Maintenance Fixing Up a 15-Year-Old Doll

Hey there!
Hopefully I can help with some of your questions!

• You *could* shorten the elastic, but typically the elastic itself has lost the ability to stretch and snap back. It would be better to just replace it. If you're nervous to do this, take a LOT of pictures to refer to later as you put it back together.
• Magic Eraser may help with the stain, since his hand likely doesn't have sealant or paint on it; it shouldn't damage anything. If it's a deep stain, you may try Brush Cleaner and Restorer, I personally use Winsor and Newton. It takes paint out of brushes, and might help or at least lessen it. Last resort would be sanding it.
• Resin will yellow regardless, it's the resin's color mixture itself that breaks down. Sunlight speeds up the process, but it sadly is inevitable. There does seem to be a 'stopping' (or maybe a major slow down?) point for it though, I have some VERY yellow dolls that haven't changed much in the last few years.

I hope that helps a little bit!

 

For the stain on his hand, you could try dish soap and a paper towel/rag first. It might just wipe off without having to get really serious about it. Dish soap is gentle, and good on multiple surfaces.

As for his head being a different color than the torso, it might not be the resin that oxidized, but the Mr Super Clear/sealant they used for the faceup changing color on you. Don’t worry about it! It’s normal. If you’re in the market for a new faceup, the faceup artist can usually fix the color discrepancy for you. If not, just try to roll with the fact that your doll is old enough to get a driving permit now, and sometimes even inanimate objects will show their age.

Edit: nevermind! I’m unobservant af, I see your guy doesn’t have a faceup. Still! A faceup artist can fix that color discrepancy.

 

I've got a boy from 2007 and his wrist balls and calves have yellowed more than the rest of him. I'm pretty sure they're from different batches of resin. Something similar could have happened with your guy. Check him over in a few different lights. If the difference is enough to bother you or won't be covered by clothes, you can try a very light dye job to make the parts match better (there's a de-zombification serum thread here) or you can cover it with a tattoo.

 

You should probably change the elastics to new ones, they tend to loose elasticity over time, my dolls from around the same time as yours all need new ealstics. And while the doll is in parts, take the opportunity to deep clean it, that will most likely take care of the stain. Dish soap and a magic eraser is the best tools for this. Windsor and Newton brush cleaner is also good for cleaning resin as someone mentioned earlier. I usually soak my doll in warm (not too hot) water for a while, then scrub them clean, using a bottle brush for the inside, rinse and let them air dry before I restring and they are as good as new.

 

Can’t wait to see your Camine’s glow up Definitely one of my favorite older sculpts- him and Lahoo- wow

 

Even in real human beings, the skin on the face may not be the same shade than the rest of the body. I don't think the difference is noticeable or shocking, but a good faceup or blushing the neck can lessen the difference if it matters to you.

For the rest, I don't have anything to add.^^

 

He looks great considering he's 15 years old!

I would personally replace his old elastic as it gets brittle over time, there might be some concern that it will break under tension.

I haven't encountered any problems cleaning the dolls using magic erasers. On an unpainted doll it shouldn't hurt to try.

It's a bit hard to tell from the photos, but resin yellows as long as there is oxygen presence - yellowing is basically oxidation of the material. Sunlight only accelerates it. So there would usually be a colour difference between parts covered by the clothes and parts directly exposed to sunlight.

 

I appreciate that you asked these questions and created this thread. It has been about as long for me and my girl, and she has a couple of these issues as well.

Welcome back!