100 Questions
Lately I've been chatting with hat about BJDs. Hat and a friend made a huge questionnaire for doll lovers, so here are my answers. This was fun to fill out!
1. Name?
Vega
2. ASL?
honorary Gen-Xer / [redacted] / in my lair
Collection basics:
3. How many BJDs do you own?
As of writing this questionnaire...
- 3 full dolls - Syr (Crobidoll Lance), Justinian (Dollstown Mui), and Halcyon (Dollstown Rhea). Here are their profiles.
- 1 headless body - "Headless Boy" (Style65 Guy body from Migidoll).
- 1 floating head - LUTS Winter Event 2022 (which will not be going on the headless body).
- And one full doll, Alerion (Volks MSD F06) whom I sold on layaway, so I guess I still own 80% of her.
4. When did you get your first BJD?
August 2009
5. Do you still own your first?
Nope
6. Why did you buy your first BJD?
I wanted to get into BJDs by shelling a very important and dear OC, and my first doll, Dream of Doll Lahoo, seemed like the best candidate. Well, that plan didn't work out - I sold Lahoo and decided not to shell pre-existing OCs anymore.
7. How do you store or display your BJDs?
They're free range - so they're all over the house, or sitting on their doll bench when I feel the need to "tidy" them up.
8. Do you keep your doll boxes? If so, where do you store them?
Stacked inside each other and stashed in a closet.
9. Do you play favorites? Who is your favorite doll?
"I love them all uniquely!" But blog tags don't lie: someone clearly gets the most photographs, and it's neither of the girls...
10. Do you have a least favorite?
... "I love them all uniquely!" But I'm taking a while to warm up to Halcyon, maybe because she's the newest one, and a girly girl whom I'm not accustomed to.
11. Do you have any dolls that you forgot you owned?
All of them, when they were stashed in their boxes during my very long BJD hiatus. I don't think I ever looked at them once during hiatus.
12. Have you ever sold all your dolls and restarted your collection?
Almost. In my first 2 years of the hobby (2009-2011), I bought 5 dolls and sold 4.* Syr was my third doll, the lucky one who survived that purge.
*Not quite: I tried but wasn't able to sell Alerion, my second doll (Volks MSD F06 mini-Anais) pre-hiatus. She went on sale again post-hiatus -- happily, she'll be going to a new home soon.
13. Who is the oldest doll you own?
Alerion was likely cast in 2005, so she's almost 18 years old. Of the crew - I got Syr in 2009-2010, but I'm quite confident her parts were cast in 2008. That makes her about 15 years old.
14. Do you own any dolls without headcap magnets?
Alerion has no headcap magnets.
15. Who is the newest doll you own?
Headless Boy was cast in Nov 2022. His head (currently in transit) is much older than his body.
16. Who is the cheapest doll in your collection?
Halcyon.
17. Who is the most expensive?
Syr.
18. Who was your hardest doll to obtain?
No standouts. All of them took about the same effort to get.
19. Do you own any hybrids?
Syr and Halcyon, and Headless Boy whenever his head arrives.
20. Have you taken a dolly hiatus?
Yes, for almost 10 years from 2013 to 2022. I'm back now and feeling like I stepped out of a time machine - the BJD landscape has grown and changed a lot. It's nice to experience a bit of that newbie excitement again!
21. Do you have a limit on how many dolls you want to own?
Every doll occupies a chunk of my brainspace, so my limit is when I reach mental saturation and the thought of owning more dolls becomes distasteful. I'm currently at mental saturation, but this might not be my ultimate limit yet. I'm hoping that number never reaches double digits, because I fancy the status symbol of being a 'small collection' doll owner just don't want that many dolls.
22. What are you doll plans for the future?
For this year - receive all the dolls I've ordered, complete their appearances, and integrate them with the current crew. And continue being a slave to them, I guess. I mean, I'm learning how to sew doll clothes, for Pete's sake.
23. What is your favorite aspect of the hobby?
Having pretty things at home, and giving them life through completing their appearances and taking photos of them interacting with the world. Also the creative outlet they offer. BJDs have kinda compelled me to learn new skills and practice old ones that I never bothered to before. Perhaps they are helping me to "build character".
Your relationship with your dolls:
24. What is your definition of bonding? Do you bond with your dolls?
A doll that moves physically into my home is just an object. A doll that moves physically into my home AND into my imagination as a fully-fledged character ... bonding is happening now.
I have no reason to own a doll if it falls out of my imagination, or fails to make it through the door at all.
