What do you mean one size doesn't fit all?

As discussed in my blog Yeah, but what IS a bjd? bjd are radically different than most mass produced fashion dolls.  One of the major differences, is that they come in a variety of sizes.  Barbie, the most well known fashion doll, comes in one size 11 1/2 inches or in doll terminology, 1/6th size.  Other fashion dolls are closer to about 13 inches.  There are smaller mass produced dolls on the market, such as Bratz.  Generally however the smaller the doll you get, the less articulation the doll is given, until the very small ones only move at the head, shoulder and hip (Which I don't really consider fashion dolls, but I'm guess here, I'm just discussing all dolls in general).

Again this is where bjd's differ from other dolls.  Bjd's range from about 90 cm to 5 cm, for those who are don't easily convert from centimeters to inches, that is about 36 inches to about 2 inches.  Bjd hobbyists, tend to break down these sizes into ratios in relation to human height.  As a Barbie is 12 inches or 1/6th size, the 90 cm dolls are considered 1/2 size.  There does reach a point at which this form of size designation seems to break down.  Dolls smaller than 1/6th tend to be known by names related to the size designation that the companies gave them.

But the size differences go beyond just 1/3th, 1/4th, 1/6th however.  Each company hand sculpts its dolls and over time different sizes within the size classifications have formed.

A dolly friend of mine has taken some comparison pictures to show the variations in sizes.



What you are seeing in this group are the SD or larger dolls.  Most people consider SD or 1/3 dolls to be 60 cm but they actually range from about 58 to 62 cm.  The boys we have above from left to right are:  An Uncle size (72 cm) by Dragondoll, a Hong sculpt (70 cm) by Dollzone, Supergem  (65cm) by Soom, an SD by DemonGarden, SD by Domuya, another SD by Domuya, and an SD by B&G type 2 (58 cm).

Now we move onto the MSD (Mini Super Dollfie) and smaller dolls.  MSD's are supposed to run between 42 cm to 40 cm.  Everything after that is a special size from different companies.  From left to right, we have:  an MSD (46cm) by Dollzone, an MSD (43 cm) from Bobobbie, a Teenie Gem (26 cm) from Soom, a mysterious somebody neither Kitty or I are sure of, an Obitsu (21 cm), a Leo sculpt (14.5 cm)  by Dollzone, a Tiny (15 cm) by Bobobie, another Tiny (15 cm) by Bobobie, and lastly a PukiPuki (10 cm) by Fairyland

As you can see by the doll on the far right, his 10 cm (4 inches) is quite small.  Despite his size he is articulated exactly the same as the MSD (40 cm) dolls on the far right.  Only exception would be a chest joint, which the Puki size does not have.  He can bend is arms knees, and wrists, move his feet and bend over at the waist.  In fact the puki's are exceptional posers.  Because they don't have as much weight and height on their ankles, gravity it much less likely to pull them over, making them exceptional standers.  They are also well known for their ability to do headstands, something more more difficult with the taller dolls.
Finally, in way of comparison, the final picture of the day is this one.  In my opinion, this picture provides an excellent perspective as to the very obvious height differences between the large and the small.



And where would Barbie stand in this lineup?  See the doll with long blue hair and his wing held up.  He's waving her over.

It's difficult to answer why are there so many different sizes.  Obviously the hobby didn't start with this many sizes, however over time as new companies tried to find niches for market share new sizes were developed.

All these sizes are fun for customization and allowing customers to find just the right size for their wants and needs however there are disadvantage as well.  Now its much harder to find clothing  in your doll's size because one size of doll pants does not fit all dolls of that size.

I recently had that experience when I bought a pair of turquoise pants off ebay.  Got them home.  They were too small in the inseam for Nievae (Illusion Spirit LanXing), who they'd be purchased for, Muraski (DollFamily body) is an older doll and chunkier in the torso so they wouldn't snap for her, in the end, the one doll not interested in wearing them, Mathias (Blue Fairy Kyle) was the only one who fit them. 

I guess Barbie has her advantages with her mass produced sameness, she's easy to find clothes for.