Discussion The One Thing

For me, the "One Thing" is fairly simple and common, but it did change the way I looked at my dolls and played with them. It was the first time a doll took a nosedive off a table while I was taking pictures of her, to end up faceplanting on the floor several feet below. She emerged completely unscathed, and it made me realize that these dolls are not nearly as breakable as I'd thought.

After that, I was able to play with my dolls and take daring photos without the constant fear that something bad would happen. Overall, it's led to far more enjoyment of my dolls in general. It's kind of like when I played soccer as a kid... after the first time I got smacked in the head with a soccer ball, I realized it didn't really hurt that bad... and I could enjoy the game instead of dodging away from the ball every time it looked like it might come within 10 feet of my head.

 

The day I learned that not all eyes are made equal, and laid eyes on urethanes in person. I'd seen photographs, and I'd been flat astonished with the cost. But when a friend not only showed me hers, but took them out of her doll and let me put them in mine... I was hooked. They were light reactive, optically correct, and for that moment, though they were the wrong color, I saw something approaching life in his eyes.

Now, most of mine have urethane eyes, and it truly does make all the difference in photography.

 

My ONE THING was actually learning that I COULD. I COULD do a great face-up. I COULD make my dolls clothing. I COULD take awesome pix.

I was able to get over my fear of messing up. Now I spend all my free time creating for my dolls which is totally fulfilling.

(I also learned to randomly put in cute smilies JUST BECAUSE I CAN!!! lol)

 

Hey Truffle: Natural light for photos, it is a first. Admitting I can't do faceups is the next. Trusting people you dont know with a ton of money is a must. Styling their hair with gel and hairspray is also super groovy! ~Gus

 

My ONE THING is this:
A doll comes alive, because its owner gives it life.

Without attention, care and constant love - they are only as good as any other piece of idle furniture in the room.
They might be beautiful, but they are just pleasing to look at, and that isn't as good as this hobby gets.

If you care for them, they acquire unique personalities, mannerisms and moods because you are sensitive enough to realize they have this.
They come to life because you give them a soul.

That, to me, is the beauty of this hobby. And my personal philosophy.

 

My "one thing" came after months of carrying my (then only) doll around in public to nothing but criticism. I was so tired of people saying rude things just because *gasp!* A girl is carrying around a doll! One day I was going to a doll meet, and then a concert (8-9-08, a year ago yesterday, lol.). I didn't have time to go back to my hotel in a completely different city to put my doll back after the meet, and it was super hot outside, so he came with me to the concert. I was walking around with him looking at vendors while waiting for the concert to start and I was so certain I was going to get chewed out more than ever, but the comments that I got were so open and positive! I couldn't believe it! People were asking if they could take a picture with him, they were asking where I got him and they didn't balk at the cost! After the concert, I stood in line waiting for the band I supported (The Bravery) to show up for autographs, and when they did, they were interested too! The drummer held him and toyed around with him. He also asked for the website where I got him and wrote it down for later. For once carrying the doll around was rewarding and fulfilling. Ever since, while my tendency to bring a doll with me when I go out has decreased, I haven't even thought about the rude comments and snide remarks I could get. It makes me feel free to express my hobbies and interests because somewhere out there are people who are interested.

 

Girls. Period.

When I first entered this hobby it was all about the smexay man dolls and their smexay leather outfits. The moment I brought a girl into my house it changed everything from what I looked for in clothes concerning quality to my photography style. With my boys, the only things that mattered about their clothes were if they were black and leather. When I got my girl I wanted her to look fabulous. Thus, I began to have an eye for quality and small details. Now I'm a serious quality snob. With photography, I hadn't cared too much for it, as I could never capture much with my boys who were just meant for me. However, with my girl I wanted her fabulousness to shine over the net. I began to use lighting and angles to my advantage and even ended up with a dslr. Now photography is a major hobby of mine, even outside the doll world.

Adding girl dolls to my collection really changed my outlook on the hobby.

 

That I can enjoy these dolls.

Sounds odd, but when I started this hobby, both my fiancee and I were convinced I would get out of it after a month, and I would fall out of love with it, like I do with most hobbies... Over a year later, and it feels like yesterday. There's so much more I want to learn, and so much more I want to. I'm in this hobby for life, I just know it.

