Are dolls like family or like toys?

My dolls are only toys for collecting
I cannot play with them xD
But i like to make photos of them^^

 

For me, dolls are... a bit of an in-between. They're not quite family and not simply 'toys'... since they have sentimental value to them, and you pour your heart and soul in creating their character, saving, budgeting and purchasing them- A lot of work is derived from doing so.

 

I can't say my dolls are my family but they aren't just toys. For me, it's like an escape, I can relax and forget a little bit of my problems while I'm changing clothing and taking picture of them.

 

My family is a doll family.My mom and uncle both have dolls. My dolls are more like friends to me,because it's hard for me to make friends.

 

BJDs are definitely special to me. There's the awareness that my doll is a doll, but I don't view her as a toy, or necessarily a real family member. She's a doll that's familial in the way of companionship, and there's also the pride and love as an artist I have for putting time and effort into customizing her and appreciating her. I think BJD owners actually respect their dolls and it makes a huge difference.

 

Definitely not just toys, but I don't think of them as family. My doll is precious to me and I love her dearly, but I know that she's an object.

 

Dolls are definitely not family as they are not living breathing objects. Whether they are toys or not I think is a question of imagination. For the people who have dolls with a character which is previously developed or develops over time, dolls are much more than mere toys. An object that has a 'personality' or character is more than just an object. They are certainly more than an object in any case because I believe there is a natural affinity in humans with anything of humanoid form especially if that humanoid form is small, like a baby. A chair is an object, dolls are much more and the proof is in the reaction some members have had from friends, acquaintances or family. Would a chair invoke such reactions in people? I doubt it.

 

A mix of both for me. I know they are just dolls, but it's nice to have them to vent to, or just ramble on about nonsense too. They wont think I am weird, because they can't really think or say anything. I will admit I haven sat down and watched movies or anime with them when I have no one else to watch things with, so they are kind of like little 'friends'.

 

Not family, not toys, not decorations.

They are just dolls, I would never go out of my way for them, I would never think of them in an emergency, so not Family. However they are more then toys, and more then decorations. They are the first "luxury" item I would take if I had time to gather stuff and we had to leave for some reason, so they matter more to me then other items, even my art and computer, just not at the same level as my family or stuff that can keep them safe, comfortable, and happy.

 

I'd say dolls are art, they are an expression of the creative soul of the owner and the sculptor. They are not living beings, and thus I can't see them as family, but saying they are "just toys" seems very crude. As works of art they, in a way, contain the unique soul of their owner or creator. You can't look at a beautiful painting and proclaim that's just some paint on a canvas, and neither do you say the people or the landscape in that painting are there for real. For me, dolls are the same as a beautiful painting, or sculpture, or musical piece.

 

neither family or toys for me - they're like companion pets - which are often regarded as family and/or toys I guess! Animals are too much responsibility for me though, so my dolls fill that gap

 

I'd say my doll is definitely in a limbo between the two. I always get so sentimental with my toys so they usually end up being more to me than just toys- but I wouldn't go as far to say that my toys can be elevated to family. Perhaps my doll is a close friend? I'm not sure how to describe it really but my doll is definitely important to me

 

@ShyOracle definitely agree with you on them being in limbo. They're somewhere between I feel like. I obviously understand that they are not people, they are inanimate objects, but they mean more to me than a lot of my other possessions. In a fire I would obviously save my husband first, dogs second, and then if I had a chance I feel like I would save my dolls next. I can't think of anything else I own that I would go for first. So I guess, they're obviously not family, but they're still not just "toys". They're more than that. They're a collective piece of art that holds a sentimental value to me, and I value them as more than just simple toys.

 

Neither, they're like art. They ARE art!

 

While my dolls are all based on OCs that I consider a sort of family in an unconventional sense, I don't feel like either "toys" or "family" is the appropriate word for how I feel about my actual dolls. I think I see them as artistic canvases, with how customizable they are and the creativity they inspire.

 

On a superficial level, they are like toys, small human figures that can be played with. But they are also pieces of art that were sculpted, cast, and often customized by their owners. They are far more precious to me than the off-topic dolls I own. They all have names, characters, and stories. I put a lot of time and energy into making them clothes. Changing their clothes and posing them often helps my feel better when I feel depressed. I wouldn't get so attached to them if they were "just toys". Mine are also mostly LE or from doll lines that have been discontinued. That makes them much harder to replace.

To me they are both creative focal points, and a kind of friend who is always there, never judges me, and makes me happy. The ones that will get sold are the ones that no longer inspire me or make me happy.

 

theyre like my little silent buddies just chilling around all day. i call them the dude crew.

 

My dolls are basically toys and I'd never have the same deep emotional bond with them like I have with my family/friends. But my dolls are very important to me and I'd be very sad if something bad happened to them... well in this case I could still replace them I guess.

 

Neither term really fits particularly well. Somewhere in between is more accurate; they mean the world to me, but are no replacement for human companionship.

