Aesthetics First Secondhand Project Doll

Recently my partner bought us a secondhand 1/6 MYOU Delia who's a bit of a hot mess! She has uneven yellowing on her face and neck - it looks like it's from a window as it's all on the same side. Her eyelashes have been cut very unevenly, so they're blunt and not looking too great. One side is also coming unglued. Her eyes are unflattering and scratched up, and her wig is the wrong size for her while also being cut unevenly and at different lengths. Her lips are smudged and there's an uneven black line between them. I'm not sure if that was a part of MYOU's default face-up for her or if the owner added that afterwards, but either way, it's not very flattering. On top of that, she's dinged up and dirty. I'm probably missing some things, but those are the main issues!

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Despite her flaws, I love her and am looking forward to making her my first project doll! All up, these issues are all fixable and won't require extensive repairs, just time, money, effort and patience! First, I'll give her a good cleaning. I plan on getting a few wigs and eyes to try out on her, trying to find colours that don't clash with her yellowing. I have her in a really cheap dress I had lying around, so I'll look into a new wardrobe, and I've ordered new eyelashes. The new face-up will probably be the last thing I address because I'm not sure whether I want to commission an artist or do it myself (I've never done one before and the thought of my first attempt being on her is terrifying lol). I'm also not sure whether I'll try sanding away her yellowing or leave it as is. I'll probably make that decision after I wipe her face-up in preparation for a new one.

My plans are:

• Find wigs and eyes that suit her. Try to find colours that don't clash with the yellowing on her face.
• Either buy clothes or look for patterns to try for myself. Leaning toward a fairytale aesthetic for her, but that's subject to change.
• Replace her eyelashes.
• Find a face-up artist for her.
• Wipe her current face-up once an artist is found and see how bad the yellowing is beneath the sealant.
• Potentially redo her body blushing.

Update as of 02/12/2023:



Update (New Body) as of 28/03/2024:
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@Rosslyn Thank you! I noticed the error after posting and fixed it - it should be visible now! The picture quality is poor so most of her issues aren't visible, but oh well!

 

She is! I think with just a wig and eye change she'll look significantly better, so I'm browsing for those right now.

I'm hoping it's mostly the sealant, but I won't find out until I wipe her face, and I might not get around to that until next year if I decide to commission a face-up artist so I guess it'll be a mystery until then.

Thank you! And yes, I realized the image was probably too big so I shrank it a bit, and it seems to be working!

 

Thank you for the advice, I'll keep it in mind!

 

Thank you! I've ordered some cheap wigs and eyes to try out, so hopefully I'll have an update once they've been delivered ❤️

Yes, unfortunately, the lips are the biggest issue, but I really love the rest of the face-up. I've heard of those methods and I'm thinking of trying them out in a few months once I wipe her face up. I don't mind her being darker or pinker if it comes to that. I guess it'll depend on how yellow she is underneath the sealant!

Thank you! I think she has a lot of potential too, and I think it'll be fun to see where a little TLC will get us

 

Small update: a cheap wig and some eyes I got for my other doll arrived, so I tried them on Delia and she's looking a little better already! I'm also currently talking with an artist about a potential face-up. I warned him about her uneven yellowing and he's okay with working on her despite that, so she may get a transformation in the future!

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It really is. I'm already really happy with how she's looking I might try one of the whitening methods I've seen floating around when I go to wipe her face, yes! The artist said that he's thinking of ways to nullify the yellowing with the face-up though so I might leave it to him, too. I'll think on it and see how I feel when the time comes.

 

No photo updates today, but I've shipped off Delia's head to a face-up artist and in around two months, I should have her back together again! While she's gone, I'm going to shop around for a nice wig and outfit for her, and once it's back home I can put it all together.

My biggest issue now is that she has MYOU's 30cm body, which is a little bigger and wider than the average 1/6 body, so finding well-fitting clothes is a bit difficult. I'll have to do some research, I think.

 

Delia's head has arrived safely at the face-up artist and I'll hopefully have some updates to share in a few weeks! I'm very excited!

In the meantime, I bought her a wig from Luts and have stored it away for when her head is shipped back. I can't wait to put her all together!

 

It is! I'm having a lot of fun working on this little project. Maybe it would have been easier (and cheaper in the long run) to get a brand-new doll, but it feels nice to give an old one some love and attention.

 

Today's update! Her face-up artist ended up starting on her a lot sooner than expected, and he sent some progress images! She's looking amazing so far, and I'm so excited to see how she'll look when she's complete. He said he's about 70% done. In the meantime, I'm still looking for clothes and eyes for her!

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For sure! I can't wait to put her all together

 

Delia's head arrived today with no issues and she looks gorgeous! I'm still looking for clothes for her, and I've ordered some new eyes that will get here... eventually, so she's still not complete. She's sitting on my Project Shelf along with my Luts Pudding for now. I also need to treat the yellowing on her neck at some point (the same sort of damage that was on her face before, looks like it was from sitting in front of a window) but for now, she's looking significantly better. I'll take more pictures of her once she's in some more flattering clothes

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Update 12/02: Delia is tentatively complete! I'll continue getting her new clothes, eyes, wigs and accessories over time, but I'm happy to say that she's made a complete transformation and I absolutely love her. I'll make future posts if I make any major changes with her, but for now, this is it! I also did my first doll photography session which I posted here and I've made a new Instagram for my amateur doll photography. Thank you all for joining me on this journey, it's been a lot of fun and I can't wait to start on my next project!

Here she is with two of her wigs!

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So it turns out I wasn't done with this doll. As much as I love her, the 30cm MYOU body she came with was not only unevenly yellowed, but also single-jointed. I was fine with that at first as she sat on the shelf, but I've been doing photoshoots with my dolls lately and the lack of maneuverability was a bit... disappointing. Also, Delia's 1/6 head sculpt is bigger than her 1/4 head sculpt... and after trying her head on one of my other MYOU bodies, I realized that I could upgrade her to something bigger.

I found a very cheap type 3 MYOU body that I couldn't pass up, and it just arrived along with a haul of doll clothes yesterday. Because her head is yellowed and the skin tone of the body isn't a match to start (the head is MYOU's white skin and the body is pink) there's definitely a noticeable difference between them in person, but I should be able to colour correct for photoshoots. I might get a better matching body down the road, but for now, I love her, she's adorable

Anyway, all this is to say that Delia seems to be a forever project doll and this journey might never be over. I'll keep updating whenever something new happens with her! (And when I get around to a proper photoshoot with the DSLR)

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Thanks! I feel like hybrid territory is dangerous for my wallet lol. I do like the type 3 body a lot, though I think I'll need to suede and/or wire it to help it pose better. BoHe's super cute, I bet she looks wonderful

 

Adorable!!