Dollieh Sanctuary

Hello everyone,

More recently, I've been seriously considering purchasing a doll. Although I have always been more interested in the 1/3 scale, I have decided against purchasing a 1/3 scale doll for the time being. I have a very decent amount of money saved up for my first doll/first steps into the doll hobby. However, a 1/3 scale doll seems like a huge leap to take as a newbie.

As a result, I decided to start with 1/6 scale! I also think the size will be easier to get used to for a newbie. I will be picking a doll made of plastic, not resin.

My impression has been that this scale is popular. However, based on what I have seen, I also get the impression that people do not normally customize their dolls (faceup, clothes, accessories, props, etc.) too much-- aside from Blythes and Monster High dolls. The Pullip community seems awfully quiet while it seems Obitsu fans prefer stuff under the Obitsu brand umbrella.

DISCLAIMER: Newbie here! This is just from my experience of lengthy browsing as an outsider.

Sorry if I sound as though I am rambling but I have my reasons. I would really love to make stuff for my doll, and for others as well to sell.

Although I will step into this hobby someday regardless, knowing that there is a market out there would definitely encourage me to become active in this hobby. It's one thing to enjoy something by yourself, but being able to share with others would mean a lot to me. Part of the reason why I would like to get a doll is so they can be my creative muse and I can put artsy skills to work! (cough cough plus maybe earn some cash so I can get a 1/3 doll with more confidence)

TL;DR version: Are people who own 1/6 scale dolls interested in custom goods?

There's always room for custom stuff. Have any pictures of anything you've made to share?

Go on Etsy, there is a ton of Barbie and 1\6 sized furniture and clothes for sale. Lots for Monster High and Ever After High. Check out Froggy Stuff on YouTube, she makes all kinds of stuff and does custom dolls (Disney store dolls as Sailor Scouts).

People repaint Barbies and Monster High dolls all the time. Obitsu is all about customizing! You start with a blank doll and make whatever you want.

I have mAde fiber wigs for my dolls, some clothes too. I want to make other things and get into faceups when I have better craft space.

Eseme

i started out in 1/6 Anime doll collecting back in 2001 with the short-lived three-doll TOYNAMI "Tenchi Muyo!" character doll series that had just hit market at the time. they were very poor dolls, but i cherished the "Princess Ayeka" from the line for a great many years, and she was my impetus to learn how to sew, since i was more than a little unsatisfied with how she was dressed out of the box;








it all started very simply, i just wanted her to have a decent set of undies and socks, and i started out by buying Barbie clothing, and crudely modifying them to fit. Ayeka's first Brassere, for example, was fastened onto her by a STAPLE, i kid you not.

after a time, however, i discovered sew-on snap closures, and that is my standard means of fastening doll clothing to this day.

humble beginnings indeed; my Ayeka-chan's first set of lingerie even had stockings i made with the tricot fabric wrong-side-out;



gloves are on, because that lingerie was part of her only outfit at that time, a vintage Barbie wedding dress
appropriated to fit her. the bridal gloves, the way i had made them at that time, they fit too snugly in the wrong ways,
and were extremely difficult to fit without damage, so i had just left them constantly on...




i'll spare you the pain of sharing the many years of fumbling misteps made in those interim years, let's just say i made my Ayeka a TON of crudely fabricated but well meaning outfits such as this;



and, a good fifteen years later, i've come to this;








- ever since getting internet around 2006 or so, i've been able to expand far beyond anything i was ever once satisfied
with during those dark ages of the Tenchi Muyo character dolls. i discovered 1/6 Anime dolls, usually intended for the japanese market, and the OBITSU doll body system, and i've hardly ever looked back since.

today, i have a small, select, but gradually growing harem of 1/6 character dolls, all based upon the OBITSU body,
save for a pair of 1/5 TSUKUDA HOBBY dolls. this means that any clothing i now make can fit any of my girls,
save, of course for those two TH ones, which, of course, i have to make outfits for especially.

it all works out quite well anymore; i either buy pre-made outfits i like, on occasion, or, more often,
i get inspired by something i see in a movie or Anime, and it's often immediately off to the races,
busy for a few days making my own 1/6 treatment, either closely or loosely based upon what i had been inspired by.

one of my favorite examples is the dress i made for the Queen-Bee of my harem, -my "Mikuru Asahina"
of "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" Anime fame- that was inspired by/loosely based upon
this dress worn by the lead Actress in one of my favorite childhood films,
1984's generally unpopular/little known "ELECTRIC DREAMS"










all the same, the girl that started it all has hardly been forgotten. i honored her with a new face-up a few years ago;



- finally, i apologize if i might have hijacked your thread, OP. my intention was to share with you my own experiences as an budding novice/gifted amateur 1/6 doll taylor and collector/enthusiast, and to encourage and inspire you to jump right into this worthy hobby with as few reservations as possible...

Other people don't customize 1/6 dolls? News to me. XD I'm kind of a chronic OOAKer, myself. Which is actually part of the reason I haven't shared images of most of my dolls yet - they're in states of partial completion.

I also am partly into dolls as it provides a sort of focus/connection point for all the crafts that I like to do. (Doing them in 1/6 scale is pretty much the only thing tying a lot of them together.) And while I make my own accessories and stuff (partly due to tight funds, partly because that's just what I do), I'm sure there are others out there who would be interested in well-made accessories and so on.

DollyKim wrote:There's always room for custom stuff. Have any pictures of anything you've made to share?

I like the way you think.
I don't have any pictures uploaded for now though.

WhiteDove01s wrote:Other people don't customize 1/6 dolls? News to me. XD I'm kind of a chronic OOAKer, myself. Which is actually part of the reason I haven't shared images of most of my dolls yet - they're in states of partial completion.

I also am partly into dolls as it provides a sort of focus/connection point for all the crafts that I like to do. (Doing them in 1/6 scale is pretty much the only thing tying a lot of them together.) And while I make my own accessories and stuff (partly due to tight funds, partly because that's just what I do), I'm sure there are others out there who would be interested in well-made accessories and so on.

Haha, like I said, that's just the impression I was getting based on what I was looking at.
I understand how you feel about not sharing things when you don't feel like they're complete.

Obitsus are a 1/6 sized gateway drug to dolliehs.