Narin

From Den of Angels BJD Wiki
Jump to: navigation, search

Narin is a Korean company that was established in 2004 by artist Bimong. There were two sculpts; the male was Narin, meaning "a child from the sky" and the female Narae, meaning "wings" in traditional Korean. The dolls were produced in 2 sizes, 43/44cm and 60cm. The dolls were originally produced using French resin in Snowy White, Pinky White, Golden Beige, and Tanning.

The original intention was to limit production to 1000 of each face plate. The dolls were tracked through a serial number in the head. One collector attempted to track these serial numbers with a Database. Somewhere along the rocky road of production this practice was abandoned.

In the early years Narindolls were offered through Dollmore or directly through Bimong himself. Beginning in 2006 Narindolls were then offered through Dollfair International.

In December 2006 Narindolls began adding UV Additive to all its dolls to better protect against the yellowing common with French resin. Narindolls tested it in direct summer sun in Korea and the damage was minimal. The best advice is for all dolls to be kept away from direct sunlight and heat!

The Narin/Narae body sculpts remained the same from 2004 but in December 2007 Narindolls introduced a new knee joint in its 43 cm dolls.

In 2008 there was a shortage of French resin which increased waiting times for finished dolls. Dollfair orders #62 through #69 were affected by this shortage. Dollfair even closed their ordering period for a month to help reduce the backlog. Catrina Sanders, owner of Dollfair, met with the CEO of Narindolls and the French company producing the resin. Catrina negotiated an agreement that Narindolls would be given priority for the raw materials.

During order #62 there was also a problem of breakage with the new knee joints. Dollfair and Narindolls worked to resolve the issues to customer satisfaction by offering extra joints or offering legs with the older knee design. Customers that requested the old legs had an even longer wait because those molds had been taken out of production. However, all issues was eventually resolved.

Because many collectors shied away from French resin due to concerns of yellowing, Narindolls began producing dolls in urethane resin. It was also felt this would help reduce backlogs in production. Narindolls and collectors just couldn't catch a break. The French resin issue was resolved but January 2009 through October 2009 there was a shortage of urethane resin. The resin company that Narindolls dealt with went bankrupt. This created a significant backlog in production. A new CEO was hired for Narindolls and new casting was underway with 2 companies to help with production.

On March 31, 2010 the 5 year contract Bimong had given to his investors expired. Effective 4/1/2010 Dollfair International and Bimong took over production of all Narindolls, with the exception of Shahti. Dollfair started their own casting company in Ohio.

Customer service through Dollfair initially was good. Catrina was active on DoA, hosted a live chat with Bimong on her Dollfair site, and actively promoted Narindolls. But communication was often sporadic. After taking on production of Narindolls orders were not being fulfilled and customers were unable to contact Catrina. A scandal in 2010 ensued with over 80 outstanding orders. Eventually contact was made with Dollfair and refunds were issued to some but not all customers. Bimong stepped in and personally honored the orders. D-Storic felt it wasn't fair for Bimong to accept all the financial responsibility so they stepped in to help honor outstanding orders.

A thread was started to track the outstanding waiting list and the resolution. Narin Waitlist

D-Storic began producing Narindolls effective Nov 20, 2011. During a large Christmas Event order some dolls experienced warping problems due to an incorrect resin mixture. The problems were:

- distortion of body parts and head
- softness of resin, even clothes could cause indentations on the body
- skin irritation after touching the resin
- strong smell of the resin

During the time D-Storic was producing the dolls there were delayed orders. In addition, other doll companies being produced by D-Storic went out of business. Days before the Christmas Event orders D-Storic announced their contract with Narindolls would end effective 12/31/2013.

