Day three: Doll family

     Okay, so for some reason I've forgotten to update the downsizing I've done. Milo and my DL Thea are gone, so right now all I have at home are my first three BJDs--my RS Li, Oni, and Kiwi. I've got two on the way, which will bring the number back up to 5. I guess I just like having a small doll crew. Anyway, here they are:

     Please excuse the chips on Oni's headcap. I'd actually sculpted horns on there, but there was an incident that I didn't find out about until moving was over (he was "borrowed" and then put back in the box with horns mysteriously missing) so I have to decide whether to sculpt them back on or respray the headcap. Either way, it's going to be a fuss. 

     I'm actually a little nervous to say it, but if I could come up with a price, I'd try to sell Oni, too. I just have no idea if he'd sell at all. Especially because spray paint likes to chip. Kiwi is cute, but I've considered selling her body and trying to get a pukifee body for her so I can do more with her than just "sitting" and "laying down" and "leaning against this object" poses. As I've said before, I absolutely despise Bobobie's tiny bodies. They just aren't worth the money at all. 

     I can't wait for my Frankenstein and Arale to come in, though. All the dolls I've sold before have been impulse buys that I never had the desire to modify much at all. These next two I have plans for and then even feasible things I'd want to do with them. What can I do with Oni without him chipping? I don't even have much interest in taking pictures of him. These next dolls I can make clothes for, give faceups to without having to re-color the resin every time, can further modify without having to paint it to match... It'll be great. 

     Anyway. This is what I've got for now. Sorry if this has gotten a little ranty, but I just have some issues with my dolls, still. Hopefully everyone else's doll plans are falling into place.

~~Aronzo~~

Day 2--Do you own any BJDs?

     Yes, I own BJDs. A few of them, actually. 4 that are "officially" still mine, one sold, and I'm waiting for two more to come home. I've been a BJD owner for just over a year now, and I love it. I love the variety in dolls, even when you have a small number. Maybe one day I'll be one of those people who can boast of a long list of resin dolls, but I kind of hope I don't because I want to be able to give all of my dolls attention--which is something I struggle with enough already.

     Even though I don't give them as much attention as I used to (there's been a lot going on otherwise) I'm really glad to have them. I've had to work hard to save the money for each one, and rather than feeling shame because of the prices of them I feel proud that I was able to save all that money outside of my paychecks. When I save for a doll, all the money comes from babysitting or finding change on the street, or wherever else it pops up. I had a steady job when I did all my main buying (quit voluntarily, still financially stable enough to not have to worry about it luckily) but none of the money for my dolls came from that. I am not a rich person, but I'm glad to be a person with good budgeting skills so that I never went hungry or without anything else for a doll either. 

     Writing this makes me feel like I don't take enough pictures of my dolls now. Maybe I'll stop writing and go play with them now. Goodbye for today, everybody!

~~Aronzo~~

30 day challenge prompt #1

     Day 1 challenge is "Why do you like BJDs?"

     I've kind of talked about what I like to do in the hobby, and I guess that's why I like BJDs--customization. When I was a kid, my brothers and I were always trying to make our own toys out of whatever we could. We made dolls out of clothespins and scraps of felt, painted toys we already had to try to make them into characters we'd made up, and all sorts of other silly things just to get something that was our very own. The biggest goal, of course, was figuring out how to get them to pose. My older brother came pretty close just before we found out a BJDs--he sculpted figures out of Sculpey around a string framework, but it was just regular string and they didn't have actual joints to them. They were more like hard, floppy ragdoll things. 

     It was always about having something that was specifically ours, that nobody else had made or bought before--or at least that didn't look like everyone else's. We were all in competition about it, too--whose looked the nicest, or which one was sturdier, or if somebody started making something different than the other two was a big deal. It's kind of silly, but that little competition we had going was really great. We all really liked making things, and it helped us bond and play together as siblings. I wouldn't be into dolls if it weren't for my big brother, after all. 

     I also like them because dolls are something me and my older brother can really talk about. Our little brother gets borderline obnoxious when he doesn't want to hear about them, but with my older brother we can talk about our plans, faceups, and whatever else is going on in our lives. We talk each other in and out of projects, and I like that, together, we've got kind of a joined doll family going. Of course his dolls are strictly his and my dolls are mine, but what I mean is that we make or swap things with each other for our dolls. He just got an Iplehouse Boris, and we found that some of the clothes that were much too big for my RS Li will fit, so he's got them now. My big brother is one of the best friends I've had in my entire life, and I'm willing to admit that a part of what keeps me motivated in the hobby is the little competition we've still got going between us. Just because we have what we were striving for so long, doesn't mean we have to stop competing. Where's the fun in that?

