Why are dolls so meaningful to you?

I remember I made a promise as a kid and said I would have barbies till I grow old ,and even told my cousins I'd have one in my casket when I die and they just laughed and now they found out I still have barbies and these BJDs and they said they've grown up which kinda pissed me off TBH . I mean I don't hate on their hobbies just cause it's a common one. I don't know how to explain it to them .. I mean I wanna say it's art I'm buying just a different form of it , I know it's easy to say don't bother to explain but I'm close with my cousins and its just pissing me off lol

 

Dolls never argue or demand and are always there. Having them offers a sweet sense of companionship and comfort when you need it. Dolls are a fabulous canvas for creativity. Collecting, creating personalities, props, making things for them, stories, staging and photographing them is so much fun.

 

Because its an art to design and customize a doll that can look as real as you can make it. Who says your too old to play with dolls?

 

I love them because dolls can be whatever I want. My dolls are like an extension of me, even I trying to make different styles they end exactly like me. It's possible to express myself and feelings with dolls and they make me forget my problems for a while

 

Dolls have brought me joy for around 30+yrs......
I do visual display & merchandising so dolls are like mini mannequins & I love fashion design so my boys are like mini inspirations to me. My dolls give me love (in their way lol) & allow me to channel my creativity into something beautiful on something beautiful, from the sculpt of the doll to his face up the layers of creativeness is powerful & allows me to tap into it & join it.

 

For me, because they are my characters realized more beautifully than I could ever draw them (I'm more of a writer). These dolls have such presence as well! I love looking at them.

It took me several years, though, to realize that was what I wanted out of the hobby. I've had so many that I sold mainly because they were fan-dolls or beautiful but no character at all dolls. The ones without a character or purpose I couldn't get attached to. And I discovered (after doing it too many times!) that I really prefer non-bjd iterations of my favorite characters. Figures, 1/6 scale action figures, etc.

Right now I'm working on ironing out which characters I really need/want dolls of. There are dozens and dozens of people in my story verse (shared with a co-author. I've considered having dolls of the characters she's created but she isn't into dolls. I'd love to have at least one of her characters, though I'd also really like to minimize.

I think I want to center it around one character, Lorina, and her most important people. That gives me three sets of dolls: child Lorina + her only friend Ilari, grown-up versions of them + their daughter, and her reincarnation + her big sister.

Seven dolls isn't that minimal, but I think it's a good number I can work with without them being overwhelming. Then I can devote hobby time + money to perfecting them without worrying about all of the endless beautiful and amazing sculpts that keep coming out.

 

I can make any kind of cosplay for my dolls - they are my characters as well (I'm a writer) - and they are just beautiful! I've always liked dolls & miniatures, and BFDs actually look right w/those tiny tea-sets etc that I've had for years

 

Was a big fan of Frances Hodgson Burnett's A Little Princess since I was very little. There's a doll called Emily featured in the story who is one of the few constant things that remain with the protagonist as she goes through a tough period of her life. I've always wanted to have a doll that I could take with me everywhere and grow up with, so I guess that's a large part of their appeal to me.

 

So I have to ask, why do all of you love your dolls and what is their significance to you? [/QUOTE]
they have always been another world for me: filled with a joy beauty and story separate from reality. Some can be trangely their own characters with their own stories without much thought on my part [if any at all like they screamed their story to me and i had to accept it] or they can fit into physical personifications of characters in books and such. They also give me the ability to make and create things on a scale I enjoy as well.

 

Dolls are meaningful to me because when I was younger, I dreamed of being a fashion designer. However, being too young to get a job I wasn't able to make the beautiful designs I saw in my head, it was just too expensive. In doll scale however, I could afford to bring my creations to life and it made me really happy to finally have that outlet.

 

So very touching. This says it all. (hopefully it's ok to link this here)..

 

Dolls are meaningful to me in so many ways it's hard to explain. They got me through some extremely tough times in the past few years and I've met a lot of helpful, encouraging people through the hobby, and I hope to continue my love of dolls as I get older ​

 

When I play with my doll, I just feel warming... Even when I'm in hard times, my dolls always stay with me. Never felt same with other hobbies. I just don't know why I only feel that with dolls.

 

Its fun to cosplay the dolls as different characters in clothing and costumes from my favorite movies and shows

 

...well, even not being doll owner yet, i can obviously say what is so meaningful about dolls in my case.
It's inspiration.
Being an artist and creating my own universe with characters, i wish to have at least some of my favorite chars in touchable 3d form; also, i like to surround myself with beautiful things that i can use.
I mean, if the thing is beautiful it is ok, but if i know what to do with it and i am really sure i will use it - then i want it for myself.
I don't like bulky dustkeepers like plush toys, but doll is definitely not one. I may be strange sometimes half-jokingly communicating with inanimate things that have long history or special meaning for me (japanese people believe that the objects of 100 years and older get soul; i'm not that serious but at least i suppose that every object keeps the energy given to them from inside and that makes them unique), but when it's about dolls there's no doubt i will communicate. I'm not among those who seriously believe that dolls have souls, but i like to act like i do. Hope you know what i mean. And i appreciate that kind of one-sided communication a lot.

 

They are a creative outlet and because it's kind of like real life Sims

 

Well, for starters I have Asperger's syndrome, and one of the hallmarks of the condition is having an intense focus on a narrow subject (which is usually referred to in autism circles as a "special interest").

Dolls just happen to be my special interest at this point in my life. The "narrow" part comes from the fact that I only truly enjoy anime-style dolls like Obitsu/Parabox, Dollfie Dream, and SmartDoll. (The exception is Pullip dolls. I'm really fascinated by them even though they're not quite as anime-styled as the others I've mentioned. Maybe because Pullip involves some "building" aspect to it?)

I view my interest in dolls as a natural progression - when I was a child I was really into Pokemon, which lead me to develop an interest in the anime aesthetic during my teens, which has then developed into a love for anime-style dolls as an adult.

Who knows, maybe in another 20 years I'll have robot waifus or waifus in virtual reality or something? As long as the anime aesthetic lives on in some form, I'm sure I'll never be bored.

 

I love how you can really make them your own. They're beautiful and delicate yet sturdy enough to play with. And to me, they are many of the characters I have played or come to love in a story. It's like being surrounded by all the characters I love and getting to interact with them.

 

The first time I saw a bjd I fell in love. I wanted to collect them because I wanted anything that's adorable. I wanted to give them a new home. My family and friends aren't mean about it. Most of them love my dolls. Now when it comes to people I don't know don't really need to know because one it's none of their business, two I don't need to deal with their ignorance and three I don't need people telling me I'm wasting my money away.

I know not everyone likes bjds so I don't bring it up unless someone talks to me about them.

 

My dolls tend to be my greatest comfort in times of hardship, especially when people close to me aren't able to be there for me. They feel like family, something I've always lacked in my life. They help remind me of small things in life like simple beauty, creativity and generosity (as most of my dolls are gifts from people close to me) and patience (something I've always lacked but desperately need).
They always help me stay hopeful for the future, because my dolls are some of the very few things I'm passionate about and their story isn't upbeat but it's so very full of hope. Something I believe we all need a large dose of.