Discussion We're the Mod Team: Ask Us Anything!

Okay, I'll give it a go with a very general question: why did you became a moderator? To help the community, just for fun? Some other reason?

 

@Charadas For the most part I just wanted to help out, but I've never been a moderator before this so I also saw it as a fun challenge and something brand new for me. On a more personal aspect of it I'm hoping to improve my English ^w^

Probably not the most interesting answer but what can I say -shrug-

 

@Charadas Like @Akara, I wanted to help! It is a way to get more involved with the community and hobby. I get to give back to DoA. Some things are fun, but it is really a lot of work.

 

Another general question: What is one of the most surprising things you've learned/encountered since becoming a mod?

 

@Kimchi For me, it's a happy surprise to see how many people continue to sign up for DoA! We have new applicants almost every day, so I'm thrilled to see how our community is always growing!

 

@Anna and @Dezarii - since you two have been here the longest, what do you think is the biggest change the hobby/forum has undergone since you've joined?

 

I have enjoyed DoA since the Yahoo group days. This community has been a part of my life for many years and I really wanted to contribute and help out!

How much work is involved to keep things running smoothly! I knew that the forum is big and there will be a fair amount of things to be done, but I didn't fully appreciate the magnitude of it until I joined the team. There's always something to do!

How big and diverse the BJD community has become. When I started out with BJDs, there was no community to speak of. Those of us who took interest in these dolls still posted on other doll forums (fashion doll forums, for example) with the hope that someone out there shared the same interest. Oftentimes our BJDs were not accepted because they looked so "alien" and different. Now, the BJD community is thriving - there's many ways to socialize and share our common interest!

 

This is for any of you who want to answer a question about your own dolls rather than about bigger subjects:

What's the one thing that's changed the most about your own BJD hobby since you started?

 

Honestly, I feel like DoA has given me a lot over the years, so I decided it was time to give a little back! (That sounds so sappy, haha.)

I don't know if it's really surprising, but I'm continually amazed by how hard everyone works. (And also how patient the senior mods are with my endless questions!)

I've settled down some. I went through a period of crazy reshelling all of my characters that really burned me out a few years ago, but now I have my favorites who feel like they're here to stay. It's a much happier place to be!

 

I really wanted to get more involved in DoA again, and give back to the community, since DoA's been so helpful to me over the years. I also saw the ticky box on the application form for "I am a PHP developer" and one of the things I've always wanted to be able to do is write plugins for the forum software to make DoA more fun and easy to use. Once I saw that that was one of the skills they were looking for in new mods, I had to apply! Who would have thought my day job could come in handy for the hobby for more than just the paycheck?

Hm, well I haven't been a mod very long yet, so I'd have to say it's just how helpful and friendly everyone is behind the scenes. There's a lot to learn and a lot of work to keep things running smoothly, and the senior mod team has been awesome with all us modlings as we learn the ropes.

At first I thought I only/mostly wanted boy dolls, since most of my OCs are male. But over the years I've somehow amassed quite a lot of girls... Including my favorite (see my avatar!)

 

General is still a good question. While I'm just starting out being a mod, I decided to apply to be more involved again. Without going into a lot of detail, I was much more active on DoA before May of 2013. That's when a series of major events began that really derailed a lot of doll things for over two years. But, there were a couple of wonderful angels who always encouraged me (@CathyM and @eleniel I'm looking at you!) and when the time came again things worked out.

Just how much goes into keeping this place organized, tidy, and safe! There's always some work to be done. But the best thing is how willing and gracious the senior mods are to listen, to help, to suggest the best ways to maximize our efforts.

The size of my collection! I began with only MNF dolls and swore I'd never get anything bigger. My bestie had a Mecha Angel (80cm) and something about that size terrified me. It took quite some time but I did add some larger dolls to my stable, and now they're probably half or more of my group.

(I also once swore I'd never own a Volks because I didn't like any of them. Famous last words.)

 

A question for anyone/everyone: what part of the BJD hobby surprised you the most by being far more difficult than expected?

 

I used to buy pretty dolls on impulse because I knew I could recoup my expenses if I didn't like it when it arrived. Now that the secondhand market is both saturated and undercut, I can't afford to be that adventurous and I'm lucky if I even buy one head in a year's time.

