Vinyl dolls VS Resin dolls -- Needing some advice

[Linsilee]

kiki-chan78: *nods about the Obitsu 1/6 dolls on DoA* And those are the ones that I have. I like them for the reason that I am able to buy clothing for them that I can afford, plus I think the outfits I have are cute and I like them. But I do get that many don't like the fashion dolls.

I currently don't have any of the larger dolls. Well...American Girl dolls don't really fit...*grin* I have been thinking of getting a MiniFee but am still not sure. I prefer the smaller dolls. They are easier for me to handle and to take with me to places.

I normally don't worry about how I handle my dolls cause I have always naturally taken good care of my dolls even when I was little. Only once did I cut a dolls hair when I was little and it actually turned out looking good. I guess that is cause I had several in my family that cut hair and I watched a lot. But when I started to read all the stuff about yellowing and problems with breaking and such from others it really started to make me paranoid. It really has helped to read yours and others post here about this.

You are right. I am glad to have my head back in order and tomrorow I will continue to play with my resin dolls just as I do with my vinyls.

[DollyKim]

American Girls would be welcome here, dolls are dolls.

Having a hoard of 1/6 myself my first big doll was an Obitsu 60. Same care for big Obitsus as for little Obitsus and they travel well Ofcourse there's lots of sizes of those now. The mini size is a good step up to big dolls too.

[Linsilee]

American Girls would be welcome here, dolls are dolls.

Having a hoard of 1/6 myself my first big doll was an Obitsu 60. Same care for big Obitsus as for little Obitsus and they travel well Ofcourse there's lots of sizes of those now. The mini size is a good step up to big dolls too.

I was meaning the American Girl doll isn't in the same class as a pose-able jointed doll. I should have been more clear on that. But it is nice to know that I could discuss my American Girl dolls and other dolls here too.

Yeah...I figured the mini size wouldn't be as bad for me to handle. My main concern in clothing and accessories. I don't know how to sew very well yet, so I would have to buy stuff for the doll and the prices for things for the Mini size dolls are expensive and add up quickly. Even stuff for my LittleFees and Pukipuki has added up on me too. Oy. But at least I am making some money on eBay to help pay for the stuff I want for them. I am also working on two new Obitsu dolls (one 27cm & one 21cm) and one Volks doll (27cm). I will share some photos of them once I get them put together as well as taking some photos of my other crew. *grins*

[richila]

The majority of my dolls are resin and tan. I giggle when I think of all the people who are afraid of tan resin and the possibility of greening. (insert scary music here) I play with my dolls all the time.( I have even sanded my tan dolls; except for my brand new Benny) Poor Shriara gets touch ups every few weeks because she rides in my purse all the time. Because she is my travel doll, she gets handled a lot and has taken more than her fair share of dives, so far no chips although I do need to re-glue her eyelashes. Enjoy your dolls; it would be a shame to have all that pose-ability and not use it.

Okay...stupid question time here. *grins* Tan resin dolls will turn green instead of yellowing?

Oooo...see this is what I want to be able to do with my LittleFees and Pukipuki, be able to travel around with them. I even purchased little luggage for them to put in my suitcase for their clothing when I got to Conventions and such that we stay for like a weekend. They are actually little make-up cases but work well for what I need them for. What kind of glue do you use for the eyelashes?

Yes, that is what I have heard happens with too much sun exposure, but I haven't seen it. I only have 2 non tan dolls, a Goodreau resin boy, Thorley, and my beloved Orient Doll Tae, Girard.
I use Alenes tacky glue for eyelashes. I use my lowtemp hot glue gun to stick wigs on my doll's heads. Most of my dolls keep the same wig once I find the right one. Shriara has 3 of the same wig because it is perfect for her and I don't want her bald waiting for a wig to dry after shampooing. (She gets handled a whole lot.) Hot glue just peels off the resin and out of the wig.


I can't wait to see your crew. 1/6 is my favorite size-possibly because I love the props so. I have 4 MSDs, so if you decide to get one I already have patterns. Sewing isn't really hard; it just takes practice.

[Linsilee]

Yes, that is what I have heard happens with too much sun exposure, but I haven't seen it. I only have 2 non tan dolls, a Goodreau resin boy, Thorley, and my beloved Orient Doll Tae, Girard.
I use Alenes tacky glue for eyelashes. I use my lowtemp hot glue gun to stick wigs on my doll's heads. Most of my dolls keep the same wig once I find the right one. Shriara has 3 of the same wig because it is perfect for her and I don't want her bald waiting for a wig to dry after shampooing. (She gets handled a whole lot.) Hot glue just peels off the resin and out of the wig.


I can't wait to see your crew. 1/6 is my favorite size-possibly because I love the props so. I have 4 MSDs, so if you decide to get one I already have patterns. Sewing isn't really hard; it just takes practice.

Well I am glad to hear that your tan dolls are not turning green. Kaley had the wig he came with and a shorter wig of the same color (white) and the short one is the one he wears, when he keeps it on his head. Kaley came with a long black wig and then I got her two other black wigs that are styled differently but have to do some trimming on them. The bangs go right over her eyes. My little Pukipuki has several different style of wigs but I kept the hair color the same.

