What makes a doll "stand out" to you?

I love a gorgeous face-up, and I've discovered that I have a terrible habit of loving a doll for its wig. Now when I look at pictures, I have to ask myself - do I love the doll? Or is it just the wig? Cuz - big price difference.

 

For the fully human dolls, I love some well-sculpted expressions that aren't overly exaggerated. My first doll was an Impldoll Joshua, and I fell in love with his subtle little half smile. I also have a Dollzone Gray head incoming, because he just looks so serene and sweet. Dream Valley Vine is a sculpt I keep coming back to again and again as I just love his smile and he'll be coming home with me eventually xD.

I gravitate the most towards those sculpts with animal features, however. Typically the more realistic looking ones, than the chibified cute sculpts. They also can't be horror/macabre to appeal to me! Miracle Doll Dio is one I've ordered and I'm waiting on, while Dream Valley Rah is one I just missed out on the ordering period for. I'm still crying inside about that.

 

I /stare/ at the knee and elbow joints. It's so rare that joints look both aesthetically pleasing and fully functional without bulk.
I also love to see noses that aren't "pointy". (no hate to people with sharper noses)
I'm just more used to noses that are more round, wider, or flatter so it's really nice to see.
I love the fairyland molds but I get the urge to literally sand down the nose bc just they're so pointy and it doesn't fit my characters if that makes sense.

 

Overall aesthetic draws me in the most, especially if it’s a cute female MSD doll.

 

For me, it can be anything really…I’m looking for that intangible wow factor. I have a certain preferred aesthetic certainly (I’m more drawn to the fairly stylized looks…things like Luts, Volks and Peakswoods, or more fantasy styles like Dollzone and Doll Chateau. (Nothing too realistic, thank you, I have enough realism in my everyday life.) But I’m looking for a certain physical connection to whatever character I’m chasing down at the moment. It’s one of those “I’ll know it when I see it” kind of things, and it can be absolutely anything from a dreamy look to a wide-eyed innocence to a full set of spider legs!

 

I do this. If it's memorable, if I find myself thinking about it and going over the owner or artist photos again and again, it often finds its way to my wishlist. Because something made it stick out.

Sculpts with character are my thing. Strong, unique noses, defined chins, parted and open mouths, expressive eye sockets, fantasy ears and features, tan and fantasy skin. I do have a few 'types' though- MSD girls with wide eyes, plump, parted lips and big elf ears. Older-looking SD men with Aquilian/Roman noses and broad jaws, or thin and spindly ageless men. SD women with Asian or African / South American features, SD women who are either very flat or plus-size curvy. Anime sculpts with 'o' or open mouths. If the anime sculpt is smiling, it must have a distinctive smile. So many of them do that they start to look all the same to me without more defining features.

 

I think initially it's the faceup, but the overall vibe/aesthetic, and how the doll is photographed makes a big difference to me to. There have been some dolls I've seen where I've been like - oh, pretty, but not for me - and then see the same doll photographed or styled differently and completely fall in love.

 

The complete look and how the personality is displayed on a doll. Even if it isn't a look I would usually be drawn to, if it is unique and full of interesting personality I still tend to be fascinated by them.

 

Probably the faceup for me. The right face can make or break an aesthetic, so to me it's the foundation of what's needed for the doll to stand out.

 

I don't think there's a specific feature that makes a doll stand out for me, but I feel partial to smiles.

 

Mostly just the way it is styled. There are dolls I'm not interested in (anthros, gore/horror dolls), but occasionally I see something that is just so well executed and original that I can enjoy the doll, even if it's something I'd not do myself. The one thing I like about this hobby is that I am always able to be surprised by the original interpretations of dolls.

 

I know that if a doll has interesting ears (elf, fantasy styled) I'll be 100% more interested in it. I also feel like the outfits that the company's put them in can really draw me to a specific doll as well.

 

For me the doll's lips and eyes, my favorite being Peak's Woods style. I enjoy eye creases, cupid's bows, exaggerated shapes and sizes, and (to a certain extent) partially visible teeth.

 

Most of the time for me its the eyes, if i see a sculpt i don't like but it has really pretty eyes i will immediately love it regardless of sculpt , its a terrible habit

 

The styling of a doll definitely plays a role in whether it stands out to me or not. I like to see options in how a doll could look and that will draw me into liking them more if I already like the sculpt. I can’t exactly pin it down but I feel like thats one of the major things I pay attention to.

 

For me it's the clothing. While I've gotten stuck with some ugly dolls, I tend to overlook that and focus on their clothes and if they can fit in the doll house. I don't interact with them very much.

 

To me, it's the faceup and sculpt. If the sculpt has big eyes and/or big lips I'm absolutely head over heels most of the time.

 

Well- sculpted, expressive hands full of detail. Could never have a volks girl doll for that reason, volks hands seem like such an after-thought.

 

First and foremost, like many have said, the faceup. I'm so not good at putting a face to a blank doll.

I also love doe eyes, and the soft look it gives a sculpt, rounder features. I've also come to love plus sized dolls, I am a plus sized collector and I love the curves and bug thighs lol.

 

The first thing that catches my attention is the doll's general aesthetic, vibe or concept. Usually, the dolls that I am drawn to are not "just" dolls but the owner's characters. They don't necessarily have pristine face-ups or high-quality clothes, but they usually have a well-thought concept and you can feel that their characters have a story to tell.