Who knew that shopping for curvy female BJD clothing would be as incredibly frustrating as shopping for curvy female human clothing? I do not own a single piece of adult female BJD clothing that was made to fit the doll that is wearing it, because just like people there is no such thing as a standard body type. No wonder the boy dolls are more fun to spoil, the lucky sticks!

 

Self control. I was only going to have one! And I can stop anytime I want!

 

The technical workings of the forum.

That I have boys! I never had a boy doll growing up, so my having an SD17 guy is a pretty big change. Riordan (Volks Ryoma Sakamoto) stays in his box mostly because I don't have any casual clothes for him and I don't want his outfit to get ruined.

Sueding and restringing. I like having non-burned fingers and a sense of peace more than I like a doll that can hold a pose. XD

 

I find that I am a lot more picky about what I buy nowadays. Part of it is because what I like in a doll has been fine-tuned over the years, so I don't find myself being immediately-drawn to quite as many dolls as I used to. That, and I don't have as much disposable income as I used to, so I usually do a little more thinking about something before I splurge on it. >_> And besides that, my dolls are all characters, and I've shelled almost all the characters I have, so I only have a few things left on my wishlist these days.

Working with MSC. When I did my first faceups, MSC was the go-to recommendation for sealants. But I constantly had problems with flaking, and chipping, and having dirty-looking faceups. Now that I use a different sealant, I look back at my time with MSC and think 'wow, that was a lot harder than it should have been!'

 

Oh I finally have a question thats been on my mind for some time now!

How is the communication facilitated between the mods regarding issues with the forum? Do you guys Skype, call, email, pm? I've always wondered about this, and pm/emails seem like they would take a long while to get replies.

 

Maybe I'm just not that easy to surprise, but I joined the staff with just hopes that I would be able to do whatever they do. I don't think I had many expectations, just looking to help out in any way I could but if anything, it's been a lot of work and a lot of fun during my short time in the staff so far ^w^

When I started out and got my first doll back in 2011 I knew nothing about sewing or photography. In fact I didn't care at all for photography or sewing, and now both of those things are some of the things that I really, really love doing and it's all thanks to my dolls and this hobby. As far as my dolls go and my collection I don't think much have changed - well apart from the fact that I only wanted two dolls when I got my first doll, now I have about 14. Silly me

Doing face-ups for sure! I were doing lots of art related stuff before this hobby and I foolishly thought I'd be good at face-ups right off the bat! Man was I wrong, my first face-up that I ever did looked horrible.. but luckily I didn't gave up and now I'm at least alright but I have a lot of respect for people who do face-ups!

 

Thanks everyone for answering my first question! A few mods have mentioned how much work there is to do throughout the forum, and I'm curious about some of the organization that goes into spreading out mod work.

So, I hope this question is okay: How do you divide up modding labor across the forum (e.g. weekly meetings, spreadsheets, etc.)?

 

After a big loss in my life, I had a lot of time on my hands. So my best friend encouraged me to apply.

How much work it can be. There is a lot going on that you don't see until you are on this side of the forum.

The amount I can spend on it. Plus my tastes have changed a lot since I started collecting.

Impulse control. I found I lack this. Even now, 9 years after joining DOA, I still impulse buy items for my dolls.

Skype, PM/convos on DOA, and even text messaging can be used. Plus we have threads where we discuss what is going on on the forum.

 

I have a question for all the mods! We all talk about grail dolls on here, so what are your grail dolls? Did you get them or are you still questing for "The One"?

 

I've been very fortunate with my collection, in that I have been able to get most of my grail dolls! It started with a Migidoll Ryu at first, then I added Dollshe Saint, Elfdoll K, and Zaoll Luv to the list. I now have all of them! At the moment, I've since added a few 'grail'-type dolls to the list, but they aren't really ones that I am desperately searching for, just ones that I'd probably like to get some day.
Except a clockwork 1/6 centaur. That's my /real/ grail doll right now, but no one's made that yet! ((Get on it Soom!! ))

 

There is no such thing as "The One" for me because that would imply that all of my other dolls are superfluous. There are definitely dolls that required a lengthy and arduous quest though, and reshelling characters multiple times is always an adventure!

