"Odd One Out" Collector?

I dunno, it seems like I like mostly Tiny creature-y and anthro dolls, which I don't think are the main types of BJD people are into. I don't really mind, I still like seeing other types of dolls that I wouldn't want to own but still think they're cool.

I also like dolls with more 'interesting' faces rather than necessarily cute... and I like noses! One of the reasons I like my ResinSoul Rong was because she has a face I think is not conventionally pretty.

 

I mostly like the big, realistic guys.
But tbh, one is never as alone as one thinks in such hobbies. You just haven't found your community or niche yet.
The dolls that are most popular in the west are not necessarily very popular in the east. And even there you have several groups. Like a lot of the Asian collectors seem to be into frilly Volks, stylized modern guys (often Soom Idealian and the like) and Dollfie Dream. They are not into Fairyland, which is the hot shit here. Russians meanwhile prefer the high fashion (like Pasha Pasha), high realism or fantasy looks.

So, maybe you're just looking at the wrong places? I personally don't like girl dolls much as well, don't care for MNFs or all those cutesie small female dolls. I simply don't follow people with collections like that and instead look for people who collect similar to my tastes. That works pretty well for me.

 

I feel like how you described yourself is probably how I would describe at least 1/3 of the hobby in terms of style and taste...

Personally, I think there are very, very few collectors who actually are the odd one out (which also isn't a bad thing). I can think of a few collectors who really do their own thing, and even if it isn't my taste, it's incredibly impressive because of the passion they have behind what inspires them.

Demographics also influence how people clothe their dolls. For example, gothic lolita dresses tend to be very popular amongst Asian collectors -- and not just BJDs.

For myself, I don't think I'm really "the odd one out" because I like to experiment and create things that I want to make. If no one else likes it, okay; it genuinely doesn't bother me because I do what makes me happy. Ultimately, are you looking for someone to bond over similar interests? Like friendships? And you feel that you can't because no one likes what you like?

Looking at my doll circle, we all like different sculpts/brands/sizes. I tend to purchase dolls that tend to be unconventional in terms of makeup and mods, and I have friends who are happy with say... their Fairy Land dolls. But we still enjoy talking about doll artistry and take personal interest in each other's collections because our friendship isn't just based on the type of dolls we collect.

 

I've definitely felt a certain disconnect with... I dunno, 'most' seems excessive, but maybe 'a lot' of folk in the hobby. I, seemingly like you, have little interest in smaller dolls or especially cutesy things.

Either that or the things I find cute differ from more common interpretations.

However, all of the above has been my experience with most of my hobbies. I also tend to find that, while I might be buzzing along with my interests, others tend to be 'off' more than they're 'on' (in any of my hobbies), but this too has been the usual, and something I've just had to grow accustomed to. I think I tend to occupy 'special interest' levels of fixation on things, but without the drop-off into other interests - for instance, I've been 100% down for certain fandoms since the 90's, with no foreseeable change in that!

All that aside, if you ever want to chat (I'm on Discord mostly) I like 65cm+ dolls, a somewhat darker aesthetic, Ancient China, spirits, magic, modern punk clothes/time crossovers, uncanny ("do ya think this place is haunted?") (it sure as heck is friends), hanfu, kimono, history, and Ohaguro*.

black is eternal.

 

I think a lot of us have that one doll we feel needs that extra love or understanding. For me it's my Irrealdoll Nur who I had modded into a girl. Parker has an overbite, tiny eyes and and very basic body. But I love her and would never part with her. I also love Dollstown dolls who are very special. They aren't very realistic, but they are solid, good standers, posers, with good details. So don't feel like you're odd. You are like many of us.

 

I’m very much on your side. I’m not a fan of girly stuff, it’s not my aesthetic although I can appreciate others’ dolls. I mostly collect SD boys and usually prefer realistic proportions. I know I’ll never be the most popular sort, or get much attention for my collection & I do wish I could share my dolls with people enthusiastic about a similar aesthetic but alas, it seems unlikely. I don’t like cutesy much in my collection, and the yosd dolls I have are just for specific characters. Mostly I like the big boys with very specific looks, to the point of commissioning sculpts. I don’t like a lot of bjd fashion and really prefer either military or straightforward clothes for them. They’re not pastel, goth, historical, steampunk or any of those styles. They’re just dudes dressed like they’re in the street.

