When will you say, “Okay, that baby is not worth what that artist is asking for,” or “Wow, that baby is way over priced!” ? (This excludes silicone babies, just reborn dolls)
Personally, because I have so many other things in my life that I have to pay for, I can’t spend over $200 on a single doll. I have my college fund to save for, my car insurance bills, my clothing, and any unhealthy snacks I want to buy (because my parents won’t buy junk food for me, which I think is smart because I have been buying less). This being said, I probably will never list any of my babies for over $200 (not including shipping), because I don’t think it’s okay to list a baby for more than what you would pay for it.
Okay, enough about me. What do you think? When do you say, “That baby is over priced,” or “That baby is too small for such big britches”? Do you have a cut-off? Or would you spend a ton of money on a dream baby?
Not trying to offend anyone…Just a question that has been walking around my head for a few days now.
If I had the money to throw around and it was a doll that I REALLY liked from a favorite artist, I would pay the price. Thats not to say that I dont see some that I view as overpriced though. Totally depends on the doll/artist.
Artists deserve to be paid for the work they do. As it is, we don’t get paid for our time like people with regular jobs do. We have to buy materials, hone skills, buy kits, etc. which all adds up. Many times $200. wouldn’t even cover our expenses. Gosh just think of what good mohair alone costs.
I don’t buy babies, I sell them, so I don’t really know what I would pay if I were a collector, but I think the fine collector dolls are worth every penny. The skills that the artist uses took a lot of time and effort to learn.
These dolls are unique and for that reason alone can command a higher price than a similar doll made on a production line.
Hmmmm… if you base the price of any thing on the price the person selling it would be willing or able to pay, capitalism might come to a screeching halt. And not because the seller wants to be greedy, necessarily, but because they can’t afford the item or service the are selling. For instance, when I was young my mom cleaned people’s homes to help feed us. Often she got minimum wage and no benefits. If she were asked to pay someone to do our housework she could not have paid 1/4 of her wage even though it was so small. She needed the person hiring her to be in a better situation than she was, financially. Make sense? If I can only pay 50$ for a doll, does that mean I should sell a doll it cost me 200$ to make, plus 40 hours labour, for 50$?
This is a great question/topic and I don’t think it’s offensive at all!
For me, it’s all about saving. If I want a more costly baby (and I do, haha!) then I try not to spend frivolously. It’s kind of embarrassing because I feel like I should be shopping for clothes instead of saving for a doll…but the heart wants what it wants LOL!
I do have a cut off, and that’s whatever my current budget is On a serious note, I would never spend over $1,000 on a reborn (and if I did spend even that much I would have to do a layaway).
I would love to have a full body silicone one day. But I would need a layaway without question and I would have to really know it was “the one”.
I wish money trees were a real thing, but I think the only way you can have one of those is if you tape dollar bills to a tree, and I can’t even afford to do that
I think the comparison here is what would you pay for a painting done by your favorite artist? What would you pay for a painting by a famous artist? What would you pay for a “starving artist” painting at a starving artist sale? If you are a collector of famous artist paintings, then you would be willing to pay the price to have one. You would not quibble about the price. Because these are “dolls”, they are looked at differently, but they take the same artistic skills and time and money to make, but they are still works of art.
So, I would price my work according to my time, money spent on supplies, and artistic skills. I certainly can’t afford a Andrew Wyeth painting although I would dearly love one, nor can I match his skills as an artist, so I cannot charge the same for a painting that I have done to emulate his style. I hope that makes sense. I haven’t had my morning coffee yet.
I have seen babies priced as much as $900 that I would pay that much for if I had the money. However my budget doesn’t allow that. the most I have paid for one is like $400 and that with layaway.
I normally have $250 - $300 in a doll just in sculpt, body, supplies, clothes, postage, etc so to think I could buy a doll for $200 - 250, I would feel like I was ripping the lady selling it off big time…lol I realize it probably cost us more here in Oz to reborn because our supplies tend to be higher but anyway…to answer your question…as a collector…if money were not a consideration, I would pay most any price if I wanted the doll bad enough…Because price is the issue, I will say that I have paid very cost to the $1000 mark ($880 + postage) for several of my dolls but normally like to keep my purchase in the $450 - $650 range if I can get one that I am satisfied with…Ultimately, It is harder to pay the higher prices for them now that I am reborning myself though as I think “Starr ole girl, you can make that one and save yourself a lot of money”…lol
Sili dolls, if I really really wanted it I would pay up to $3500 for one (prefer more around $2000 or less though) if I had the funds but over that is a bit too rich for my taste - even if money were not an issue I doubt my practical mind would accommodate a higher price than that…
As a seller, my mind set is that oh i can make that lol. So no i wont pay for anothers work. But i do think some artists work is worth what they are asking for even if its over a $1000. They have worked to achieve their skill and reputation. Not everyone can afford their babies but others can. Reborns are a want and not a need. Think of it like a car. We cant expect mercedes to lower their prices just because i cant afford one. Yes i have drove clunkers because it was all i could afford. I now drive a nice car but its still not a mercedes lol. I would never own an expensive car anyways, my logic is that my cheaper car gets me from point a to point b and thats all i care about i also think that some of the lower priced reborns are beautifully painted and their artists need to increase their prices. We are not making walmart dolls. They are works of art and should be treated that way. Dont undersale yourself ladies.
Now on another thought if soneone is selling a non limited edition, say a regular bb kit, and its not painted with that Wow factor, just ok painted and are asking over $800 then yes i think they are overcharging. My friend who is a collector almost bought a bb reborn last week. Granted it was cute but it wasnt very detailed and i pointed it out to her. It was basically painted but had cute hair. Asking over $800. I felt bad after but i didnt want her to be disapointed when she saw it in person and paid alot for it. Another words i would of been fixing her purchase, ive already repainted two of her reborns lol.
Haha, I love what you said about the dollar bill tree! If only it were real, like unicorns.
I definitely want a full body silicone at some point, but I would too have to know it was one that I had to have
Thanks for commenting! It’s interesting to see what everyone has to say!
I agree, I’m just more saying that if you’re not wiling to pay $2000 for a single reborn than you probably shouldn’t list your creation at that amount. Kind of like don’t over sell, but don’t under sell, you know?
I respectfully disagree with you. There are some artists out there that put a lot more work into their creations, than others do. Selling a baby for $200? You wouldn’t make any money that way. These are Art Dolls. Not baby dolls. Know what I’m saying? With that said, I do offer payment plans for my dolls, because things are hard for everyone know a days. Some of us artists sometimes, spend more than $200 on a particular kit.
Yeah I totally understand. I only pay $50 for all my supplies *with clothing included. And since I’m not depending on this as a full time job, I don’t see a point in selling a baby for more than what I would pay for it.
And believe me, I totally understand spendin too much on a kit! I really wanted to buy a silicone kit to save for later on (get a custom from KrisC), but man! They’re expensive!!
Yes, perfect sense! I just think it’s really frustrating that people can ask $250 for a baby I would value at $100 (due to poor painting). But, we all have our own opinions! Thanks for taking part and happy holidays!
On a serious note, I would never spend over $1,000 on a reborn (and if I did spend even that much I would have to do a layaway).
the most I have paid for one is like $400 and that with layaway.