I have obtained my perfect Custom House Choa now, which took me seven years from start to finish. I had a very specific vision for her and now the only task left is to clothe and bejewel her (no mean feat in itself).

I managed to place a Full Choice System order at VolksUSA the month they closed the Sumika after waffling for the entire time the place was open because I was waiting for more options. I still haven't obtained the SDGraffiti girl body I wanted for that project though.

I hadn't really expected La Legende de Temps Ludwig to be a grail of any sort, but after waiting four years for the sculpt to be finished I'm committed! Now I just have to scrape together the cash before the August ordering period ends. Other things keep eating my dolly funds!

 

Thank you everyone for answering my first question ^^

I have another question for @St. James and @idrisfynn ! I read somewhere that you're good friends that work on your doll jewellery shop and I think its so great you guys get to share this hobby together. Have you guys been friends in real life before DoA/dolls? If so, how did you guys both get into the hobby? Who introduced who?

 

Quest for "The One" grail: My grail doll is a doll I never got to see when I was little. It was a Christmas present. It arrived broken so I never got to see it. I do remember going with my parents to the store with the doll in it's box in a dark bag to try and exchange it but they didn't have one. I kept begging to see it anyway but they said no. I always wondered what she looked like, so I keep trying to find her in bjds. For now, my Iplehouse Benny (Adia) and my Volks Dear SD Kira (Aisling) both embody aspects of her.

 

I did! The thing I wanted the most when I started to really figure myself out in the hobby was a tan Cerberus Project doll with a thinner face (and what seemed like a pipe dream of double joints) to be my character Glaucus. It took SEVEN YEARS for Fairyland to redesign the boy body and do a tan event, but I have my Tan F60 Karsh at last!

(All of my dolls are my favorite in one way or another, but he's the one I really had to wait and pine for, so he's the one I consider my grail.)

 

This one is for all the mods:

What are your hobbies outside of dolls?

 

There's a world outside of dolls?

I play video games and I do like to hike. Occasionally I garden. Those are really my only hobbies that aren't tied into dolls in some way or another. I work a high stress job with students who have heavy needs, and doll-related hobbies like photography, writing, and painting/crafting are how I decompress after work. They take up much of my time.

ETA If we're counting watching/reading things then I'm also into cheesy scifi shows (Doctor Who, The Flash, etc) and I watch a lot of documentaries which lead to trying to find books on whatever subject catches my eye. I am a walking encyclopedia of random facts in random areas (early hominids, fish, whatever historical period I'm into at the moment *cough*generally always Rome*cough*). But I don't so much consider that a hobby as it is keeping my brain from atrophying now that I'm not in school being told what to study.

 

• Pokemon Go. Go Team Instinct! -dab-
• I read.
• I play some video games and watch/help my husband play others.
• I love to shop!
• I love to drive. My poor car has I think...130,000+ miles on it and it's just now 4 yrs old. A lot of those miles I racked up going to and from work, but I will gladly hop in the car and drive for the sake of driving.
• I like to rock! The louder the music and the more I can feel the beat in my chest the happier I am.

Hmmm....

• I like watching old movies.
• I like playing with art supplies.
• I think about how I can bring an experience to my students.

My favorite thing is to find real music kids will hear outside of school and try and turn it into teaching music. I'm planning to teach my class how to cover their coughs and sneezes by using the Dab.

 

Art, lots of art since I was very young. Both traditional and digital. I also love playing video games, and especially watching when other people play for some reason. Walking is fun too, and when I was younger I used to sing a lot while I was walking but I don't sing that often nowadays since people might hear me! I love when it's dark outside so I usually head out late for walks, Pokemon Go walks currently...and sometimes I get scared by hedgehogs! (there are a lot of them around here)

I also love to help out in my mom's garden, but I don't know much about plants. It's one of those things I'd love to learn more about ~

The rest of my hobbies are pretty much tied around my dolls I think

 

We met 29 years ago and have been a couple for 24, so we definitely pre-date the hobby! Our dolls actually embody characters who are 2nd, 3rd and 4th generation descendants of OCs we created as teens.
idrisfynn has always been the leader in most of our cultural pursuits, so dolls were no exception. I only became interested in BJDs because the customization they allow meant I wouldn't have to struggle to draw 2D representations anymore!

