On selling your first doll- I finally understand....

I sold the very first doll I ever purchased in the hobby this morning. I have some surprisingly mixed feelings about it. I never saw myself as attached to my dolls; I've never  really given them any kind of emotional value. I'd always kind of knocked and joked about the sentimental sales posts I'd seen on the marketplace, but now I understand why they do it.

I have empathy for those posters now.

My first doll was an Iplehouse JID Tania, legit. I didn't even know about recasts at the time I bought her, not that it matters.

I chose her because she was the closest match I could find to the then-unobtainable Luts Delf Spica and because I couldn't bear to spend money on an SD or a minifee. I've seen Spica a few times since, but I'm not sure she's (yes, she; I had planned on mine being a girl) my grail any longer. I found a good deal on her and a seller willing to do layaway.

I made things and bought things in preparation for her arrival…only to find out how oddly sized she was.

Comparison Heaven: One the Best Resources Around

I often link to this wonderful site: Comparison Heaven. I thought I'd write up a blurb about it and tell you to go check it out! All the pictures are screen caps from the site.

http://kihaku.fi/heaven/ (No direct links, per my personal policy, just remove the space after Home.)

What is it? 

This is a photo database put together to allow you to accurately compare heights and proportions of dolls.

How do I use it?

First click "add dolls". Each doll you click is it's own layer, so you can move it around on the page.

The Big Mnf vs JID Comparison

I see this question happen so often, I decided to do a post on it. This is just my opinion, so feel free to take it for what it's worth. Some people won't be bothered by the proportions, so I'll leave it to you to make up your own mind!

The cast:

Poe, a Legit JID Girl (based on my JID legit/recast comparison thread there is little shrinkage between legits and recasts). She has a pretty bad tattoo from when I first got into the hobby as well as a broken elbow. Poor neglected thing really needs some love. She also has the old style large bust, not the new glamour bust (the body S/L have). She desperately wants that new body….

Snow, a recast mnf Rheia: she is a bit smaller than a legit body but not by much. The size comparisons should still be accurate. She has her heeled feet on, so I had to support her in a few pics.

Conclusion:

• The Mnf is obviously the better poser for the dancer-ish poses, but the JID is more sturdy.
• The JID has a more useful mobility joint, and she can almost hug her knees.
• The Mnf body is better sculpted. The new JID body, the one L/S have, is much better, imo. This body is supposed to have additional posing modifications, but JID still can't compare to Mnf.
• If you're going with this hybrid, you will need to mod the mnf neck shorter to accommodate the JID.

I had some serious formatting issues, and I don't know why. Something was up with Blogger I think, so I could not rearrange pictures, nor could I add text between them. Weird!  In any case, I hope this post is useful. Let me know if you need more pictures.

Thank you for reading, and happy collecting!

On Doll Eyes and Eye Positioning

Hi there everyone! It's been a little while, so I thought I'd post up a tutorial on how to position eyes. I, quite frankly, am terrible at it, so I set off to learn what I could about positioning eyes. Follow along with my adventure!

I wanted to avoid this….

Which looks suspiciously like this….

And if that's what you're going for, great! (I think.) If not, read on!

On Scalping

There is something in this hobby referred to as "scalping"…usually this is someone complaining that the seller is charging a higher price for an item than that someone thinks they should. 

Take this recent confession:

http://confessionsofthebjdkind.tumblr.com/post/51317121650/it-literally-disgusts-me-how-much-people-are

From Stephensmithfx.com

Firstly, anything that is rare, limited, or sold out is bound to go up in price as the demand for that item exceeds the supply. It's simple economics.

Secondly, why would someone charge lower than market value or nothing at all for such an item? Aren't they entitled to receive the value of the rarity of that item?

 

Thirdly, the market dictates what an item is worth. You can post a doll all you want but if the price isn't what the market is looking for it will sit there for months, even years, waiting to sell until you lower your price.

Fourthly, this is what scalping is defined as: "Someone who purchases large quantities of goods (usually tickets) early with the sole intention of re-selling them at a higher price at a later date (closer to the event)." [Urban Dictionary.com]

Feeple 60 Head Comparisons: Nanuri A, Chloe, Mirwen

This comparison post is just to show and F60 Chloe and Mirwen. Their heads are pretty different in size and shape. I am including the Nanuri A head as well, since she's a dreaming elf Chloe.

Above is the Nanuri A (left) and Mirwen (right) side views.