25. Wet or dry?
I know this is a Japanese idiom to do with BJD bonding but its meaning currently escapes me.
Update: I remembered Hat had a glossary. Wet, for sure.
26. Are your dolls shells of OCs?
Yes - a doll must give me its character if I'm to even consider buying it.
27. Do you buy dolls specifically to represent OCs?
Not for pre-existing OCs that already live in my head. That way lies frustration.
28. Do write stories about your dolls?
Nah, the point of having dolls is so I can tell stories about them in ways that aren't writing.
29. Do you own any dolls that are shells of characters that are not your own or real people?
No, not interested
30. Do your dolls "interact" with each other?
Yes, they're all part of a shared world.
31. How affectionate are you with your dolls?
Sometimes I greet them when I walk past, look at their faces, touch their heads, change their poses a bit. But it has never occurred to me to hug a doll. Why would I want to hug a plastic figure? I found it such a strange notion I polled people on the BJD Discord server about it. Indeed, some people do hug their BJDs. Most fascinating, but I won't be picking up that habit anytime soon.
32. How do you decide on names for your dolls?
I have a particular naming method and try to keep their names thematically similar to each other.
33. Have you or would you twin with your doll?
LOL, never.
34. Do your dolls wear underwear?
Only if it fits into their current outfit, in which case they probably need it to protect their modesty.
35. Does your doll hate you because you're gay?
My dolls will never hate me. ^_^
Preferences:
36. Do you have a preference for level of realism?
Idealized realism, leaning strongly towards stylized. Somewhere in the middle, I think. I call it "friends of Dollstown", because Dollstown has exactly the kind of look I want, and I keep an eye for other sculpts/companies that fall in the vicinity. So far my list is: Dollstown, Migidoll, Volks, Unidoll, Elfdoll/Rainman, Maskcat, Kanadoll, Joydoll, Vings ... I don't know, do they even look coherent together at all?
37. Do you prefer aesthetics or posability?
Both! To be honest, I don't know. I think I need to have more dolls home before I can figure out which I prefer.
38. What is your favorite size?
SD (1/3) size, specifically 57-65cm. Large enough to have presence, small enough that I can still grab one around the waist with one hand and hoof it out of a photoshoot location.
39. Are you picky about resin?
I've been ruined by Volks and Dollstown. Their dolls are deliciously heavy. I can't help but compare lighter resins against them, and always find those wanting.
40. Do you prefer cute dolls or beautiful dolls?
Beautiful
41. Do you prefer closed or opened eyes?
Open
42. Do you prefer teeth showing or closed mouth?
100% closed mouth. Open mouth, especially with teeth/tongue showing, is an instant dealbreaker.
43. Single torso or jointed torso?
Jointed torso, but single torso has its advantages
44. Do you own any asexual dolls?
No, but I'd like to - if the body suits the character.
45. Do you own any dolls with fantasy parts or an unusual color?
No, I like my bog standard humans, kthx. —Actually, I forgot that my floating head has elf ears. But that's my faceup practice head so I'm okay with some fantasticality there.
46. Do you prefer owning many BJDs or fewer?
Fewer
Maintenance and Customization:
47. How comfortable are you with handling your dolls on a scale from white gloves to cheetos dust fingers?
Freshly washed hands, although I recently started wearing gloves while handling and am discovering the benefit of that.
48. Have you restrung your doll?
Getting disassembled and put back together is a rite of passage in this doll family.
49. Have you damaged any of your dolls? i.e. broken finger, chips
Only Headless Boy so far - he got a minor chip 15 minutes after unboxing, and has since developed nicks around some joints from posing. ;_; See, that's why I don't like lightweight resin! (Although to be fair, I blame the damage mostly on below-average joint engineering.)
50. Are your dolls sueded or wired?
Yes
51. Do you prefer customizing your own doll, commissioning an artist, or buying fullsets?
Not too interested in fullsets. I've recently discovered the joys of doing some customizations myself, but commissioning is great too.
52. Have you done a faceup?
Yes, and want to keep doing them. I knew it would be fun, but didn't expect it to be this fun.
53. Do any of your dolls have body blushing?
Everyone has a manicure/pedicure. I'm too lazy to do more body blushing, plus everyone keeps their clothes on so I hardly get to see it anyway.
54. Have you or would you assemble a doll kit?
I would! I like building and tinkering with stuff, and this sounds like fun. I've been eyeing those garage kits by Logan.Dolls, they are quite tempting...
