Finding your Grail... too late

You never know what may pop up second hand or in the MP. I have found that hybrids aren't that bad because often time the body is completely covered up by clothing (At least the style i enjoy). The tutorial side of DOA probably has some good tips. I find the proportion being the only important thing. Neck and head holes can be adjusted but if you have brats/cursed head sizing there's no fixing.

 

Gen-X Doll and BlueBlood Doll are the same casting company and Medusa, owner and sculptor of BlueBlood, also sculpted the heads of Gen-X--it was a collaboration of BBD and Jie doll, who is also defunct now. For what it's worth, the Jie doll bodies were identical to Gen-X bodies. I once had a BlueBlood Doll Waltz head on an old Ringdoll teen body (both NS) and it was a pretty good match/fit. However, the resin color and translucency did tend to vary a lot from batch to batch, so there's no guarantee of it matching anything perfectly.

The good thing is that the later BBDs and Gen-X dolls were less translucent and more pink toned than the older ones, and Nile is one of the newest sculpts, so that should make finding a match much easier, since you won't need to specifically look for older more translucent enviro resin.

IslandDoll might also be one to consider--their resin type is very similar to that of BBD/Gen-X. So close, in fact, that I often wondered if they shared a casting company or if the casting companies bought their resin from the same source. If your doll is NS, I think IslandDoll NS might be a decent match, and if your doll is vampire skin, I think their snow white might be close.

However, just waiting on finding one secondhand might be an option too. They weren't very popular so don't pop up terribly frequently, but when they do, they tend to go fairly cheaply. Because they weren't that popular and aren't an aesthetic that remains in high demand today, I've seen them go for about half their original value, though you might need to buy a full doll to get the body.

Sorry for the huge wall of text! If you have more questions about the dolls or company, you can ask or PM me. I am not affiliated with the company or dolls and definitely do not have all the answers, it's just that BBD was my favorite company for a long time and Medusa and I exchanged many emails over the years about the history of the company/dolls!

 

The Jie Doll body was 62cm and of recommend around that size. The heads are on the larger side of SD so I probably wouldn’t go smaller than 60cm and pretty standard size, not super skinny. 65 could probably work, just check the neck size. I believe BBD Head were 10cm neck, if I’m not mistaken.

 

I have a story to share. When I first stumbled across the Aimerai Scraps sculpt, I fell madly in love with the idea of those lovely and unusual patches on her face (a perfect time-worn, long-forgotten emotional aesthetic that truly spoke to my heart!) Her character and in-depth storyline came to me immediately, and I fell hopelessly in love...only to find out she was limited and had just sold out. I was completely gutted! I searched the second-hand markets routinely, to no avail...my grail, gone from my grasp forever! No one wanted to let them go. But then Aimerai eventually released the identical sculpt with a different face-up as the Scraps Illusion, and she was even more perfect for my character! Que the happy dance...until I realized I had found out about her too late too, and she was already sold out. Heart-wrenching! Then over a year later I was casually perusing a dealer’s website and they actually still had one in back-stock! I ordered her on the spot and she has had an honored place in my collection ever since. A happy ending!

 

I was also in the same situation. I didn't have enough notice about Williams ~Romantic Glance ver.~ until he is released and I had no chance to adopt him since I didn't attend the release event. Feel so regret...

 

The grail that got away? Hmm. It has to be for me, The I.O.S. Kaneki Ken Character Doll. I wanted him so damn badly when he was announced! The promo photos were to die for. But alas, I had no way of ordering him much less buying. I was so sad. Once time passed and I kept looking, I couldn't find him anywhere..... No owner pictures, barely any info if the doll existed. O.O. I haven't checked for him in a while, because as much as I would drop a heft of monies on him if I found one, I've pretty much given up.

 

Yes! I found a cute small pet doll from Charmdoll that was only given away for an event, but I saw it after months after the event. I found one on the fb sales group, but I was too late and it was gone again. I desperately spammed all my socials to find and luckily found one when someone on instagram pointed one out on taobao for me!

 

Took me about four or five years to get mine, because at first I couldn't afford it and then the company went bankrupt. Another company bought the molds but it wasn't the same because I specifically wanted her with original default makeup, eyes and old body, then I posted a WTB and someone offered me one it was quite a lucky moment.

 

What annoys me the most are the grails, which I could have bought at release but didn't. And now I can't find them anymore or only at horrendous prices.
But I'm not giving up hope yet, I'm sure I'll find them at some point.

 

I found my most recent grail a little over two years ago, a Irrealdoll Nur. My latest grail is a Merrydollround girl head I can hybrid onto a Dollstown 13 year girl body. Some are harder to find as especially independent artists lose the molds to age so they can't be ever made again. I personally love when I find an extra special doll that I can enjoy even for a few months. As it was an added joy to discover another great doll.

 

I have always had problems finding bodies that I completely like. All are a little bit off here and there. Until I found DC A-Body-02 and immediately fell in love just to find out it's been discontinued.
I keep saving in hopes of getting it some day.

 

Most artists do keep a first cast as a master to make new molds, though.

 

True I am sure, but I have decided to start downsizing as I am sure one day the dolls will have to be second to my health.