Won a 17" Talking Merida ... Can she be rebodied?

[werepuppy]

Well, yeah, this is exactly as the title suggests.

Merida is my princess very much in the way that Aurora is SetsunaKou's - though I've no where near her impressive collection - and I am really looking forward to having the talking doll. Part of the reason I am so excited is because my head immediately went to some of the really cool outfits I'd been looking at online for dolls in this size range, and I realised that they might just fit Merida! Which then led me to the question I have.

Being that these dolls are designed to talk, is it possible to rebody them? Granted, I'm not entirely sure what body type would best suit Merida suit I choose to do it, but I'd like to know that the option is at least there if I go through with it. Thank you anyone who is able to help!

(Also, if I get the style of outfits I want for Merida? She's going to be a punk!)

[SetsunaKou]

Congratulations! She's a really nice doll, and her bow/arrow set is gorgeous!

The 17" princess dolls are so nice!! They're some of my favorite Princess dolls but the bodies are lacking the ability to pose well---that's for sure. They have jointed knees and elbows but nothing else and their lower arms are angled kind of oddly....just in such a way that it's hard to pose them naturally.

But if you rebody her, of course she won't talk anymore (the talking mechanism is in the body). I'm not sure what body you could put her on----maybe a Tonner 16" but their skintone is so much darker/duller than DS princesses.

DS does make a very poseable 17" body but on the LE dolls only. They have jointed wrists, elbows, knees and ankles, and some have swivel waists. But these dolls start at $120 and just go up. (Snow Queen Elsa is around $1800 right now!) If you really want Merida on one of these deluxe bodies, I'd opt for Aurora in Pink, Regal Elsa, Summer Anna or Live Action Cinderella to mug a body from. (Those 4 still sell for less than $195 each.)

Either way, I have the 17" DS princess dolls and while their lack of jointing is annoying, they're still super SUPER lovely enough to just disregard it. Besides if you rebody her, she won't talk anymore. :laughs: I just have all mine displayed in their boxes.

[werepuppy]

Ahh, thank you, SetsunaKou, for replying!

I was actually lucky enough to win two auctions - one with Merida boxed, and one with her loose so the boxed will be my display piece and the loose will be my place piece. I had only bidded on both because I didn't think I would win either. Funny how sometimes luck turns in your favour?

I agree that the 17" dolls are really lovely, but also agree that their posing is really kind of... bad. It's a pity, as their 12" dolls have quite good posing for their price point. I had considered using an Obitsu body, since I have a couple of their 1/6 scale bodies and they are very versitile and pose wonderfully, but I don't know if the head of the Merida will connect properly to that type of body.

Ahh, I'm actually getting a Live Action LE Cinderella for a Christmas gift this year from my brother, but I play to keep her fully intact and in the box, since she'll actually be my first 17" LE. I'm fortunate enough to have a couple of 12" LE, but the 17" always sold out too quickly for me to consider. The only reason I know I'm getting this one is because my brother was excited that he managed to get it for less than retail (about £25 less than retail, that really was a good find) and it's in perfect condition.

I suppose I will find out some way. Thank you for your advice, and I really have to say again: your Aurora collection is very impressive!

[LauraJ]

I have two of the 17 inch Talking Merida dolls. One, I have kept in her original costume. The other was purchased from ebay, and has been wearing a gypsy outfit I made. I have considered rebodying her, and thought either an Obitsu (I can try to blush) or something like a Hujoo Action body, but of course, the skin tones are not very good. OTOH, the body might be dyed or blushed to work.

If I try, I will let you know. At the moment, she is a shelf doll, wearing her fancy clothes and standing with other shelf dolls (dolls I keep on the shelf as oppose to playing with--just have them because I like them).