Russian doll artists

I recently bought an art doll animal from one of the many talented Russian artists. I’ve been saving up for months to get it and three days later after purchasing (the artist shipped the toy very fast), the catastrophe happened. I honestly don’t think I’ll ever get it now, but I don’t mind. While it breaks my heart to lose a grail, I think innocent people on both the Ukrainian and Russian (those who oppose this) sides probably need that money and support right now more than any of us outside ever will. I feel almost selfish even thinking about it so I try to forget I ever got the doll at this point….

 

I’m in the same boat. I bought an art doll on layaway from an artist on Etsy. We’ve been in communication and she’s super sweet. I offered to pay her in BTC or USDC stable coin, but she said she’d need time to sort it out, she has lots of other dolls people have only half paid for on her page. I sent her a message saying no matter what, my thoughts are with her and her family. I don’t think I’ll be getting her anytime soon, as the US has basically shut down any form of payment beyond cryptocurrency. I’m hoping this conflict has a resolution in the next few weeks, and it’ll be safe to send my girl. I had another doll head I just paid for as well from Russia, and she refunded me for the head the day PayPal stopped their services to Russia, I was pretty bummed tbh. It does feel selfish to worry about dolls while people are dying however. So I just mostly think when it works out, then I will be able to receive my dolls, and hopefully the less people harmed the better. It’s out of all our hands now.


Oh wow. Edit. A dress I bought for my BJDs about a month ago from a different Russian doll shop on Etsy is out for delivery today. I feel lucky it made it to me honestly.

 

What mailing service did the artist ship the doll? About a week before the crisis began, I received a doll wig from Russia via DHL. Came no problem. I think any of the major services like DHL or UPS will be safe. But I would be worried about regular post.

 

Mayakdolls does the faceups for Harucasting's dolls and is in Russia. In his stories it looks like he's getting the last batch of preorders ready to send out, so another preorder may be coming soon. I wonder if this will affect upcoming preorders for Harucasting.

 

I have a head from a Russian artist already paid for, but we both agreed it would be best to wait to ship until the shipping situation clears up. It may take quite a while, but I'd rather not ask for a refund.

There's another artist I was going to order from, but I'm just going to shelve that plan until next year at the earliest.

 

It might have been regular post it’s been stuck in Moscow since.

 

It is a horrible situation for everyone So many Ukrainian artists aren't even in their homes, so they can't fulfill orders or even work creatively to find comfort. And there are so many Russian artists whose work I admire (faceup artists, shoe-makers, clothing-makers, etc.) who are suffering from the sanctions - I understand the point of them, but it hurts to think of so many sellers who rely on income from Etsy, etc. who are scared about supporting themselves and their families at this time.

I'm glad that at least (at this point) Etsy has not banned Russian artists from their platform. I was afraid they were going to do this at first. Of course, their ability to sell is severely hampered by not having PayPal, etc. but I really hope they will be able to find some way around this. Or better (please God!) that peace will come, although I don't know how quickly Russia will be able to get back these services even after fighting ceases.

For myself, I was planning on buying some shoes from MarbleMoon on Etsy (makes Minifee-size shoes) and also there is a Russian artist who knits beautiful clothes for bjds that I was hoping to commission at some point. And I was really looking forward to spirit.imprint's new fashion msd girls.

These items are not important for me, but I hate not to be able to support them.

 

Villitunes is in Moscow (I think) and all of her customer base is non-Russian by her choice, so I'm pretty concerned about her at this point.

 

I have a lot of Russian (and some Ukrainian) artists I work with and worked with in the past. It's so crazy to see how my hobbies came to a halt due to this. A lot of my favorite artists, stores, crafters are from Russia.

Right now two of my doll heads are stuck there, since I had sent them to get wigs fitted for them. I had just paid the finished wigs when it all had been closed down. Artist and me both agreed she'll just hold onto everything now until things hopefully calm down again. I trust her, and I know she's suffering greatly atm too (with her being half Russian/half Ukrainian and family on both sides of the border...). Things can wait.

It's the same for many of my friends too. Faceup commissions waiting there, dolls they bought, clothes they commissioned and so on. And the rest of the hobby is paused too, knowing they can't commission their favorite artists atm or purchase from their usual sources.

 

I was concerned when first seeing the thread title. But the responses affirm my own thoughts & concerns for all the artists & bjd folks being affected by this disaster. {}
Thanks for creating a place to share our care & concern in these times.

 

It really is a great tragedy when through hobbies we have friends all over the world and in neighboring countries, and then this kind of thing makes us worry for all of them. I've bought from crafters in Russia and Ukraine, and now I just hope they're safe.

 

I'm waiting on one of Black Cherry Dolls' MSD girls. I saw them post on Instagram about starting a Telegram, and there hasn't been anything on either since. I hope they're all right, and just being slow to post. I worry what the combination of potentially needing to find other shipping carriers + PayPal cutting off Russians will do. I know Nihilum Dolls was talking about having to potentially leave the country to continue business.

 

Doll artists and related craftspeople in Ukraine and Russia are most likely going to be facing a loss of income... on top of everything else.
A way to get money/donate directly to artists/craftspeople in the effected areas is to buy digital downloads from people's storefronts. Knitting patterns, crafting tutorials, sewing patterns, coloring pages, wig making guides and the like.

Etsy has a search for items by country feature. If someone has a website they will probably get a better cut if you order through there rather than a different storefront like Etsy, but both are -something- that can be done now and while the shops are still open. Whispering Grass has downloadable patterns for sale on their storefront as of last time I checked on March 8th.

 

Etsy is currently not charging Ukrainian sellers any sort of fees.

 

I'm concerned as well for several Russian artists that I've commissioned for things in the past. One of them was working on an outfit for me and were very close to finishing but suddenly stopped messaging me in February.

So many talented people in this hobby live in the Ukraine and Russia. I hope they are safe - that matters more to me than doll clothing or anything else. I already hear enough bad news about who was blown up, who was shot, so I can only pray that our fellow BJD lovers are safe.

 

Oh my goodness, so glad to hear that!

 

My go-to artist for historical replica doll shoes is Ukrainian. I got my most recent order from him a few weeks before everything went to hell, but I still hope he’s well and safe.

 

I too have a Russian doll on pre-order. My partner reminded me that "things could get difficult with shipping" or even finishing him.

I hope that she's safe and her family and friends are too.

Ryu

 

I saw on instagram a lot of artists were moving to Telegram incase something happened to instagram in Russia. Has anyone used this service before? I've never used it.

I hope everyone makes it out of this chaos nobody wants. Stay safe everyone, and I hope we go back to peaceful times soon.