Effective 1/01/2014 all Narindolls are sold directly through Art-Bimong Bimong established the following schedule for release:

Odd Months (1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11) pre-order for 40cm series Narin & Narae
Even Months (2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12) pre-order for 60cm series Narin & Narae


In February 2017 Bimong announced the following scheduled line-up for development:

65Narin & 60Narae couple
40Narin & 40Narae New couple + Classic couple
Dandelion 51cm New body
Chuu&Chuubi New body 27cm couple
Shahti New body 16 inches Fashion Doll
Other parts/ Animals/ Characters


January 2018 N40 new Narae pre-order included limited edition of 20 N42C head and parts:

Silicone eyeball fixation device
Teeth parts & cat ears
Hand-made Pouch
Cedar Laser Cutting Certificate


April 2018 was a re-release of Classic Narin 44cm & Narae 42cm Couple. This included upgraded body parts - double elbow joint silicone pad, shoulder joint silicone pad, silicone pad added to pelvic joint & neck joint, and added canine-shaped brakes to knee joints. Bimong also released a new skin color - Oriental skin.

Lines

  • Narin
  • Narae
  • Dandelion
  • Chuu

Narin

The N40 series Narin classic body has been the same since 2004. Bimong did refresh the molds and updated the knee and elbow joints for the January 2018 release.

Narin N40 Measurements
Height - 44cm (including head)
Head circumference - 6.5"
Neck circumference - 7cm
Chest circumference - 16.5cm
Waist circumference - 13.5cm
Hip circumference - 19cm
Wrist circumference - 4cm
Foot size - 5cm
Ankle circumference - 5.5cm
Arm length (from shoulder point to wrist) - 13.5cm
Leg length (from the waist point to ankle) - 25cm
Eyeball size - 10-12mm
Wig size - 6.5"


Narin dolls do not have a head cap as many other BJDs. They have a removable face plate. All heads are sold with these removable face plates. Narin was available with the following head/face plates:

Classic Narin N401
Normal Open-eyed Narin N403
Sleeping Narin N401 SP released April 2018 limited 20
1/3 open Narin
2/3 open Narin N401, re-released April 2018 limited 20
Narin Butterfly N411
Narin Dreamer N415
Narin Heartbreak N414 (same as Narae Heartbreak. face plate is unisex)
Narin Tongue N41K
Narin Dragonfly N413

Narin and Narae heads are interchangeable on the N40 series bodies but Narin and Narae heads are not interchangeable on the N60 series bodies.


The N60 series Narin classic body was first released in October 2005. The body had been on a 10 year hiatus and it was again released in October 2016 with reworked joints.

Narin N60 Measurements
Height: 60cm (head included)
Chest circumference: 21.5cm (8.5" wig)
Waist circumference: 21.2cm
Hips circumference: 26.1cm
Shoulder to shoulder: 12.5cm
Arm length (no hands): 18.8cm
Leg length: 32cm
Foot length : 7.8cm


The N60 face plates:

N609 Narin "Charisma"
N613 Narin
N61E Elf ears
N61K Ver 1 1/3 open eyes normal
N61K Ver 2 1/3 open eyes Vampire


Narin N65 pre-order was held December 2016, 10 years after last N60 release. The N65 body had slim pelvis and more musculature through chest, back, and arms. Based upon customer feedback Bimong began creating an N68 body.

Height - 65cm 68cm
Head circumference - 8.3inch
Eyeball size - 12mm - 14mm
Neck circumference - 11cm
Shoulder width 16cm
Foot length 9.5cm


Narae

The early heads for N40 Narae had an interesting feature. There was a hole in the back of the head which held a perfume sponge. There was a separate eye mechanism which was controlled by a magnet embedded in the right hand. When the hand was held up to her head it caused the eyes to swivel.

The N40 series were originally released wearing a bra and underpants but currently are released nude.

The N40 series Narae classic body had been the same since 2004, with the exception of the reworked knee joints in 2007. Bimong did refresh the molds and updated the knee and elbow joints for the January 2018 release.