I love doing props and designing rooms for my dolls too. Ooo...thanks for the help with patterns if I get a mini size doll. It will be a bit I think, I need to save up for it. I have spent so much on my LittleFees and Pukipuki. *grins*

[arrowchild]

lol...why is it that half of the general discussion threads here turn into rants about how everyone dislikes DOA and/or it's policies?

*blinks, shakes self*

anywhoo...

Being someone who has vinyl, (both the 1/6 and a big Obitsu boy), as well as resins, I'm just going to echo what a lot of people have said. Don't be afraid of the resin Actually...truth be told? I'm a little more afraid of breaking something in my big Obitsu boy's internal skeleton than breaking my resin guys lol Resin is pretty sturdy and there are all sorts of things you can do to delay/help manage yellowing from keeping them out of continual direct light, to giving them a coat of MSC UV cut.

For me, the biggest pro of vinyl is actually squishiness . I like the idea that parts of my dolls are squishy and/or feel soft-ish to hold. They are more durable if dropped of course and, if you get an Obitsu with magnets, are VERY fun to pose on metal surfaces

Vinyl con-STAINING! It drives me bananas. And the lack of variety in head sculps confuses me. Why the heck vinyl companies don't see the popularity of the realistic resin dolls and make some of their own is beyond me.

For resins, the biggest pro is the variety of sculpts available. I love detail and realism in a sculpt. And I like my boys to have boy bits lol. They're also MUCH easier to clean than vinyl and are easier to modify if the mood should ever strike you.

The cons are..well...the yellowing. But as the OP said, vinyl yellows too, (my very first 1/6 volks vinyl has yellowed hands now). And the price of resin can be daunting. They are more breakable if they are handled roughly, but they're certainly not made of glass

[zirconmermaid]

Here's a tip for gluing your magnet - another method. Find a black sharpie marker. Pick up the hand with the arm magnet attached and mark a tiny black dot on the magnet itself. Now when you separate the magnets and glue the arm magnet back onto the doll with superglue make sure that the dot is to the inside and you are set!

Also - if you do happen to make a mistake you can correct it by putting the part in the freezer for a while. The superglue will become brittle and easy to remove. Just put the hand on and pull and it will probably come out again!

I have many dolls, both resin and vinyl. The only ones that have ever broken are the vinyl Obitsu 60cm dolls, and I can get new parts for them. The resin dolls are extremely sturdy.

Puki's and Littlefee's are sturdy and awesome! Don't worry about hurting them, you won't!

[Linsilee]

Arrowchild: I apologize for my part in the DoA rant. I don't dislike that forum. Only feel uneasy with posting there so haven't done much posting their now. Like I said before it is a great place for resources and information. I do use that a lot.

Resin is pretty sturdy and there are all sorts of things you can do to delay/help manage yellowing from keeping them out of continual direct light, to giving them a coat of MSC UV cut.

What is MSC UV? Where would I get something like that if I decided to do this to my resin dolls? Is it a spray or something you paint on them? Does it give their body a shiny look or sheen?

I do agree with you about liking the soft vinyl. I have the soft body Obitsu 1/6 in size and they are so cool. I do have magnets on some of my dolls and place on getting them for the others. I love to pose them.

It really would be nice if they had more head sculpts for the vinyl dolls.


Zirconmermaid: Thank you for another way of how to glue the magnet back in. Still haven't done it yet. Need to get the glue and work up my courage. *grins*

[K2!]

lol...why is it that half of the general discussion threads here turn into rants about how everyone dislikes DOA and/or it's policies?

I think you'll find the percentage is much lower than half.

One of the reason there are so many is that many of the people here have been told by the prestigious body that their dolls aren't fit for posting there

Vinyl con-STAINING! It drives me bananas.

Vinyl stains. It's the nature of the material. Resin also stains but being less porous than vinyl it stains at a slower rate. But believe it- resin stains.

And the lack of variety in head sculpts confuses me.

Let me clear this up for you. In the 1/3 scale arena, you are comparing two companies (Volks and Obitsu) producing vinyl versus hundreds of resin companies. Naturally any two companies are going to produce less variety than all the others combined.

Why the heck vinyl companies don't see the popularity of the realistic resin dolls and make some of their own is beyond me.

They do. Obitsu and Parabox as well as several known custom runs, produce about 10 realistic heads, which is quite a few for one company. Volks isn't interested in producing realistic vinyl heads. This would cut into their very profitable resin lines. They view vinyls as a sort of budget entry level doll that is purchased before one can afford to step up to a full priced resin. They have found a lucrative niche for their vinyl line, making copies of licensed anime characters costing as much as a typical resin, which doesn't interfere with their resin sales.
Also you must remember that casting a resin head (or whatever part, cat ears, horns, etc.) is something you can accomplish in your kitchen, basement, or garage. Molding vinyl takes a lot of time and equipment, costing tens of thousands of dollars just to produce the precision molds required to mold plastics. Even more equipment is needed to actually make the doll parts.

[Linsilee]

K2!: I just learned something here. I thought the vinyl was easier to make because it was cheaper than the resin. I had no clue that it cost more and took more time to make the vinyl dolls.