55. Do you sew or create things for your dolls?
Learning how to!
56. Have you ever modded a doll?
I once commissioned a doll mod, but haven't done it myself. Perhaps one day.
History:
57. How long have you been interested in BJD?
I joined Den of Angels in May 2009, and bought my first doll shortly after.
58. How did you discover BJDs?
Through two online friends who started sharing photos of their dolls on Livejournal. I think that was around 2004-2005.
59. What was the first doll you fell in love with?
I was too starry-eyed to remember. I suspect actual love came after all those first infatuations. If so, my first love was Crobidoll Lance. Nothing less would've saved Syr from that purge.
60. How long did you wait between discovering BJDs and buying your first?
Around 4-5 years. Just wasn't interested... until I was, and I had the financial means to buy a doll right away.
Purchasing:
61. Who is your favorite company and why?
It'd have to be Dollstown. They single-handedly defined my aesthetic taste in BJDs, especially 1/3 boys: Justinian is my gold standard and every boy sculpt that catches my eye inevitably gets compared to him. And the 1/3 girls... at one point my wishlist was filled with Dollstown girls. Halcyon was the lucky girl who won that battle royale. Dollstown are somewhat dormant right now and haven't released new sculpts for some time, and my tastes have shifted to other artisans, but I still follow them and think of them fondly.
62. Are you loyal to a company or do you buy from multiple companies?
I like diversifying! Although Dollstown managed to corner the market on me at one point.
63. Is the company you've purchased the most from your favorite company?
Eheheh... Halcyon is a Dollstown head sculpt, Syr has a Dollstown body, and Justinian is Dollstown head AND body...
64. Do you own any fullset dolls?
Just one. As a BJD newbie I was completely enamoured by Dream of Doll Lahoo in his default clothes. The fullset version was long sold out when I bought Lahoo for my first doll, but he came with the same silver wig. Through a stroke of fortune I managed to snag his default outfit from the secondhand market. Add to that a pair of DoD boots and some blue urethane eyes, and I managed to recreate his "fullset". I ended up selling him as a "recreated fullset". Kinda wish I still had that wonderful outfit, but at least I got a great photoshoot out of it.
65. What is your favorite fullset across all companies?
*shrugs* Lahoo? I haven't been paying attention.
66. Is there any doll you love that you would never buy?
Don't think so. Love is a strong word. If I really loved the doll, I'd find a way to buy it. If I don't want to buy it, that "love" was either a fever dream, or got beaten up by reality into a "like".
Update: Actually, there is one - Migidoll Miho (original version, not the later variants). He is a more fitting shell for my important, dear OC than Lahoo. But I'm no longer keen on shelling pre-existing OCs, and he won't fit in with my current crew anyway. So while I love Miho, I doubt I'll get him anytime soon.
67. Have you ever purchased a doll in person?
No, but I will be selling a doll in person.
68. Have you ever done FCS?
No, but it sounds like a fun experience.
69. Describe your dream BJD! (feel free to make a cross company hybrid)
I already have/am getting all of my dream BJDs. But I can see myself growing more dissatisfied with Headless Boy and his below-average joint engineering. I'm getting a Bimong 68cm Narin this year, and if the joint engineering is as good as I hear it is, I might try to hybrid Headless Boy's head on Narin's body... if I can bear to part it from Narin's head. We'll see.
I'd also like double-jointed versions of Dollstown's 15year girl and boy bodies for Syr and Justinian. Those two bodies are aesthetically perfect in my eyes, and solid posers within their single-jointed range. I'd love for them to have a bit more posing range without resorting to wiring. But people have complained about how DT designed the double joints for their 17yr and 18yr bodies... hmm, perhaps I shouldn't wish for this after all.
70. What is the biggest blessing Mother SD has given you?
The means to finance this stinking expensive hobby, and the good sense to be not be much of a collector of anything else besides BJDs.
71. Do you have a grail doll?
Yes - Vings Seira. Currently, he's more of a white stag that eluded my grasp, and I'm waiting for the next opportune moment to capture him. But if his head sculpt isn't offered in Dollvings' next preorder window, he will graduate into a proper grail to quest for on the secondhand market.
72. Do you own your favorite face mold?
I only own favourites. I love them all uniquely!
73. Have you had to borrow money to pay for a doll?
Never, dolls are not a good reason to get into debt.
74. Have you ever cut back on other expenses to be able to purchase a doll?
If my savings buffer gets too low, I have to build it back up, whether it's not spending on doll stuff or not spending on other hobbies.
