Current Best Buy?

That's really funny, I guess it goes to show you everything is just a matter of personal preference. I was gifted three different shades of PanPastels not too long ago (by my bff), and I far prefer my more affordable Rembrandt sof pastel sticks. They are a lot more richly saturated than the Rembrandt, but I find the latter a lot easier to blend because they have a bit more binder in them than the PanPastels. I find the PanPastels a lot messier as well, because they are pure pigment with no binder whatsoever, they literally are just pigmented dust flying all over the place if I'm not careful. However, I never did enjoy using pastels before getting into BJD for anything other than the art courses that required them -- I suffer from strong alleries all year-round, so the powder always made me stressed out whenever I had to use them prior owning BJD.

My best buy over the years have been my Rembrandt set of 15 half soft pastel sticks. I've had them for over a decade now, and I've barely made a dent on any (I've accidentally dropped them once, so a few of them did break in half, but as far as usage, it barely looks like I've used them at all!). Other face ups supply stuff I think are great buys are the inexpensive brushes at Michaels. I'm vegan so I always get whatever synthetic brushes they carry regardless of what they are intended for, they are super inexpensive most of the time and have last me a long time. I also love the Aves Apoxie sculpt (the super white kind), I still have my small containers that come carded and I probably should have put in the freezer but I haven't touched in years. I didn't even use half the 1/4 pound container, it's probably all dry now, but it really goes a long way if you're only doing facial mods -- or mods on smaller sized dolls. (:

 

I think my best buy has been the little sewing notions from isewfordolls on etsy. I love all the little in scale buttons, clasps and zippers. And I plan to order more today cause some things were out of stock last time. The scale of everything in the shop is perfect for dolly sewing.

 

I think it also has to do with the type of face up, or blush style you are after. I like more natural looking faces, the less make-up-like my face ups turn out in the end, the better for me -- and that's a little hard for me, because I love blushing so much it's hard to stop (then I regret my choices once I've sealed everything). I can see why people who are looking for super richly saturated colors would favor PanPastels over Rembrandt. I prefer less colorful blushing overall, so I think that's why I also prefer Rembrandt. You can always build the color, even if you do end up wasting a bit more fixative, but I don't really use that much fixative nor layers of color either way. I'm a bit frugal with my use of MSC. (:

 

My best buy? I'm not honestly sure. The things I use the most have to be in scale mini zippers my husband found on Etsy. They're a lifesaver when trying to make doll scale items. However, if I have to think of my proudest purchase, it has to be my Souldoll TeraZenith. I got his head as part of an event a year or two ago and recently purchased his body with the last summer sale. Between the free head and the discount on my order I truly received him for free. Yet if I go with what I use the most it has to be my Saddle stands for the dolls, because without them most of my heavier dolls would be in a perpetual state of sitting around wrinkling their lovely clothing.

 

My best buy has to be these wooden containers I bought from Michael's a while back. They work perfectly as 1/4 shelving units! My diorama has never looked better

 

Blueblood Dolls EID 70cm+ shoes and boots for a pair of chunky guys in my crew.

I'm particularly fond of the patent Oxfords I got one of them.

 

I once saw an Iple YID girl for sale really cheap on IG, she was already a steal but I asked the seller for an even better deal and surprisingly they agreed as they had been trying to sell her for a while but maybe just hadn't gotten enough attention to the post. I got the price down to about 50% of what they usually go for, and the doll came with a CoA, extras and her box. I even had to check with Iple that the product is actually legit and belonged to that person. Later I sold the head for 170 as I could not give a character to it, and gave the body to another head. I still have the body that I in the end paid only 130 dollars for. The body is still my favorite of all I have as it is so light and easy to handle, and I don't believe I would have ever bought it if it would have been for a full price, as initially I thought she is too small for my range. And if ever I am low on money, I don't feel like I have to part with her as she doesn't hold so much monetary value. It's also been easier to play with her, as I am not scared that I damage her or that she will yellow when she is out of the box. With my more expensive dolls it's good if I don't have a pocket watch to count how many seconds they can be out of the dark closet at noon.

