When will you be done?

In the last 12 years I’ve been in the hobby, so much has changed, and so have I. The one thing that hasn’t changed is that I’ve always loved miniature things and poseable figures, so I feel I’ll always be interested in BJDs in some capacity.

When I first got into the hobby, I made doll “plans” (which was very naive looking back) but I had 1 MSD at the time and planned to get 6 SDs. When the first SD got into my hands, I didn’t like him. At all. I didn’t understand why (he was a bad hybrid and his head was HUGE) but I really tried to like him for a long time. In between him and the next SD that I “planned” for, I got 3 tinies and a slim/mature MSD. I then got a Dollshe Saint and a smaller SD. None of my SDs were the same scale and they didn’t fit together the way I saw other people’s collections did and I got pretty disheartened. Here I was, 3 years into the hobby with 9 dolls- and I didn’t like most of them. I decided then that I would try to collect more MSDs that are in scale with my first doll (who I love so dearly even to this day) and I sold off all my dolls except my first doll and my Dollshe. I bought an MSD second hand from a friend who was leaving the hobby, which I marked as a turning point in my collection. In 2016 I unintentionally started what would become a 5 year hiatus. I didn’t actively do anything with my dolls, even though I displayed them and still enjoyed their presence, and in 2019 I had to store them away in my parents’ house because I moved 2,000 miles away and I wasn’t sure if I was going to stay where I moved. I missed them so much up until about 6 months ago when I was finally able to bring them to me where I live now.
Today I still have my original doll, my Dollshe, and the MSD I bought from my friend- and I enjoy them very much. I have 2 Dollfie Dreams which I also enjoy, but just enough to know that I don’t need a horde of them to like them more. I have had a couple dolls on my wishlist for several years and I had to remind myself that buying dolls is a thing I can do- so I’m waiting on my first *new* resin purchase since 2013 and I’m very excited.

I’m not going to lie- I still get a little jealous when I see people with big collections of 10+ dolls, mostly because I feel like I wasted time (and some money) because out of all the dolls I’ve owned, I’ve sold more than I’ve kept which I feel like is not the norm for this hobby. But of course now I know what I *don’t* like which I think helps define my vision of what I want my collection to embody, and I can only hope going forward that I end up keeping most of the dolls I buy.

 

I never really expected to feel like this and I don't know how long it'll last but, right now, it doesn't feel like I need to buy any more resin dolls. Could another doll ever give even close to the feeling of finally obtaining a doll I've been longing for for 8 years? I'm not sure it's possible. With every doll in the past, I've been itching for a new one before and as soon as it arrived. This one was completely different. For the first time, I feel satiated.

I'm sure I'll get the new doll itch again but I hope this feeling lasts a good while. Maybe another doll will come into existence that will change my mind. I have doubts any could bring me more joy than the doll I just got but it's not like it wouldn't bring any joy.

 

I never imagined that stopping could ever exist..
I can't see my collection ever growing to more than 10 or so but I'd definitely be cycling through dolls. like selling one to get one or trading.
I actually daydream about passing on dolls to nieces or nephews...

 

I don't see myself going too far out of my comfort zone when it comes to collecting for this hobby; I think I will be content with just one doll to my name and my wife is considering one of her own now depending on if we take to Dollzone's LS. Having said that though, we have not held the doll(s) yet and been stricken with the indescribable feeling of owning a work of art like them. So time will tell when we will be done, or if we will be happy with the ones we have chosen to take in.

 

I've been feeling pretty 'complete' these last few weeks. I put myself on a Doll Ban for a month because I had a suspicion I was on the verge of getting dolls just for the anticipation of them coming in, and once that the month was over.. I know I was right. It was honestly surprising (worrying?) how antsy I was the first half of the month about not being 'allowed' to buy a doll, (boy did I feel like a spoiled brat) but by the end of the month I was feeling okay. The craving for a new doll had faded and I realized how much I LOVE my current collection.

I love my little family unit, they feel complete and settled to me. I love my little gang of hoodlums, any more additions would feel unwieldy and hard to keep track of. I have a little fairy to wear all the frills I could hope for, and an angel named Avarice to remind me to chill out.

I'm not saying I'll never buy another doll, there are a couple I would like to have one day in the future, but right now I don't need them. It's a nice feeling.

 

..... When I'm dead?

I'll be collecting and gaming and playing with my toys til the day I die... which will be never if I've anything to say about it To stop doing these things would be tantamount to "Growing Up"... and I refuse to do that... doesn't sound fun in the least. LOL!

