We have always been doll collectors- and a couple
years ago a new kind of doll finally made it to the American market.
For a very long time we were limited to drooling over pictures we found
on the web, most notably at Den
Of Angels .
Eventually we were able to join the ranks of collectors and joined DOA and the world of BJD adoration.
As time goes on more dolls are being made in other parts of the world- including America. We refer to them as Asian Ball Joint Dolls as that is where the style originated. They come in many many sizes- from a couple inches to a couple feet! For the most part they are made of a high quality resin that must be carefully cured.
They can be broken, especially those delicate fingers- but they are suprisingly resilient.
They are exceptionally customizable! You can change the wigs and the heads open so that you can change the eyes and some have 'spare' hands and feet etc. so that you may change those as well as being able to change the heads. There are some new ones that have changeable faces- the fronts lift off like a mask and may be replaced with a face with a different expression- see the Hanna Angel pics once I have posted them :B
I think the thing that makes each one unique beyond the millions of clothing options- are the face and body paints. The same doll can look completely different with lips pale or dark or eye brows with a different color or slant. It is truly astounding what a variety can be achieved!
These dolls are for the most part, designed to look as 'real' as possible. They can look extremely lifelike in photos despite the joints. When you are first around them the joints are very noticeable, but after awhile you don't really notice them, or if you do it is not disconcerting. Just as a childhood doll with painted eyes and molded hair was still a precious baby, the joints become just a part of the doll and unless they are overextended or awkward are seen no more then you would a friends glasses.
More info below the picture page links and Links to Doll companies, supplies and online videos below.
Our Dolls:
Large
Medium
Small (We do not have any in this size...yet!)
Tiny
Our Friends Dolls
Comparison pics
( caution doll nudity ! )
Makeovers and Face Ups
Pictures on our Picture Trail Account
Oct '06 Local Meet
Sept '06 Trip to the Beach
Making a Mannequin to sew with
Small Meet at the park
May '06 Meet at the Portland Rose Gardens
General Info:
I am sure I will make mistakes - that happens in a fast developing arena with such an enormous amount of variations.
For the most part you will find this accurate and hopefully helpful but please pardon any errors! :)
There are four general ABJD sizes- though these are certainly not all!
Large- about 22 inches or 60 cm tall and larger
Med- around 16 inches
Small- 8ish to 12ish inches
and Tinies- 2ish to 7ish inches
Obviously the tinies are the easiest to transport. We have the cases they came in and also use an eyeglass case with handles or a box that small bottles of perfume came in fitted with pillows for two to ride in.
The others may be carried in boxes or tote bags or duffle type bags and there are hard cases called 'violin 'cases that are made in the same way and probably by the same companies with different interiors suited for the dolls.
Supplies for the dolls can be found everywhere! We like to go to local doll shows when we can and with so many sizes we can always find something fun and affordable! They can share clothing and accessories with many of our other dolls so a little can go a long way!
There are many online venues to explore- from Ebay to Yahoo mail lists as well as other communities such as Den of Angels.
Suprisingly- the 'dollfie' that started it all- or most of it anyway, is not favored by most ABJD fans. It is not included in the huge DOA allowable list at all! These dolls were made by Volks. They are 1/6 dolls- which is about the same size as Barbie. They have limited resin- sometimes the heads are, but for the most part they are all vinyl. They are jointed and can have painted eyes or eyes inserted into the heads and may have rooted hair or require wigs. These were the first Asian style ball joint dolls so the phrase 'Dollfie' came to mean all of the dolls in this style and oddly over time came to mean NON 1/6 dolls in general use. I imagine the Volks company was not tickled about it!
Those who are 'into' bjd do not mix up the phrases,
but there are a LOT of people who just do not know and it can make it incredibly confusing!
If you are doing a search on Ebay searching for 'Dollfies' will get as many if not many more results then 'Ball Joint Doll ' or 'BJD'.
Of course it also eliminates the whole section of old fashioned little girls type ball joint dolls from the early part of the 1900's.
