me. They seem to "grow" like plants do.

 

TIme-wise, dolls are a big part of my life. I spend a lot of time online, on DoA and other doll-related sites.

Socially, I have lots of friends who are into bjds. I have gone to tons of meet-ups, and also conventions.

Money-wise, most of it goes into dolls.

Dolls themselves: not therapy, not usually used for story-inspiration or art-inspiration. I just like them. I like looking at them, I like their clothes and items and props. I like taking photos of them. I like making them things. I like buying things for them. Etc. I just like dolls!

Bjds have been a significant part of my life since 2004.

 

I have social anxiety, to the point that I have very few friends and most of those are online, so I feel lonely a lot... but having these tiny people in my room gives me a sense of comfort, like I'm not so alone after all.

Also creative outlets.

 

Doll for me is a friend, a silent interlocutor, the prototype of perfect man. These faces, bodies... so ideals! I relax when I look at them.

 

Dolls are my adventurers in life. Due to a number of factors, I can't get out much anymore & so put that energy into dressing, photographing, making characters & designing displays with dolls. I also sew & make jewelry for them though I haven't done much of that lately. I've been spending far too much time on dolls & doll stuff online.

I really love them which is weird because I wasn't into dolls as a child. Maybe I'm going thru my second childhood as I sure do love to play dolls these days.

 

For me, they've provided some form of grounding. I have anxiety issues and so when things get really bad, I can work on something creatively for them or even just hang out and I feel a little better. It's sort of like having a person there who I don't have to worry about judging me or anything.

 

I think what I love most about them is that they can transport me to a different time and place, somewhere where magic is real I collect mainly fantasy dolls, and love creating their universes, powers, and characters.

 

My doll provides major stress relief for me, he's become another creative outlet for me. Which is a BIG help with my anxiety disorder. Keeping myself busy helps a lot during the rougher days and learning how to make clothes and wigs for him definitely gives me something to do!

 

My dolls help me both therapeutically and as a creative outlet. Whenever life seems like its becoming overwhelming its a good escape even if it's just for a bit

 

Personally, dolls just bring me comfort. They are an excellent way to express so many different creative outlets, they're visually pleasing, and I bring at least 1 sort of doll with me at all times. Having a doll with me is great for when me or other people are bored and I can say "hey look what's in my purse!" or in cases like yesterday, when I have 3 little kids to entertain. I also fidget a LOT, so having something small that I can play around with in my hands is nice to help focus myself (:

 

My dolls have taught me skills like how to sew, take better pictures, create better stories, how to save money, not impulse buy, etc so I would place them more on the learning side.

 

They're a good creative outlet but they don't take a big part in my life no. Sometimes life just takes presidency and I need to leave them for a while. It's good to be able to get back to dolls on and off though!

 

I feel like i am my dolls host and friend but not their parents. I provide a shelter (and of coz different clothing and accessory) and they accompany me like a friend. I cant imagine a life without my girls now

 

For me they're a hobby. I have many hobbies, and the dolls are somewhere in the middle (along with the dollhouses and porcelain families that live there).

I tell stories with my dolls, but I tell better, and more elaborate, stories with my various Sims 3 communities.
I make crafted items for my dolls, but my full-size knitting and stitching/embroidery projects are far more elaborate.
I photograph my dolls, but I also love photographing flowers.

What I love about dolls, both BJD and dollhouse, is that with dolls I can combine so many of my hobbies. I can paint their faces (badly, but I love doing it), sew clothes, embroider, knit for them, tell stories with them and take photographs.

I guess I have a web of hobbies, and my dolls (resin, porcelain and vinyl) are in the center of it.

 

They are first and foremost an artistic outlet for me, and they inspire my imagination in unique and wonderful ways. I've always said that, "By telling the stories of my dolls, I tell the story of myself." And it's absolutely true. We all go through so many ups and downs, hardships and successes in our lives...it's just part of being human. I tend to cope with the bad and traumatic times by looking upon them in a fairytale-like way...something to struggle and work through on your way toward a happy ending. So rather than to write a diary or a memory journal to remind me of the joys and heartaches I've gone through in my long life, I decided to do it visually...by turning my stories into an urban fairytale, populated by my BJDs. This gives me the freedom to focus on the more important overall feelings and life-lessons of a memory, rather than the nuts and bolts of the actual experience itself. So my dolls store all my important memories in a happy, healthy, fun and creative way.

 

I wouldn't go so far as to use the word "therapy" but they do help immensely as an outlet for anxiety/depression/OCD. I find them very calming and I love to brush/style hair, dress and re-dress, and take photos.

The best part is, if I get overwhelmed, I just put them away. They are always happy to see me and smiling when I take them back out and am ready to "play" with my hobby again.

(Side note... I think this is why I prefer "happy" looking dolls? I love a Mona Lisa smile and I usually don't mind when teeth are showing.)

 

Not only are they keeping company and providing some sort of relief to my depression but they are physical representations of my comic characters who I value and cherish so much.

 

I’ve been a writer for quite a long time, so characters are really meaningful to me. Also, due to mental illness, I hyperfocus really hard on stuff, and to have a physical manifestation of these “obsessions” is really nice and almost soothing lol