75. Do you purchase dolls on layaway, or save up and buy in one go?
I much prefer to pay upfront, but I've done a few 1-2 month layaways.
76. How often do you buy dolls?
According to my records, I bought around 2 - 2½ dolls per year that I was active in the hobby. (½ = floating head or headless body). I think that's a lot and I want to reduce this rate. I'm currently at peak mental saturation with the 3½ dolls I bought/planned to buy this year, so I hope this will be a sufficient "brake" to keep me from getting any more resin for the rest of 2023.
77. When will you be done?
I'm done for now. I really don't want to buy any more dolls for the rest of the year (if not longer), and instead splurge on my current crew! So I'm doing my best to practice self-control.
78. What was your longest wait time?
I recently ordered two dolls that have wait times of 6 months.
79. Have you given or received a doll as a gift?
No.
Update: I forgot that I received a Winter Event head from LUTS a few days ago. I deliberately made a giant order of clothes and accessories so my crew could have decent casual modern outfits (and shoes, they were so desperate for shoes), and I could get a free head for practicing faceups.
80. List your favorite places to buy wigs, clothes, and other accessories.
Secondhand market (especially Den of Angels Marketplace) has frequently coughed up good and rare stuff that I like. But now the MP is mostly off-limits because transacting in USD is unfavourable for me. So I'm looking at shops in Asia... and am amazed at the wealth of choice available. Buying from Taobao and Mandarake/Y!JA has become quite straightforward. I'm a bit worried what kind of floodgates that will open...
81. Have you purchased anything for your doll that costs as much as any of your dolls?
No, but I've gotten close.
Selling:
82. How many dolls have you sold?
4, soon to be 5.
83. Have you ever wished to buy a sold doll back?
No, and I hope I never experience this.
84. Do you know what happened to any of the dolls you sold?
The person who bought my "fullset" Lahoo would occasionally send me updates and photos for a couple years afterwards, which was quite sweet of them. Otherwise, no.
85. How would you feel to receive updates on your sold doll?
I wouldn't mind knowing what my old dolls were up to in their new homes.
86. Where have you sold your dolls?
Den of Angels Marketplace, and the BJD Discord server
Interactions:
87. Have you taken your doll on a plane?
Not yet
88. Do you let others hold or touch your dolls?
Fellow doll owners are allowed to touch and hold with prior permission. Non-doll owners may, if I'm supervising.
89. Are you open about being a doll collector?
Kind of - my family and close IRL friends know. I won't volunteer that information though.
90. What does your family/roommate(s)/SO think of your dolls?
Mother likes them and has sewed clothes for them in the past. Father is bemused but mostly oblivious. Sibling finds dolls creepy and is glad to not be living with me anymore.
91. Have you ever hid your purchases?
No reason to. I was a working adult when I started the hobby. Haters just gonna hate.
92. Has your mother ever expressed disappointment in your shopping habits?
My mother was always telling me to be wise about my spending, long before I got into BJDs.
93. What doll community do you enjoy interacting with most?
Den of Angels is nice because it's slow paced and a standing archive of in-depth knowledge. BJD Discord server is nice because it's fun realtime chat, and people are quick to answer questions.
94. Where do you post photos of your dolls?
This doll blog gets all the photos. I post some of them to BJD Discord, Den of Angels, and Instagram.
95. Have you convinced any friends to buy BJDs?
I never try to convince my friends to join any of my hobbies. I mean, if they're interested they know they can ask me... I don't bite...
96. Do you attend meetups?
Yes, even organized one recently. I'd love to get to know more local doll owners and see their resin gangs.
97. Have you been to a doll convention or expo?
Yes, and would love to go again whenever the one in my city gets up and going, post-COVID and all.
Misc:
98. If you could do anything different about how you first got into collecting, what would it be?
Mmm.... I would like to have begun the hobby not depressed and suffering through a series of work/life/existential crises. I think I would've enjoyed my newbie days a lot more, been more able to follow through on BJD hobby activities, and been less frustrated by my dolls overall. That said, going through hell on earth was what tipped me into buying dolls in the first place, so I might not even be here if life had been better. Well, I'm in a much better state of being right now, enjoying my dolls more than ever, launching and progressing on doll projects -- so it all worked out in the end.
99. Are you going to send these questions to anyone?
Maybe!
100. Express your love for dolls in one sentence.
I love giving life to beautiful things.