Unlike your post, I wouldn’t say I despise that stuff in general, as I said I can appreciate & even like what I see on others’ dolls but it’s not anything I would have in my own collection. A lot of people dislike minimees too, which makes me kinda sad as I love the realism that comes from using a reference photo. I don’t mean picture perfect bjd realism, but the genuine kind, with creases, scars, dimples, marks etc.

The only thing I really would say I don’t like (no offence to anyone!) is anthros with partially animal faces. They weird me out entirely.

 

Sometimes. Most of my collection is unpopular and their discussion threads are ghost towns, so no one to talk to. I have mostly cute, tiny anthro and anime style dolls, so I should feel like I fit in, but since I struggle to get my dolls looking cute, or finished, I don’t share them. My dolls are mostly blank and poorly dressed (not from a lack of trying). Super frustrating for me, almost to the point of giving up in the hobby many times (even now). I just seem to be missing the skills to successfully put together a bjd and have it look good.

 

I've always been the kind of person to just engage with stuff I like without worrying about what's "popular" or not - my tastes range from mainstream companies to indie artists who only sell every few months. Not being interested in more popular bjds doesn't make you any less a part of the hobby. And I'm sure there are plenty of people whose tastes run similar to yours...or even people who own mostly cute frilly dolls who would still want to hear about your dolls.

Try poking around the "Large Doll" section of the discussion board and look through threads of companies you like, I'm sure you'll find lots of stuff to talk about!

 

Honestly, I'm actually not sure if it's even possible to be the odd one out in this hobby. There are so many types of dolls, and people are definitely buying them! Realistic dolls, horror dolls, macho dolls, anthro dolls, alien dolls, transgender dolls, anime dolls, cosplay dolls, fantasy dolls, creepy dolls...well, you get the idea, and I'm thinking nope, while cute and frilly may be big with a large portion of the community, a lot of us simply aren't into it. Whatever it is that you're into, you're not alone!

 

I never minded being unpopular or having unpopular tastes. I was bullied when I was a kid for being vegan, but now it seems to be the "it" thing to pretend to be, which I get confused about because it was never something you wanted to say aloud when I was child (I'm thirty-eight now, and still vegan). I love dolls people think are ugly, or were not popular at all (so much so they got discontinued for not selling well). I love anime and realism, but own more dolls that tend to look more like old-school-Japanese-RPG than hyperrealist. I want some of my dolls to look realistic, but not like they could pass for my next-door-neighbor. I want them to look more like "CGI," than if they were actual real life humans. Which I think it rare, people either want their dolls to be representations of real-life-people, or very cutesy. When I first tried skin texture on a few of my BJD in 2009, people were saying it looked like an illness... I suck at face ups, so maybe they were right, but now I see it everywhere. I've always been a weirdo, and I don't mind not fitting in, even in a niche hobby. DX

 

I dunno, a lot of the threads I run with are full of people more into big guys. Based on how my stuff is curated, I hardly see the cutesy girly girls. Many of the threads for the companies I buy from aren't very active, so I just lurk hardcore on threads for companies with a similar aesthetic.

 

I personally love getting dolls not too many people will have or have in general. Even if its a different skin color too that haven't really been pictured anywhere. I don't really like following crowds most of the time. I think most of my dolls are ones that are not common at all. Then on top of it I add skin tones. I have a DZ winged hazel. You never see that. Or a Blue impldoll Plaice. Or a 1/4 from an uncommon company as well. its just being a bit different and knowing that I have something unique. Thats kind of the thrill I get for being one of the odd one out collector.

 

I have a hard time truly judging what the "majority" in this hobby really is. Because the preference seems to vary so widely depending on which community you happen to be looking at. Like, on Instagram I feel like I actually see big realistic guys super often and not very many cutesy frilly girls. And almost NO babyish "yosd" style dolls at all. But on tumblr I feel like I usually see nothing but Minifees and the like. And Anime style dolls.