Another really good purchase with less monetary value has been my 10 dollar brandless acrylics set from a local hardware stores' kids' department. They're really great for the price and have closer to 20 small tubes of colors. I have used them in all my faceups and they work so much better than watercolour pencil for me. Very fine paintbrushes designed specifically for miniature painting have also been a great investment, as formerly I used to cut the smallest regular brushes to be even close to what miniature brushes can do.

@Zavrinas thank you for the Etsy shop recommendation, I favorited them right away and will order some stuff once shipments move normally again! I have been struggling to find tiny buttons after the only place selling them in my country took down their website, and I have had trouble finding a decent quality supply on Ebay. They even have the mini eyelet settler I have been searching on Etsy for ages, maybe I can finally try and make corsets for my dolls! Currently it is the only thing I have to purchase ready, only because of the eyelets.

 

Honestly, my girl Harriet. She's an OfButterfliesNThings/Arwen Paulette and I'm in love. She's actually plus size, not just exaggerated pear shaped or curvy, but her posing is still decent and her face is perfect. I was very wary about spending so much money on a doll, but I have no regrets at all. I'm really glad I took the plunge!

Another one is rings from BJDouterie on Etsy. They're inexpensive and really pretty and well made. Tiny little things that add so much personality to my dolls! (Harriet is wearing one in my avatar, in fact)

 

My best buy is a pile of Heisejinyao outfits that I’ve wanted since starting the hobby. I always put them off because they cost so much, but I finally bit the bullet and ordered a bunch on layaway. I got them in earlier this week and they are beautiful! So worth it, I already want more.

 

My latest Best Buy has to be the Dollmore Trinity Elysia I got from Goodwill on ebay. She was a steal and I’m currently customizing her to my liking.
I also recently got some custom dresses from Taobao that ended up being perfect.

 

is this an Etsy seller? I love finding new clothing shops and sellers so pls send me a link

 

Heisejinyao is a much older clothing brand, I bought through their dealer, Clover Singing. Here’s a link to the doll clothes on HZ’s Taobao: https://heisejinyao.taobao.com/cate...=BJD%D2%C2%B7%FE&catName=HZBJD%D2%C2%B7%FE#bd and HZLIS衣服-黑色禁药动漫周边BJD-淘宝网
I loooove HZ clothes, so glad I could buy them now.

 

My best buy recently was finally being able to buy my grail doll!

 

I've gotten some pretty good deals off of Yahoo Japan and Mandarake lately. One of those being a dreaming El who's body was absolute filth and by the pictures looked like it didn't fit the head. The head also looked pretty rough. I bought him for $180 with shipping, cleaned up the body, restrung him, realized that he needed a head donut (that I'm waiting on) and gave him a new faceup. He's beautiful, he just needed the basics.
Very similar story with my original El, he was a banana yellow head I purchased from Ebay for $80? I sanded him down, gave him a new face, and happened to have a Volks body on hand for him.

 

Probably my 2nd AIL Elijah head that I purchased pre-owned. It was only £35 + shipping- a total bargain and I just adore it so much^^

 

Party Martian himself-- he was a special artist cast, spotted at a con, and he came with four faces (one already painted, which I adore), a pair of pants, and the NICEST carry-cushion (which a larger doll might steal from him if he's not careful, but then, he's so easy to transport anyway, he could ride in my ita bag no problem).

 

I think it was my DCLaney with the fullset Munin as free gift. Munin costs as much as costums, so I can think about it, as a tax free purchase.

 

I bought a pair of eyes from prodolls on Etsy. They're oval glass eyes with a flat back. The iris of these eyes is frankly incedible, it looks very detailed and realistic. I bought grey eyes, but as soon as the light blue eyes are back in stock I'm getting a pair as well.