Must Have BJD Supplies

basics I like to have on hand:
a head puller
sturdy twine for pulling strings when restringing
hemostats
a small hairbrush for wigs
magic erasers
blue tack for eye putty (the sticky kind)
lots of different sizes of s-hooks & elastic string

Not to mention faceup & repair supplies, and so many other little bits and bobs...

 

Hah, I had no idea this was a thing that existed! *adds heads puller to list*

 

If you're going to do face-ups I strongly suggest a hygrometer which measures the humidity. MSC turns unstable when used at too high a humidity and since humidity is a fickle thing the hygrometer saved me more than once.

 

I've seen a lot of good items in this thread. My personal favorite is a sharp craft knife for those hard to reach crevices when removing a faceup. I even use mine for modding eyes.

 

Seeing this mentioned makes me wonder if that's what happened to the mouth on one of my "rescue" boys; for some reason, the corners of his mouth have been dug out roughly with a knife, and based on some of the other things done to him, it may very well have been an attempt to "clean" a faceup off.

You're really better off with toothpicks and time. You aren't going to gouge the resin with toothpicks, but one wrong move with that craft knife and you've got a freshly modded sculpt whether you wanted one or not. I've removed some pretty extensive staining with toothpicks, rubbing alcohol, and time, so it can be done.

And personally, the things I wouldn't be caught without are ribbon, chopsticks, spare elastic (some for each size of doll I have), silicone ear plugs, and a magic eraser. I'm sure the eye putty and eraser have been covered, but I've now had three instances where I needed to do a restringing soon after a doll arrived. (One, I accidentally unstrung and couldn't reuse the string he came with. A second was secondhand, and his stringing was utterly shot, he couldn't even sit without being braced. The third, I needed to swap his body stringing to add a neck key, so he got a quick restringing during the box opening that included said neck key and new elastic.)

I've got plenty of other supplies, but those are all things I've gained over time, and all things I can easily get by without if needed; the restringing supplies, eye putty, and quick cleaner are all I really need.

 

Yup, like everyone else said, definitely the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser.
Doll stands are very helpful too, I fear standing up my dolls without some form of support.

 

I am wondering what brand of metallic paint people use for painting dolls. We sell a few different types at the place where I work but I'm not sure if they're oil based or not. I was looking for Silver and yellow-gold (brass) paints. The ones we sell look really shiny and beautiful..
Also another question, how many of you would say that Purity Seal is as good as MSC? It seems like every time I turn around, I need more MSC and it's always soo expensive. I want to try a new alternative that's cheaper and easier to find.

 

Magic Eraser, clean white washcloths, MSC, eye putty (though I reuse it forever), and I have to re-string my boy--which I've been putting off forever--but when the time comes I plan on ordering the proper tools. I can't imagine trying it without them based on everyone else's experiences. Oh, and water-soluble tacky glue, for sticking wigs to heads. I know there are other methods, but it is what I've always done.

 

@dragolivia - I have a Golden brand metallic paint that works great. You can find it in the acrylic section of most arts and craft stores. I've not used Purity Seal so I can't really comment on that one.

This is what I've found the most useful:

wig caps in various sizes
magic eraser
head puller
ribbon
stringing hook
hemostats
wooden chopsticks (I use these for removing hands for blushing. they hold the string in place)
extra S hooks
extra stringing cord in various thicknesses
hot glue gun (for sueding)
poster tack
a soft tooth brush (for combing wigs)
face protectors
doll bag
zap-a-gap (for fixing breaks and gluing magnets)

And! If you're inclined to mod or faceup your doll you'll probably want:

a respirator
chalk pastel set
acrylic paint
a wide variety of small brushes
MSC or ZM
tweezers (for eyelash application)
eyelash glue or white elmers glue
dremel
air brush

 

I've got hemostats
Ribbon for pulling strings (need a head puller)
Pliers
Wire cutters (for wiring my dolls)
Magic erasers
White cotton gloves
Small ziploc bags for my fur wigs and medium ones for clothes
Silicone earplugs
Face masks

 

So far my must have supplies have been;
Eye putty
Magic eraser
Toothbrush for brushing their wigs
Pliers
And chopsticks for putting through the elastic so I don't lose it

 

@dragolivia, check out the Workshop forums, particularly the Customization and Maintenance one, and the Project Journals one. You'll find all the information you're after there, and more.

 

I don't really have a whole lot of supplies at the moment, but my go-tos are: extra elastic, in case of emergency, a wig brush, silicone ear plugs to keep eyes in place (do NOT use for silicone eyes), and definitely some zip-loc bags or a box to store clothing in.