Researching BJDs (1/4): Mature Minis

Well, the idea for making this list came a long time ago, but between my sewing projects and needing to adult, I didn't have time to make this post.

There will be three posts like this. Mature minis is the first and current post, the next one will address realistic minis (usually pin headed) and the third one will include mature bodies that work well for hybrids (no heads, because they are usually too stylized or big). We are also talking about female dolls only, because mature males in this size are so hard to get! I may research this if somebody is interested.

[Realistic Minis] [Mature Girl Bodies] [Mature Boy Minis]

I selected the companies I will list here by a rule of thumb. To fit in this category, the BJDs should be 1/4 sized, have mature body and mature face (not stylized, mostly oval instead of rounded or v-shaped). The head should be around 6-7", which is slighlty bigger than "realistic proportions" but still small compared to the regular childish/stylized MSD type. Similarly, all dolls on this list will mostly use 10~12mm eyes, and will probably require 5.5cm shoes. The bodies should be mature (not a childish body with push-up boobs).

The post is long, and I try to address the same things for each company: head measures, body options (breasts, and all), available skin tones, if they have basics/limiteds/pre-order/choice system, and if they offer custom face-up or not. Also, I will add as "other" any extra information I may have about the store/dolls.

Hope you'll find this useful and interesting! The list starts under the cut, and all images belong to the stores! Warning to doll nudity, of course, there are pics of the doll bodies.

Iplehouse JID

Head Size: the newest sculpts (Isar, Soa, Cecile, Violet and Sierra) had 6-7" heads, while the older sculpts may be more of a 7". I found this info on DoA, and it was a reply by Iplehouse to a customer.

Eyes: 10mm~12mm, preferably small iris, low dome.

Face ups: They offer default faceups, and through the Doll Choice you can ask for the faceup of another Iplehouse doll, regardless of size. They also do custom faceups.

Skin Tones: Urethane resin in colors (from white to ebony), and now environmental/french resin (from white to light brown). The french resin colors are called "Glow".

Body Options: There three types of bust, from flat to full, and two types of thigh joints. Also, new JIDs come with the new and detailed hands.

Sales Type: They have basic dolls, and from thr 1st to 15th of each month you can buy thought the Doll Choice system, which offers darker skin tones and other options. They have limited and they have done some re-releases.

Other Info: This dolls are not strung traditionally, and the leg strings go from one leg to the other through the crutch, instead of going up to the head. For what I've read this causes floppy legs, and people on DoA recommends heavy sueding and thicker elastics to improve this. Also, some people have directly drilled the torso so the dolls would be strung traditionally.

Links: Body Review by Iplehouse and Basics JID Sales Page. I also interviewed Iplehouse.

Withdoll Minis

Head Size: 6-7". Old boy sculpts wear 7-8" wigs.

Eyes: 10~12mm, preferably low dome. Some sculpts fit 12mm Makos, but they are too big in others.

Face ups: Default face-up only, although they accept minor changes such as "don't do the black dots in the mouth" or "dark brown eyebrows", and so on. I have personally tested those examples xD. Also, they outsource faceups.

Skin Tones: They have a wide range, and use both urethane and environmental/french resin. The tones that have a "(UV)" on its name, are environmental resin. Withdoll usually does "skin tone" events and you can buy the basic dolls in darker colors.

Body Options: Two bust sizes (small and large). For an unknown reason, the knees are single jointed while the elbows are double jointed.

Sales Types: Basic dolls and Limited dolls. They tend to do a lot of re-releases of their limiteds, and their dolls are fairly inexpensive in the second hand market. They also do a lot of discount events.

Other: It is strongly suggested to re-string the body with thicker elastics (use 3mm for arms, and 3.5mm for legs) and due sueding or hot-glue. It improves the body pose-ability a lot.  

Links: Withdoll Site. (Their dolls are not discriminated by size on the site).You can also see LadyVenetica's body review, and Withdoll's Interview.

Souldoll Soulkids

Head Size: They are mostly 6-7". Some heads look younger than others

Eyes: I've seen some sculpts with 14mm Makos, but most of them, specially the newest sculpts, will use 10-12mm.  

Face ups: Souldoll offers default faceups and custom faceups.

Skin Tones: They use only urethane resin, and have white, normal and two tones of tan. Not all of their dolls are available in tan. They have done limited in gray and lavander.

Body Options: They had several bodies for this type, but the post focuses in the NL Body. It has two bust sizes (large and small). You can buy the opposite size as an extra part (increases the cost).

Sales Types: They have basic dolls and limited editions. I haven't heard of them doing any type of re-releases.

Links: Souldoll Soulkid basic girls sales page.You can also check LadyVenetica's body review.

