Merry Christmas. I suppose I might as well ask in this thread since making a new one won't make much of a difference.
I'm interested in buying a doll, but I need some guidance. Manufacturers to consider or avoid, things to look out for, sites to visit and so on.

What I'm looking for is a pretty blonde princess. Something like in these pics or better. Preferably smaller in size, so not taller than about 30cm or so and within a reasonable price range.
Thanks.

>>130
>not taller than about 30cm or so
Is there a particular reason you don’t want the usual 60cm size girls, Anon?

>>131
That would be too big, I think. She needs to fit in with some other items on display and none of those are above ~30cm.

A Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Anon!

>>130
All the girls posted are 1/4 or 1/3 Dollfies so too large for your <30cm requirement. Getting faces of similar quality at the smaller scales can be pretty difficult as Volks doesn't offer that size in the same styles.

I'll assume you are only interested in vinyl girls and it sounds like 1/6 will be the sweet spot for you. I have no experience with that scale but from my understanding there are two major players (they both use Obitsu for manufacturing though which is a very solid vinyl doll maker so no worries on overall quality).

The king of 1/6 dolls in Japan is Azone. They have a few ranges but basically you'd want a Pure Neemo body which range from around 18cm to 23cm or so (before including the head). They have premade girls but the prices are relatively high, around 14000 yen depending on the series. They are really popular too so a lot sell out quickly. I don't believe they have a customisation option with standalone heads but I may be wrong. Biggest downside is their eyes are always painted on. Azone just recently started doing physical eyes on their larger dolls but are not doing it for smaller scale yet. Here's some info in English: https://www.azone-int.co.jp/us/ You'd have to buy them from Hobby Search, Amiami etc or a used one on Mandarake.

If you want physical eyes then Parabox may be the better choice. I don't find their head sculpts as cute but their site is completely in English with international shipping and they basically let you fully customise the doll from a few makeup options, eyes, wigs etc. Their sizes range up to 27cm bodies in the 1/6 scale but for range of outfits sticking to 24cm might be better so you should be able to buy from Azone as well (I think the 24cm Parabox lines up with the Pure Neemo body but you'd have to check that, I read someone say that a 23cm Obitsu was too small to wear Pure Neemo S clothes which seems weird given the listed sizing). That will also give that more childlike look the last two images included have. Parabox is very wallet friendly for this hobby. Here is their guide on ordering: https://paraboxshop.jp/contents/en_JPY/paradoll

Happy New Year.

>>133
Thanks a lot. I'd prefer physical eyes (the reason why I want one of these and not an ordinary figure is precisely because everything is physical and not just plastic or painted on), so I'll take a look at parabox. If it doesn't look like I can get what I want on a 1/6 scale, I'll consider the smallest variants of the 1/3 or 1/4 models.

>>134
Ah that makes sense. Customization really is one of the best things about dolls. If the 1/6 Parabox don’t end up working for you then start looking at Mini Dollfie Dreams. They are 1/4 and around 43cm high. The last two images you posted appear to be custom DDH-01 heads on MDD bodies (not 100% sure on the last one though, it may be a 12 head). The DDH-01 is the most popular MDD head but the customs can go for a lot. I got my custom 09 head for 15000 yen on Yahoo Auction a few years back. But a mod like the open mouthed girl you posted would likely go for at least 60000 yen or more these days. There are always cheaper options of course but really cute one off heads will break the bank. Volks Standard Liliru is just under 50000 yen with body and wig included: https://dollfie.ec.volks.co.jp/category/D_DD/4518992422121.html

The most popular MDD basically ever is getting a rerelease later this month. Arle is a lot of people’s pretty little princess. If she appeals you would have to buy her this month, no time to think. Her price will likely at least double on aftermarket again and rereleases by Volks are really rare. https://dollfie.ec.volks.co.jp/category/D_DD/4518992427447.html

I was hoping for a Noumi Kud rerelease myself (who would also fit your blonde princess criteria well) but she wasn’t popular enough I guess.

Whatever you go with please show us final girl! Especially if it is a Parabox, I don’t see those much.

>>135
That looks good, but I'm not in a rush. It might be a while before I actually decide to get one. Right now I just want to get a good idea of what's available, looks good and fits.

This body with this face seems like it would do nicely. https://paraboxshop.jp/goods_en_jpy_3425.html
She's a bit taller, but so much to be an absolute deal-breaker. The site's outfit choice isn't that great though. I've found this https://dollfie.ec.volks.co.jp/item/4518992423470.html but I have no clue whether it will fit her or not and the site's model descriptions don't have size numbers. Or I can't find them.

>>136
That girl is pretty cute! She definitely gives the princess vibe.

Sadly that outfit from Volks won't fit. For a 40cm body you'd need to go for an item that lists a fit for MDD when browsing at Volks. The linked outfit is for SD/DD sizing, so 55-60cm girls. Far too big!

Usually they have a matching MDD size when they release outfits (the design often changes a little but has the same feel) but it seems that outfit had no release for a smaller body. I also don't know how good a Volks outfit will fit on Parabox (it should fit but how well is up in the air..).

As an example these are all the correct general size for a 40cm doll:
https://dollfie.ec.volks.co.jp/item/4518992426990.html
https://dollfie.ec.volks.co.jp/item/4518992423500.html
https://dollfie.ec.volks.co.jp/item/4518992413709.html
https://dollfie.ec.volks.co.jp/item/4518992414959.html

I believe all Azone outfits would be too big for reference, they have some listed as fitting the 45cm range so maybe that would work..

>>138
Ah, I see. Thanks a lot, now I have a general idea of what to look for. Hopefully those MDD outfits will fit fine. That first one is exactly the kind of thing I'm looking for. It might be a while before I commit to buying one, but it's important that I have all of the information first.

Merry Christmas from your resident president. I hope you all have a very good one <3