Would you, could you give away a doll?

I think it depends on the doll and situation.

Like if I had a doll that I ended up not liking, and a good friend of mine happened to be pining after that sculpt for a long time, then I would consider it. Maybe as a Christmas/Birthday gift or something to make them really happy.

 

I have bought bjds for other people, and I have given many non-bjd dolls away. If I did have a bjd that found a better home with a good friend I probably would give it away. It is really fun to see the look on someone's face when you give them a doll!

 

I guess it depends on how attached you are and how valuable they are to you.
I don't have many dolls, and had to sell one to invest in my new girl (which I don't regret because my doll is going to a very loving home) but I couldn't see myself just giving away a doll. My first doll though, I could never sell him it just didn't feel right. But if I had a long time friend who fell for him I would part with him. Because I don't play with him very much, I have larger dolls now and it would be awesome to see someone really happy with him. He's not worth a lot of money, I could probably sell him and get some doll clothes, but just knowing he'll be in good hands and I don't have to feel bad would be enough.

It's so easy to feel guilty, but as much as we love them it's just a doll. The doll doesn't mind where it goes.
It's really awesome and kind to give one away. I'm sure that person would be super happy and excited about it! ~

 

I've given a doll away, yes. I never fully bonded to it, then had something bad happen associated with it that made me not want to look at it ever again. I knew my sister wanted to get into the hobby, and had had family pitch in a little to get her first doll already, who was waiting for the chance to 'go home' to her. So I re-did my doll into an adorable little girl for her, and sent her along with the first. By the time my total dolly makeover was finished, I ALMOST wanted to keep her, but I was happy to see her go to someone who really loves and wants her.

I think it's silly to get upset over someone giving away their own dolls. No matter what the reason is. If the owner is comfortable, and happy, giving away or selling their doll, it's their choice. In the end, they're dolls, not children, not pets. Inanimate objects.

 

I have given away dolls (to be precise, a doll, and a doll head), yes. Both of them were gifts to people I like a lot, so it didn't hurt me in the slightest to give them away. So obviously I see giving a doll away as a gift as something pretty normal. Even though we bond with our dolls, they are still material possessions. All material possessions, no matter how beloved and expensive, can be given away as a gift. If one wants to.

And as for the "they are my kids"-problem... In my opinion, selling a doll that one considers to be "their kid" is somehow more "wrong" >.> So either the person feeling this way will keep their doll forever, or they shouldn't judge those who give their doll away for free. Since the latter is much more appropriate for a "kid". After all, children leave thei parents' home when they grow up, don't they? And the parents don't get paid for that. LOL!

 

I would give a doll as a gift, if I was no longer interested in her, provided that the receiver liked the sculpt and wanted the doll. Unfortunately (or, fortunately?) I don't have any close friends or relatives who are into dolls, so most of them would consider such a gift pretty lame .

 

Sure. You can't take it with you.

 

I have not, but I would consider it. It depends on the doll and the person. I don't have any children just yet, but I do have a niece that I thought about giving/getting her one. I think she could take care of one, and she really wants one of her own! The "trouble" is that her younger sister and brother are rather wild and would probably break it.

 

Knowing how I am, I would totally give away a doll. When I want something gone, I want it gone, and to hell with how much it's worth or how much I paid. So in the case that there's a doll I no longer feel attached to, giving it away would be something I would take into consideration if I knew a family member or friend who was interested in my doll or if I couldn't get rid of it via selling (even at near giving away prices).

Of course, I'm also the type of person who would just give the doll to goodwill if my other attempts to rid myself of it didn't work, if I was strapped for time and space, or if I was just too lazy to go through the hassle of selling or giving it away (hello preparing it for the mail). There's also the fact that if I was really impatient/lazy, I'd just say screw it, call Canadian Diabetes and have the doll picked up with my clothes.

 

I have given BJD's to my daughter for each birthday the last 3 years but never given away one of my own dolls. If someone I knew desperately wanted one and couldn't afford it or maybe lost a doll somehow and couldn't get a new doll , I might give away one.

 

BJDs as gifts are wonderful.
It may be hard to do with the price tag attached to a whole doll, but if it's a good friend, it's definitely worth it.

 

Woman I aint made of money.