I guess I sometimes feel at odds with the community because "I only like realistic dolls" seems like a really common sentiment and I find super realistic dolls... so creepy. They hit that perfect uncanny valley sour spot for me. Also I like cartoony dolls (not anime, more like western cartoons) and they seem hard/impossible to find.

 

Nah, as they say "de gustibus" or "everyone has different taste".
I like only SD that have particular features: for example, I've recently purchased a "les belles de jour Ondine".
The only common doll I own is a Fairyland Sylvia, but even her has somethig peculiar. I took a picture of her with the flash in the dark and ohh boy! She looked like a real vampire XD
Also, I love asian like sculpts, such as Maskcatsoll Xilv. Call me crazy but when I look at that head, I can only think about Yoshitaka Amano's works.

 

BJD is such a niche hobby anyway. We are all the odd ones out. I find camaraderie within that and joy in everybody's pictures.

I personally wear lolita and favour girl dolls but I also like creepy or sensual dolls. You probably think I wouldn't based on appearances, and I get that sort of assumption a lot. I think we can all enjoy and respect different things, it's not important to be 'the same' or 'different'

 

I think it's more that online trends have shifting to 'look, like, leave'. People just aren't as engaged with others as they used to be online.
I have nothing but tiny dolls and I don't have any doll friends or a group that feels like them accepted me.
I hope you find joy in the hobby and with your crew. Even if you feel like the odd one out

 

My dolls tend to lean toward being the cutesy types and I love the smaller dolls. But I wouldn't say that my dolls are a full representation of my tastes and preferences. I actually love a lot of the more realistic and uniquish dolls out there too. Not just the ones I own. I'll get into pretty much any doll as long as it's not gore. (I'm not good with gore and I have small children) I don't think that being the "odd one out" is necessarily a bad thing. It just means you help bring more diversity to the community and insight on a different part of it.

 

I too find the cutesy child dolls creepy. M y crew is almost entirely realistic and the one who isn't is a realistic bodied cat-boy. This hobby has so many varieties of collector that you shouldn't feel odd.

 

This made me think... at the same time that I try not to let popularity influence me, a part of me is kinda hipster-ish in that I don’t like something quite as much if I see it everywhere. Not just dolls either, anything. It may be kinda silly but when I look at some very popular sculpts I feel I could never have one cause so many people have them already I’d prefer going for a perhaps similar but slightly less popular one If I like that option enough.
That said I used to hate pink and girly, till the defunct virtual doll site poupeegirl won me over with the cute frilly pink ribbons. Realism does look kinda creepy to me but I can still appreciate it as a work of art.

 

Yes. Sometimes when I'm talking with a group of doll people and everyone is telling these grand fantasy stories with such neat and intricate things, fantasy characters that can do neat things or look so wonderful and unearthly (not in a bad way) and I'm just over here with my arms full of boring plain humans
Sometimes it makes me feel bad about them and myself, because they're just so standard that I don't feel I can share their stories as much

 

Honestly, I got a few "cutesy" dolls, (my yo-sds and tinies) but while, I adore pukipuki's and pukifees and would love one... I have my rule. My characters have to match the shells. With my crew, they all belong in the same "story" universe. So when I picked my MSD's, my yo-sd's ect, I picked them based off how they match with my resin doll who started this trend. If they don't match my Resinsoul Song well, they just don't come home.

I feel more like the odd one out because I'm severely... SEVERELY allergic to cats and as I recently found out in recent years, even more so to dogs. I've had to explain the severity of my issues with people when organizing swaps. I even once explained the severity of my allergies on one occasion, even explained I was on inhaler medication and that cat hair literally sends me into an attack... I got matched up...

They had four cats. I dropped out of that swap because I've tried to suck it up and be polite before. I never got to use any of the items I received because even after three washes, I was still wheezing because the cat hair got so tightly woven in.

