BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 25

Q: Have you ever modded a doll? (Do you think that you would?)

A: No, I didn't. Nor do I think I would. Artist dolls I own I would never mod as they are a finished product - customization isn't really the point with them. A few more traditional ABJD I own I wouldn't mod either as to preserve resell value. For a while I was toying with the idea of a removable pregnant belly for one of my dolls, but gave up on it as I realized magnets would also have to be mounted into the doll's stomach - too invasive for my taste :)

BJD 30-Day challenge: Day 24

I realized I accidentally answered the question no. 23 twice, but since both answers are true - I'm going to keep both of them!

Q: What about your favourite part of the hobby?

A: I think photostories. We all do photography, but the challenge of a story is to have a meaningful 'script' and to make the dolls look 'alive' - which to.me is the ultimate goal of the hobby anyway, hence the jointedness :) At the same time, demands placed on the quality of every single picture are a little lower in photostories, which is liberating...
Here is my first (and so far only) complete and published photostory:

http://flic.kr/s/aHsjuF6rEE

(It's a Flickr set, just click every picture in order and see text underneath)
I also bought a couple of stop-motion apps and plan on taking photostories to the next level of actual moves starring my dolls. Oh, if only I had time.... :))))

Updated census:

Dollzone Bunny
Pipos Cheese Mouse
BJTales Mouse
Doll factory Kiki the Piggy
Latidoll Yellow Lami
Fairyland RealPuki Tyni
Fairyland RealPuki Soso
Fairyland RealPuki Roro
Fairyland RealPuki PuPu
Fairyland PukiPuki Pipi
Fairyland PukiPuki Piki
Fairyland PukiPuki Mary
Fairyland PukiPuki Sugar
Fairyland Multihead Cupid (PKF body) ¥
Fairyland PukiFee Zoe
Fairyland MiniFee Soo
Elfdoll Mir
Leekeworld Mikhaila
Soom Dolomi
Doll Chateau Hillary ¥
Mushroom Peddler's Hoot the Owl
* Mushroom Peddler's Willow + Buzz
* Mushroom Peddler's Flick the Dragon
CharmCity Verse Philia
Dreamhigh Studio Piko
Nefer Kane Humpty Dumpty + doggie
Nefer Kane Suzy + blob
Nefer Kane Iracebeth + * big ear
* Nefer Kane Aleah (layaway)
* Nefer Kane Maheya (layaway)
* ApoDoll Bonnie
Nympheas dolls Nymphette Moka
* Nikkibritt's Studio Faun

* - incoming
¥- Face-up needed

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 23

Q: Is there a part of the BJD hobby that you dislike?
A: Yes. Selling :) It just so happens that I'm a rather impulsive buyer and even though I'm usually pleased with my purchases, sometimes my collection needs pruning and trimming. Like now I need to sell about 3-4 dolls and I dread it because:
- selling on DoA takes daily updating of the posts;
- I have this phobia, a terror really, that I might unintentionally upset the buyer and get bad feedback;
- shipping is always more expensive than I expect;
- waiting for the doll to arrive is nerve-wrecking.
And finally, but most importantly: there was a reason I bought the doll, there was a specific reason I liked it, and so separation is always sad even if its for the best... So yeah, hate selling, but it's a necessary evil I guess.

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 23

Q: Is there a part of the BJD hobby that you dislike?

A: Not so much dislike... Let's say, not so excited about. It is the need to restring a doll. I've never done it, nor I plan on doing it myself, yet the day comes for every doll, sooner or later, when elastic gets too loose - for me, this will mean shipping the doll to the aesthetics' place and paying the fee and... Just this whole hassle for the service that won't even make a drastic visible difference - of course I will notice if they pose better, but...

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 22

Q: What’s your favourite doll scale prop?

A: I really like chairs. Yes, simple (or not) chairs. They are versatile and can be used as a stand (back) or as a seat, and they look natural with just about any doll. Plus, it's rather easy to find a chair in correct scale. Some examples of a chair coming handy:











A chair is often invisible, but invaluable helper!

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 21

Q: One doll you love, but will never (probably) buy?

