Thoughts on Bonding

[Mary Kathryn]

The first BJD that I ever saw was a Luts Lishe name Chanterelle. I stalked this particular doll for months marveling at how gorgeous she was and loving the photoshoots her owner did with her. This was the doll that got me into the bjd side of the hobby. Owning a Lishe was a goal.
I had the opportunity to first realize that goal when I ordered my MNF Victoria. For some reason I fell in love with the Shushu head and went with that instead of the Lishe.
A few years ago I had the opportunity to get a Lishe head in NS at a reasonable price. I figured it could share the same body with Victoria. When she arrived she had an incredible, delicate faceup. I didn't want to wipe it. It was too good to replace. But I wasn't in love with it. For years I've kept Anna's original faceup intact and she's stayed more or less in a box. I would trot her out at times but I just didn't love her the way I thought I would. She looked sickly to me and frequently more male than female.
Last night I decided to stamp her as my own. I didn't do anything radical. I added to the faceup already in place. I gave her eyeliner on her lower lids. I gave her eyebrows a little more body so they were longer and thicker rather than looking barely there. I did just a little shading on her eyes for depth. And there she was. My dream doll. I had her all this time and never realized it because I was too afraid to mess up someone else's work. So the moral, I guess, is learn from my fail. I don't know why I hesitated for so long. I looked around last night and realized that almost all of my bjds, for better or worse, have faceups that I did. It's part of the fun of the hobby for me.


Before:




After:

[Trethowan]

Wow, she's beautiful. I know what you mean. There are company face-ups I'm just too afraid to mess with. I know that if I do, I likely won't regret it because a face-up can be wiped and re-drawn many times. It's not like it's a "one shot" kind of deal.

I have one, a Dollmore limited, that has an original face-up. I remember posting about it two or three years ago. I keep wanting to wipe it and change the doll to something I'd LIKE instead of being held back by a factory 'do.' I still haven't done it. I wish I'd just pull the trigger because I know I'll love her once I re-paint her the way she should look.

Thanks for the reminder!

[Tasuke]

reminds me of the years i spent being dissatisfied with the eyes of my first ever Anime doll,
TOYNAMI corp's 2001 "Princess Ayeka" from their short-lived "Tenchi Muyo!" 12in. doll series;


ORIGINAL




FACE-UP

[Kirahfaye]

Lishe was a grail doll of mine, also. I was fortunate enough to aquire a CP/Luts SD Lishe a couple of years ago and I love her. Her faceup isn't exactly what I'd want for her, but it's pretty and it's an AngelToast, so I've been hesitant to have it redone. Actually, BanSidhe said she'd be nervous to remove it and redo it, too. I doubt I will ever get rid of her - even if I get out of the hobby.

I also had a Lishe MNF for a while, had Ban do her faceup for me and even do a custom wig. She was the sculpt I always had in mind for my OC, Kirah. But after just a few months I "knew" she wasn't right for the part (still working on that).

I'd love to start doing faceups, but after getting so sick the first time I tried it, I'm a nervous about it. Three weeks with a severe upper resperitory infection because I used the wrong mask was difficult.

[Mary Kathryn]

Ah geez! Yeah, I can see why you'd be nervous.

Do eeet, Trethowan. Do it!

Tasuke, I think TOYNAMI should be taking pointers from you.

[OkamiKodomo]

I think I've only had two dolls that I never bonded with. Both of them were girls, but one of them wasn't supposed to be, which is why I think I had so much trouble with her. Xiu was a DZ Annie, and was supposed to be a boy; I was going to trade bodies with my friend, who had a DZ Hid that she wanted to make a girl. But while we thought for sure her boy was DZ yellow, it turns out he was DZ pink. So when I ordered the Annie, we were dismayed to discover how different the resin was. At first, I tried to make the best of it, did her face-up and such, but after the "new doll" sparkle wore off, I lost interest, and I even resented her for not being what I wanted. I finally had to reshell the character into a boy, and an SD at that. Xiu is now a Dollzone Leslie, and the Annie had to move on.

The other doll I never bonded with was a sky blue Mei I got in a trade for a couple of custom dresses. I think I should have just stuck with my original desire for the light blue Mei, but I was greedy and when my trade partner offered me a whole doll, I accepted, because I wouldn't have to buy a body. It took me months to even find a name for her, I could never settle on a pair of eyes, and her wig never fit. I never even bothered to make her clothes. I finally sold her to a friend, and the money went to shelling another character, Cyndir, in a ResinSoul Tang.

Wait, I've lied. There were three. The third one I actually did bond with, but over the years, as my tastes changed, I wasn't happy with her body anymore. And that would be Vespera. She was originally a white skin ResinSoul Ai, but I really wanted a normal skin. And as time went on, I realized I didn't like the waifish look for her, either. It's a beautiful body, but it just wasn't right for Ves. So I gave her to my partner, and got a Soom Beryl body, and then sent one of her hands to ResinSoul to get the head matched to it.

In the first two cases, nothing I did with the dolls made them stick. Xiu is still giving me issues, actually, but I think I finally found a backstory that works. With Vespera, she's still herself, but she needed to have a more physical presence. I still want to get her some better hands, though.

[DollyKim]

The only one I have that it's tricky to love but I could never leave is Taffy my half of the twins my sister and I won from Dollzone. He's 70cm, which is huge in my doll world, and the only one I never picked out mold wise. They'll never go because it's the only prize we've won together, I've made him clothes, he has several wigs, there's literally no room for him right now.

Previously I've had luck with a change of wigs helping out a character who wasn't sure. Xavier's wife, in my avatar, perked up when she got her perm.