 

I do feel kind of like the odd one out at least on the Western side of the hobby because it seems my preferred aesthetic (big boys in ancient Chinese hanfu) is waaaay more popular among Eastern collectors. I follow a lot of them on Instagram but my Chinese/Japanese/Korean isn't good enough for me to communicate.

 

I have a huge range of interests, and I think my dolls reflect that - I have a few hold-overs from the stylized days of BJD collecting, and a good deal of 70+ more realistic men (I can't think of those guys as "boys"), some creepy horror dolls, a circus full of weirdos, some pastel, some goth, some anthros.... my dolls are all over the place. And there are places for all of that. I've never felt the hobby leaned heavily one way or the other...you just have to find the people who share your interests or who are friends despite the difference in dolls. I follow a lot of what I think of "old school" collectors outside of DOA because I've known them for so long, but I also love their dolls, I still have a few myself! I follow a lot of collectors of realistic men BJDs because I love that look. Same with horror dolls, and dolls I don't own and never will. There's a lot of crossover between them, the same people I see in one group are in others. And when I say group, I don't even mean real groups, just people I see and follow on instagram, which has a large BJD community. I know people don't like it because they think it's difficult to communicate with other people, but I do it all the time. You just start a conversation like any other site. It reminds me a lot of how DA used to be. If someone is friendly and wants to talk, they'll respond, if not they won't and you move on (of course it's entirely possible they've just missed your comment, patients is needed everywhere).

A good place to start I think, is here. I mean, you won't feel as out of place in the discussion threads for your own dolls! I've bonded with a lot of people over owning the same sculpts! Those friendships are outside of DOA and in some cases I've been lucky enough to get to know them irl as well as online.

I will say that for those who feel out of place irl in their doll community...I haven't been everywhere by any means, but I do feel like this hobby is regional specific. The places I have been, you can tell what the "thing" is in that area just by walking into a room. I've been to one area in a state where it was all about the American-made BJDs and anything outside of that style was just unheard of. Northeast it was all fantasy dolls and elaborate full sets that were so put-together that me with my three guys wearing suits wanted to just slowly back out of the room. I would have felt so out of place there if I had gone alone and not with friends. However, the people there were so friendly and open to everyone that it didn't matter anyway.

I've also been places that have been like my own city, just a big mix of all dolls. We used to heavily lean towards Volks and CP dolls back in the day, but now you'd never know that. With the constant addition of new people with new likes and styles there's just a bit of everything.

So I can totally see how anyone could feel out of place or lonely in an area that is heavy-leaning toward a specific style you're just not into. But that's what the internet is for! I mean, I don't have any IRL fans who read comics and obsess over super heroes like I've done my whole life. It's just me and my internet friends lol

 

I fully intend to join you in this aesthetic @bickazer (if my boys ever arrive, haha). I'd love to follow some of the folks you've mentioned, toss me a dm maybe~

 

This all makes me feel like people need to match up with folks who like the things they don't in order to trade referrals to dolls. If you like one thing, you'll always be finding the ones you don't care for. XD
My regular group (we now live all over the country but met each other over a decade ago) all have our own tastes. We relentlessly share dolls with each other that are basically a "this is cool but not for me" and trade notes on the regular.



@Arashi Uchiha Man I feel for you. Cats and dogs are so common I could see that turning the MP into a minefield. I've got a slightly similar issue, I've got a real bad smoke allergy and doubly so to the kind that a lot of folks are hesitant to disclose. Fortunately for me, I've mostly been able to reduce the issue if I can leave an item outside, with baking soda, or wash it. I'd be in some trouble if I can't do any of those though.

 

I don't know. I have different BJDs, but no MSDs even though there are a couple on my wish list, I'm just not serious about adding them yet. I started out wanting a larger BJD, he's about 65-70cm? It was hard for me to dress him, I just wanted regular-guy Western styles clothes, like jeans, tees, slacks and button up shirts. He's still my favorite BJD. Those clothes were more difficult to find when I started. It felt like the popular styles were little girl pastel pageant dresses or super dark edgy goth, cyber punk or steam punk trends. I don't think any of my girls are very frilly, but, I also didn't have much interest in girl dolls for a long time. I like to dress them like regular people that's nothing out of ordinary, in fact, my fantasy world for my dolls is incredibly ordinary. The only fantasy types I have are also not-scary just cute types. I figure they're the sort of soft fantasy type of characters my dolls would enjoy as entertainment characters, so, a universe within my imagined universe... if that makes any sense. The character I'm working on now isn't a bjd, another doll, a 6yo kid who is excited about starting private school and joining the Girl Scouts. Her style is a bit more mid-century Americana.