The 1/6 dolls have a thriving collector community and most people who have an ABJD also have these but they are treated more like Barbie dolls and less like the ABJD which are treated more like Artistic dolls. There are exceptions of course- but in general you will encounter this when you are looking around. If you get a 1/6 doll it is good to know as some ABJD collectors do not consider them in the same league- even with the same manufacturer. We dolly people are a fickle lot! :)
These are a *terrific* option for children who are interested in BJD. They are easy to fix and replace if something happens and can wear the inexpensive Barbie and Barbie type items and retain the customization fun of the bigger dolls. Volks has a wonderful variety and Ebay is another resource.
Other rather similar dolls are also not included-
because of the way they are made or the lack of joints or customizability or for unknown reasons- go figure!
Pullips and Blythe are among these as are the Konji which darling little 3 inch sweeties :)
In our house everyone gets along :)
Obitsu and Dollfie Dream are other versions put out by Volks.
The 'Poor mans version' we like to say :B
They are constructed slightly differently and are generally all vinyl, but they can wear the resin heads (especially the dollfie dream) and they are much more durable.
They are also a lot of fun for beginners to play and sew with and for. The Obitsu has magnets in the feet so it can stand freely on any metal plate making them the best for pinning and designing on.
They are also relatively inexpensive (for this type) and the Obitsu can have a male chest or a female chest and the heads made for them are also pretty inexpensive and a great place to start!
Obitsu are also exceptionally poseable and can HOLD the position which is perfect for play and photo ops!
ABJD also come in a million different varieties. There are several dozen manufacturers now and an infinite variety of styles- from Goth to Vampire to Lolita to school kids to Anime characters- it's really unending.
For the most part our dolls are the more realistic variety They may have Pink hair or wear wings- but they are not cartoony looking and the fantasy is gentle and kind- all generous happy spirits.
Some people like dolls who seem to suffer or to have been through horrible things. They may have scars or missing eyes or dramatic painting and while these are not to our taste they are all very interesting artistically. I do not want a Vampire Lolita Style doll but I admire how some of them look and the details that went into their creation :)
Eventually we were able to join the ranks of collectors and joined DOA and the world of BJD adoration.
As time goes on more dolls are being made in other parts of the world- including America. We refer to them as Asian Ball Joint Dolls as that is where the style originated. They come in many many sizes- from a couple inches to a couple feet! For the most part they are made of a high quality resin that must be carefully cured.
They can be broken, especially those delicate fingers- but they are suprisingly resilient.
They are exceptionally customizable! You can change the wigs and the heads open so that you can change the eyes and some have 'spare' hands and feet etc. so that you may change those as well as being able to change the heads. There are some new ones that have changeable faces- the fronts lift off like a mask and may be replaced with a face with a different expression- see the Hanna Angel pics once I have posted them :B
I think the thing that makes each one unique beyond the millions of clothing options- are the face and body paints. The same doll can look completely different with lips pale or dark or eye brows with a different color or slant. It is truly astounding what a variety can be achieved!
These dolls are for the most part, designed to look as 'real' as possible. They can look extremely lifelike in photos despite the joints. When you are first around them the joints are very noticeable, but after awhile you don't really notice them, or if you do it is not disconcerting. Just as a childhood doll with painted eyes and molded hair was still a precious baby, the joints become just a part of the doll and unless they are overextended or awkward are seen no more then you would a friends glasses.
More info below the picture page links and Links to Doll companies, supplies and online videos below.
Our Dolls:
Large
Medium
Small (We do not have any in this size...yet!)
Tiny
Our Friends Dolls
Comparison pics
( caution doll nudity ! )
Makeovers and Face Ups
Pictures on our Picture Trail Account
Oct '06 Local Meet
Sept '06 Trip to the Beach
Making a Mannequin to sew with
Small Meet at the park
May '06 Meet at the Portland Rose Gardens
General Info:
I am sure I will make mistakes - that happens in a fast developing arena with such an enormous amount of variations.
