DikaDoll Abel 68cm Arrival! Photo heavy. ( Welcome home, Ambros! )

Well, it finally happened! Ambros (AKA Ambroz/Amvrosiy -- whose name keeps changing because I keep waffling on the spelling), my DikaDoll Abel, is my second doll over all and first ever SD. I ordered him in white resin on the 68 cm body in mid/late-September during the DD event via ACBJD, and he arrived two days ago on October 30th.

Though I'd absolutely fallen in love with him the instant I'd seen him in the promotion shots, I was terrified about his size! My only other doll was purchased last year -- a Soom Little Gem Tuff -- who's a discrete little fellow at about 42 cm, not to mention very much a fixer-upper with his floppy stringing and yellowed resin. So when Ambros' shipping notice arrived, I was nervous as could be. I had just finished work (thankfully a bit early that day!) and rushed home just in time to sign for him when he arrived. And what would I find when I opened the box ... ?

Read on!

( Apologies ahead of time for the inconsistent size, lighting, and messy backgrounds in my photos! I was too excited to worry about set-up. )



Packaging was light-weight but seemed to do the job. Two simple white cushions tied together with thin ribbon. AC BJD had included a pair of eyes from the $1 promotion they were doing at the time, as well as a magic eraser and some eye putty (thank goodness -- because I don't have any, myself!) Thanks, Alice!




Cute ownership guide & certificate of authenticity!

And on to the main event ...




Ambros appeared to be very well protected in several aggressive layers of bubble-wrap and a face-protector. Regardless, he did still arrive with a small dark scuff-mark on his shoulder that I think I'll have to tackle with the magic eraser, but no major faults or flaws. Now let's get him out of his wrapping!

Doll Nudity ahead!
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Right out of the box, he is absolutely gorgeous! His face-up is definitely more vivid than the company photos would suggest (look at those bubblegum pink lips!) and I think I would have preferred less saturated colors, but his sculpting and the simplicity of the face-up itself still give him a subdued and regal expression. I still love the face-up and am utterly taken by him. DikaDoll included green eyes with his faceup -- which look lovely, but which I'll probably end up swapping out -- and he came fully assembled and well strung!




A solid stander with nice proportions. I was worried that he would look bobble-headed on the 68 cm body, but he actually looks quite nice! The body itself is lean, but not as 'skinny' as some of the official shots make it look -- just trim and slender. And his resin is wonderfully smooth to the touch! Does it sound strange to say it's honestly just a joy to hold him? I kept touching his legs, haha ... !! ;;





Looking up / looking down ... pretty good!
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DikaDoll also included these jointed hands as a gift for part of their event! I've always wanted a doll with jointed hands, and these ones are so lovely and elegant!





Ambros is supposed to be a premier danseur -- a lead ballet dancer -- and once I attached the jointed hands, I began to see his character really come to life. I look forward to seeing it flourish more in the future!




Posing is pretty nice. Nothing absolutely phenomenal, but not bad either! He can't hug his knees, and though he can kneel, he can't sit back on his calves all the way. Still, he can sit with his legs crossed and assume some nice, natural poses. He can arch his back and slouch a bit, but most of his joints seem pretty basic. I'll have to experiment with his body at bit more to see what more it's capable of, but I'm a bit hesitant to push its limits. I don't want to accidentally harm him!






In any case, as if it weren't obvious enough, I'm completely smitten with this doll! I was worried about his size when I ordered him, but as it turns out, I love that he's so substantial, and I can finally say I absolutely understand the appeal of SD sized dolls. He's like a small statue, in a way -- an absolute work of art.

If you have any questions about how his body, sculpt, or hands perform, please just let me know! I'd be more than happy to play around with him and take more reference photos. Cheers!​

 

@pebblecake // Thank you!! I think I'll change his eyes to gray or a similar muted shade. I think that will help to downplay the colorfulness of his face-up. Or at least, I hope! Ideally, I would like to give him dirty-blonde hair with silver in it, as if it is juust beginning to go gray. Or I might just give him silver hair and he can be a silver haired pretty boy, hehe. The idea behind his character is basically that he's a danseur who appears very princely and gracious onstage, but is actually a bit frigid and stern in reality.

@Maechen // Thank you! I can't believe I was so nervous about owning an SD, haha. They're gorgeous! The jointed hands are so lovely, but I'm so worried I'm going to break them! They seem so delicate.

 

@StillsEve // I'm glad you like him! His face-up is definitely brighter than in the company photos, but he's still so gorgeous. I can't wait to see your Abel too! I'm sure he'll look wonderful with those gloves ~

@Teleri // Oo, which ones do you have?

 

Yes! I'm a bit disappointed by the difference in colors between the actual product and the company photos -- I do prefer the more subtle and muted cool tones -- but I still think he's quite pretty. If it bugs me enough, maybe I can send him off to someone to recreate something more similar to the company photos. ;; We'll see. I'm sort of a sucker for jointed hands, haha. But I know what you mean about them looking skeletal sometimes. These ones pose really nicely too!

Thank you though!! I can't wait to start making him some costumes. December is right around the corner, which means the first project will be The Nutcracker/Prince, naturally. c:

Oh boy!! That's pretty soon! What sort of face-up are thinking of, if I might ask -- something more naturalistic? I can't wait to see how he looks; I love seeing different interpretations of the same sculpt.

 

Wow! Can't wait to see.

It definitely is, but I think the larger size will be more fun to make clothing for. Thank you again! I'll certainly continue to update as he evolves. ~

Oo, I love sleeping heads. * w* And Batian is a pretty sculpt as well. I think there's something very captivating about dolls with narrowed or partially-closed eyes.

I do! I'm in the middle of constructing a costume for myself at the moment, which means doll-clothes are going to have to wait for about a week or so, but I'm so excited to start working on costumes in a smaller scale. I'll certainly keep some project logs and post photos as things develop!