Volks Super Dollfie - SD, SD13, SD16, SD17, SDGr, SDGou & FCS - XXXIV

fangirl all you like @Grimoire . Gorgeous setting. That dress was made for formal ceremonies.

 

@Grimoire congrats!!! if you want to keep fangirling, I'm sure everyone here would love to hear about your full in person one off and omukae experience! It's something most of us will never get to do, so I'm ready to live vicariously So many descriptions are only in Japanese too so hearing one in English is exciting

 

She's beautiful. Congratulations. I, too, would love to hear about your omukae experience if you ever feel like telling. Thank you for sharing what you have, it brings joy to see the process (such as the sealed letter). Enjoy your girl, her face up is incredible.

 

Recently acquired a one-off Mika (one of my grail sculpts) from a lovely DOA member and while I don't have an outfit for her in-hand yet, I did just finish her custom wig and I've been having a blast photographing her with it!

I wanted super long hair for her, so I stripped about 99% of the wefts from a Monique wig and replaced them with super long wefts that I made from scratch. It was my first time using a sewing machine so I'm glad it worked out lol



She has an Ecru Honoka dress on the way from Mandarake, but until then at least her hair will keep her warm ❤️

 

Congratulations Your Mika is so absolutely stunning. One of my favorite sculpts too.
The super long wig you made for her is fabulous

 

Fabulous! @lunar-dream304

 

I actually gasped! This wig is stunning. She is a vision! Congratulations!!

 

Super excited to hear that the new Standards will be at Volks USA next month! I am desperate to get Ena and put her on a DSD body, she is so sweet!

Thank you so much everyone!! ❤️

 

My FCS Diamond is going to arrive tomorrow!!! Wheee!

 

Volks definitely said “spare every expense” for Shampoo’s eyes They are wonky.

Ms. Poo herself:
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54477335840_6f587e065e_b.jpg

 

Wow, she looks amazing in that setup!! Ahhh, great job with the color coordinating!!! The purple eyebrows must be hard to work with...

I've had some time to bond with my girl, and I've found I do like the SD10 non-jointed body. SD10 feels easier to cuddle and more "manageable" compared to SDGR in size when holding or carrying around, so I've decided I don't need a taller, mature SDGR body for her.

However, as depicted in this image, SD10 does lean back unnaturally when sat down. I had to roll up the box pillow and put it behind her to keep her from slouching on a doll chair, and pose her head downward to keep her from looking toward the ceiling. Even with something as simple as sitting her on my bed in front of the TV, she appears to be looking above it and without a pillow, she just falls backward.

So I'm considering a few things. Either get her her own "special lounging pillow" with nice lace and brocade embroidery to be used when I'm propping her up on the couches and chairs at the little photo areas at Volks stores, or just get her a spare PS White body on the secondhand market meant for sitting and posing.

I'm considering SD13 or Suwarikko, but I'm torn over the body shape. Suwarikko feels more childish than SD10 with a less pronounced torso and waist area, but poses much better than SD10. (My girl's face looks like a teenager so I do want a little bit of shape definition for A-line skirts and dresses.) I've had SD13 before, but I remember it feeling "thick and heavy" and depending on secondhand restringing, the body could be floppy and I'm not good at restringing.

I'm also unsure if I want to keep switching her pretty one-off head on and off different bodies...

There aren't any other non-joint torso options that sit naturally, right?

 

Oof... Even if it is just a default body and not the head, I dunno if I want to play around with Volks' policy on "no modifications whatsoever or we won't fix or replace doll parts."

I did get lucky in the secondhand market though. Someone switched out their doll's body for an SDGR, so they were getting rid of a FCS SD13 body with an L-bust, jointed elbows and high-heel feet. Matches my girl's skin color perfectly and she sits and poses much better now. I do like how the SD10 feels when holding it, but I'll just keep it in a box for now.

imgur.com

 

@lunar-dream304 - What a gorgeous wig you made for your Mika! The color looks so lovely with her skin tone. Do you know what type of fiber you used? I have a doll who needs floor-length hair but it is impossible to find anything like that for 1/3 size. I've made yarn wigs and I'm willing to try sewn wefts!

Thank you!

 

Mika still needs undergarments and shoes, but her Ecru Honoka dress is here! It desperately needs to be cleaned and ironed but I had to see it on her lol

Thank you so much! The fiber I used is doll grade kanekalon (usually referred to as synthetic mohair in the context of doll wigs)! It's a pretty finicky fiber if you're not used to working with synthetic hair, but it's one of my favorite hair fibers to work with. If you've ever handled a Monique or Jusuns wig, it's that same fiber! I haven't worked with brushed/straightened acrylic yarn before, but I imagine it's similar to working with that (kanekalon is a modacrylic fiber).

There are a handful of dealers that still carry this fiber; Dollyhair carries a few shades and they have lengths up to 38" but Studiodollhair carries a wider range of shades (though their sizing only goes up to 18"). My wefts were made with hair from both dealers, about a 70/30 blend of 18" hair from Studiodollhair and 38" hair from Dollyhair and I shuffled the fibers together for a naturally tapered end.