 

The one big thing that has changed this hobby for me is seeing what a big difference a new face up/wig/outfit etc... can make for one doll. Almost as if its a totally new doll. I think this is why I love these dolls so much. They are unlike any of the other dolls that I have collected and when I feel I am getting bored with their current look, I can change anything I want about them and I fall in love all over again.

 

I've always been creative... but the ONE BIG THING that I learned about this hobby, is not just that the dolls are pretty to look at/etc... but that they can be an AMAZING way to express your creativity. Be it sewing, painting, photography, or whatever... it's a great creative outlet!! It gives you a sense of fulfillment when you get to make something to help your doll to "come alive".

 

My biggest one thing that I've learned about my Doll hobby that, no matter what kind of dolls they are, I love dolls. BJDs have made me stop hiding my dolls for shame of keeping them. I learned that I could be almost twenty four and still play with my dolls to reduce my stress by painting, sewing, and generally playing with them. They've made me pull out the other dolls I can currently fit into my room and start working with them again! Now, I just need to get the raggedy anne and andy out so Cossette can cuddle with them...

 

TAKING MY CAMERA OFF AUTO!! XD

This happened just a few weeks ago, actually. I read a thread in the photography forum about how to take beautiful pictures with ease, and one of the main tips was "Take your camera off of automatic. Do it. Do it now."

So I did.

I have NEVER had so much fun taking pictures. Now I have a whole new hobby that I discovered just because of BJDs, and my photographs are getting better every day. I'm having more fun with this than I ever thought possible. Who knew the manual mode on your camera could be such an adventure?

 

My one thing:
The generosity of the artists in this international community.
I got inspired by these dolls almost nine years ago, and learned so much about sculpting and costuming from online tutorials that now I do both professionally. I will always be in debt and in awe of the teachers amongst us. Thank you with all my heart!

 

Oh, that Sharpie comment cut me deep XD J/K



The ONE THING for me is this:
You have to, as an owner, believe that your dolls are beautiful. For me, I mean this both "inside" and "out." Dolls will almost always be beautiful on the outside, but you have to love the sculpt's quirks (head lolling and kicky legs!) and the specific doll's personality as well.

Because we as owners give them their personalities, it means that a bit of us has passed into the doll, which, by extension, means that in order to love our dolls completely, we must love ourselves as well. Of course by learning to love ourselves, we ALSO grow confidence, and are at peace with ourselves, realizing that we don't have to be as beautiful or as smart as we thought we might have needed to be before -- very nice side-effects

But once we do learn to love the "self" in our dolls in this way, we attain a new level with our dolls that I find very fascinating. A doll goes from being a pretty object that we wish was real or could at least fit our ideals, to a best-friend/older-brother figure that we wish to be real.

Once we feel this, it becomes easier to photograph, play with, and dress dolls. It also makes it easier to talk about them to other people without seeming weird, I think LoL. But once we learn what we love about our own dolls, we can really start reaching out to other owners' dolls, and appreciate them as much as we appreciate our own.

Of course, you don't need to feel this way for your dolls to take amazing photos or to dress them immaculately. But even beautiful as they are, photos (and dolls) without love are photos without warmth, and instead feel cold and clinical.

This is what I think, at least. I feel bad that I can't put it into words any better, though.

 

It's something you'd think I'd know by now, but something I still have to keep learning over and over and over again in every hobby, every craft, every single thing I do. Mainly, 'don't be scared to play'. That sounds so incredibly simple. It really does. And you'd think 'doll' and 'play' would go together naturally! -- but they don't, always.

Yes, I still do ugly faceups, but I'm getting better. Never would have gotten that far if I wasn't willing to play.

Yes, my photographs still suck, but I'm getting better. Never would have gotten there, either, if I wasn't willing to play.

Figuring out that, yes, they're big, expensive things that I have to be careful with, but I'm allowed to -play- is an incredibly enormous thing. Since creativity is really all about play in a lot of ways, it's a lesson I'm very glad to keep learning, even if it has to be over and over again.