I might be a bit odd in my local group, because I rekindled interest in different types of dolls. I really, really loved my lost collection I had as a kid. I have different sorts now, modern Barbie, fashion dolls, life-size, artist-made, vintage, etc..... so I don't fit in completely with any doll collecting circle. I do frequent a few online and have met various types of collectors in person. From what I have observed, most doll collectors are very, very specific in the type of doll they like and they tend to stick to it. I'll have one or a few of one type, but not an entire collection of just one type. So, I'll meet a person or a group, and they sometimes will even say things like 'Ewww, baby dolls creep me out.' Which, is fine, I'll leave them out of the discussion or meeting, but, I would never say something like that to anyone else. I feel like it's bad manners.

When I have the opportunity to visit or meet other doll collectors, I care more about having fun. It's fun for me to learn about the interests and styles of other people. It might not be fun for me to do, but seeing it through their eyes is fun. Seeing the way they light up when they talk about an important concept or project is magical. Even though I don't personally enjoy it as much as them, we do share the same enthusiasm for the same hobby. I'm just glad to sometimes have a break from all the seriousness of everyday life to enjoy fellowship with others that can relate on some level, it doesn't have to be an exact match. I appreciate that others are willing and able to spend their time with me. Time and attention is the most precious thing we can share with others, it's not as if we can get more of it.

 

I agree with everyone who's saying there really is no "odd one out", unless perhaps you enjoy setting your dolls on fire. In the ten years I've been in the hobby I've pretty much run the gamut in my collecting. I started with MSD-size, then anthros, tried SD-size, thought I'd never want "children" but started getting YoSD-sizes, then tinies.

At one point I thought I'd never go back to anthros but right now my focus is tinies (children) and anthros!

I'm just glad that I started with anthros because there is one in particular that I know I could never find now and I just love him to pieces.

My motto is "never say never" when it comes to dolls. Still have my pre-bjd Betsy McCalls, Hittys, and folk art dolls too.

 

I wouldn't be surprised if everyone feels a little bit "left out" at some point. When i first got into bjds i went to a couple of meets, and everyone had MSD+ size human dolls, that were all really beautifully dressed and had amazing wigs, and i was like "Here is my little frog" and plonked this tiny anthro on the table. I struggle to make friends and integrate into groups any way but i was then sitting there like "No one here is going to get why i like this doll". And i think Anthro Tinies are niche, especially if they aren't cats or foxes.

Ironically for all the cutesy animals i love, I prefer big, more realistically proportioned human dolls. And i adore looking at peoples big SD boys, with lovely realistic face ups. I dont like a lot of the more popular dolls, I dislike really plumpy, squishy faced dolls with ott mouths (DollPamm im looking at you) and tiny child dolls also do nothing for me. Even thought I can appreciate that the pukifees and Lati's are well made little dolls and will get involved with a bit of conversation, or compliment someones doll if i think it's nicely styled even if its not my thing. I think the hobby is varied enough that you can find someone else interested in the same sort of dolls that you are. It's just locating them in the first place

 

I think my interests are all over the place. I had an abandoned project of an IOS Chaos on a skeletal Doll Chateau body but I choose dolls based on characters active in my husband and I’s stories and the character just fell out of favor. Some characters are cute and pretty, some are dark and sultry, some are creepy and grotesque. I love all of them! I don’t feel like the odd man out. All dolls are good!

 

@jade-eyed-cat

I've never been into that mainstream hobby taste. I'm not just talking about dolls. That also applys to the most things I like. So I'm already accustomed to that 'odd' feeling you were talking about. But I don't care. Everyone is different. Otherwise it would be very boring.