Luts ModelDelf

Head Size: Close to 6".

Eyes: 8~10mm. Probably a 12mm for no gaping.

Face ups: Luts only offers default.

Skin Tones: From white to dark tan. The lighter tan does not add cost to the order.

Body Options: You can choose between two types of elbow joints, two type of knee joints (in both cases they look different but have the same range of motion), and three bust sizes. You can also buy the body only.

Sales Types: Basic dolls and limited. I haven't seen a re-release of ModelDelf limiteds, although Luts did re-release some tinies (the zebras and centaurs).

Links: Body sales page and Basic ModelDelf sales page.

Supia Minisup

Head Size: 6-7".

Eyes: 10~12mm.

Face ups: Only default, in natural or smoky version.

Skin Tones: They offer white, normal or tan.

Body Options: MiniSup has actually two bodies, a single jointed and a double jointed, which are very similar to the bodies of the 60cm dolls. There is no bust option, though, but the double jointed body has a bigger bust than the other one.

Sales Types: Basic dolls only.

Other Information: I have read a lot of good things about the single jointed body, and it appears that with sueding and thight strings, it poses incredibly well. Also, the chest joints are different on each body. Also, some sculpts look younger than others.

Links: Supia MiniSup sales page.

Dollits DKD

Head Size: 6-7".

Eyes: 10~12mm.

Face ups: Default faceups only.

Skin Tones: Only white and normal, for now.

Body Options: Only medium bust for now, but the sculptor has said he will release a small one too. There are option hands available.

Sales Types: Basic only, so far.

Other Information: The sculptor is J. Baek. He previously worked with Iplehouse and later released the GSE line with Doll In Mind. Now he is full-time working on his brand.

Links: Dollits DKD basic girls.You can check J. Baek's interview.

Soom Rosette - Muse body

Head Size: 6-7".

Eyes: 10~12mm. These dolls are "prepared" to use Soom's silicone eyes, and have thuds in the eye wells inside their head, with the aim of holding the silicone eye without using putty. I have read of people who cut the thuds with an exacto knife to use other eyes.

Face ups: Default only.

Skin Tones: White, normal and tan, although the latest sale reported inconsistencies in the colors.

Body Options: Lady (big) and Girl (small) brest. There is also the Muse (43cm) and Pure (47cm) body. The Pure body also has a hip joint, while the Muse does not. It includes knee-caps, which are small parts that cover the knee joint when bent, to give a smoother look.

Sales Types: Originally, they only had limiteds. Then, they moved to add a basic line. When Rosette changed manager in late 2014/early 2015, they established pre-order dates each 3~4 months for their basic dolls. Currently, everything is sold out.

Other Information: In mid 2015 their new manager quit. I don't know why or how, but since then, there has been no activity on this line, and DoA's thread is mostly silent because there is no info available. Rosettes were also excluded from a Soom survey, which lead people to believe the line may be dead or closed.  

Links: Soom Rosette site.You can check LadyVenetica's body review and Soom Rosette's interview.

AquariusDoll AQR45

Head Size: 6-7".

Eyes: 8~12mm, depending on the sculpt.

Face ups: Default faceups only.

Skin Tones: From white to tan.

Body Options: Small or large bust only.

Sales Types: Basic dolls. Some sculpts have several heads with different eyes. Also, they do not sell body only or head only: you have to buy a full doll. They only did one time-limited release.

Other Information: If I recall correctly, this company came to be at early 2013/late 2012. They didn't have a huge impact on the collectors, but they have managed to keep it up. Also, this dolls have a thicker neck than others in the list (7cm) and therefore can be nicely hybridized with Minifees: for what I've seen, the white skin of both companies matches, but I don't know more than this. This dolls are considerably inexpensive in the second hand market.

Links: Aquarious AQR45 basic sales page.

Unoa Elder Sister

Head Size: 6-7".

Eyes: 10~12mm, but I have no info on what fits.

Face ups: Since the current best way of getting this dolls are the B-Grade kits of UnoAlchemy, faceups are not available.

Skin Tones: Fresh/Fairy skins (light tones). UnoAlchemy has managed to get some tan Unoas but they are not common.

Body Options: Small/Big bust options.

Sales Types: You can get what they have in stock. Sometimes there is no bust option availability, and skin tones may be limited. There are only two face sculpts available only.

Other Information: UnoAlchemy offers B-Grade kits, which are dolls with slight imperfections, and thus they sale by stock and options are limited. They are all legit, though! Some tan Unoas have been sold by lottery because they were just too few. This dolls tend to be really expensive and hard to get on the second hand market.

Links: UnoAlchemy Dolls Available.

