Yellowing: Is it "Natural" or does it constitute "Damage"?

I live on the north coast, in a north facing room and keep the heating turned off all year round (if I get cold there are always extra blankets!) so my room only gets direct light at certain times of the day and I keep my dolls away from where the light falls. I have been keeping my larger dolls in my wardrobe for a while now to try and limit the light exposure they get, but I can't see that it's made much of a difference really.

I think that because dolls are going to yellow anyway the most you can do as a collector is to try and make sure that the yellowing occurs evenly. If it's just the oxidation of resin then it will yellow relatively evenly, but if you take your dolls out in sunshine in the same outfits frequently be aware that exposed areas of your doll will get more light than the areas under clothes and wigs and that could have an affect on the yellowing of your doll.

Even yellowing in 'natural' shades doesn't bother me, WS going creamy or NS having more of a peach tone looks more realistic to me rather than bright white or pink, so I wouldn't be put off by a doll that had yellowed. I have four SD heads sharing 2 SD13 bodies and it's telling that the 'good' body (that behaves when I pose it!) is yellower than the floppy body, it gets used a lot more often so it's exposed to light more than the floppy body. It's not banana yellow, so it's good enough for me!

 

I would not want a doll that was lemon yellow or unevenly yellow. The more subtle changes in color I wouldn't mind too much. I actually think that a few of the resin tones used by Resin Soul and BBB improve with age.

 

Some of my dolls have yellowed, let's say mellowed a bit, but I keep them out on a shelf all the time, I just love to look a them, so that's part of the game.
It's not dramatic and it does not bother me.

But I was concerned to put their shelf in a corner with no direct sunlight, though. ;-)

 

Do you feel that yellowing is just a natural feature of resin, or does it constitute a damaged doll? Is yellowing a sign of a well-loved doll, or is it a defect that signifies improper care?
Yellowing is a natural feature of resin for me, just like aging of human. I can become old, why my doll would not. So I'm not really afraid or shocked if my dolls 10 years later have yellow color skin instead of white or yellower. (Some may be greener...)

When does yellowing cross the line between "acceptable" and "unacceptable"?
Ummm...For my dolls which I already own. I won't to think about how yellow they are but for a new doll which I'm going to spend money for adoption...That will be another thing. If the yellowing is even and not not really noticeable, then it will be fine. I'm not too picky anyway. But if it's really yellow like cheese or uneven at all. they I have to think over, although it might be cheaper, but I need a standard quality at least.

Would you buy a very yellowed doll? If so, would you try to "fix" it? Why or why not?
I guess "NO" and I don't have that skill to fix it at all.

 

I've realized recently that I should make an amendment to my original answers... when I first responded, I said this:

This is actually no longer a hypothetical for me, as a few months ago I brought home a secondhand doll with undisclosed uneven, heavy yellowing. I didn't realize it at first, as it was just exciting to have the doll arrive, but once I started cleaning him to get him ready for a body blushing, I discovered the situation. Now, I had planned for a simple body blush, a character in regular NS shade, and wasn't intending to be doing more than cleaning and restringing. Instead, I've been spending weeks scrubbing, sanding, painting, and so on, to try to bring him back to how he ought to look. Thankfully, all but his hands could be salvaged and repaired (and a wonderful member here sent me replacement hands for him!), and the only reason he's not done is due to a long run of too-humid weather.

Thus, my answer now to that above question is that yes, I would in fact consider it, though I would prefer that it be disclosed to me prior to purchase, and might not buy if it was severe. If the doll was meant to be the color of the original resin, then yes, I would work to repair it, though it depends again on the extent of the yellowing and whether it can truly be repaired. Due to the amount of work put in to fix this doll, however, my preference would be to buy a heavily or unevenly yellowed doll only if I meant to do a full color-change on the doll. Repairing yellowing is a lot of work, and in some cases may not be possible, so it's not my first choice, and the doll would have to be significantly discounted for me to accept such a condition again.

