That's fine, if the newbie has one single dream doll. The thing is, if they are asking, that seems unlikely. It isn't like the old days, either, when the choice was very narrow. There's a bewildering number of options out there. Give them some helpful advice, for crap's sake!
There are also dream dolls I wouldn't suggest as a first doll, for a number of reasons. If a newbie's dream doll is a Soom monthly, for example, I'd be really hesistant in recommending it. They are a hell of a lot of money to drop on a first doll to see if you like doll ownership, the big ones are pretty big chunks of resin, they take forever to come and, frankly, can be mega disappointing. It seems like setting up a newbie for disappointment, because while Soom's pictures are heavily photoshopped, the doll they will get won't be. Some of them are, IMO, real letdowns. And the days when you could flog an unwanted monthly for a huge profit if you don't like it are pretty much done. I really wouldn't recommend one for a first doll.
I wouldn't recommend Iplehouse, either. Lovely sculpts, but when things go wrong with Iplehouse, they really go wrong, and their customer service when there are problems is notoriously crap. Having someone's first experience be with them might be setting them up for failure. Ditto B&G. I wouldn't recommend a Minimee for a first doll, really, because getting decent, proportional body-head matches - oh god, he hideous bobbleheads out there - is a major pain, and MNMs can be really hard to get rid of for a decent sum secondhand. And letting a newbie get a Custom House/Aidolls first doll seems a bit like feeding them to the sharks.
The thing people never ask of newbies asking this question is: why do you want a doll? I think really, it's because the answer is supposed to be "Because a particular doll is my lifelong dream!" and so both the question and the answer become a bit unthinkable in the hobby. But really, there are all kinds of answers and motives, and different first dolls work better according to different motives.
One answer is, "To fit into the fandom." No one wants to admit this. But actually, wanting to have a doll that you can post on Den of Angels and take to meets and get positive reactions is not a crime. And the reality is, some dolls - or, rather, companies - are better for this than others. It's a fact.
Another answer no one really gives is "I just want a bjd." Especially if they're on a budget. There is heavy pressure not to admit that they really want a ball-jointed doll, but they don't want to pay too much. For some reason this is anathema in the fandom. But it's a scary amount of money to spend on a new hobby, people have other calls on their purses, and really, there's no shame in budgeting. I don't really know why the concept of a "starter doll" is treated with such scorn. In practically no other hobby is someone expected to buy the most expensive equipment on their first foray - you're not expected to drop untold hundreds ons sneaker for your first tentative time out on a social tennis court. But in bjd fandom there is enormous pressure to get your "dream doll" first off the bat - and if you choose a cheaper doll, you better be prepared to insist over and over that it was because it was the only doll for you, you adored the sculpt more than any other, you still would have got it if it was two thousand dollars instead of two hundred....
It is one of the really, really stupid things in the hobby. There should be no shame in someone trying out bjd ownership with a more affordable option. Some will go on to prefer and own more expensive dolls, and may or may not keep their starter doll. Some will own a mixture of dolls across the price ranges, buying what they like. Others will find they really adore their starter doll and become loyal to the company. These are all okay options.
The catch is this: there are two ways to get a cheaper starter doll. One is to buy from one of the cheaper, usually Chinese, legitimate companies. They offer some really nice, cute choices - it doesn't have to be a case of getting an ugly doll while wanting a beauty.
The other, the option no one ever discusses, is to buy a knockoff or recast. If some people in the hobby treat the first option as disgraceful, the second is unspeakable.
The thing is, the dolls sell. Someone is buying them. But just try to find information on where to buy them, or reviews about their quality. A lot of people insist that knockoffs are made of plaster and look hideous, but sometimes I wonder just how many are being posted on the legitimate forums - and just how many others are personal possessions of people in the West.
Bjd fandom is rabid about knockoffs, to a stupid degree. I've seen people refuse to show pictures of pretend Volks headplates next to real ones so as not to "alert pirates to the difference." I kind of assume the pirates have their own Volks dolls to compare them to, thanks. You need a doll to copy.
Here is a confession: if I had known that knockoffs existed, Forever Doll aside, and how to get them way back when I first started in this hobby, I don't know that I wouldn't have started with one. It would have been a good way to see how I liked doll ownership, dressing it up and doing faceups and so forth, without dropping more money than I was currently spending on Barbies. There are disadvantages, of course, including the ethical one. But I do wonder how many people who screech about ethics wear high street clothes that are "highly inspired" by designers, or who download movies and TV on bitorrent - or who ask companies to mark down the value of their dolls as a matter of course.. I tend to take the moral highground in this hobby with a pinch of salt.
So I'm planning a few posts giving the newbie advice I don't dare give on Den of Angels. One's on how to get hold of dolls that will be instantly acceptable in the fandom. And a couple will be on the question "Know where I can get a cheap dollfie?" and it's two answers: recommended cheap companies, and knockoffs - and how to get hold of them.
I'm going to doll hell in a handbasket, I know.
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