Elfdoll Catsy

I've been admiring Catsy for about as long as she's been out (I remember when she was listed as Carsi), and I've finally made up to buy her once I scrap together the money. She will be my first BJD, so this whole experience is new to me!
First off, which site is preferable to order from, Elfdoll or eLuts? eLuts seems to be a little more user-friendly, but I wouldn't know. I admit, I'm a little nervous about the idea of ordering from either website, since they're both based overseas. Are there any other Elfdoll dealers who sell Catsy? Is her eye colour really random, or does she come with blue eyes? All the pictures I've seen of newly arrived Catsies have blue eyes, which is why I ask.
I've heard that Dawn and Kelly clothes will fit her, but are there any others that will work as well? Would the Volks Who's That Girl clothing lines fit, or am I way off on that? I haven't seen Catsy or Who's That Girl in person. What about Pullip?
Are there any acceptable sealant alternatives to Mr Super Clear that are less toxic and easy to come by?
Finally, what's the best part about sharing your home with Catsy? That's the fun question!
Thank you, everyone, for putting up with my questions!

 

We have several members at Ryung-Soah who have bought and all love Catsy. We say we are for Rainys but we have lots of Catsy pictures there. I haven't heard any bads about her other than people are always surprised how small she is but that's probably mostly because they own 60cm Rainys.

Any dealer who handles Elfdoll can get you Catsy as well so you have several additional choices where to buy her from.

Testor's Dullcote is of course the most oft mentioned alternative to MSC. We've had some members try other brands of flat finish sprays from some of the craft stores as well. All are toxic in one way or another so if that's your concern, probably any paint spray in a can is.

As for eyes, she's a bjd. If you don't like them, change them. That's one of the great things about all these dolls.

 

Catsy is a lot thinner than WTG dolls, so the outfits won't fit.
Is said that winx outfits will go...you have to look for elfdoll clothes, because dolls like adel share the same body as catsy.
She is really beautiful, expecially with custom makeup.
She wears 8 mm eyes, but also 6 mm are OK.
Luts is the most friendly place where to buy, but all other dealers can work fine.
And last: she is often stringed too tight, so you will have to restring her ( simple) , even if you don't want to change the leg part!

 

This is funny. I remember when Catsy/Carsi first came out and I also desired her since then, but I always ended up buying another doll first (and another, and another). I finally bought Catsy just about a week ago!

Catsy can wear everything the other Elfdoll mature-body tinies can wear (Adel, Sylph, Lyn, etc.). This includes clothing from Elfdoll (if you can find them - try www.dollsandfriends.com ), Kelly clothes (a bit wide and too short but cute), Kelly shoes, Heidi Ott adult dollhouse shoes, many Dawn doll clothes, Baby Bratz clothes, and I think Barbie Mini Princess clothes.

(and thanks Ashbet for reminding me! no list is complete without these...)
Margarita makes great clothes (like slacks that fit!) for Elfdolls and other tinies - her Marketplace thread is here:
http://www.denofangels.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36563

And her sister Rosa makes great boots, shoes and toys for Elfdolls and other tinies:
http://www.rosapalomino.com/forsale_tiny.htm

And tinybear makes beautiful clothes for tinies:
http://littlebloomers.tripod.com/thesleepingelf/

With 8mm eyes, the iris will fill her eyehole (more like a cat). With 6mm eyes, quite a bit of white will show around the iris (more like a human).

For a LOT of answers about Catsy, go to Advanced Search and search for Catsy, selecting Search Titles Only in the dropdown and just the Tiny Dolls topic in the topic list.

One example thread found this way...

Scroll down this one to see a Catsy with custom faceup in 6mm and 8mm eyes:

http://www.denofangels.com/forums/showthread.php?t=60760

BTW - when you see the store shop4dolls or shop4dollsandbears mentioned, it is now www.freespiritz.com and http://www.bjdollarama.com/

Re where to buy... If Eluts has one in stock or expects one soon, then they would probably be faster than Elfdoll. Sometimes August is a very humid month in Korea and there can be a longer wait for Elfdolls because the weather isn't always good for making dolls. But if Elfdoll has one in stock, then they would be fast too. You can also check http://www.bjdollarama.com/ www.freespiritz.com www.dollsandfriends.com and see if they have a Catsy in stock. I lucked out and spotted an in-stock Catsy at http://www.junkyspot.com/OBITSU/obindex.html - they still have Catsy listed so maybe they have another - you could email them and see. If you manage to find one in the US or preorder one through a US store, your shipping will be much lower.

Re sealant - the only alternative I know of is Testor's Dullcote but I think some people have problems with it. Search the Painting and Customizing thread for info. In addition, since it is similar composition to Mr. Super Clear, it is probably toxic too. Also, for some reason Catsies sometimes seem a bit more slippery/shiny than the other Elfdoll tinies so be sure to unstring and wash the resin parts in some kind of pure clear or white plain soap (? - see Painting and Customizing), and dry thoroughly, before spraying or the spray may not adhere well to the resin. Maybe check with some of the people who have customized Catsy for the recommendations. I know little about this.