But seriously though... never. I'll never stop.

I'm too much a Toys R' Us kid.

 

Yep! This exactly.

Okay, so this is literally the forth time I’ve posted in this thread! I’ve amassed a wonderful and magical collection over all the years I’ve been collecting, and I always planned for it to have an end. Truly. But this year, even struggling with a tight budget due to inflation and the current state of the world, I’ve still managed to somehow add a couple of adorable little souls to my layaway cart. For years I’ve been telling my husband I was going to stop…and for years he’s been telling me I’m crazy! In this very difficult year for all of us, I finally realized he was right all along. I’m a very frugal person by nature, and I really don’t spend anything on myself outside my collection. And even these days, I still manage to eek out a little each month to fulfill my dolly needs, be it a layaway payment, special fabric, or a special doll item. The joy they bring me, perhaps even more so in trying times, is immeasurable! So as long as one of these little darlings call out to me with a special story to tell, I know I’ll manage to find a way and the space to make it work.

 

Welp, two years later. I did reduce down to five, but I ended up buying another for a total of six. Probably done for reals this time, unless I want to downsize again.

 

I would like to have been 'done' by now when it comes to buying new resin. Then again, I could never have dreamed that the hobby would be this large now. It's been over ten years since I waffled into the community, and how it has changed. Some for the better, some for worse. But one thing I've realized is that until I lose interest completely, I'll always need something to tinker on. There was a period where most of my dolls were 'complete', and I hated it. Sold all but one of that collection. There was nothing more to do except take photos, and I felt compelled to impulse buy heads and dolls I didn't need, just to have something to paint or sculpt on.

One of these years, I say every year, I will open faceup commissions. And perhaps I will. I like painting and putting together dolls, but I've noticed that except for a select handful, I seldom feel compelled to photograph them after. Some of them are nostalgic favorites, and they stick around because I enjoy them. They don't 'earn their keep', so to speak, but I worked to earn the right to keep them.

But I do wonder if, given another decade, I'll settle down. I'm finding that although I chase after all the improvements to posability and stability that come with newer dolls, the dolls I tend to keep are the old sculpts of days yore. It took me eight years to get my Unidoll Ark, ten or twelve to get Black Elf Sha and Elf Chiwoo, and thirteen for Soom Godmaster Heliot. I've had a Volks Irvin twice, and after selling him once, never again. When it comes down to the wire, the newer dolls are usually the ones that go. A few of them stay, but by and large, nostalgia seems to be my BJD 'aesthetic'. Which is the polar opposite of action figures. But I have to concede: BJDs are not action figures. They play by their own set of rules and attractions, and sometimes the most illogical doll from the perspective of a figure photographer is just the 'right' doll, the one that was meant to stay.

 

Never! I like dolls too much!

 

I will be done when I'm done.
Whenever that time comes?

 

Probably when I am unable to collect things anymore. Collecting things is one of my favorite pastimes and one of my main hobbies. I might take breaks from certain collections but I've never truly stopped.

 

I cannot wait for my kids to leave for college in a few years , and to have time again to continue crafting and designing and creating.

I have a feeling that this movie we are all in and from which we each exit when we are due without getting to see the end, will also mark when I will be done with dolls

 

Actually, I'm more or less done for now, I think. The last doll I preordered came and I like them, I'm glad I have them, I got them some clothes and some styling (all very basic - literally "pants and a shirt") and you know? I'm happy enough with the way things stand. I have stuff to do with off-topic dolls, but that's pretty minimal too. It's mostly limited to "dress them up seasonally" and "take photos in the park". Maybe I'll see a new sculpt in a few months and fall madly in love.... but it'd have to be something really special.

 

I don't think I'll ever fully be done. I feel like I always take short breaks from my hobbies, and swap around a bit. I'll always display my dolls and keep collecting!

 

I think this is one of those hobbies that cannot be "finished". For me, it is one of the best things of the whole hobby. There is always something to do and something to be excited about. All the waiting and planning is actually a big part of the fun!

 

I think I'll definitely get to a point where I'm done buying dolls as I'm quite picky about what I like and the Wishlist only has one or two dolls left on it haha but i don't think I'll ever be done buying clothes and accessories. Seems like there's always a release for something cute my dolls could use.

 

More than 5 but less than 10!

 

I don't think I can stop any time soon...

 

When this site starts to make me pay for additional Doll profiles. The need for customization will probably be endless though.