So very new at this...

[WhiteDove01s]

Ok, sorry if this gets awkward. I tend to be socially shy unless someone drags me out, and will probably lurk a lot, but it seemed posting here first is just the polite thing to do.

Technically I have no BJD yet, as the order is pending for next month after I'm sure I have enough saved for MSC, and those teeny detail brushes, and shipping... other things besides the two bodies and pack of heads I plan to get off Junkyspot.

I was never much for dolls as a child. I collected Transformers instead, while one of my cousins had piles of Barbies everywhere. I did do a lot of the sewing for her dolls and liked that part of it.

What got me into this was an odd combo of two factors. One, is that I like to write and make up stories, but I get writer's block very easily and can lose interest in finishing a story once I know what the ending is. I do a lot of forum RP writing with other people, but I have notes for side-stories and scenes off of things like that that will likely never get written up. I'd have slightly better luck doing them as a webcomic of sorts, but...

That goes to the second thing. I've been told my artwork is pretty good, when I actually do it. However I have a few issues there too. One is that I have chronic problems with proportion. I usually have to hunt up a photo and cheat and trace an outline for any figures in a scene in order to make sure everything's scaled normally. I have no idea why I have that problem, but nothing's ever really fixed it and not tracing and just practicing ends up with me depressed because I've ended up drawing stuff that falls into the Uncanny Valley for one reason or another. Another is that I can only draw for so long before I start to cramp up and end up in pain.

How did this end up with me looking at dolls? Well, it dawned on me that I could make 'actors', paint the faceups and make the clothes, and then just take photos for the stories I wanted to do. Add some special effects as needed, maybe learn to do greenscreen stuff... I think that spells it out. And, who knows, once I get through my backlog of crazy AU fanstuff and stories based off playing tabletop game scenarios, I could go on and do some classic plays or fairy tales for fun.

I plan to stick to 1/6 scale, partly for budget concerns and partly because there are so many more accessories and the 'stage' area to photograph won't have to be abnormally large. The first bodies I'm ordering will be 21cm and 27cm obitsu, both male. I also have a decent sized pile of old barbies found in the back room that I have designated 'extras', 'test subjects', and 'parts' as needed. Most were in pretty poor condition, some dog chewed, but I hope to salvage the heads and save some funds that way. I'm on a very tight budget. I'm still gathering up all the supplies I'll need for things like rerooting, face-ups, removal of paint from Barbie heads, and so on.

And I'm over here because there are some very good tutorials and because it's always better to learn by listening to those who've already done whatever you're trying than it is to make guesses and mess up. Experiments are for when nobody knows if something will work. Of course, that means I'll probably soon be pestering everyone with stupid questions, whenever I pop out of lurking...

[oniakki]

Welcome, sounds like you have some really neat stuff in the works there!

[Iwa_Hoshi]

Welcome to the board

[WhiteDove01s]

Welcome, sounds like you have some really neat stuff in the works there!

Thanks. I hope it'll turn out well. Painting a 3-d model/actor will get around the proportion issues I have, and my big problem with putting stories into prose is that I'm more a 'show' person than a 'tell' person. Especially when it comes to combat scenes. I can picture it just right in my head, but sometimes I just can't explain it as clearly in prose as I'd like. The forum-based text roleplay I do has really helped with that, but that doesn't work for everything. The Star Wars crossover stories I did that came about from taking a couple of characters from my Mega Man AU and playing them through a pile of old Star Wars tabletop scenarios... well, I have plenty on what happened as notes, but most of the time turning it into prose just doesn't flow right. It's too visual.

Since I've done roleplay for years, I already have a 'headcast' of characters, but it wasn't until I started playing with a couple other people who were into dolls that I ever thought much about getting 'bodies' for the voices in my head. But it does seem to be the perfect solution. XD

Welcome to the board

Thanks.

[oniakki]

{...}
Since I've done roleplay for years, I already have a 'headcast' of characters, but it wasn't until I started playing with a couple other people who were into dolls that I ever thought much about getting 'bodies' for the voices in my head. But it does seem to be the perfect solution. XD

Had never thought of phrasing it as bodies for the voices... ^.^

[Nella]

Welcome to Dollieh Sanctuary!

[zirconmermaid]

You are not alone here! The dolls sound perfect for what you want to do!

[richila]

Welcome to the board!

[SoapBubbles]

Welcome to DS!

For drawing proportions, have you checked out any tutorials available on DeviantArt? I'm not very good at drawing, but whenever I get constructive criticism for my drawings a lot of people praise me saying that it's good that I've got the proportions down. And the only 'lessons' I've had for proportions are a couple of free tutorials that I found online on DeviantArt, so I'm sure it'll be worth checking out at the very least.

[takahirokumiko]

Welcome to the forum!