     So anyway. I guess basically I like BJDs because they're that fully-customized toy that I've always wanted (except better) and because it's something I share with somebody who's always been very close to me. Oh, and because they're pretty. Well, I guess not all of them are pretty, I mean you've got your gore mods, cutesy dolls, anthros, and even dolls modeled after old people. I think what I'm trying to say is that I like them because they're whatever you make them. 

~~Aronzo~~

Some of my current favorite sculpts (not personally owned)

I have a few favorite sculpts. Some of them, I plan to own one day. Others I like because of what the owners have done with them. Here are a few of my favorite dolls.

30 day BJD challenge

     I think, starting tomorrow, I'm going to start a 30 day BJD challenge. The prompts are as follows:

1) Why do you like BJDs? 

2) Do you own any? If so how many and if not, do you have any plans to at the moment?

3) Post a picture of all your dolls! 

4) What/who was the first BJD you ever owned? Do you still own them? (Who is your planned first?) 

5) What/who was the very first BJD you saw? 

6) Biggest size you own? (Have held/seen/like) 

7) Smallest size you own? (Have held/seen/like)

8) What is your favourite size? 

9) What is your least favourite size? 

10) Post a picture of a doll and an animal!

12) What do your friends think of your dolls/dolls in general? 

13) Dollie shoes! Show us how many you have! 

14) Have you ever had a floating head? What about a headless body? (What do you think you would do if you had either?) 

15) What do your family think of your dolls? 

16) Can any of your crew stand on their heads? 

17) What is your favourite item of dollie clothing?

18) Do you have a favourite company? 

19) A least favourite company?

20) What is your dream doll?

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

22) What’s your favourite doll scale prop? 

23) Is there a part of the BJD hobby that you dislike?

24) What about your favourite part of the hobby? 

25) Have you ever modded a doll? 

26) Done your own faceups? 

27) Do you have a favourite out of your own dolls? 

28) Post a crazy/silly pose!

29) Post a picture of your dolls exploring the outside world!

30) Have you ever been to a doll meetup? 

     This is probably going to kill me. I don't know why, but I can never stick to these things. Prompts are from: http://30daychallengearchive.tumblr.com/post/32526238006/30-day-bjd-challenge

*EDIT* Turns out they don't have anything for Day 11 on this list. I'm going to use it as a free choice day.

Vampirestat, pls go

     I keep getting fake views sourced to a site called Vampirestat that's supposed to tell you the value of your domain name. The reason these sites "view" your blog is to get your interest and pageviews, which likely earns them lots of money. They do this to every blog.

     I'm not going to look at you again, you vampires. Go away.

     My viewcount from them blew up because I actually followed the link. Please, stop. Seriously, I don't believe somebody is actually looking at my blog 37 times in one day, over the span of a few minutes.

*Edit*

     ...47 of my 61 pageviews today have been from these fake views from "stats" websites that don't refer back to your blog. Seriously? I'm really irritated because apparently their IP addresses are protected and I can't block them. This is driving me crazy.

     Also, DO NOT try to visit their site. It's full of viruses and all sorts of bad stuff for your computer.

So this has me concerned

From Mint on Card's website:
"September 4th '13: 

Further explanation for the long pre-order waits. Several BJD companies have told us that they are having trouble filling open positions within their companies. Wages in China have increased a lot for the last couple of years, this year in particular. What is happening there is familiar to what has happened in other countries; the economy improves, wages increase, and people leave labor intensive jobs for less labor intensive job, or a desk job. Asleep Eidolon, Xaga Doll, LoongSoul Doll, and DikaDoll are all having trouble finding workers.
No one wants to sand dolls for a living.
It's hard tedious work, and usually in uncomfortable conditions. AE has raised the pay for sanding jobs 3 times in the last 8 months, but things have still not improved for them. AE is more popular then ever. Orders have been large, that is usually good news for a company, but it is daunting when you don't have enough workers to get the orders done in a timely fashion. These companies are stuck with only a few choices:

• Increase wages to a point that their dolls become out of reach for many people, (price wise).
• Move their entire company to a different region that has more workers who are willing to take on sanding jobs.
• Stop offering sanding altogether.
• Charge for sanding.

Any of these decisions could negatively impact their business. Customers might stop buying if prices get too high. If the company moves it will cost them money, loss of orders during the move, and with time they will likely find themselves in the same situation again that they are in now. If they stop offering sanding then customers might choose to go with a BJD brand that does offer it. If they charge for sanding, that adds to the cost of the doll and make it look less appealing price wise, (people never like having something that was once free 'taken away' from them). Traditionally Chinese BJD's always come sanded, so that is why not sanding them does not really feel like an option to most of these brands.
As of right now we do not know what these companies will ultimately choose to do, but your opinion could help them decide. They can easily get the opinions of the domestic Chinese market, but they need our, (your), help to know what the rest of the BJD hobbyists think. Please join our discussion on facebook with your opinions. Thank you. :)"