There always will be these creepy dolls that I don't like at all. And there are many BJD dolls and companies which I don't care about.
I prefer the large BJD boys over the girls, too. Mostly I like the beautiful aesthetic Asian BJD's.
But it seems that this is mostly not that popular by other BJD owners in the west.

 

As much as I love all the cute girly stuff to look at, my collection is all men and creatures-- even among the fashion dolls I do have, I've maybe got one just-a-cute-girl vs a box of boys and monsters. My mom and both sisters collect, so I get to enjoy seeing (and sometimes shopping/crafting for) their cute/girly dolls, and of course I do think my guys and creatures are cute in their way, but I'm definitely the odd man out, so to speak.

 

I’m a Unoa Freak and it just gets worse never better.
So although I have other dolls, my Unoa are always at least in the periphery. Having a bona fide name for this tendency lets me know that I’m not the only one but that we are pretty much always gonna be somewhat set apart by nature of what we like and by having such strong preferences. Nearly half of my dolls are sculpted by Mr Araki. When I’m done, it will be over half. And yes, many of us are insular and particular with this persistence of vision and we don’t care! It’s partially a containment field so we don’t just ‘Unoa’ everyone else to death!

In the Bjd hobby at large, the diversity of everyone’s wide preferences feeds my creativity. I also am convinced that without the continued diversity of preferences, sculpts, and differences of the people in the hobby, the hobby itself could not survive. Bjd hobby is a niche in doll collecting hobby in general and an even smaller niche if you customize or do kit dolls so comparatively, the customization part of this hobby is so small that I feel at least some connection to anyone who does creative things with/for their Bjd. Even if the aesthetics are completely opposite of anything I like or want for my own dolls. I have a wider focus and want to see the hobby thrive more, with all kinds of dolls and owners.

If I compare it to Lolita fashion, I love and wear mostly gothic and I admire classic, and wear very little Sweet. But without Sweet and Classic and many other sub-substyle also having their strong admirers (and buyers), the fashion as a whole would probably not remain viable.

 

I'm the odd duck because I'm about 3x the age of a lot of BJD folk. I'm 59, disabled and retired, and a collector of whatever appeals to me, including many many off-topic dolls (18" dolls like AG, Tonner, Madame Alexander, Bleuette, any Rapunzel I can find--you name it, I may very well have one or six), and I can't seem to bond with realistic men dolls at all. My main interest this month is Dollfie Dream and Smart Doll. Next week I may decide to sew a big bin full of LittleFee clothes. I'm not buying much new anymore, as being disabled and on SSDA has halved my personal income (Mr. Husband is still working). But you know--these dolls are a joy to me, and I'm loving all of it!

 

Honestly, I think it depends on who you interact with.

I prefer tiny dolls. Tiny, mature. Yosd sized-ish, but looking to be almost adult ish.... Along the lines of the Lillycat Chibbis or Atelier Momoni Pitusas etc. That's also not the most common thing in this hobby.

When I joined the discord server for bjd collectors in my country I was the only one with a mature tiny bjd. Sure some of the people were also repainters of OT dolls, but none had, nor wanted, mature tiny bjds. The server seemed like a 50/50 split between MSD peeps and SD peeps. And there I was, my largest doll a mere 35cm tall and my preferred size at around 30 cm. I also felt a little left out, and being new in the hobby it was difficult to get help finding clothes specific for my dolls, because none of them had the same size because my dolls don't fit yosd clothes and I don't want them to be children or dress in kids stuff (except my Pukifee, that I never thought I'd want, but here we are).

They still did everything they could for me to not feel too much out of place.

Maybe you just haven't found your people. The ones were even though your tastes differ you can still be excited on each other's behalf. Our even people who enjoy the same things.

One of my favorites from that discord server, is someone with all SD size boys that look dark and gloomy and some of them down right scary. I come from a place of using this hobby to work through my doll phobia, so some of her face ups are nightmare inducing to me. But I still absolutely love seeing her crew. Everything is well made and her passion just shines through.

