Difference between revisions of "Narin"

Revision as of 02:52, 14 June 2018

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 ended effective 12/31/2013.

Effective 1/01/2014 all Narindolls are sold directly through Art-Bimong

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

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 Narae classic body had been the same since 2004. 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

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

Dandelion

Bimong

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.

On May 5, 2010 Bimong took part in a live internet chat with collectors on Dollfair's site. He debuted Neferti and Shahti.

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 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 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

Release Narin N401-SP sleeping head with limited edition of 20, release Narin N401-2/3 open eyes head with limited edition of 20, and release Narae60 N60S sleeping head with limited edition of 20.

Links

• DoA databases: Dandelion, Narae, Narin