 

The one thing...well I attempted several face ups when I first started and I finally decided that it is better to leave it to people more experienced than me. That and I didn't enjoy it lol. Doing faceups taught me that photography is one of things I enjoy most about this hobby. I enjoy that even if I am not good at it. I let someone else design outfits, paint, and create eyes, but I love putting together that look for my dolls and taking pictures.

 

My "one thing" was finding out that my dolls were being mocked on other forums and groups. It made me step back and really look at my faceups, clothing, wig choices etc. Now my dolls are much prettier/more pleasing for it both to others and to me and I've not once wished no one had made fun of me.

 

my one thing was making photostories and people loving my doll ^_^ knowing that other people love my little Snuggums as much as I do becuase I can portray his personality in photostories made all the difference to me =)

 

I found out that...
MY. WALLET. IS. GONE.

FOREVER..........

 

Heh! You must have been doing something right!! XD
Mine always were (no doubt still are), too, but I didn't/don't care.


I think the "One Thing" for me was learning to treat the dolls, and especially the photographing of them as making art, not just 'posting pics of my dolls'. I still have a lot to learn (like, um, photography :-P ) but that was probably the major breakthrough for me.

Raven

 

The one thing I can say I can come out of this hobby is saying that I learned this:

No matter what other people say, no matter how other people feel... Always Have Fun.

Once this becomes serious business, whats the point of having the hobby if all it does is cause you stress?

 

My one big thing was learning that it's ok for me to 1) have them in the first place; and 2) model them after beloved characters. #2 might not work for other folks, but, hey. I didn't post a picture of Kenshin for over a year after I had him for fear of being ridiculed. Now I just ... love him and enjoy him

Oh, and that the little "tulip" thing on the camera is for taking closer shots... Will forever be grateful to Hobbywhelmed for telling me that!


on another front -- I've never looked at that other forum being delicately not mentioned, and don't care to. I'm undoubtedly laughed at there. Don't give a rat's ... hinder.

 

My one thing would be finding their expressions or moods change depending on what is happening to them.
I thought I was crazy when I would say that Kiyoshi (my elfdoll red) looked pissed off any time I stick him in his pink bunny suit. Only to have other doll owners say the same thing, and then finally my Aunt, who has nothing to do with this hobby, also say he looked really angry.

Last Monday I took my dolls to some fireworks. Kiyoshi looked perfectly happy, but Momo (my bambicrony shy) looked positively terrified, and she has a really "happy" faceup.

 

The day I learned that overcast days are the best photography days. It was early morning in Arizona with lots of cloud cover and I figured everything would come out too dark but tried the shoot anyway. When I DL'd the pics off my camera my jaw dropped when upon seeing how my usually incandescently white DoT looked in the muted light. He was beautifully ethereal and glowy like he is in his promo pictures on the DoD website and my little MNF was much improved as well. I enjoy picture taking a lot more now that I can get better results by photographing outside just before a storm.

Also my dolls made me quit smoking. I couldn't enjoy them outside of photos because I knew the smoke would have adverse effects. When not taking pictures my boys spent most of their time put carefully away where the smoke couldn't reach. Now that I'm not smoking a pack a day anymore I can tote the guys around the house and cuddle them without fear. I enjoy my dolls a lot more and my health is improving too!

 

it amazes me every day how much ive learned from this hobby. but one of the first things i learned was that you can bond with a doll. before my first came home i knew i would never be one of those people who lets the doll sit on their lap, carries him everywhere, or treats him like he's real. he would sit on my shelf and come down for modeling purposes or to change clothes every once in a while.

right. the doll had other ideas. he sits on my lap, has slept on the bed, i change his clothes all the time, he has more than i do now! i cried when his head was taken off the first time and my purse now has a built in doll bag (SD sized) so i can carry him places without an extra bag. i love being one of those people

 

It's related to 'don't be afraid to play with them,' but my one thing was accepting that they'll go yellow even if they're not exposed to sunlight, so while I still try to be careful, it's okay to actually bring them out of their storage place.

 

HAHAHAHAHA!

So's my bank account. That's MY one thing.

 

My one thing;

I found out how I could be given a purpose to really expand my creative gift and enjoy life with my dolls.