On Instagram though, I have found people, who like me, prefer the mature tinies, and I have made some virtual friends there.

Oh, and sometimes, interacting with people with a different taste, you will rub off on each other. I never thought I would ever want a Fairyland doll, but I have a Pukifee now because I feel in love with one a dolly friend has. And two of my other dolly friends just got their first mature tinies. A 4th friend fell in love with one of my dolls, which inspired her to get her first chocolate resin colored doll.

I found my people... Well they found me tbh. But we sure don't collect the same type of dolls or have the same tastes at all...

Your people are out there too. They just might not be where you think. And maybe they share your tastes, maybe they don't, but as long as you remain respectful of each other it doesn't matter in the end.

 

I feel like the odd one, because it seems everyone likes sad looking dolls with lots of pink around the eyes and puffy pouty lips or very realistic looking ones with sharp angry features and I don’t particularly favor those. My dolls are happy, soft face types, maybe of Hypermaniac or Luts? I can’t remember who they are.

 

I honestly don’t think anyone is the odd one out in this hobby. There are so many different dolls for so many people of all ages that there is likely something for everyone. Or if there isn’t there are plenty of creative people that can make it so!

 

So true and if you start looking around you'll find that there are dolls of just about whatever you fancy.

 

I don't know. I haven't noticed if I'm the odd one out. I mainly collect Korean bjds and seem to like the dolls that are more popular among East Asian countries. Fairyland is nice, but not exactly what i like. I prefer Peakswoods, Soom, Rosen Lied, Black Saturn, Sartoria, Luts, etc. I love traditional outfits or concept outfits more than casual clothing. An example, would be i really love Black Saturn outfits, but they are pricey. The outfits are in the $1000 range. So far, I noticed there is a wide range of personal preference among the hobby. I also prefer larger dolls because of the details and anything too small reminds me of a Barbie size. I think in dolls I want customization due to the lack of Asian dolls before the new diversity dolls or the Asian themed dolls just weren't satisfactory for me. I felt like they were making dolls what they stereotype as an Asian looking face when there are a vast amount of variety in Asian faces. I was tired of seeing the same face over and over again.

The longer in the hobby my preferences grows even longer. I like cutesy, mature, fantasty, realistic, stylized, anthro, human, etc now for my doll collecting. I don't mind tinies as much now. I like a lot of variety in resin colors. I'm warming up to baby like dolls, but I'm not sure i will collect more or just look at them on doa.

I like sad, neutral, mischievous, winking, and anything unique expression face sculpts. I am warming up to happy faces.

 

I've never felt like I'm the odd one out collector but I also buy what appeals to me/works for the character and everybody else can go hang as it's my collection, paid for with my money, so I decide what gets added to it or not. But I'm also old and periodically cranky so.... I've never done the popular thing and usually what's popular is not my aesthetic. I will say though that I tend to collect all the weird/unusual/rarely seen dolls. I don't do that on purpose. It just seems to be the way I roll.

Like I have an Akhmel Nathan, a Unidoll Ark, SD Vito Azreal skullhead, MD Snake Demon (both sizes), SD Souloid Phiel Gold Mechanic, Camilla Dynasty Longway.... the list goes on and on really. I'm drawn to the unusual and if it's in a not standard colour (like black or grey (I'm so weak against black and grey resin) or blue or green or...), well I'm probably doomed. If they're some type of fantasy creature, well, I'm even more doomed. Style-wise and sizing, I'm all over the map from anime style to realistic and from 5cm (my smallest) to 72cm (my current largest). The only constant is that I have no girls and have absolutely no interest in collecting girls. I can't say it'll never happen (adding a girl to my collection) because saying "I'll never...." in this hobby is just asking for trouble. But I'd say it's highly unlikely to ever happen.

As far as clothing goes I lean heavily into ancient Asian style/inspired clothes. I have 5 dolls out of 75 that wear modern clothes. Everybody else is in kimono/hanfu inspired stuff or things that are creations of my fevered mind to fit the culture of the character the doll is.

