I take issue with the term 'Random Eye Color'! Do you?

The random eyes are free and I remembered reading somewhere that you can request for a specific eye colour. A company, can't recall which one, assured that the eye colour will fit the doll. One good thing about it is that compared to an eyeless doll, one with eyes are easier to play with. My opinion of cos. I prefer to have eyes in the doll than one staring back at me with blank sockets all the time I'm saving up for enchanted doll eyes.

 

The only things I've ever ordered from Soom are MD's, so for those you either buy the eyes for extra or you don't get eyes at all. But they seem to be really nice to work with (like for my North I was able to get 2 sets of the same clothes rather than one of each like listed on the order page) and I'm sure when you put in an order you could ask for whatever eye color you prefer rather than getting a random pair from them.

Anyway, I'm with everyone that doesn't really care. My first doll came with random eyes and they were the color I wanted (and I didn't even ask!) and I love how they look with her. I also consider them free, because quite frankly these dolls are really expensive and a pain to make (resin casting is not a fun or easy thing to do) and I really doubt that them taking out the eyes would change the price at all.

 

Never been a problem for me, either. I have tons of repeat eyes now, lots of default-acrylics-in-random-colors; they're good for giving away as freebies with other items, or taking to swap-meets, or donating to your local eyeball-freak friend.

If a doll doesn't come with absolutely perfect eyes (i.e. rarely), I'm going to be buying different ones anyway, or else using eyeballs that I've already got lying around the house. There are embarrassing amounts of Sooms & Masterpieces & Gumdrops lying around here, so the lads don't go wanting for luscious eye candies. On the other hand, sometimes those default eyes are perfect, either for this doll or someone else.

That whole entitlement attitude gives me a headache, too. Sheesh. If something isn't to your taste when it arrives, just go customize it. Don't berate the company for not reading your mind.

 

Yeah, no. Random eye colour is nowhere near as significant as random paint colour of a car. It's more like... throwing a fit over not being allowed to choose the colour of the complimentary travel coffee mug that the car sales company includes as a gift to their customers. Most people are probably gonna chuck it in the back of their cupboards somewhere anyways. While maybe somewhere down the line of calculating doll prices, the cost of the other accessories (i.e. box, pillows, random eyes, etc) are factored in, you're not being charged extra for the eyes, so yes, they're the free complimentary coffee mug with the doll purchase.

The only use I've ever had for free doll eyes I got from companies was sending them out as a [yes, free] gift when I ended up selling the doll, and I still have a few kicking around because no one wants them. I replace all of my doll eyes with urethane anyways, so I couldn't care less about what the free colour is like, though I really appreciate doll companies sending them along anyways because its much nicer to have a doll with some sort of eyes while waiting for its proper ones. It's actually a bit interesting to see what the doll comes with, as an alternative colour choice.

 

I honestly just don't get why it's such a big deal. To those who do take issue with it, have you actually tried asking the companies when you order your doll if they'll give you a certain colour? For the most part the vast majority of them will do their best to do that for you, sometimes they can't if the eyes are out of stock or what ever but for the most part they're incredibly accommodating if you just ask politely.

 

I agree!
why make such a big deal out of something so small? especially when it takes 2 minutes to send a message to the company!

 

Agreed! The sense of entitlement is staggering sometimes. You pay to own the doll. You do not pay to have the company obey your every whim if you are not ordering a Volks FCS doll. If you ASK politely, they will probably give you the eyes you want if they are able to do so, but these dolls are meant to be customised and those eyes are generally more or less throwaway/junk. If you can't be arsed to take the extra thirty seconds to put your request in the little "notes" box, don't complain if you don't get the colour you want, just suck it up and buy the exact ones you would like to have. Even if you do get the colour you request, you'd probably end up replacing them with something better.

Why? It's a customising hobby. Do you complain about having to pay extra for a wig or shoes when the random ones you might get aren't what you wanted? The eyes may be a tiny portion of the price, but you're agreeing that you're okay with getting a random colour of eyes when you purchase the doll. Again, you are free to request that the company provide you with a specific colour if it is that important to you.


I really, truly do not get how this is even important enough to be some kind of issue. It's never been a problem for me, as I'm another who hardly ever uses default eyes. I can count on one hand the number of my dolls which still use the eyes they came with from the company. (A grand total of...three, out of 22. Even my newest boy, who came with lovely brown glass eyes, is using a different pair.) I also prefer the better quality acrylics, silicones and glass eyes to the generally cheap eyes most dolls come with. It isn't as though there's a dearth of choices in colour and composition of eyes out there.

 

They do let you pick the color though. Last time I ordered a Soom standard, I just dropped them a line in the order comments and they sent me the specific pair I had asked for.

Back to topic; random eyes don't bother me in the least. I usually have a very specific look for my dolls in mind to begin with, often with eyes and wigs that aren't available from the same company I'm buying the doll from, so I buy them seperately anyways and get exactly what I want.
The random eyes I've gotten with dolls for free so far, I regard as a nice little surprise. If I don't like them, I just give them away or sell them. No big deal.

 

I've always understood the eyes as being freebies so I don't have an issue with them being random. And most of the time, I actually do like the eyes my dolls came with. There are also many nice and cheap eyes out there you can buy anyway if you want to change them so it's no big deal.

