The Guide: For new BJD Owners

Uhm..you CAN'T stain your doll by using a magic eraser. You..can't.

 

thank you for all the info really helpfull

 

Mohair wigs and fake fur wigs aren't always the same thing... "Mohair" *can* be used to describe the fake-fur kind, but it's also used to describe wigs made of real fur, either still on the hide or sewn into wefts and put on a regular fabric cap like synthetic wigs have. (Check out Tinybear's thread in the Marketplace commissions section to see what the real fur kind look like-)

 

It should... "Real" mohair usually has a pretty distinct look, and it's different from most of the fake fur ones.

 

Mohair, in its truest sense, refers to textiles and fibers (thread/yarn) made from the hair/fur of an angora goat.

I believe that--in the world of dolls & bears--this term is often used to describe synthetic materials that are thought to have the look/texture of actual mohair, but people should be aware that wigs (and clothes, for that matter) that are made of genuine mohair will have different reactions to heat & cleaning chemicals than will synthetic fibers.

If you see a wig or garment labeled "mohair", it's wise to confirm whether it's actual mohair, or a synthetic substitute.

ETA:

on second reading, it seems like this part:

refers mostly to wigs that are also commonly called "fur" wigs. These are generally made of a synthetic "fur" plush fabric, and can be almost any color and various lengths are commonly available. Iplehouse, Dollmore, & DOD all sell wigs of this type & call them "Mohair" generally, though Dollmore notes in the product info that it's synthetic materials. From looking at the pictures of the 'Mohair' wigs on the Iple & DOD site, I can say that they appear to also be synthetic, rather than actual mohair.

I checked a few other BJD wig sources, and all the ones listed as "mohair" appeared to be synthetic. It's probably safe to assume that your 'mohair' wig is synthetic unless it's clearly marked as "Genuine Mohair" (and it will probably be a good deal more expensive), but it never hurts to ask to be sure.

In terms of wig care, Volks sells some care supplies on their site, though there may be cheaper substitutes available for some of these products. The hair brush they sell, for example, looks like a big tooth brush, & I don't recommend it for actually brushing or styling doll wigs.

High-quality doll wigs (what is mostly available through ABJD companies) are made of Kanekalon--the same material used for high-quality human wigs. For this material, you'll want a brush with metal bristles, not plastic bristles, & not metal with a plastic tips. Bristles of either of these types can cause static electricity to build up in your wig (which will make them harder to style) and may damage the synthetic fibers that your wig is made from. You can buy a good wig brush here and a smaller pick here. Either are recommended for caring for a BJD wig, though--honestly--I got a wig brush at a human wig shop for less than USD$5.00, and it works just as well.

 

A couple of things:

a) It's...not particularly necessary to stock up on eye putty. It doesn't need to be replaced with every eye change after all.

b) Keeping dolls and/or doll belongings near ground level, if you have small children and/or pets, is a very very bad idea. In fact, it is easily among the worst pieces of advice I have ever seen given on this forum. Ever. I would never even dream of leaving my dolls or their things within easy reach of my child (or, more specifically, my child's grabby friends) or my very curious cat. There are a rather large number of threads down in the Customizing subforum from panicked owners whose pets chewed up their dolls, asking how to fix it; why in the world would you invite that sort of thing? Additionally, cat hair in clothes is not considered an asset if you choose to sell those clothes...especially to the myriad people who are allergic to cats. If you don't have pets or children or clumsy roommates or a tendency to trip over things then fine, leave your dolls wherever you want to. To me, the risk of earthquake is much much lower than the risk of child or pet destroying a collection I sank several thousand dollars into.

c) There is an incredibly extensive thread about how to avoid staining from dark clothing; it's possible and really not that difficult. The excellent Basic Doll Care thread also has some good instructions to follow with regards to this situation...any situation, really.

 

I think it's a good idea, AnnoDomini. I think a lot of these ideas are touched on in other "newbie" threads, but (as far as I know), all of this info isn't aggregated anywhere else.

I do think it's important, though, that an information thread geared towards beginners have information that is as clear and accurate as possible, that was the only reason I added the info I did.

 

Three posts' worth of advice isn't really small...

The problem is that it's...not phrased as your opinions. It's a 'guide', which implies teaching someone what they should do. Guides are around to educate and lead, and that's how you've presented yourself and your opinions here -- as something to advise newbies on what they SHOULD do, not just saying some of the things that worked for you personally. Additionally, it's THE guide -- which to me implies the final word on all these matters, the all-encompassing thing that should be followed.

I recognize that you may have found things that work for you and that's great -- everyone's needs are different. But, well...I've been around here for three years and seen any number of pet- and/or child-related disasters that had to do with dolls being within reach, and I have a hard time seeing a piece of advice given that directly contradicts everything I've seen in my experience, and could potentially cause a great deal of harm if someone follows it and their dog chews up their lovely expensive doll. I mean...maybe you haven't been part of the forum and the hobby long enough to see all these threads but they're definitely there -- browse through the Customization forum, there's still several floating around. Like I said in my earlier post, if it works for you, that's great. But you have this phrased as gospel-truth that you should not put your dolls up high out of reach (bolded emphasis yours) and, well...that's the point when it stops being your opinion and starts being something else entirely.

Maybe some different phrasing might have helped...? (And it's a General Discussion thread...discussion is going to happen and people will weigh in with their opinions, agreeing or disagreeing. Just the nature of the beast. )

 

I have to agree with Tez on all counts tbh. Staining from clothes is really not the end of the world or indeed really worthy of a mention since it's not only easily avoided, but we're discussing resin dolls here, not vinyl, so there's no lasting damage done even if it DOES stain.

It's great that you wanna help the newer crop of owners, but perhaps it might be easier to help someone who's already done this in the form of BJDWTF so that all the information is in the one, pretty well known place rather than in here where, as has been mentioned, people will always weigh in with their own experiences.

 

Woohoo, I have all of the above. 8D

Also, if anybody is worrying about brushes, and has/has a child with an American Girl doll, the brushes from that company work wonders for BJD wigs. Though, they're rather big, so it's probably better for MSD or larger sized wigs.

Before my boy arrived, I was fretting over a brush. But, then I found out that I somehow have 3 American Girl brushes. o3o Which is strange, because I only have two dolls from there, and I only remember buying one brush. I mean, one might have come with the hair care kit and I forgot, but I sure as heck didn't buy three. xD

So, now I have one brush for each AG doll and one for Toby. 8'D Problem solved.

 

Thank you so much to everyone in this thread. It's nice to have info in one place. I am currently deciding on which bjd I want to order first. It's nice to know I'll have plenty to do while I wait for her to arrive! lol

 

Yay! Good luck in your search! You might have already seen some of the threads where people discuss whether a first doll should be cheaper, smaller, shorter, taller, more common, less limited, not tanned, etc. (exhibit A [yes, I started that one! ] & exhibit B). The basic info you need to get from these threads is this: your first doll should be one that you love. If it's more expensive, then saving may take longer, but having the doll you really want is going to be much better than buying one you just kind of liked, but was cheaper than the one you actually wanted.

That said, if the doll you really want is one of the "cheaper" ones, then there's no reason to avoid getting that doll, so long as it's the one you really want.

Personally, I think there's enough info on DOA to help most people avoid some of the scarier "beginner mistakes" if you just poke around enough.