They make my life so much happier, obtaining them is a victory for a young woman who sales her artwork to afford these dolls.( yes, almost each one of my dolls is paid by selling my artwork) and I've become quite the famous artist in my town. (my art is all over my small town, it's crazy!)

They are of chorse, my outlet for my creativity and fantasies. My "Angels" help me when I become stuck with a problem.

 

When I got into this hobby, I never really understood how a doll could just adapt mannerisms. I mean, I knew that I could give a doll a personality, and that could be their personality as long as I imagined it, but I couldn't get it, when someone would say "oh, my doll looks angry today" or "I wanted him to be cool and laid back, but when I got him, he somehow ended up totally clumsy and talkative!" I would just think 'If you want your doll to be something, just make it so!"

Until I got my girl!
Now, I had already had an idea of her, being a very cute but adventurous type. When I saw the Twing-key, I knew I had exactly what I wanted, but I had no idea how right I was. The moment I took her body out, her feet automatically turned slightly inward, no matter how I stringed her, in such a cute fashion! And even with sueding, she would always look straight ahead with confidence. Suddenly, I could see it in other people's dolls. Even if they didn't say anything, I could completely see it, even if two people had the same doll with the same look, how their personalities can be so different somehow! I really like that. It adds such a fun dimension to a great hobby ^^

 

It's difficult to narrow this one down. One thing, eh? I've learned that finding the right wig and eyes, even a new faceup, can make a profound difference ... two dolls I was sure I couldn't keep are solidly here because they "became" through some creative lateral thinking. Zagzagael's photography completely changed the way I "saw" my dolls, and her (now gone) St Andrew completely changed my aesthetic inclinations in sculpts. Making several characters/actors in stories completely changed my relationships with those dolls in powerful ways. And simply having the dolls here has been a sort of lifeline to remembering what matters to me in any number of ways.

But at the end of the day, the One Thing that redefined everything for me were the connections I made with other doll collectors. Connections that spur creativity, support enthusiasm, connect the dots with compassion and provide an incredible context for passions of all flavours. Friends. In some cases, I believe, for life. As MasterCard says: Priceless!! So, in a totally non-self-serving, non-suck-up, ultra-genuine way, DoA has been the facilitator for my One Thing, and my gratitude knows no bounds.

 

my one thing is that I've had several sizes and type of bjd...but I've learnt that my heart is always going back to msd and female. when i adopt new one and she reaches my house she always seems to say...home sweet home.

 

I think the one thing that has impressed me the most is the diversity of the people who pursue this hobby: all the different motivations, uses, approaches, styles, stories, etc. I've found that most of the ones I've met (of PM'ed) are remarkably open and friendly, willing to help a newbie. Pretty cool considering we're all drawn here by basically the same thing.

 

My 'one thing' that changed my view on my dolls forever was realising - they. are. toys.

Expensive toys, but toys nevertheless.

I still take really good care of them, but I'm less frightened to enjoy them than I used to be, which makes the hobby more fun for me. A lot of people go when I take my LE Baha out with me (then double after asking how much he cost) then often say "I would never take my LE out like that" but I just shrug and reply "well, I don't enjoy keeping them locked away - what's the point in having them if you can't share them and take them places? I'd rather spend thousands of dollars on a doll I am going to play with than one penny on a doll I'll never see."

 

I've learned that I'm not like the majority of other doll owners and I am cool with that. I have no desire to play with them the way others do, I hate hands on arts and craft work, and think they're beautiful dolls I own and not much beyond that. I often like my doujinshi collection more.

And that's perfectly fine.

 

This was mine, too. For so long I was too scared to play with Athene (Lishe) because she was my holy grail and the first doll I could afford and the one I wanted most! I always had her covered up and almost never touched her or played with her because I was so afraid of damaging her. I started to take her out more and now I have several more dolls and I am much less afraid to actually play with them, and my dolls are my more enjoyable and have much more personality to them now!

Now if I can just get over my fear of restringing...