Jewelry design and silver smithing, collecting beads and rocks and other tribal artifacts, lining our apartment walls with books, travelling, studying whatever catches my fancy - astrophysics, archaeology, history, art - that year, knitting once every two years, eating out and walking around because San Francisco is gorgeous and replete with amazing food and if you don't get out and enjoy it there's no point in paying the nightmarish rent here.

 

The doll I want that I can't seem to acquire is a Volks SDC Renee. It never seems to work out for me. Maybe one day. My next closest was the Volks mini F21 (I now have 2).

Reading, video games, plushies (does that count as dolls?). Annoying my son.

 

Ahh! Now I would like to see that doll too xD Any reason why they wouldn't show you? Perhaps they thought she looked too scary/creepy when broken for a little girl to see? :P

Wow! Thats amazing! I feel the same way too. I stopped illustrating and drawing once the appeal of something "tangible" came along. I still don't know if thats good or bad lol! Thanks for replying to my question ^^

@CathyM Well, there is one SDC Renee on Y!J, but if its the price that has been holding you back then this is no different xD I remember thinking she was utterly adorable way back, but my tastes have since changed. I hope you acquire her someday, she really is still so cute ^^

 

My mom said it was because I would have wanted it anyway, broken as it was. She's not wrong.

 

Oh man! Then they should've let you keep it Parents are weird. I remember I made this doll when I was little who was quite the oddity. I couldn't have been older than 7 or 10, and she was made with very weak thin white fabric, stuffed and hand sewn by a child and had a face drawn with a marker. She honestly looked ridiculous but my parents never stopped making fun of it and were really keen on throwing it away To this day I still think my mom secretly threw her in the trash. Oh well :P

 

These answers are all very interesting and informative, for all the questions. I really do feel like I'm getting to know the Mod Squad better from this. Thank you for making this thread!

 

@eleniel, HA! I KNEW there were flying monkeys!!!

 

Ahaha... self-control might be mine too. I am especially weak when tired, and late-night eBay/etsy/DoA MP surfing is bad for my wallet...

But otherwise, finding character-appropriate clothes for large guys! You know how hard/expensive it is to find well-fitting Victorian/Steampunk-esque clothes (that *don't* look like costumes, aren't covered in lace and frilly crap, or all black) for... Doll Chateau 72cm, Soom Idealian, Iplehouse SID and EID guys?

I've had a couple over the years, and I've gotten them: Soom MD Breccia, ANother Secret Mr. Hat, Volks DDdy Yoko Littner, and Volks Yu Morisawa. Currently I'm kinda pining for a DD Mariko, but that's more a matter of money than that she's particularly hard to find, so I don't know if she quite qualifies as a grail at the moment. I would also love a fullset DD Asuna buuuut I'm not sure I'm ever gonna want her quite bad enough to pay her ridiculous aftermarket price. Man, where did all this vinyl come from all of a sudden?

Video games, tabletop roleplaying, and crafting, though the dolls have kinda absorbed most of the crafting (of all sorts, I tend to joke that my spare room holds the actual contents of an entire craft store). I also used to be in a jam band with some coworkers, but we haven't played in ages since the company we all used to work for together folded, which meant one member of the band wound up moving to the opposite coast for his new job and we also lost our practice space (which was in the office)

 

I swore that I would only collect human dolls. No fantasy creatures, no anthros, etc. These days, the human dolls are in the minority - my den is overrun with anthros and fantasy creatures of various kinds!

Finding the perfect wigs, eyes, clothing, accessories. Maybe I'm just a perfectionist, but I usually end up going through many iterations of everything before I settle on the final look. Before I bought my first doll, I never imagined that this is what I will find to be the most difficult aspect of the hobby.

I don't really have any grail dolls anymore. After being in the hobby for some many years, I have most of what I want. And, the dolls I don't yet have I know I'll find eventually with time and patience. Sculpts get re-released all the time. And, if they don't, then everything eventually pops up on the secondary market. Of course, it helps that I don't covet anything too rare or limited!

