Maskcat 57cm Dolls - part 2

@lyaam12 - Thank you very much for that information on the eyes! I'm quite ambitious (I also want to sculpt my own heads at some point) but I don't always succeed in my ambitions, so it's good to have a backup plan. I've seen Thesecretartstudio's work and it looks wonderful!

Margo really is pretty in tan! The tan looks well balanced - not too yellow and not too red/orange and the slight translucence gives it a nice glow. There could be a tan girl in my future too!

I think for now I've decided on NS, mostly on the basis of versatility. I figure there isn't really a wrong decision here, because even if I ultimately decide I like WS better later I'll have a doll here to make clothes/wigs/etc. for while waiting.

Anyway, I should take the plunge soon because I've already purchased one outfit and some shoes for her. I'm very susceptible to shoes haha, especially Victorian style boots (I have three pairs in black in different styles already - oops!). What kind of shoes have you tried?

Also, please don't apologize for the photos - more photos can only be a good thing in my opinion! That's a nice one in your most recent post!

 

@StellaMarigold :It's good to be ambitious! It's better to try even if you fail, than not trying at all, because you will always have that frustration!

The TS is lovely...I do love Margo in that color, though I will perhaps wait next year, to see if there is a new head I like more. (That and I think Margo would also look lovely in WS, as a sickly beauty. )

NS is a really pretty color! I look forward to your doll's arrival! And you are right: there is no wrong decision. XD

I bought lots of shoes from Thedollyplanet's taobao store (Dolladore). Maskcat's girl seem to fit most SD-13 shoes, and that's quite the common size. I also love shoes, haha.^^ I like loafers and practical shoes for my Yaël (because she is an herbalist) and high-heeled ones for my Pasiphaë (because she is a divorced ex-queen). But I found some patterns on Deviant art and I think I could make basic loafers and boots, and if it works, high heels. I have a Singer handcranked toy machine that can sew tiny stitches and I am pretty sure that if I replace the needle, I could sew thin leathers. I just finished my first dress on that machine, so I am beginning to understand it and get the hang of it! (though it's far from perfect, haha). I would just need to make soles out of either clay, resin, cardboard, leather, cork or foam.

Failing that, there is always Lomi's playground awesome no-sew tutorial for boots: (11) How to make boots for BJDs - Beginner friendly tutorial! - YouTube

I kinda want to try making hats too.^^

 

@lyaam12 - Congratulations on your new job and ordering a Frances head (I saw it in the other thread)!

Thank you for the information on shoes - I'll definitely check there in the future. I would like to make shoes, too - I'm hoping to learn how to 3D model soles so I can have them printed. Then I can also make roller skates, ice skates, etc.

I was looking at Thesecretartstudio's work on Etsy last night - the eyes look so pretty and get such good reviews! When you said that you added a ring around the eye, do you mean the "shadow" option shown in the 5th photo of this listing? I will probably order eyes from them eventually.

Custom doll eyes 2mm to 32mm | Etsy

Thank you!!

 

@StellaMarigold : Thank you! I am so excited (both for the job and the lovely Frances haha).

Thesecretartstudio's work is great IMO! I highly recommend them. I have glasses eyes and default acrylic eyes: while the acrylic eyes given by Maskcat are not too bad, the glass eyes are a bit flat IMO and thesecretartstudio's eyes have the most depth and look impressive in person.

By ring, I mean the iris ring in the fifth picture of the listing you have: "B. Iris (...) 3. ring " The pictures of the ring are also on the fifth picture of the listing (you have 1. no ring 2. light grey 3. grey 4. dark and light" When I ordered, the form wasn't exactly like this. There is a grey ring on the light green eyes worn by my Yaël and there is a black ring on the grey eyes worn by my Astrid on this picture (yes, it's the horror movie one. XD)

IMG_2848 by Lyam, sur Flickr

If you want a particular color for the ring that is not listed, I think you can ask? Personally, I like the darker rings as it's more dramatic.

 

@lyaam12 - Thank you for those details about the eyes! I do like the look of a darker ring around the iris. Thesecretartstudio has a lot of options to try. The only eyes I currently own are Masterpiece silicone eyes, and while they are very pretty, I want to try something else in the future - they seem prone to gathering dust.

 

@StellaMarigold : A big disadvantage of resin eyes is, that like all resin, they will end up yellowing (and unlike skin, it may look a bit weird to have yellow on eyes sclera). I am okay with reordering eyes in a few years, but it may be something worth considering.

To test out something, I got some 14mm eyes with a 5mm iris for my Maskcats. I will post comparison pictures when they come^^

 

That's a good point, and one I didn't consider. But it would be worth it for lifelike eyes.

