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Why Did I Sell This Doll?


Over the past several days, I have been going through my digital photo files, restoring images to old posts on this blog, and adding in doll-related posts from other blogs that are defunct. In so doing, I have come across old posts about dolls that I completely forgot I ever had.

This 14" porcelain bjd, designed by Aidamaris Roman, is one of them. She was produced for Paradise Galleries under the name "Confetti," and I purchased her on August 24, 2012. She was absolutely amazing! Around this same time, I was head over heels over Emilie Autumn's "Opheliac" album, and it was impossible not to conflate this doll's appearance with the overall aesthetic of "Opheliac." 


I named her Bettina Cinders. She was a little larger than a Barbie, but she slept in a Barbie bed covered with a vintage striped apron that matched her aesthetic. Additionally, she could wear some of the looser-fitting Barbie clothes, like those here. 

I remember her having a striking presence. I marveled at having my own porcelain bjd, which I never thought I would own. Aidamaris Roman's bjd's, sold through her site Forgotten Hearts, run around $1650. "Confetti" was, I believe, around $130. Despite being mass-produced, her costume details and face painting were exquisite.


Why did I sell this doll?

There are many dolls that I have relinquished over the years. Some were rare, and some were not so rare. Well, this one was really rare. Even though I dearly regret selling her, I'm not making any plans to try to re-acquire her, because I believe it would be almost totally impossible, unless I was willing to pay any price (in which case, I might just buy a one-off from Forgotten Hearts). 


At the time that I purchased and then sold her in a span of eight months, I was definitely in a "revolving door" phase in my collection. I tried out other dolls that I also flipped within a short span of time. Bettina didn't really fit in with my collection in the sense that I would be unlikely to collect other 14" porcelain bjd's. She was also the only doll I had at the time with a gothic look, and I was interested in collecting with a uniform aesthetic, one that was sweet and vintage, in mind.


Looking back, I really regret this decision! This little doll represents an aesthetic and interest I had at the time, in 2012. There was only one Bettina, just like there was only one "Opheliac." From 2010 to 2014, I "tried out" so many different kinds of dolls, re-selling many of them. What's difficult about that is that even dolls that I had for a short time, like Bettina, or even Leslie, my Souldoll Asiter, were, once named, real and personal to me. Sometimes, I regret relinquishing any doll I ever collected. However, if I hadn't, I would have far more than I could appreciate. Still, Bettina came to me at a time when "revolving door" ownership was my habit, and if I had even a flicker of doubt about a doll, I would sell them. 

Ugh. Why? Seriously, Bettina was such a cool and fun little doll.

Comments

Xanadu said…
Hi Amanda!
Had she been mine, I would have dressed her in a clown outfit like the original Aidamaris Roman dolls on the website. It's a pity there are no other dolls like her available on the Paradise Galleries site, they only have baby dolls now which is a shame. Still there are many resin BJD's with similar facial sculpts that you could customise to help you get over your regret...I wish you luck!
Big hugs,
X
Amanda said…
Thanks for your encouragement! I think what I miss the most is her "look" and want to explore that kind of look again... in terms of resin dolls, I think I might commission a face-up for one of my girls in that kind of dark cabaret style and look into making some clothing from vintage scraps.

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