 

- Do you feel that yellowing is just a natural feature of resin, or does it constitute a damaged doll? Is yellowing a sign of a well-loved doll, or is it a defect that signifies improper care?

To me, it does not constitute a damaged doll. It happens even if they never ever come out of their boxes, in most cases. Dolls are meant to be enjoyed. I mean, it may be improper care if someone left their doll in a window or outside for hours and hours, but no one does that unless they /want/ their dolls yellowed....or on accident. In which case, that sucks. lol


- When does yellowing cross the line between "acceptable" and "unacceptable"?

I guess it would be unacceptable if the doll was advertised as brand new...like freshly made and not just MIB for years. Or if the seller of the "new" or second hand doll left the yellowing out of the description in a deceitful mindset.

- Would you buy a very yellowed doll? If so, would you try to "fix" it? Why or why not?

I think I would buy a very yellowed doll, if it was at a good price. I like to think of myself as a fixer, so I'd enjoy the task. And if I couldn't fix it, per say, I'd paint the doll to incorporate it into the design. Or I'd get an airbrush and do my best to make it the color I want. I just prefer the yellowing to be even to help things out.

 

I don't think yellowing means damage. It's more like a sign of a well-loved doll, I think it gives the doll history and character.
That being said, it's best when the doll is evenly yellowed.
As long as the doll still looks pretty, yellowing isn't a big issue.

 

As long as it is even I don't really mind it .Especially when I know the doll is older , I expect it to have mellowed . But to be honest , looking at most of my own bjds I can't really tell how much they have yellowed just by glancing at them . I mean sure , If I were to compare I could see it but I choose to ignore it since they look nice still . I keep them on display on a perpetually shadowed book case and my room is mostly dark so they are in good shape .

 

Haha, this thread makes me sort of anxious about yellowing
I wouldn't mind buying a yellowed doll, if the yellowing wasn't overly obvious (full on yellow color) or very uneven. The only situation where I would be seriously concerned about yellowing would be if I was trying to make a hybrid.

 

- Do you feel that yellowing is just a natural feature of resin, or does it constitute a damaged doll? Is yellowing a sign of a well-loved doll, or is it a defect that signifies improper care? some yellowing is a natural product of age and occurs even if a doll is kept in a box all the time, so i don't think you can say it is necessarily a sign of improper care. as for whether it constitutes damage or not i think that depends on how you answer the next question

- When does yellowing cross the line between "acceptable" and "unacceptable"? for me it depends on how the doll yellows ie what color it turns and how evenly it changes. a doll that changes color evenly all over and in an attractive way wouldn't bother me at all. i have a beauty white doll that has "mellowed" to a very attractive ivory and i actually prefer the color she is now to her original color. the only time i would find it a problem is if i was trying to match her for optional parts. on the other hand i had another doll from the same company that got a distinct greenish cast as it aged. oddly they were both cared for exactly the same way, just different batches of resin. i found the tinge unappealing and home-dyed the doll tan. now i love him again.

- Would you buy a very yellowed doll? If so, would you try to "fix" it? Why or why not? i guess it would depend on what the yellowing looked like and whether i liked the way it looked? if i didn't like it i wouldn't buy it, so i wouldn't try to fix it.

 

- Do you feel that yellowing is just a natural feature of resin, or does it constitute a damaged doll? Is yellowing a sign of a well-loved doll, or is it a defect that signifies improper care?

Yellowing happens whether you want it to or not. I had a dollzone head from 2005 that I kept shut in a drawer but she still yellowed.... I don't expect the price to be the same on a badly yellowed doll UNLESS it's very rare/no longer produced. For example some of the very early volks dolls it would be silly to expect a pristine doll.


- When does yellowing cross the line between "acceptable" and "unacceptable"?

I don't expect the price to be the same on a badly yellowed doll UNLESS it's very rare/no longer produced. For example some of the very early volks dolls it would be silly to expect a pristine doll.
- Would you buy a very yellowed doll? If so, would you try to "fix" it? Why or why not?


YES of course I would! I would try to fix it as well to restore it. It's part of what I do as a doll modder.