A: Not one doll, but rather the whole brand: I really love Kaye Wiggs' dolls, they are unusual and well-made and 'solid', as in, do not look or feel fragile... But even then, I don't get, I simply don't, why the heck are they so expensive. One doll runs upward of 700, and they can be over 2000 on secondary market. Shoot me in the head... Even the clothes people make for them, although beautiful and usually very high quality, can easily run 200 and more. So as much as I love them - I'll probably never buy one. I may ask for a gift... But that is too much even for a birthday present, really.

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 20

Q: What is your dream doll?

A: Wow... That's a toughie. Lately I was heard saying, on many occasions to many people, that my BJTakes Mouse is my dream, 'grail' doll that I already posses. But since then I fell in love with Nefer's dolls and now my dream is always whatever next doll she has coming out :)

So just let me post my updated state-of-the moment dolly wish list :) ::::

- Mushroom Peddler's Mini Dragon (currently sold out)
- Mushroom Peddler's new (tall) impling (incomplete prototype at the moment)
- Nefer Kane's Maheya, Bloop, ...
- Kaye Wiggs: MSD (most likely tan Miki)
- Nympheas Dolls: Nympheline

BID 30-day Challenge: Day 19

Q: A least favourite company?

A: There are tons of companies I don't care for - I am very particular with my tastes; it is easier to list the companies I'm interested in.. But I must say I irrationally dislike Dollzone. My first doll was from them, so I don't actually know what my problem is :) , but I don't think I would ever buy from them... I have an anthro bunny from Dollzone, and it is very cute (especially for the extremely low price it sold for), but it was a gift. I would never buy it myself, today.

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 18

So, exactly a month after having a baby, I am happily making my way back to this blog - kind of easing into it with this meme as my time is still very limited...
Q: what is your favorite BJD company?
A: Taking 'company' in a strict definition of a business with several employees, palace that mass-produces their dolls from start to finish (including casting and so on all the way to face-up), my favorite has to be, hands down, Fairyland. Their dolls are really easy on the eye (although more cute than beautiful, frankly), they pose wonderfully - practically the best in every size range, from RealPuki to an SD. By the way, they are making those amazing RealPuki!! And if that's not enough, their prices are very very reasonable, for the industry, that is.
Now if we stretch the definition of a company to lone artists who may not cast their own dolls, but sculpt and face-up them and who have their own brands and stores... The winner is, of course, French artist I am honored to call a friend - Nefer Kane (CircusKane is her company's name). She is amazing! As a person, as an artist... Her dolls are special and all unique. Right now, for example, Iracebeth the Red Queen is on pre-order:




There has not been a doll by Nefer that I didn't want! :)

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 17

Q: What is your favourite item of dollie clothing?

A: I keep on buying kimonos / yukatas for everyone, so you'd think it's my favorite :) , but really, I like elaborate pieces that take a while to put on but then look great and really put together - full-set outfits etc. Like this one that took, well, two nights to just put on:

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 16

The original Day 16 question was as follows:

16) Can any of your crew stand on their heads? (Show us~)

But to be honest, I couldn't possibly be any more bored by the question. Well, yeah, Fairyland tinies probably do a pretty good job at that, and they are a snap to photograph, but I just don't feel like it. Being 41 weeks pregnant kind of makes me rebellious and cranky :) So instead, here is my self-invented Day 16 question, answer to which will also prompt some picture sharing:

Q: Which one of your dolls looks best in the photos and why? (with samples)

A: As much as I adore Real Pukies and other tinies, they can be a PITA in terms of photography. Even with close-range macro on they sometimes work out blurry. On the upside, however, I have the most props for them.

But somehow, my best pictures ever were of an MSD-sized girl Mikhaila by Leekeworld. Her grayish / dusty rose colored skin and the way she had enough area of body and face to actually capture light and shadows... Here she is, with pictures from different shots and types of lighting. Enjoy!

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 15

Q: What do your family think of your dolls?