 

Your Mika is too beautiful! Have you thought of a name? And that wig is amazing! Giving some big Rapunzel energy. And mad props for making that from scratch. I haven't seen a Mika in a long time and forgot how beautiful they are.

 

@lunar-dream304 - Beautiful photo! She reminds me of a porcelain doll I had a child (which I loved and have been trying to recreate in bjd form for a while). Thank you for answering my question with some much detail, too. I'm going to check out those suppliers!

 

@lunar-dream304 omg those fibers are my absolute favorite. I have two medium length Monique wigs from back in the day and they’re just so angel soft ~ I can’t imagine having such a long wig with them it must be heaven

 

Thank you so much! I haven't thought of a name yet, normally I just go by their stock name until a new one comes to mind organically lol

Mika is one of my favorite sculpt families! I have two of her MSD sculpt and this is my first SD but I think I'll end up with a lot more in the future. I'd love for them to make more of her MSD sculpt, even if just once for another FCS, but luckily the SD seems to be a mainstay in the One Off lineup so she is always around in some capacity! I really love these older Volks sculpts, they seem to evoke the antique doll vibe that I prefer more often than newer sculpts, but maybe I'm biased because MSD Mika was one of the first BJDs I'd ever seen lol

Thank you! I love that comparison, my preferred styling for BJDs is in similar styles and outfits to antique dolls so that is very much the intended vibe! Your idea to re-shell your childhood porcelain doll into a BJD is such a great idea, I hope to see her one day!

It's really really lovely! The base I used is actually a Monique wig (just the original parting remains, I removed everything else to replace with the longer wefts lol) it can get a little finicky due to the length but overall it's a dream to brush and shape for photos!

 

For anyone interested. The Anime movie The Rose of Versailles is now on Netflix (USA). You can select English language. Or watch it in Japanese with English subtitles.

 

Sorry if this has been asked before, but I can’t find anything on it by searching. Are the moveable legs for SDgr difficult to attach? I did manage to restring my SDM and a DDI body, but it was a bit difficult for me. I’m debating going for the legs second hand, but it looks like you have to replace the entire thigh, so does that mean restringing the entire torso? Or does volks have some kind of mechanism that separates the lower part of the body? Also would I need to adjust the tension on the elastic (I’m so bad at that!) or is it pretty much the same for both legs? I hope that all makes sense. I’m a bit too intimidated to take mine apart just to figure out how she’s put together. If it’s too difficult I’d rather skip the legs, since that means I wouldn’t be able to swap them out often. Thanks in advance for advice from anyone who has swapped them before.

 

I have restringed my sdgr g and it was one loop from head to both legs, that crosses inside the hip and through the thighs.
I haven't wore her flat legs, but if you could grab the elastic from inside the hips to change the new thighs and legs, maybe you could thread in another short loop to each side, enough to stretch the length from the knee to ankle. But it might be difficult. I needed assistance to get the tension to my liking.
My doll is from 2011 so idk if the body had any updates to that area in particular.

 

You must restring the entire leg-torso area to change SDGr girl legs. You have to adjust the tension, as having the heel legs on requires the elastic to be shorter than having the flat legs on. This is why SDGr girls ship with a zip tie holding the elastic as the default configuration, so that you can lengthen or shorten the elastic more easily.

FWIW, I have often strung my dolls with the mobility thigh from the flat legs plus the heeled calf from the heeled legs. That isn’t a Volks-recommended configuration, and it can result in chipping around the knees if you’re not careful. But, I feel like it makes the heel legs able to move and pose a bit better, since you can rotate the thigh. If you want better posing but don’t want to lose the heel leg, that might be a choice for you so that you only have to restring the legs once.

Good luck!!!

 

I never thought of switching the thighs out, it's a good idea. what is it that causes the knee to chip in that configuration? Is it something that could be modded?

 

Usually SDGr flat legs are sold as a whole leg (so thighs with rotating joints, knee, calf + feet). If it's sold as just the knees down, that's usually SD16 in my experience. I don't think they're compatible, unfortunately

 

Thank you everyone! It sounds a bit difficult to change the legs, so I have to think on it before I make a decision. I do wish there was a way that you could change just the bottom leg portion like SD16. I want to easily be able to switch to different types of shoes, basically. I did notice if you *really* try some of the SD/DD shoes that say they don’t work they will technically still go on the heel feet. They just don’t look as nice since the back of the shoe is lifted so it looks like she’s standing on her toes. I’m thinking the best option might honestly be to make my own shoes for now. I feel bad spending $50+ on every pair of shoes, and there doesn’t seem to be a ton of selection even when other makers are factored in. I wish they made more sandals, slippers or even lifted sneakers with wedge heels.

In other news, Volks has began to ship some of the heart hands ordered with Macha and Yumepi for people who ordered before Feb 16th.

 

What a cutie! Love Nikki's faceup! What does the wig look like you ordered? Congrats on the new doll!

 

Nikki looks amazing with the new hair! I love that wig especially how realistic it is and how well it matches Nikki's coloring. Sounds like the stringing was a pain but looks like they were well worth the effort! The top is also very cute! Can't wait to see more of Nikki!

