Dolly Guilt/Shame...have any of you felt this??

[MeltedCaramel]

Okay, I made a passing comment in another thread about my initial reluctance to get into 1/6 dolls (all sizes are welcome, but since 1/6 seems to fall into that "Barbie/fashion doll" category I felt it deserved it's own thread here), to the point that my very first 12'' was an insanely hard to find Medicom that cost me almost $600 to buy, because I finally broke down and had to have it.

Now, we're not the only people in our lives, and our friends and families can influence our feelings whether they know it or not. The rest of my family is very unartistic and doesn't get things like "customizing" or "craftsmanship" so I always feel awkward when a family member catches sight of my massive doll/figure collection. Does your family support or discourage you? Are they neutral?

Do you yourself actually put yourself through shame/guilt for your hobby(obsession)? If you did, how were you able to overcome it? And anyone feeling a little down is welcome to share their blues about collecting here! I'm sure everyone will try and cheer you back up! ^_^

[Studio 126]

Not in the least, in the green & blue aisles, but I feel a little awkward in the pink aisle. It isn't so much a sense of guilt or shame. It is more a recognition of how creepy I must appear, a 51yo man shopping for lingerie for Barbie and Skipper (if not complete doll sets). I also go there for male & female civilian clothing, generally.

I usually play it off as if I was shopping for my daughter...

[mochi.kochi]

I couldn't care less if my family thought it was childish of me when I got Eden, my 27cm Obitsu. My siblings were the ones who understood the most but my mom was the hesitant one always making remarks on how much I spent to get her and stuff. I always ignored what she said and just avoided talking about dollieh stuff when she was around. But around chrismas last year I could tell they didn't mind anymore when they offered to buy me Eden's kitchen set as my present and she even crocheted Eden a dress and a hat for Chistmas

[Siead]

Not in the least, in the green & blue aisles, but I feel a little awkward in the pink aisle.

some stores are beginning to remove the pink sea of the girl aisles now, so hopefully that part of it will end soon. i'm sure little boys feel just as awkward as older men in that sea of pepto-bismal hued anarchy (i just get nauseous)

to the guilt thing: hell no. there is no reason to be guilty for something that poses no guilt to it. i'm 30-ish. if i wanna blow my money on toys instead of booze-fueled parties (like the people i know that demean my hobbies), then that's my prerogative.
the only time we should feel guilty for anything is if what we do harms another person. so unless you're punching out little kids to get the last frankie stien on the shelf, you're good.

[DollyKim]

As I've made life choices that have me only responsible for myself and fur children, my share of bills are paid, and I don't go without basic needs my extra money is mine to do with as I see fit. Could go on. I can understand the spiritual wanting and needing it too. As Pete Townshend says, "Now and then you see a soul and you fall in love, you can't do a thing about it."

[Geektopian]

I'll admit to feeling some occasional guilt over money and space issues and I've certainly heard about it from some family members. On the other hand, I wouldn't say I've ever felt any shame over this or any other hobby.

I'd say my family is generally neutral but tolerant, although there has occasionally been some low-level snarling and grumbling here on the home front.

[Kirahfaye]

My mom is the only one who vocally "doesn't get it" (her words), since she didn't know me to be much of a doll person as a child, but she's happy if I'm happy. And since she spent years collecting expensive glass and porcelain figurines and such, she isn't anyone to talk about how much something costs. I'm not even sure if my in-laws know about my doll collecting, although I doubt they'd be interested at all.

I do periodically get self-guilt about the cost because there are times when money is tight and I know I have a lot of resin colored cash sitting on the book shelf. Still, it's not as if you can easily convert resin back into cash. However, I do remember the time I saved up $600 for a doll only to have the TV die on us and we used that money to replace it.

My husband and daughter don't get onto me at all for the expense. My daughter enjoys them and even has three of her own (including a full set God of Zombies) so she's really no one to talk - LOL! And my husband has started getting into shooting and guns and is lusting after several revolvers so ....