A: Hard to tell :) Knowing how important (and often therapeutic) this hobby is for me, they support it wholeheartedly, which includes faking interest also in the cases where the dolls I'm interested in are obviously way too 'weird' for them. At the time I was into cuteness above everything, they were for the most part really on the same page with me, even if they did think I might have purchased too many at that stage. Post-Fairyland, however, they are often not impressed by the unusual dolls with character I often select. Does that upset me? Not at all. They don't have to share all my tastes to support me, and I wish they knew that so I would know their true, even negative, opinions of my dolls. Not that it would influence my choices ;), but then when they really admire a doll of my photography of it, it would be more valuable.

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 14

Q: Have you ever had a floating head? What about a headless body?
A: Actually, after vowing I never would, I had this year - and for a while - a floating multihead (Fairyland) head that I planned to put on a PukiFee body but failed to to procure one for the longest time. Only in late July did I finally buy a PKF body on Dairyland forum. I actually tried earlier in the year: bought a cheap PukiFee Ante for the purpose of using her body - but her precious custom face-up made me keep her as-is. You've seen her in the previous post, she is a darling! And here is my multihead Cupid - the wig is on the way from DDE:

And no, no headless bodies here. Hopefully none ever, really...

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 13

Q: Dollie shoes! Show us how many you have!

A: Shoes are actually a part of dolly wardrobe I totally disregard. Only a handful of my dolls have shoes on (plus I have an MSD pair that fits nobody), so instead of trying to fit all the measly collection into one picture, I took this one shoe-themed pic. I think it worked out pretty good, if I dare say so myself! ;)

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 12

Q: What do your friends think about your dolls / dolls in general?

A: Well, considering I tend to pick up friends in the hobby, most of them are into BJDs - in fact I met some of my best friends this way, or the hobby has deepened our relationship. I have two best friends in the realm of BJD now: one was my LJ acquaintance until we discovered we're both into dolls, the other I met on a crochet (another hobby of mine) board. In fact she was the one who invited me to DoA and largely shaped my early BJD tastes. Every day in the community I meet people who are super-nice, and I consider some of them my friends even if we only talk online.

My IRL friends don't know much about my hobby, we do not discuss it and I don't feel an overwhelming need to share. Why would I, since I have such a great circle of 'dolly friends'? :) I do tell all about BJDs when asked, but without preachy connotations. I don't believe that this hobby is for everyone nor do I think I can effectively introduce someone to it, being a distracted collector and all :)

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 11 (10)

Q: Post a picture of a doll and an animal!

A: (Why yes, it's been photoshopped. I have no pets nor would I let a strange animal get anywhere close to my dolls! :) )

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 10 (11)

Day 10 has another picture-taking task that is rather hard to accomplish instantly, so I'm switching days 10 and 11...

Q: How long have you collected dolls? Did you collect dolls before BJDs?

Well, I had been looking at them for a long, long time, fascinated by Real Pukis in particular, but then as I browsed the sites and discovered the hobby in general, I decided to take a leap and purchased my first BJD in 2009 (I believe), so no, I wasn't collecting dolls before BJDs. I wasn't going to become a collector per se either, and to allow my collection to grow as much as it has. All I wanted was a doll or two for photostories... I think it wasn't until summer of 2011 when I finally realized I indeed had quite a collection :)

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 9

Q: What is your least favourite size?

A: It's a toss-up between SD and Yo-SD. And yes, I own exceptions to this 'rule': Elfdoll Mir (but then I'm pretty sure I'm not getting another SD ever), who is a special person for sure, and Soom Dolomi, who is a little smaller than most Yo-SDs and I think because of this, escapes the 'curse'. I have re-homed other two Yo-SDs I owned due to complete and total lack of bonding. They were LittleFee Dark Elf Soo by Fairyland and SouldDoll's Lappy Angel.

Dolomi here, just because I love her:

BJD 30-day Challenge: Day 8

Q: What is your favorite size?

A: I would say RealPuki (the smallest out there) - they are 9.5 cm, but I am actually equally happy with slightly bigger dolls as well - anything up to, let's say, 16 cm still falls into my favorite category. So this includes a wide variety of artist and company dolls. Not that I won't buy a gorgeous MSD once in a while ;)