 

I learned that no doll should be left behind or forgotten. That no doll should be looked down upon. Well, when I got my doll, A dollzone Megi, I really had no idea how to do his faceup and didn't know many people that knew how to do one. So I sat back with him in his box for a while. One day I opened the box and much to my horror, my 11 year old little brother had aquired my micron permanent markers and tried to faceup and body blush my doll himself. It was an act of kindness, but I practically cried. I thought the doll I had worked so hard to get, saved up for, was even trying to make clothes for was absolutly ruined and I would haveto save up all over again. I was in a histeric state. Then, Fango De Maria, a close in real life friend of mine, mentioned that he could be fixed. I highly doubted it but I was so desperate I was willing to try anything. After about a week of hard work between Fango and Moony, Noir was fixed and with a new face up and body blush. I'm glad they kept me hanging in there, even when I was all but ready to give up. Noir is a wonderful doll and I love him lots, even though people often make fun of the Dollzone sculpts.

It made me realize that no doll, no matter how much the ridicule on the sculpt is, or how bad the shape the doll is in, is worth tossing out or throwing behind you. A doll is a lot more than a pretty face or a name brand. It's the sentimental value that comes attached to the resin, the hard work you put into aquirring this tiny person, and of course the good memories the two of you will make.

 

My one thing was learning that I can do anything I set my mind to. Before I was terrified of learning how to sew at all, which is a huge part of my other hobby. It really limited me to what I could do creatively. My dolls forced me to take the plunge and drag out the sewing machine, and despite the frustrations I occasionally encounter none of my boys go pantless for long, and while I'm far from being able to sew an entire outfit for myself with patterns, I can improvise my way to success. Now I'm not afraid to take the plunge for lots of other things because I know if I want to do it I can.

 

my one thing is posing, thke where their arms fall and sit and their feet ... making them look natural when takign pictures is my one thing

 

One major thing I have learned is that I can no longer afford to buy dolls I can't afford. Does that make sense? I've bought several dolls in times of plenty and then sold them when things got tough. There are a few dolls that I miss very much and feel bad about when I think of how I sold them. Now I refuse to buy any more until I have a real, "grown up" job and know I can afford to keep them forever.

 

My one thing is this: Boys.

At this moment I have twelve dolls. Nine of them are boys. And my "one thing" that strikes me over and over again about this is the realization that I could make them actually look like boys. Even my Beauty White Yder.

 

The One Big thing that has changed me was a dream I had about my doll. It was a very retarded and silly dream, but in it I for some reason saw my doll with a scratched up face, sort of like the patterns on a piece of wood. I for some reason just could not see the face of the doll I had loved and first bought, in that dream. So therefore, I realized that to me my doll's face was the most important aspect of him, and to other owners the same. Their doll's faces are important to them as well, and that is why some painstakingly go through with faceup's and waiting times. - _ - Plus that is why every little thing we do we worry and worry about their faces ^ ^; Especially when they make that nose dive to the concrete floor.

 

I found that, with the right materials and patience, I could do a half-decent faceup.
Finding that I was being made fun of made me re-evaluate all that I did to my dolls, and to do something more beneficial.

No, they're not perfect by any means, but I'm satisfied with them. The only thing I can do is keep practicing.

 

The ONE THING for me is: Everybody with good quality glass eyes!

 

Well, I'm quite new to the hobby and I still don't even have my first doll... But I've already learned something: I'm sure I will be very attached to my dolls. I've realized that when I saw that a guy from our polish forum is selling his Unoa Lusis boy. I LOVE this doll and I'm so sad that if he sells there no longer will be pictures of him...

 

Hmm, the biggest thing that stands out for me would be: never using the flash when taking photos of them. Which is true (at least for me). There is nothing worse then a stark white doll with shocked looking eyes, which is what I get the few times I've used flash on them.

 

Same here. I don't paint them, I tried and failed, but I do try to have them looking pretty. I do try for better pictures but I'm not that good either, so I tend to keep them to myself. I do wish they hadn't made fun of me, cause that's all I get from most people.