Narae N40 Measurements
Height - 42cm (including head)
Head circumference - 6.5"
Neck circumference - 6.5cm
Chest circumference - 16.8cm (Normal breast)
Waist circumference - 12.5cm
Hip circumference - 18.5cm
Wrist circumference - 3.5cm
Foot size - 5cm
Ankle circumference - 5.5cm
Arm length (from shoulder point to wrist) - 12.5cm
Leg length (from the waist point to ankle) - 24.5cm
Eyeball size - 10-12mm
Wig size - 6.5"

Bimong sculpted a new N40 series body with improved joint mobility and aesthetics. Surface reinforcement parts between ball joints were added along with anti-slipping silicone pads. Bimong added 17 new parts including hidden pieces. Bimong also modified the pelvis and knee joint by adding a tiny brake around joint. This allowed a greater range of flexibility as well as allowing the doll to stand more easily. This body was first made available with the November 2016 pre-order.

With this pre-order for the new N40 body Bimong offered an N410 head, fist hand, Meronica hand, high heeled feet, pointe feet, normal, and large breast.

New Narae N40 Measurements
Height - 43cm
Head circumference - 6.5"
Neck circumference - 6.5cm
Shoulder width - 7cm (from shoulder end to end 8.5cm)
Chest circumference - 17cm (small) 18cm (normal) 19cm (large)
Waist circumference - 13cm
Hip circumference - 21.5cm
Arm length (from shoulder point to wrist) - 13cm
Wrist circumference - 3.7cm
Leg length (from waist point to ankle) - 25cm
Length from groin to ankle - 20cm
Ankle circumference - 5cm
Eyeball size - 10mm
Wig size - 6.5"
Foot size - 5.5cm

Based upon further research and development Bimong again modified the new Narae N40 series body. The upgraded parts were wrist, ankle, pelvis, and knee joints. Inside the pelvis contains an exclusive silicone pad. This body was first released in September 2017.

January 2018 once again featured an upgraded triple-rail knee joints in an effort to produce a more aesthetic and natural pose. The pelvic silicone pads are bigger and the frictional force allows more stable posture. The wrist and ankle joints were made into one part creating a more natural line as well as additional detailing of the fingernails and toenails. Another major upgrade was the option of detachable removable breast plates. You could choose between small, medium, or large breast plates. This body was a limited edition of 100.

Narindolls do not have a head cap as many other BJDs. They have a removable face plate. All heads are sold with these removable face plates. Narae was released with the following head/face plates:

Classic Narae N402
Normal open-eyed Narae N404
Sleeping Narae N410
1/3 open Narae N408
2/3 open Narae N406
Narae Butterfly N412
Narae Dreamer N416
Narae Heartbreak N414 (same as Narin Heartbreak. Face plate is unisex).
Narae Tongue N42K
Narae Cat N42C - new limited 20

Narin and Narae heads are interchangeable on the N40 series bodies but Narin and Narae heads are not interchangeable on the N60 series bodies.


The N60 series was released in 2005 with the following measurements:

Height: 57cm (head included)
Chest circumference: 20.3cm (8" wig)
Waist circumference: 17.5cm
Hips circumference: 26.3cm
Shoulder to shoulder: 11.5cm
Arm length (no hands): 18cm
Leg length: 31cm
Foot length : 6.9cm


The N60 face plates:

N610 Narae "Mature"
N610 Narae sleep eyes
N608 Narae 1/3 eyes open eyes
N60S Narae
N612 Narae
N614 Narae
N62K Narae1/3 eyes Vampire teeth


The N60 series originally were released wearing cotton pajamas but dolls are currently released nude.


Dandelion

Mindulrae is Korean for dandelion, and also rhymes with Narae. Like the dandelion, Mindulrae may seem vulnerable but she is very strong. Mindulrae was a girl in the ghetto, without a mother, waiting from her father to return home from work.

Mindulrae was originally exhibited in many doll exhibits and galleries over a couple years. She was a favorite of Bimong's and he thought of her as his little daughter.