For the most part you will find this accurate and hopefully helpful but please pardon any errors! :)
There are four general ABJD sizes- though these are certainly not all!
Large- about 22 inches or 60 cm tall and larger
Med- around 16 inches
Small- 8ish to 12ish inches
and Tinies- 2ish to 7ish inches
Obviously the tinies are the easiest to transport. We have the cases they came in and also use an eyeglass case with handles or a box that small bottles of perfume came in fitted with pillows for two to ride in.
The others may be carried in boxes or tote bags or duffle type bags and there are hard cases called 'violin 'cases that are made in the same way and probably by the same companies with different interiors suited for the dolls.
Supplies for the dolls can be found everywhere! We like to go to local doll shows when we can and with so many sizes we can always find something fun and affordable! They can share clothing and accessories with many of our other dolls so a little can go a long way!
There are many online venues to explore- from Ebay to Yahoo mail lists as well as other communities such as Den of Angels.
Suprisingly- the 'dollfie' that started it all- or most of it anyway, is not favored by most ABJD fans. It is not included in the huge DOA allowable list at all! These dolls were made by Volks. They are 1/6 dolls- which is about the same size as Barbie. They have limited resin- sometimes the heads are, but for the most part they are all vinyl. They are jointed and can have painted eyes or eyes inserted into the heads and may have rooted hair or require wigs. These were the first Asian style ball joint dolls so the phrase 'Dollfie' came to mean all of the dolls in this style and oddly over time came to mean NON 1/6 dolls in general use. I imagine the Volks company was not tickled about it!
Those who are 'into' bjd do not mix up the phrases,
but there are a LOT of people who just do not know and it can make it incredibly confusing!
If you are doing a search on Ebay searching for 'Dollfies' will get as many if not many more results then 'Ball Joint Doll ' or 'BJD'.
Of course it also eliminates the whole section of old fashioned little girls type ball joint dolls from the early part of the 1900's.
The 1/6 dolls have a thriving collector community and most people who have an ABJD also have these but they are treated more like Barbie dolls and less like the ABJD which are treated more like Artistic dolls. There are exceptions of course- but in general you will encounter this when you are looking around. If you get a 1/6 doll it is good to know as some ABJD collectors do not consider them in the same league- even with the same manufacturer. We dolly people are a fickle lot! :)
These are a *terrific* option for children who are interested in BJD. They are easy to fix and replace if something happens and can wear the inexpensive Barbie and Barbie type items and retain the customization fun of the bigger dolls. Volks has a wonderful variety and Ebay is another resource.
Other rather similar dolls are also not included-
because of the way they are made or the lack of joints or customizability or for unknown reasons- go figure!
Pullips and Blythe are among these as are the Konji which darling little 3 inch sweeties :)
In our house everyone gets along :)
Obitsu and Dollfie Dream are other versions put out by Volks.
The 'Poor mans version' we like to say :B
They are constructed slightly differently and are generally all vinyl, but they can wear the resin heads (especially the dollfie dream) and they are much more durable.
They are also a lot of fun for beginners to play and sew with and for. The Obitsu has magnets in the feet so it can stand freely on any metal plate making them the best for pinning and designing on.
They are also relatively inexpensive (for this type) and the Obitsu can have a male chest or a female chest and the heads made for them are also pretty inexpensive and a great place to start!
Obitsu are also exceptionally poseable and can HOLD the position which is perfect for play and photo ops!
ABJD also come in a million different varieties. There are several dozen manufacturers now and an infinite variety of styles- from Goth to Vampire to Lolita to school kids to Anime characters- it's really unending.
For the most part our dolls are the more realistic variety They may have Pink hair or wear wings- but they are not cartoony looking and the fantasy is gentle and kind- all generous happy spirits.
Some people like dolls who seem to suffer or to have been through horrible things. They may have scars or missing eyes or dramatic painting and while these are not to our taste they are all very interesting artistically. I do not want a Vampire Lolita Style doll but I admire how some of them look and the details that went into their creation :)