 

My One Thing is related to Fair Emma's. Last night I took my whole family -- two SD's, an SD floating head, and a Yo-size -- to a meet-up, and I swear I nearly cried from the overflow of good emotion I felt that night. Sparrow, my Nia (that's a boy sculpt, fyi), received gifts of a beautiful knit dress and a floofy girly wig, both of which suit his character *perfectly*, from two of my local doll friends who know him well and have listened to me rambling on about his story. The really funny thing? Today's my birthday - Sparrow's presents were like birthday presents to me, because I can't afford to buy more doll things right now, but my precious first doll is beloved by other people, too. What he represents to me is strengthened and resonated through others' positive reception of them, and I can't say how important that is to me, to have the personal reflected in the social.

I'm new - no more than three months - to the group, and four months new to the hobby itself, and I still am taken aback and touched to the core by the love and generosity that I feel from everyone locally, and from others more distant via PM. I'd heard that the doll hobby was bitter and elitist, and some unfortunate cruelty directed at one of my local friends has proven that there are those in the hobby who will snipe and bite at others just because they can. But my experience of the hobby is much more positive than that - not only because I make it so, but because those around me help me to make it so. There's creativity, impulsivity, feedback, help, donations of time and items and effort, shared enthusiasm, shared glee.

My "one thing", in short? There is joy and positivity and connections and love and support and giddiness and creativity and impulsiveness tucked into every nook and cranny of this hobby, and the egg hunt to find it all will last as long as I want it to.

 

White balance settings and appropriate props can make a small, sectioned off part of my computer desk look like a universe unto itself. And I learned the prop thing from Frank. Just looking at how meticulously he sets up the surroundings and rooms for his dolls inspired me. ^_^. I even got to see how he sets things up on his website, and I was floored. It looked so simple! And it is.

 

The one thing....Not all SD sized things (clothes, shoes,wigs) fit all SD sized dolls.

 

My One Thing is that body blushing, or blushing in general, just really brings out the life in the doll.
I just started in this hobby, my blushing skills are atrocious, but i'll still give my dolls a bit of a blush.

 

The one thing I learned was about no flash and that lovely flower setting on my camera. It's made my pictures come out so much more beautiful. At the time I thought my pictures were great until I learned about the settings of a digital camera. Then my pictures were fantastic! If I hadn't learned that one little thing I think my pictures would have still been not as beautiful as they are now.

 

My one thing is that I discovered dolls can have personality. I always saw them as objects and treated them as such during photoshoots, meets, etc. I kept coming on DoA and seeing people refer to their dolls as characters/people with traits. I didn't want to join in at first but I ended up forcing myself to give them personalities and what resulted was the discovery that they can be anything I want them to be and those personalities can be reflected in photoshoots, etc. Most of all that they can be the anti-me and let me get out that hidden side of me that I wish I could show people but can't.

 

My one thing: the stunningly obvious realization that smaller scale does not mean faster. Or slower, really. It just means a smaller quantity of raw materials. (Still not sure why I thought knitting a scaled down vest would be faster. Particularly modifying patterns as I went. D'oh.)

 

MY ONE BIG THING!​

I have gotten so much more out of this hobby than just dolls! Yes, they are a huge part of our lives but what I take away from the forum is how much I learn about other cultures, hobbies, interests, etc from other forum members. I learn something new all the time from the oldest to the youngest members...and for that I am so appreciative!

 

I learned that they are wonderful vehicles for embodying characters--something I had not seriously considered doing until I met some folks at a meetup that did just that. By realizing that I could do this with my dolls and have it work, I felt inspired to write (something I had done as a hobby in college) for the first time in years. Not only did this deepen my connection to my own dolls, but it also really inspired me to pick up creative activities that I had previously set aside. This is what makes my dolly world go round. Becoming more story/character oriented also changed my criteria for buying dolls as I was suddenly going about things with a specific end goal in mind.

 

that photography was my true calling. =) I was confused in what profession I wanted but this hobby made me realize.

 

The One Thing I learned was probably that BJD's are like children: they NEED to be spoiled!! XDD

Or...that no matter how many people stare at you and believe that they are Barbie dolls, that I am a photographer and that's all that matters

 

This. In a big way, this. I don't think I would nearly be as interested in dolls if it wasn't for the friends I made, and wouldn't have tried to do as much as I do with my guys if it was for friends.

But a second thing I learned: Making an original character I've had for years 'just right' is worth almost any cost. (I'm just really glad at this point that none of my characters look like a Bermann. )