Carolyn

 

Thanks everyone! All your answers have been really helpful- I can't wait until I can make my order.

 

Elfdoll offers free shipping on dolls ... Luts charges $31.91 ... both are shipped via EMS. So you might have to decide whether you'd rather buy something that's in stock at Luts right-this-minute, or whether you can stand to wait an additional 15-20 days & have that money to buy clothes or whatever.

 

While I can't answer the questions about Catsy herself, I can offer some answers on Testors VS Mister Super Clear. I've had the chance to use both on my dolls. Both coat very well, but the fumes are VERY strong. Spraying outside is the best choice, but if you can't for any reason I recommend doing the spraying in a large room with some kind of fan going (I use a giant box fan) If for some reason you mess up and need to remove the coating, Testors comes off resin easier than MSC. Rubbing alcohol removes the coating, but with MSC you have to do some scrubbing and with Testors I didn't.

The important thing to remember (aside from the fumes) is to spray from a distance. If you spray too close you get these nasty air bubbles and your poor doll looks like they've got chicken pox! XD

 

I also got some Catsy faceup tips from evenstar whose Catsy twins are at the link I posted above showing 6mm and 8mm eyes.

Carolyn

 

Sunrise Dolls and Collectibles is another great place to get Elfdoll things--- www.sunrisecollectibles.com. The owner, Janis, is on DOA, and she's super.

 

Sunrise is going out of handling BJDs, though. I don't think she has any Catsys.

 

Yeah I checked Sunrise when I was listing the links and didn't see any Elfdoll tinies at all.

Carolyn

 

Some Heidi Ott dollhouse clothes also fit, and at least the shirts for Banji dolls fit, as well (haven't tried any bottoms sized for them yet) . . . also, there are several custom clothing makers on here who make GREAT tiny outfits -- I've bought from The Sleeping Elf and Margarita Rosa :>

I love Jinx (my Catsy!)

-- Andi

 

I totally suggest JunkySpot. You'll get your doll in around 3 days if you order from him.

 

Yes, o: Emory is very good about how well he ships bjds.

 

I just love her! Her name is Asphodel, and I'll post pics of her when I get back to my apartment. She's even cuter in real life! I was afraid of the resin, afraid that it would be too delicate to play with, but she's quite sturdy. Overall I'm very happy with her. There's just a couple of things- her knees like to stay bent. I had read on the forums that sticking some wire in her legs helps her to pose, but it didn't seem to be helping, as her boot feet are solid. Is that just for her bare feet, or am I just doing it wrong? I've only gotten her to actually stand once. The other thing- her headcap doesn't like to stay flat and even on her head; it tends to pop out a little near her neck. Do others do that too? Either way, I love her to death.

 

Try pipe-cleaner instead of just plain wire. I've heard it works better. I can't testify to that fact myself, however. Just passing on a tidbit. Hope that helps!

 

is she strung to tight? You could try unstringing her then restringing her.

Can't wait to see pics!

 

Pipe cleaners get past the thicker elastics and you can guide them in from her hips, down into her knees and calves, snip the pip cleaner at her hip leaving some extra on top which ends up in her body. Their elastic is very resilient and pulling on her leg to get the pipe cleaner in won't hurt her or her elastic. I've used barbie wire in the past but I prefer pipecleaners now since its easier to bend back into shape and easier to get.

 

While waiting for my Catsy to arrive, I have been searching for a pair of eyes for her. My problem is that I want eyes with cat pupils, but most of the eye-makers I know about don't make cat's eyes that are small enough (8mm) for Catsy.

MASTERPIECE - seems the best option so far, although I've heard complaints about really long wait times (up to 16 weeks?!), plus comments about the pupils looking "pixellated". I've been searching beadandsantafanatic's shop on ebay, but there haven't been any 9mm eyes with cat's pupils so far.

SOOM - lovelovelove their eyes, but the smallest they make is 14mm (phooey).

SOULDOLL - again, 14mm is the smallest size (*sob*).

TAXIDERMY EYES - scare the flaming hooey out of me. No really, Catsy's already got a sort of peevish/diabolical expression & I find the idea of her with ultra-realistic eyes to be completely terrifying.

Soooo ... anybody have any ideas on where to get 8mm eyes with cat pupils? C'mon, I can't be the only one who wants some......

 

Nope - but you are missing from your list...

Volks USA. They some nice human-type acrylic eyes in catty colors...
http://www.volksusa.com/

Mimi Woo
Search titles here for 8mm eye
http://stores.ebay.com/Mimi-Collection

There's also Volks Japan which has more colors, and www.junkyspot.com might have some 8mm dollfie eyes.

Carolyn