 

I collect a relatively unpopular size (Big Baby MSD) so it's a little strange. I do have dolls of other sizes but Big Babies are my favorite.

 

I have no idea what's even popular in the hobby these days. When I started, there were less doll makers and the community was much smaller and concentrated, so trends felt more obvious, but now it's so much easier to find a niche and make your home there.

Yes, there are big IG account with minifee styled like influencers, and I feel those might be the most visible collectors at the moment. And if that's all you follow, you can feel out of place if that's not your thing. But since I personally mostly follow people with the same tastes as me (aka dolls with weird/creepy looks, alternative fashion, or inspired by chinese fantasy dramas), I don't feel like I'm the odd one in the hobby. It's all about finding the right people to hang out with.

 

I don't know what the trends even are anymore. I feel like I missed a pre-order from another small studio every time I browse through dolls. Feels different from when like migidoll got very big or like back when Dollzone was the "cheap" company.

But sometimes I do feel at out because some of the popular visual tropes are not my bag.

God I just hate six pack abs with a passion.

Though sometimes I see people kvetch that Den of Angels is too old fashioned while I am like.... I hate instagram. It is annoying to search. Forced dimensions are stupid. It finally got okay on desktop but it is too late.

I am still sad photobucket and tinypic basically died so some crafting knowledge is fractured here on DOA due to lack of images.

I just like forums. Having a website dedicated to one topic can be useful compared to Content Soup on social media. I shouldn't have to install a plug in to get twitter to stop telling me about politics or whoever all of twitter wants to dunk on for being stupid when I just want to look at interesting artists. =_=

 

I definitely don't think you're the odd one out, in fact I think your tastes are a lot more common than you think. In fact, I relate to it. In a way, I feel disconnected from my own doll collection for the same reason. I started collecting dolls when I was 15, and at the time I was definitely more interested in the cutesy look because, y'know, I was a kid. Fast forward to today, I'm 23, and I definitely prefer a more edgy look to my dolls. I now enjoy goth and punk looks, but one look that I still enjoy from when I was a teenager is the jester/clown look. Unfortunately, I took a 4 year long break in that time, so the dolls I have still reflect the cutesy tastes of the past. However, since returning to the hobby I have ordered many sculpts that now much closer resemble the current look I enjoy, and I have plans to repaint some of my dolls from my past in order to better match my tastes. Once the new dolls I've ordered arrive, I think I will feel a lot more comfortable with my collection.

Despite many of my dolls no longer being my taste, however, I still plan to keep some of them as they are. This is mostly because I am an overly sentimental person, so the dolls who I bonded with in the past will stay how they looked in the past. Not to mention, some of the face ups are just too well done and I'd feel awful if I were to remove them. Some of my dolls, though, mainly Auden, still matches a look I currently enjoy, that being the jester/clown look.

I also relate to you on not liking smaller sculpts. I like MSD dolls (rarely) depending on sculpt, but YoSD and smaller dolls are almost always a hard pass for me. I have 1 YoSD and 1 pukiFee doll from the past, who even though I don't like that size, I will be keeping for sentimental reasons. It helps that my YoSD has circus makeup, which matches my tastes, but outside of that I have a hard time bonding to him, and I have no idea what to do with my pukiFee. Like yeah, they're cute, but they feel out of place with me. For me, I think the chubby child bodies and faces of smaller dolls make me uncomfortable. Like, they dont creep me out, but they kind of gross me out. I'm not sure why this is, because irl I love kids and think they're super cute and plan on having my own one day, but when it comes to dolls I just don't like them.

This has gotten long winded, but in conclusion, there's nothing wrong with your tastes and you aren't alone in them either. The best part about BJDs is how you can customize them to fit whatever look you want, and there's no right or wrong way to do that so long as you're happy with them!

 

I've been feeling this more these days. I remember going to a meetup and these lolitas told me you had to have 2 dolls to enter the meetup but I had known the organizer since she had meetups at peoples houses; she never had a rule like that. Anyway, the 2 individuals who tried to gatekeep didn't have any dolls at all
My hobby experience with people has actually been terrible - things are only good when youre lining somebodies pockets.