In October of 2008 Dandelion was offered for sale for the first time. She was released in french resin or matte urethane in pinky white, golden beige, snow white, and oriental. She was released wearing underpants. Her measurements:

Height: 38 cm
Circumference of head: 18.5 cm
Eyes: 12mm
Chest: 20 cm
Waistline: 17 cm
Hip: 21 cm
Length of an arm: 13 cm
Length of leg: 16 cm
Length from waist to feet: 22 cm
Length of foot: 5.5 cm

Dandelion's measurements are similar to the Kish 14 inch Chrysalis dolls and there are many seamstresses who makes clothing for this size.

In 2011 Bimong released Dandelion with a different body which was closer in proportion to Narae and Narin. The original Dandelion was too large to display comparatively with Narae or Narin. The new measurements:

Height: 43cm
Head size: 19cm (7.5inch)
Neck: 6.5cm
Width: 7cm
Top Bust: 19cm
Under Bust: 18.5cm
Waist: 15.5cm
Pelvis: 20cm
Thigh: 11cm
Shoulder to Wrist: 13cm
Pelvis to Knee: 11cm
Knee to Ankle: 11cm
Ankles: 6cm
Foot: 5cm

In November 2017 a special Dandelion gift set was released with 2 heads. It was a new 6.5" head with open mouth, teeth plate, and a silicone eye holder. It had a special gold plated head plate. The other head was the original Dandelion head shrunk to 6.5". It had a stainless steel head plate. The dolls heads were placed in a special cloth pouch inside a special cedar box, and included a cedar limited edition certificate of authenticity. This special edition was limited to 100 sets.

In February 2018 Bimong announced his plans to release a 52cm version of Dandelion. That will be Bimong's last planned release of new dolls.


Limited Releases

2008

In 2008 Narindolls and Dollfair partnered for a limited release of 20 Captiva Narae for Florida IDEX, Captiva Island.

Narindolls and Dollfair partnered to release an OOAK Narae to benefit the International Association for BJD Artists Workshop-Retreat 2008. This doll was the Holiday Narae from 2006 Doll Reader which had been stored in a vault for 2 years.

2010

Narindolls and Dollfair once again partnered to release 2 dolls for IDEX in Orlando January 2010. Bimong wrote a story of fallen angels Narae & Narin. Narae My Angel and Narin Fallen Angel were premiered at IDEX and featured in the Debut of Dolls magazine from Doll Reader.

2011

Bimong sculpted a Neferti head compatible with 60cm dolls. The head was released with a limited edition of 30 in four colors. There is a discussion thread for Neferti

2013

Bimong sculpted Shahti as a 16 inch BJD Fashion doll. This doll was sold through Jigamaree

2015

In September 2015 Bimong released Meronica. In addition to the new face plate she was released on a new double jointed 40cm body. This body was the precursor to the new N40 body for Narae released in 2017.

2016

Bimong had a giveaway drawing for reaching 1000 followers on Instagram. He offered an N404 head on a large breast body with faceup, custom wig, and glass eyes.

During the November 2016 pre-order for the Narae40 new body Bimong offered an N410 sleeping head, fist hand, Meronica hand, high heeled feet, pointe feet, and normal or large breast.

During the December 2016 N60 pre-order Bimong offered a Kiss head Narin and Narae couple. For customers choosing Narin they received the Narin Kiss head, plus Vampire and Human teeth parts, and 4 tongue parts. For customers choosing Narae they received the Narae Kiss head, plus Vampire and Human teeth parts, and 4 tongue parts.

2017

Bimong had a giveaway drawing for reaching 3000 followers on Instagram. He offered a Real Skin Narin N411 head on Version 2 classic body and a Real Skin Narae N412 head on classic body.

2018

Bimong released the following:

Re-release new Narae40 upgraded body with limited edition of 100
Re-release Narin N401-SP sleeping head with limited edition of 20
Re-release Narin N401-2/3 open eyes head with limited edition of 20
Re-release Narae60 N60S sleeping head with limited edition of 20
Narae N42C cat head including cat ears, teeth parts, silicone eye fixation holder, hand-made pouch

All limited edition items included cedar laser cut Certificate of Authenticity.

Links

DoA databases

External Links

Wigmakers

Shoemakers

Clothing


Pattern Makers

Eyes