[MeltedCaramel]

Thanks for all the replies!! I'm happy to see so many of you well adjusted with this hobby!!! I think Babs Poser made a really, really good point. While my family isn't exactly happy that I'm an artistic shut-in, they're not like "OMG I DISOWN YOU FOR LIKING DOLLS". It's more...general public reaction.

And Babs Poser? I can totally relate because every time I'm in the boys isle perusing action figures I try to act vapid and like I so don't know what I'm looking for like I'm the annoyed young mother shopping for her son (25 is still young enough to get away with the little brother routine too). So yeah, my Optimus Prime is your Barbie lingerie. XDDD

I feel it's more of a general public shame type thing. I have a...thing about embarrassment. It's completely fine if it happens to other people or if someone messes up while talking to me, but if I make a faux paus I completely overreact to the point of overblowing the entire situation. The other day I tripped and knocked down a few small display items because I have a very hard time walking (I have back issues, long story), and I spent like ten minutes apologizing to the girl who had to clean up after me to the point that I knew she was just thinking in her head 'Shut up lady, I get it, shit happens, go away now.'.

Siead, you always make me laugh when you comment. And I agree, often the people doing the demeaning are the ones with much bigger issues themselves. I can just imagine the conversation:
Doll Collector's Friend: Omg, did you really need to spend $30 on a doll for kids?
Doll Collector: Omg, can you just like, not be a raging alcoholic?
*Crickets chirping*

so unless you're punching out little kids to get the last frankie stien on the shelf, you're good.

<---This made me laugh, hard, until I remembered that this shit really happens. I have literally seen an adult verbally browbeat a child into giving them the last such-and-such toy. I hear about it all the time.

DollyKim, I'm glad to hear you look at it in such a zen way.

Geektopian: Yeah, money is another big guilt factor for me. I'm not exactly what you'd call rolling in wealth (more like the opposite), and I'm going to drop $300+ on a doll? That's kind of where the guilt comes from, but then again it's a pasttime, I have a rather severe injury that leaves me mostly bed/couch bound, and if I didn't have some sort of outlet I'd go mad effing crazy, so, let's just say clocktowers everywhere are safe for now. XD

Kirahfaye: XDD, you're another healthy outlook person and lucky enough that your daughter likes them too!! Plus, your husband and his revolvers, my Uncle is a huge revolver nut, and before my injury I would regularly go shooting with him (range shooting that is), so I know what a big-money hobby that is!!! His "Ebay" is the online version of our local gun shop, which he checks every day, and whenever he scores a new one he comes over and makes sure I properly fawn over his newest "baby". XDD Not that I mind, I miss the sheer fun of the hobby and the bonding time. He misses it too, which is why he makes it a point to lug over his newest toys, I know. XD

Guns and dolls, who woulda thought!? Although when your hubby gets one of the guns, try it out with him Kirahfaye, you may just find you like it as much as he does! If you both like it, it could be a good faux "date night" sometime. ^_~

[DollyKim]

I'm an artistic mostly shut-in too and just weathered a year without car access. My action figure days are over, the last time I went Barbie nuts was a bogo sale on 100 pose Fashionistas to put the heads of childhood friends on. Recently I've been in the market for a new bed in a bag but spent that money on 1/6 scale Power Team Elite to get headsculpts I didn't have. Unless the car is broken, a pet is sick, or I need computer something dolls will usually win.

That doesn't mean I have a place to put all my 1/6 scale dolls. It's getting about time where they need a room of their own or I need to display/store better.

[MitisFeles]

As Geektopian, Kirahfaye and surely many others, I sometimes feel guilty for the money. I started to live with my boyfriends some months ago and we still need a lot of things for our house, not talking about the bills to pay. Unfortunately I recently started to love resin MSD. I spent around 400$ for my incoming Reaa and even if I gathered the money really slowly, during months, I sometimes feel guilty because they would have spent on "useful" things (and my boyfriend doesn't getting the doll thing and just tolerating my hobby doesn't help me)...then I think that I work hard and I deserve to buy from time to time something for me with my wage, when it's not needed for vital things!