 

Well, I'm like a big Black Hole when it comes to dolls... they come in and never escape... But I certainly understand those who can give dolls away. In fact, I've benefited from this since a friend gave me one of her dolls! She was not as interested and was giving them to people who were interested... Which is very, VERY nice!

This doesn't happen often. The giver has to prefer giving rather than selling, for one thing... But there are some folks who can have that mindset and be in that position financially...


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Interesting thoughts (further on) about giving a doll to a good home... I know that with the doll I got, I will never sell her and will always think great thoughts about the giver. The doll is taken to meetups and dressed up and enjoyed (she is paired with one of my boys, too). I think that is a reason why I'd give friends dolls (if it came to that--which it hasn't. They can all afford their own dolls, for one thing). But I know who would appreciate which dolls, and I know they would make good homes. Although I don't think dolls have feelings and all that, if I care for the doll (which I do), I don't want to see them going to uncertain homes, which can happen if they are just sold off.

 

No, they're not my children, but since it takes me over a year to get even one and I can't buy anything else in the mean time, I won't give away something that costs this much.

I'm kind, but not that kind.

 

I haven't given a BJD away, but I have considered it. I'm planning on moving very far away from my current location some time during 2012 or 2013 depending on when the right place comes along, and I'm wondering if I'll really bring all my girls... A dear friend of mine really wants a BJD but can't afford it, so I'd probably wind up giving her one if I do find it hard to make room for them all in my new place. I would rather have them living with someone else who takes care of them than bring them along to have them stuck in their boxes all the time.
Of course some dolls are much harder to part with than others, so it would be hard to make up my mind as to who stays and who goes... But I know they'd be well loved and since they would be given to a friend I know I could see them later on.

However, if I'd give a doll away I'd probably give them away with the condition that IF my friend were to get sick of said doll later on she'd ask me if I'd want to have/buy her back before giving/selling her to someone else. It would feel strange to me if a doll I'd given someone out of love and friendship ended up for sale at a forum without my knowing about it, at least if I was still friends with the person I gave it to. I wouldn't expect someone I was no longer in touch with to drop me a line about a doll I once gave them, but if I was still close to the person... Then I'd want to know.

 

I have not given away any of my bjd. If it's a doll I can't bond with, it will end up in the second hand market. If it's a doll that I like, I would consider giving her away to a dear friend of mine. She has bought my first bjd and I can see she really loves her and won't sell her off. So knowing that my dolls will be spoiled and taken care of, this is the only person I would consider giving one of my dolls as present. I know they cost $$ but if you are attached to a particular doll you wouldn't like it to see it being sold off again and again. Sometimes you can track their whereabouts from owner to owner. Having said that, if it's a doll I really really like, she will be staying with me for sure.

 

In my total time in the hobby I've given away three dolls. Two were to my best friend, who loved BJDs but couldn't afford to buy them. The third was to a woman at my local meetup who liked a doll that was created after I did some hybriding (the doll was a leftover of parts I didn't want/need). I don't regret giving them away at all, it was amazing to see how happy they were receiving dolls that I myself had no plans for/no need for.

Those were both special circumstances though, and unless the person is a good friend or family member I don't think I could give a doll away.

 

I cannot imagine giving away one of my dolls. I have many porcelain dolls, some barbies and bratz and monster high and pullips and bjd's. They all have the same value for me so i couldnt give away a single one. But! If i was to consider decreasing my family of dolls i would probably give away rather than sell. Because i have such emotional attachment to them i wouldnt want to ask money for them and see them as something you can put a prize on. I would probably pick out someone who is caring and sweet and dying for the doll i want to give away and i think i would be more content with the feeling that she (or he) is to go to a loving owner rather than being content with the money i got out of it.

 

I gave away a doll to one person and a doll head to another. Because I was not doing anything with those dolls, I wanted them to be loved and played with, they were comparatively inexpensive, and both those people said they loved them and dreamed to have them. In the end, the doll ended up completely neglected. And the doll head, it used to be modded but the new owner undid those modifications, even though they were the ones that made it unique. I'm really unhappy with what happened to those dolls.
So, I won't ever again give away a doll, I'm only going to sell. When I sell a doll, it's just a transaction, once I exchange a doll for money, that's it. But when I give away a doll as a gift, it's like I put a part of my heart into this gift, and seeing it mistreated is just too painful.