 

I find yellowing natural and actually like yellowed dolls. They feel vintage and loved and that they have a story beyond. It can be a problem to hybrid a yellowed doll, but as a whole thing yellowing is just fine. I'm careful with my dolls and keep them farthest possible from the direct sun but I take them out as often as I want. While yellowing a doll will collect memorable moments which is treasurable to me.

 

I take it as a sign of age and nothing more. That being I expect most aged items to have a price reduction. I've bought very yellowed dolls, one is a strange banana yellow. I tend to buy damaged dolls and fix them. It's what is most fun to me.

 

Well, yellowing is actually normal for resins so I wouldn't be surprised. Be it well-loved or improperly cared for, yellowing will always take place.
Yellowing will always be acceptable for me. Even if I don't want it, it is inevitable.
I would probably buy a severely yellowed basic doll if it is priced lower than it's original price. Of course if it's a sought-after limited doll, even if it has suffered severe yellowing, it's price will definitely go up. If that's the case, then I will probably not buy it. And yes, I will attempt to restore it or try to decrease its yellowing.

 

I am not sure how I feel about yellowing dolls. I have never seen one. My dolls are still all the same color even though most of them are old. I don't think its a problem though. Some people really like doing photo shoots outside.

 

(Please delete if already on here/ move if needed!)
I've not been collecting very long, nearly 2 years in April and my first boy, a resinsoul, is so badly yellowed in his face... You cant tell in pictures or from a distance, but up close its pretty noticeable. The main problem here is I love his factory face up, it suits the OC and I dont want to change it or attempt to face him up myself incase I spoil him, fall out of love with him etc... Although I'd trust a commission much more.

So my basic question here is, does Yellowing put you off your doll? I'm struggling to know what to feel about it because while it bothers me, I think it would bother me more to have to change him or risk spoiling him with a failed de-yellowing. Does yellowing make you lose interest in them? Do you feel the need to get your doll "cleaned" asap? Or can you overlook the yellowing for the sake of preserving what you've already bonded with?

Interested to hear peoples take on this, since we cant do all that much to prevent it short of never seeing our dolls

 

In one case, my solution has been to assign my doll a different nationality and change his wig. In another instance, a parchment-like sallow tone rather suited my undead gent better than his original white.

I don't know much about methods of un-yellowing heads, except for a soak in Oxyclean, so I will be reading your responses with interest. I suppose if you really couldn't stand the yellowing, you could try to find an artist who could recreate that faceup after cleaning.

 

Thats true... I would be happy to have my boy more personalised, but with him being natural skin im not sure what methods there are either

 

Hmm, it depends. Does the yellow color bother you? At least it doesn't show in pictures right? If it is annoying/severe I would just try to de-yellow him, then give him a new face up. After all it will still be the same doll sculpt and ideas, just not yellowed. As for the face-up, you could get something similar if you're really stuck on that, or just commission someone and try something new. In the long run, you are the owner and you should do what you feel is right for your doll and doll bond.

USE AT YOUR OWN RISK
De-yellowing method 1, Few options for de-yellowing at the end
De-yellowing method 2 ,Toothpaste and peroxide soak
De-yellowing method 3, is a 6 hour soak in oxiclean.

 

I used to have that problem with yellowing. I considered it something unexplicably destructive to a doll's beauty. I couldn't really explain why I saw things like this years back when I was still a newbie but it was probably caused by my hype about dolls in general and wishful thinking they'd be so lovely and fresh, and new forever.

As years passed I started accepting this fact, up untill nowadys when all of my current dolls are honestly yellowed due to their age. I appreciate the sign of time passing in them, this became a value to me, a personal one (as I know this is basically a turn off for people on MP nonetheless, lol). I don't need to explain this to myself, I just find their own, personal beauty with a changed tint in resin. As long as colour doesn't change into something too far from reality (like whiteskin turning green), I can accept the process with no problem. After all, it will always be within a "natural" palette of skintones, just like us, humans.