 

They're a bit of both! Just because of the big price, it's definitely a toy or a luxury item. Although, once obtained it certain is like family. You treat the doll as if it's your child by taking care of how they look by dressing them up or cleaning them. You make sure they're in perfect condition and handle them with care. It may be because of that price tag but I feel people would do this regardless!

 

Personally my BJDs are not family but special to me as they give me great joy and because of them have made friends and ventured into photography and tying to make things for them. It would be hard for me to sell them if I had to I would sell some of my other collections first
I feel for you that your mum is trying to make you sell your doll that sucks

 

They're toys. I love them dearly (I wouldn't spend that kind of money on them if I didn't) but they're toys nonetheless.

Other people (whether family or not) have the right to hate them, should tey so choose, but it's not really any of their business, since it's my hobby, not theirs, so I get to ignore their opinion.

The exception being if I were dependent on them for money to live on, in which case, they would kind of have a right to object to my spending a lot on a hobby when it needed to go on life expenses.

Teddy

 

Neither, as other have said; more than toys, not really family. More like... guests? Something to pay attention to and dedicate time and energy to when they're "here" (eg, in the case of dolls, when I'm in the mood for them). Quiet companions or artworks when not.

 

I really like to look at them and playing with them, but if one of them would be stolen, or destroyed, after being completely angry and sad, I could replace them or realize that "okay, I had that one, I loved it, but I had enough time with it, I don't want to spend so many money and time to replace it, let's just have the memories and the photos"'.

They are no near at the level of my family or my pets, they are priced and loved possessions

 

I think they are like my friends, like friends that can not speak, I guess because they are so much like human so it is really hard to only consider them as a toy, I even consider my teddy bear as friends too.

 

I like to cuddle my doll, when I feel to, and like to play with him. So he is like a mix of a friend and a toy.

 

I don't exactly consider my dolls family, but I am very attached to them.

 

I've been thinking about this lately, because sometimes I feel bad about how important my dolls are to me. To me, though, they are neither family nor toys. The closest comparison would be like an emotional support animal/pet. Although dolls are not alive, mine are enormously important to me, and help me stave off my depression and anxiety, like a support dog.

 

They are toys. Just like my Pokemon plushie, but more playable, since you can do more with bjds than plushies.

Since I live on my own, I haven't told my mum about the new doll I got. She always knew I collect plushies, never said much about it. I feel like she'd not be happy if she knew I spent this much on a toy...Although I have a full time job, paying my own bills and I bought her with my own money, it still won't stop her from saying "a grown up woman playing with toys.."

Nevertheless, they are toys, and yes I'm still playing with toys, and I don't think it's going to change even if my family doesn't like it. Can't please everyone. lol

 

They're definitely not family and I find it a bit hard to consider them toys given the connotations I associate with that word. I view my dolls as art instead. I collect them to customize and appreciate, rather than actively play with them.

 

To me they're art collectibles. They're soul- and liveless so I definitely wouldn't consider them family and they're not playthings like toys are.

 

I feel tremendous affection for them, but that doesn't make them "family"...I felt the same for my stuffed elephant, whom I took everywhere when I was a child. So yeah, toys. Grownup toys, but toys nonetheless.

 

Not family, but not toys so much as very expensive, customizable works of art.

 

To me? YEAH!
I am so sorry that your family is trying to get rid if your dolls my dolls bring me so much happiness and comfort just like family! I hope you stay in the hobby even though your family is against it!

 

Toys for me, I've sold them over the years when needing money and didn't feel anything.

 

For me, they are art collectibles but with lots of cool customization options. While I adore the craftsmanship of the original doll, I can also add my own ideas to create something more unique.

 

I have my dolls openly on display, and my relatives have been over, but never commented on them. I'm a collector of quite a few things (elephant shaped items, Pokemon) so I think they're just used to it. I don't know how they'd feel if they knew the price though! My dolls all feel like their own people to me. I have a special connection with one of them and often call him 'my boy' and although the other doll doesn't feel like 'my girl' she is certainly not just a toy and none of them will ever be! Even the boy I've packed away for selling, I feel bad about him being there because of the 'living quality' dolls have to me.

 

My doll is a toy, but he's a toy I really like and have a fair amount of emotional attachment to. I think of him as analogous to an instrument or an antique car, something you can use but also need to take good care of and into which you can sink a lot of enjoyable time.

 

I hope that almost 8 years on the original poster did manage to finish college.
It's funny how this thread gets resurrected every two years or so.

For me dolls are objects, not family. Given the choice between my pets and my dolls, I would chose the pets every time. If circumstances make it necessary to rehome them, I think I would. (Both the pets and the dolls - but I would be *way* more careful about who I hand my pets to!)
Anyway, they're definitely not family. And I hesitate to call them 'toys', but of course they are essentially playthings.

Craft items, maybe. Not art - I'm not that good.

 

Mine represent characters from shows/anime that I love so they're ''re like, very limited collector's pieces, so more important than just a ''toy" but still never be as important as my animals, absolutely never I love them, but qt the end of the day, they are replaceable (at q huge cost sure, but still replaceable) my animals aren't.