I look forward to seeing the 14mm eyes! Sometimes small eyes seem to help the eyes look like they are focusing.

 

Sorry for the double post, but can anyone tell me what the circumference of the 3.0 Maskcat body wrist is and/or the length of an open hand from wrist ball to fingertips? @lyaam12 - I hate to ask you for anything else, but if you happen to have a measuring tape out while sewing or something...

Despite the many beautiful hand options available from the company, I plan to buy jointed hands for my doll as the main character I have in mind for her is deaf and I'd like to attempt some ASL poses. The two options I like best are:

Resinsoul (1/3 Female) which are 6.5cm long with a 5cm wrist circumference.
http://www.resinsoul.com/05-chanpin/p-001-1.asp?id=454

And Doll Legend (1/3 Female):
6.3cm in length. Unfortunately the circumference isn't given, but the width across is listed as 1.6cm.
Jointed Hands,Doll Legend - BJD, BJD Doll, Ball Jointed Dolls - Alice's Collections

Now that the new "holding" hands are available on the MC website, I plan to order my girl this weekend (eek!).

Thank you!!

 

@StellaMarigold : No problem! I am always happy to help and I will measure as soon as I am back home this evening!

That's a very intriguing idea, I love the idea of a character using ASL!

See you later!

EDIT:

Length (from wrist joint to end of the middle finger: around 6.6 cm.

Circumference of the wrist joint: about 6 cm

Width of the wrist joint : about 1.7 cm

The circumference of the wrist joint seems wrong somewhat, but I measured at the widest part (which was not meant to fit into the arm socket, as only about a third of the wrist joint goes inside), so maybe that's why? Or perhaps I slipped up? I am more confident with the measure of the wrist joint (though I don't have the tool to measure it accurately) and if you apply the mathematical formula C = 2 x Pi x radius, you do get 5.3 cm as a circumference.

Personally, I think both of those hands would be fine, but I have a preference for longer hands and Resinsoul does do color matching, which may be ideal?

 

@lyaam12 - Ah, thank you so much! This is perfect!

I'll think about which one to try. I like small hands myself (and she's supposed to be young) but you're right about Resinsoul color matching (although I think their "Normal" color already would match pretty well judging by the pair of MSD-size hands I have). They are certainly less expensive!

I don't know if the ASL idea will really work, but it's something I have wanted to try for ages!

 

If it's helpful, I can confirm MaskCat normal is a resin match to Sadol normal AND MaskCat can use Sadol hands. So Sadol's jointed girl hands should also be an option! (That said, they are SUPER pricey.)

 

@Cauldroness - Oh, they look nice too! I had never heard of Sadoll before. Have you seen photos of the jointed hands on a MC doll? They don't seem to have measurements listed for the hands anywhere I've seen them sold:

HI!!! Welcome to sadol^^
Jointed Hands[Girl] | Dolk Station - Online bjd shop
[SADOL][SD16/SD13 girl] Jointed Hands (best price at $120)

Thank you for telling me about them!

 

@StellaMarigold - I don't have the jointed hands, but I can get you photos of the regular hands on a MaskCat body. I'll try to snap some this weekend. They're a big larger than the MaskCat hands but not out-of-scale imho.

 

@Cauldroness - if you happen to have a camera out, that would be useful to see them, but only if it is convenient for you. If they are larger I probably would look for a smaller option. The Sadol jointed hands look very nice, but I have a preference for daintier hands (especially to go with the delicate-looking original Maskcat hands) so I might try one of the others first.

But thank you very much for the offer and the help!

 

I really enjoy seeing box openings and customer reviews. They are so helpful when considering buying from a company you are unfamiliar with. Mascat looks to be excellent quality.

 

I finished painting Evie, my Maskcatdoll Yael! I haven't made her wig yet, so she's wearing the one that was sent by the company

 

@Gamine : Ah she's so cute! Wonderful job on her faceup, I love how young-ish she looks!

 

@Gamine - she looks beautiful! What a pretty, natural faceup! Also I love her clothes - I'm such a fan of sweaters, but it is hard to find delicate knits.

 

@lyaam12 Thank you so much!! When she arrived and I saw her sculpt alongside my other dolls, I realized that her character would be younger than I had originally planned. I'm so glad that youthfulness comes through in her faceup!

@StellaMarigold Thank you!! I try to avoid buying clothes for my dolls when possible, but I couldn't resist getting something cute for her to wear while she patiently waits for me to sew. And knits are outside my skill set, so I can always justify purchasing sweaters

 

@Gamine Your Yael is so cute! You did a nice job on her faceup and I like a lot her outfit.