Jill, pus ramblings

I normally don't post much non-useful stuff on here, but felt like sharing a photo. I'm feeling a bit stressed/overwhelmed in real life, and the spot of drama I caused with my ranty post didn't exactly help. Painting made me feel better. And my gosh do I love this girl! Her eyes are definitely too bright for my taste though. Going to have to see about swapping them out for some softer pale blue, like the photoshopped version below. I've been exploring some new face up techniques, but I'm still planning on going on faceup hiatus at the end of the year for awhile. Hopefully I'll have better/more interesting stuff on the blog soon.

Also going to redo my face up removal experiment, just to see if my results stay the same. anywho, thanks for viewing!

Jill, legit Feeple 60 Chloe

Face Up Removal: Windsor and Newton vs Isopropyl Alcohol vs Nail Polish Remover

I've removed a lot of face ups in my short time in the hobby (I've been around for about 4 years). I've used nail polish remover, Winsor and Newton (referred to for the rest of the post as W&N), and various strengths of rubbing alcohol to remove face ups.

I have a few dolls I've been meaning to redo, and I thought while I was at it I might as well take some pictures and do a few comparison/tutorial posts. The next post will be my face up tutorial. I may film it, but I haven't decided yet.

I've decided to do a comparison/how-to feature for these so you can decide which is best for you.

I'm not getting into the acetone/no-acetone debate thing though. I don't know enough about acetone to say either way. I've heard horror stores, but then I've used products with acetone and had no issues myself. So, it's best for me just to avoid that subject for now.

 

Rant: On being a stay-at-home mom in the doll hobby and whiny teenagers

I just had a teenager say this to me:

Name and other stuff in the posted edited for privacy.

So let me see if I understand this right…being a mother who stays at home, who cooks, cleans, and cares for children (well one infant in my case) is somehow easier than being a fifteen year old who lives with her parents? I'm going to assume that this was not meant to offensive or dramatic. I'm going to assume the person was merely expressing sadness at her lack of doll situation and difficulty finding a job. That really does suck. However, it brings to mind a larger problem in the doll hobby, and that's technically what I'm ranting about at the expense of this poster.

Edited to reinforce what I've said on Facebook and in this article because some apparently didn't understand: This is NOT about the girl that posted. She inspired the post, but it is not about her. "You" is a general "you", not YOU specifically reader, and does not refer to the girl who inspired the post.(And if she's reading this, I admit I don't recall your name, and I apologize if you are hurt.)

Secondary edit: The young lady responsible has stepped up and explained herself, and just as I thought and mentioned at the start of this blog she was NOT trying to be dramatic. She was trying to be funny. As I thought. This is just to stress that the post was NOT about her. It's about teenagers in general. She's obviously much more mature than the subject of this post, as she showed by stepping up and explaining herself in public. Good for her!

Also, this is not a pity party about being a stay-at-home mom. This was written in response to things I have had said directly to me, about me, and about other stay-at-home parents who have hobbies, especially expensive ones. There is no intent to compete here, neither with other moms nor anyone else. I used my personal experience to provide evidence and basis for my opinions, so that I'm not talking out my ass.  It helps the reader know where I'm coming from. I am not mentioning hardship to garner pity or to seem as if I am feeling bad for myself. It is simply to give examples of how your life will change and encourage young people to appreciate their youth while they have it. This is not to belittle the situation of working parents (whose jobs are even harder than mine, since they work both outside the home and in it) or of younger people, many of whom work hard and are responsible. You simply cannot compare being a child with being an adult. Both have their own struggles.

I hope that summarizes everything and accurately responds to some of the posts we've had. I understand that this is a bit of a drama-inducer, something I generally try to avoid and rarely instigate, but I may often misinterpret others' responses incorrectly and respond defensively. 

Feeple 60 vs Minifee Boy Comparison: Nudity/Peen Warning

Hey there, sexy.

Time for another comparison post! (Or as I came to call it, "Anything you can do I can do better" in honor of their apparent rivalry.) This is a comparison/review of the two bodies, minifee and Feeple 60. Both are legit boys. They are not sueded or wired. The recast minifee boy I sold recently could pose nearly as good as the legit boy once he was strung tight and sueded. It is possible to get recasts to pose well; they just take a little effort.

Give up Jack. I'm prettier.

When posing dolls, the trick is to find the doll's center of gravity. Then you slowly start adjusting the arms and legs until you get them into position, maintaining the doll's balance at all times. As with the girls, the boys were a bit unstable in some poses. I would not leave the doll unattended or in one of these poses for a long time, as they will most likely fall. Super duper crazy poses coming when I have a doll catcher.