 

I present: Dark Macha


To be honest I didn't expect her to wear this THAT well. I put it on and immediately knew she was very different character from what I had originally planned for her. Almost changed her name on the spot too (from Sejla to Corva) but I decided she can keep the name Sejla and instead has an alter ego who goes by Corva.

Spoiler: One more

 

Macha can wear anything!

 

Gorgeous...

 

Wow, amazing outfit and photos. I’ve been going back and forth about buying my Macha a black wig, and this definitely helped me decide that she needs one. She really looks good here.

 

What an ethereal beauty! Giving femme fatale energy!

 

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I wasn't planning on getting a new doll this year but someone was letting her go for such a good price that I couldn't resist! Her name is Momiji, she's a default DearSD SwD Nana on an SD10 body in PSF. I'll eventually get her a new faceup but I am surprised by how nice the default one is. I haven't purchased a default doll or any doll in over a decade! Happy to share her and to finally have a friend for my doll, Midori, who I've owned for 14 years this July.

 

Man what a beauty she is And I love your styling too

 

Hi, all! Everyone has such gorgeous dolls!!

I'm about to join the community of Volks owners for the first time, and I'm so excited. I'm getting a DWC03 head and an SD10 body from two sellers on the Marketplace, and I'm eager to get her, piece her together, and figure out her vibe!

Does anyone have any experience with putting wire in the elbows of the single joint SD10 body to increase the posability? I've had success with wiring single joints in MSDs, but haven't tried the larger scales.

 

Oh, okay, great! Thank you for your insight! I've heard that Volks tend to be good at holding poses, but I wasn't sure if that was just the updated bodies.

My head and body are both (incredibly) scheduled to arrive on Saturday, and I'm excited to actually play with one for myself soon and see!

 

@Daeriel Congrats on your incoming girl! Volks dolls are very stable standers, and a bit of wire can make their single jointed posing very strong. I have single-jointed MSDs, and a friend has 1/3 dolls with wired legs who can squat free-standing. Wiring the arms helps the doll hold them up for longer and bear weight if you like your dolls to carry things.
Your mileage may vary on kips: they are prone to getting sucked into the doll's body at the shoulders and arm joints, which some people don't enjoy and prefer to use hot glue sueding.
I do recommend putting a kip at the top of the neck – the increased friction gives the doll better head posing and means the head is less likely to snap to whatever position it likes.
Best of luck with your new arrival

 

I used to like using a KIP for the top of the neck, but I found that the KIP was always getting sucked into the head hole, and interfering with the head position and stability. This meant taking off wigs and heads, which is especially annoying when the doll wears a wig that is a pain to get back on and adjusted Glue-sueding for neckholes is more reliable.

For arms I prefer the KIPs. I've found it easy to pull on the arm elastic and pop the KIPs back in place. Sometimes a KIP will go further in, so I use the Yo-size head pull tool to fish them out.

 

Dropping in to share my SD16 Topaz in tan skin with the Romantic face up

 

You're allowed to apply for multiple dolls! You just can't put in multiple entries for the same doll.

 

Dropping in to show off my as of yet unnamed DWC03! She arrived last weekend, and I've spent the past week working on an updated faceup, sewing her something to wear, trying out wigs and eyes, and generally obsessing over her!

Volks DWC03 by Daeriel, on Flickr

I was a little worried that I would be disappointed with her posability compared to my Feeple60 girl, but I'm actually really loving the way she moves and holds positions!! She's got silicone kips in her joints and hot glue in her neck to help, but I think she'd be more solid than most of my dolls even without that.

 

@ame_hime

I love her faceup so much! She is so demure and stunning. I wish Volks produced more tan dolls outside of FCS because it's such a pretty color!


@Daeriel

I love how you styled her and the posing is so good. I may need to use hot glue for my girls too.

 

@ame_hime : No you didn't just make me just fall in love with a sculpt that I had no intention of every owning! Gah!! She is beautiful, and that faceup is perfection on her.

@Daeriel : Congrats on your lovely girl! She looks so sweet, lovely faceup on her.

 

@ame_hime, thank you for sharing your Topaz! I'm glad to see someone else likes Tan resin; it's my favorite Volks resin color. The Romantic face-up is truly romantic. I wish we could see more owner pics here of Topaz and Emerald, both with Volks face-ups, and custom face-ups, too.

Here are my Topaz and Emerald. Topaz is Amber resin with Dark face-up, Emerald is Tan resin with Sultry face-up.

 

@beamlette Two lovely girls, and the Amber resin is stunning (must resist the urge to do USA FCS through a proxy for Amber...my wallet...)

 

I was wondering if you could help me, I have just bought a F62 and I am unsure what size eyes she uses?

 

@Kaname Kimura F-62 is probably a bit on the smaller side – the FCS handbooks has her in 18/9 (18mm eye, 9mm iris) eyes.
I did see one on my trip to Japan with 16mm eyes (Zoukeimura) too

 

@castironteapot Thank you for your reply, it really helps!