Whenever I wanted a specific colour, I just left a note when I made my purchase and so far my requests have been accomodated. Though I usually don't specify which exact type of eye I want, just the general colour since it's a freebie which I don't think we have right to be so demanding about.

 

It also now occurs to me that most BJD companies don't actually produce their own eyes, so it would make sense that they would offer plenty of options for the stuff they do produce, eg, sculpt, joint system, feet, sometimes outfits and shoes, but it wouldn't make sense for them to offer options for the stuff they don't produce, eg eyes, sometimes wigs and shoes.

 

I don't mind it, because it could be something I actually find more appealing than my first choice, or I might like them in addition to what I wanted. It's fun to see what color they put in, even if it's a color I end up not liking. My BBB Apollo came with the BBB acrylics, and while I wasn't completely sold on the overall quality of the eye, I ended up liking the color more than the color of the glass ones I had also bought with him (more or less because I think I ended up getting a pair that was darker than what I had thought would look good). In the future, I might buy a pair of different acrylics or glass eyes in the color of what he came with because I liked the color.

Also, some companies will use the eyes you want if you ask them (I know Dollmore could do this). You can't ask them to switch out the acrylics for glass without paying the difference, though.

If getting a specific pair of eyes means that much to someone, then they can easily buy a second pair. Acrylics are inexpensive enough that $6 extra isn't going to break the bank, especially if the doll you're buying costs around $500. It still doesn't hurt to ask, but if they say no - and you are that hell-bent on getting the eye color you want - just don't buy from them, and find a company that will take your requests. Just don't be surprised when people find humor in the fact that the reason you didn't buy from a company is because they might give your doll brown eyes instead of green.

 

No, because suitable eyes aren't too hard to get. I think of them as a nice extra to help you start off with your new dolly. If you don't like the eyes that the company sends you, you can purchase a new pair.

Also, the eye color, even if its not the kind I want, doesn't bother me that much. Now, a wig on the other hand, would bother me a lot more if it wasn't the kind I wanted.

 

I was a little bummed by this at first, as well. However, when I first ordered my LUTS KDF Ani, I put in the comment section that, while I understood the eye color was random, I would LOVE green eyes. When he came in the mail, I found that they actually took my request into account and gave him a lovely pair of dark green eyes. I wouldn't assume this always works but it doesn't hurt to simply ask.

 

This is what I found with Luts also.. If you happen to have one with green eyes and don't have to go through any trouble it would be nice.. and they gave me green eyes with my EL. I asked nicely with no pressure or obligation. It just worked out. And even if it didn't I would have been happy with the doll. However, I have been lucky with random eyes I have not got the same colour twice.. all my dolls have different coloured eyes, mostly randomly. No brown eyes yet... that's one colour I have yet to get on a future doll perhaps. I have no aversion to brown eyes or most colours. But it's lovely to have such variety. When I get random eyes its kind of fun to see what I get. I have never gone for specific LE's mostly so this works for me.

 

Actually, I LIKE getting random eyes. Like blind-box figures, half the fun is opening the box and seeing what your prize is! I have a huge stash (30+ pairs) of glass eyes in various colours, sizes and styles. 2/3 are random eyes. All my random eyes let me try colours I wouldn't have picked first, and some of the unlikely colours are just perfect!

If it wasn't for random eyes, I would never have discovered my unknown love for grey eyes.
I mean, who picks grey? It just sounds so boring!

But then I got a doll that came with grey eyes and I instantly fell in love.
Who knew such a drab, under-appreciated eye colour could be so beautiful? It works so well with so many wig colours, and it really makes the colours and details of the face-up stand out. And the eyes look so gentle and soft.

 

i like the surprise of not knowing the eyecolor XDD however I have always asked specifically for no brown eyes, and I never got brown so I suppose they do listen a bit?

 

Sailorstarsun said exactly what I'm thinking about this topic. When the company offers a doll with a pair of random coloured eyes, that's what they offer for sale. Isn't demanding the company sells you something they don't offer and sell it for the exact same price of what they do offer rude? You can always ask. I once asked a company if they could send me a specific head during their "get one random head as an extra" event and they did, but I can't change their event and demand that if I pay $XXX for a doll, I should get the head I want as the extra head. That would be very rude.

 

They are included in the package when you buy a doll. When you buy a car you sometimes get one of those scented trees to hang in your window. You don't get to pick the scent. That is how I see it. It is just a little extra that comes with the doll. The customizing is up to you.
I keep all my random eyes. The first thing I do when I get a new doll is to go through my eye collection and try them all out.
I have gotten a lot of colours I would not have bought myself and thanks to that I have sometimes changed the original idea I had for a character because one pair of those freebies worked better.
Most of the times I buy new ones any way even if the colour is right. I might want it in a different material or smaller size. The acrylics I just keep for the fun of trying out different colours but there are occasions I have actually ended up using some of the glass ones.
I collect dolls to have fun and relax. I cannot be bothered to whine about the little things like free eyes or seams.

 

Random eyes wouldn't really bother me, since I like variety and I'm usually not too picky. But I can see how it could bug others. It's a legitimate complaint to have.

almyki