I love traveling, though I haven't done too much of it lately. Aviation, gardening, wine tasting, yoga, karate, science fiction series/movies/books and photography are some of the other things I enjoy

 

General question for fun: how many BJD's do you mods have?

 

>_> Last time I counted, it was 30-something? I'm not good at actually keeping count of the number, as every time I count it seems to go up - and then I wonder, how many is too many?

 

Haha, having to count can sometimes be scary LOL

Ohhhhh, I know that feeling all too well! haha! Every time someone asks me I'm like "Um... I actually don't know..."

 

So @Dezarii pretty much has the best hobbies.

A chia pet?! I didn't even know those still existed! You make the NekoNyanMew of 10 years ago very jealous. Needless to say, my mom never ordered one from TV for me, no matter how much pestering I did.

Two thumbs up to your choice in American adult cartoons. I will shamefully admit that I've already watched all the new seasons of Futurama.

Also, damn, I love candles. The one you linked to looks rad. I'm always tempted to buy candles at Bath and Body Works or IKEA, but I know that I'll never actually light them. I did find this awesome Mint Chocolate Chip scented candle last year, and gave it to a family member as a birthday gift. Mostly because I wanted to know how awesome it smelled after being lit, but I knew I'd never light it myself.

 

I have attempted a lot of different hobby-type things outside of BJDs. I've done a fair deal of craftsy stuff so far, but most of the stuff I stuck with is BJD related.

I used to garden quite a bit, but I don't have the inspiration or motivation to do it much these days. There's just....soooo many weeds in the front and back, it's a lot to keep up with. I did try to keep up with just my small veggie plot this year, but it's been so hot in my area this growing season, that literally everything except my herb pots died already. So yeah, maybe next year!

One thing I do continue to do is various body-care-product making; I make soap frequently (but only the melt-and-pour kind so far - I'd love to try cold or hot process someday soon!), I've made homemade body butter, I just made sugar scrub for the first time recently, and I'll be making my first attempt at a hair oil sometime soon. I don't do much with it, other than use it myself and make some for my mom and sisters during the holidays.

My other main hobby is gaming. My husband and I play almost everything together. My favorite games are from Bethesda and Bioware, my favorite franchise of all time being Mas Effect (I am sooo excited for Andromeda!). I generally really enjoy anything that has a really compelling story. Or anything where there's a nice character creator and I can have a sexy computer-husbando.
These days, I work at play Guild Wars 2 daily, and throw in a heaping portion of whatever else catches my interest. The last 5 games I've played recently other than GW2 are:
-Diablo 3 - woo season 7!! Even though that's been out for years, I have never played a wizard before, so Imma do that this season!
-Fallout 4 - Vault Tec Workshop is amazing!
-Starbound - finally actually launched!
-Elite: Dangeous - I cannot /wait/ for the character creator to go live, because doing community goals is fun and all, but I want to make a cool character. :3
-Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma - it's a little slow getting into, but I loved the last 2 games in the series and was anxiously awaiting this one, so I'm excited!

I also have an indie perfume collection. I'm worried that might get out of hand, because it's just-so-slightly cheaper than buying BJD accessories, so I don't notice how much I'm buying all the time.

 

The simple answer would be that I honestly don't know. They're usually in a pile on my shelf (because tinies) and I don't keep very good track of how many they are

Actually, I went and checked my profile. It helps me keep track of them. I have 16 dolls (with bodies), about 7 heads/faceplates and other bits like a spare pink tiny delf centaur part. It's a headless horse. A pink glittery headless horse.

 

@eleniel Of course, it just needs more glitter.

 

I stopped counting at 20

 

I have (about) 25 regular BJD plus my horde of little (off topic) critters

His name was "The Headless Wonder". He was supposed to be for a floating head I had, but the resin match was AWFUL. But he was fun to pose so we kept him around for quite a while.

 

I stopped counting around *cough* 50 *cough* It's definitely more than that now.

I don't really want to know the real answer. I do need to update my spreadsheet that I track all my dolls in though.