 

To tell the truth I think they are toys. They can't replace the family members and I think for me, the dolls are beautiful decoration which can bring joy to me and spend the boring time with me.

 

Hmm, I suppose I see them more on the "toy" side of the spectrum but the word "toy" may not exactly reflect how i feel about them.
For me, dolls are more of a canvas/muse for my photography and craft.

For the 2nd part of the question, I pretty much keep them a secret as i know that relatives will disapprove of them with the whole "aren't dolls are for kids" mentality. I think thy key thing is if they make you happy just to enjoy them !

 

I think it really depends on the individual. A lot of people view pets as family, and while they're actually alive and dolls aren't, the therapeutic nature and ability to bond with them is definitely still present.
There will always be people who judge the things you like, but don't let it worry you too much as long as you enjoy it!

 

Both choices wrong for me. I think, they mostly similar to friends.

 

I mean I don't play with mine, even at meet ups they just sit there to me it's just art collection and I admire them , though my newest doll is changing that I have him out alot look at him think of great photo shoot opportunities so maybe he's becoming a prized toy

 

My ball-jointed dolls are objects to me when they arrive but they turn into so much more when they're 'finished'. They turn into valued companions and beloved friends.

They offer me so much support and comfort that I can't consider them just random objects anymore.

 

They’re toys, but they’re very special toys. I treat them with a sort of respect and friendliness that I wouldn’t with my regular action figures. However, if I had to sell all my dolls to be able to afford medical treatment for my dog or husband, I’d do it immediately.

 

To me they're nothing but toys, a display item, photography tool.

I can't understand people who talks to their dolls or treat them like a real child.

My family doesn't hate my dolls but doesn't exactly like them either, my dad finds then scary
Like a soul would take over their body and move at night? Lol!

But they dontd exactly tells me to sell them/throw them away.

Although if therest a time I'm strap on cash i may waver on letting them go.

 

My dolls are pieces of art and act as a creative outlet for me!

Can't say they're family because I wouldn't ever sell a family member, even if I wanted to...

 

I understand perfectly your situation because my mother and father also disapprove my doll collection, and some of my friends can't understand how important are for me.

However, I can't see my doll collection like relatives or friends but either like toys. My dolls are for me a way to express myself and develop my creativity in different ways, they have their own character and style and I love to develop both and, of course, I trate them with the same respect that any other creature alive. They make me feel happy just for own them, see them everyday or "play" with them, so are a big important part of my life but in my scale of love and preferences I put them after family and friends

 

As much as my dolls have names other than their sculpt, to me they are most definitely inanimate objects.

They are simply a creative outlet for me, in terms of photography, sewing and other hobby related crafts.

If I was ever to apply the word family to them, it would just be to identify them as a related group of items.

 

I used to see them like family but lately I'm seeing them like toys. They're just beautiful things I like to work on and look at.

 

Toys. Well, they are expensive toys that I wouldn’t let children touch and I don’t play with my dolls like I did as a child but they are just things to me. I do make up little stories about them, I write up little biographies and backgrounds and have a lot of fun that way. I like dressing them up and posing them for photos. Any interaction with them helps me bond with them better. A doll that just kind of hangs out and that I get no joy out of is a waste of space and money and doesn’t stick around.

 

Well, for me this might be a very difficult question... because they are sort of a "vessel" for those parts of my family that don't exist in this world... (uh... this sounds so creepy)... but they are really like anchors I use to make my imagination come to life. So, they are definitely just toys for me... but the doll is not family either... it is more the "vision" that "inhabits" the doll... really difficult to explain, I even have no words for it in my native language XD... geeez... I am so weird XD

 

Family, they are like close friends for me.

 

Definitely agree with you on the imagination part. They're also a really good creative outlet, because of all of the stuff we're able to make for them. Clothing, faceups, dioramas, etc.

So I would say closer to toys, but I care about them more than the toys I own.

 

Hum well, in my house they are like "family" but in the sense that we talk about them as if they were people. I guess that my family still sees them as toys but because they know their value and how much they mean to me they still treat them as special, which I like =) Fortunately I only got very few bad reactions from people even when I mention their price :P

 

For me is toys but would be more precious than normal toys in my heart. I love my dolls but they are not equally to my real family.

 

I'm so sorry to hear that your family doesn't support your hobby. I really hope you won't let them "yuck your yum" and that you continue to engage in what brings you joy!

I've been lucky in that my family and fiance is lukewarm to positive about the hobby (my mom is super into doing doll-related sewing projects and crafts with me whenever I visit her)--though they probably think of it as just a neat piece of art/toy. However, since he's based on a character that is very near and dear to my heart, I feel like that most people don't understand how much my doll means to me. But I suppose I'm fine with it being a sort of private affection and I try not to depend too greatly on the validation of others--I just count myself lucky that everyone I know and have met so far has been so supportive. I imagine it must be incredibly difficult feeling like those you love don't value and are against you doing something that makes you so happy.

 

they started off as toys but im super attached especially to Chiru now (my pfp) shes an extention of me so i consider her an important part of my family!