Bimong Narae

Head Size: 6-7". The sculpt N40U has a 5" head.

Eyes: 10~12mm, preferably low dome.

Face ups: They offer default faceups.

Skin Tones: From white to tan, and is advertised as "korean resin", and it appears to be urethane or epoxy resin. I'm not quite sure on this. Not all of the tones are always available, so you need to check the web site to see what is there.

Body Options: There are two bust types, but you can't chose. Each head comes with a different bust size and that is why you get.

Sales Types: After all the issues Bimong had, he now runs his own web store. He started by selling dolls already in stock with fixed presets, but now he offers some basic dolls too.

Other Information: I haven't heard of these dolls (from Art-Bimong store) having any of the past issues (terribly greening/yellowing, warping, and so on). DoA's thread seem to be quite active now, too.

Links: Art Bimong basic dolls.

DiM GSE

Head Size: 6-7".

Eyes: 10~12mm.

Face ups: Default faceup only.

Skin Tones: Normal skin only.

Body Options: Three bust types (from flat to full) and two thight joint types.

Sales Types: They were basic dolls, but there are currently sold out. Some can be found in DoA's second hand marketplace. After this notice and DiM's news, the GSE dolls are discontinued.
You can get this body only if you get a human/elf Flowne (you can choose the body as an option). Here is human version doll and elf version doll; also, there is a box opening of Flowne with GSE body on DoA. Thanks to Fantasywoods for the information! It is worth noting that the Flowne head sells decently in the second hand market. 

Other Information: This dolls were sculpted by J.Baek, the owner of Dollits. Some sculpts (like Miso) can now be found at Dollits. I have no info regarding if the GSE discontinuation is permanent, of it J. Baek will scult a GSE-lile body for his Dollits DKD line.

Links: DiM GSE Basic Dolls.

Switch HummingDolly 41

Head Size: 6-7".

Eyes: They recommend 14mm, but the iris covers almost all the eyewell. A 12mm would be the ideal size.

Face ups: As far as I know, Switch doesn't offer faceups.

Skin Tones: White and Normal only.

Body Options: You can choose the torso: with or without joint. It also has heel legs. Sales Types: Switch works by monthly sales, or limiteds. You can't get these dolls as basics, though.

Other Information: DoA's thread about these dolls have been too quiet, and I haven't seen many of these dolls on the second hand marketplace either.

Links: Switch website.

Mydolling Hee-ah

Photos by AlasseCarnesir. Thank you!

 
Head Size: 6-7".

Eyes: 10-12mm.

Face ups: Default faceup only.

Skin Tones: White, normal and light tan.

Body Options: There are no options for this body, as it has only one bust size.

Sales Types: Basic dolls only.

Links: Mydolling sales page. The artist's Flickr has some photos.

DreamingDoll Little Elva

Head Size: 6-7", although closer to 7".

Eyes: The dolls are promoted with 14mm eyes, but the irises cover everything and almost no white can be seen. A 12mm should be an ideal size for this dolls.

Face ups: Default faceup only.

Skin Tones: White, normal and tan.

Body Options: The 'default' body is the one in the pictures above (I'm sorry, those artistic photos were the only ones I could get), while the 'junior' body has flat chest and no torso joints.

Sales Types: Basic dolls. You can purchase only the body.

Other Information: You can check sdrcow's review about this body. He did an amazing job showing how well it poses. Also, some head sculpts are more stylized than other, or younger than others. This is also the most big-headed doll of the list.

Links: Basic dolls sales page and body only sales page.

Freakstyle Minis

Head Size: 6-7".

Eyes: 10mm.

Face ups: Not available.

Skin Tones: Depends on the doll and in the pre-order. They were first cast by Dollshe Casting Service, and now the artist is working with Harucasting.

Body Options: There are a lot of bodies. The artist creates a new body for each head sculpt, and they are diverse and different from what is usually in the market. You can find thick bodies and completely flat bodies (like the new one, but I don't have pictures of it).

Sales Types: As this is a one-person studio, the dolls can be bought by pre-order only, when the artist opens them.

Links: Freakstyle website.You can check Freakstyle's interview here.

SmilesDolls Fashion Line

Head Size: 6". They are actually close to a 6".

Eyes: 8~10mm, low dome preferably.

Face ups: Default faceup only.

Skin Tones: Normal or light tan.

Body Options: Small or big bust.

Sales Types: The dolls were originally basics, but now they are quantity limited.

Other Information: There is not much info about this dolls, but they are approved in DoA. They are also the dolls with the smallest head on this list.

Links: SmilesDolls sales page.

Limwha 43cm

Head Size: 6-7".

Eyes: 8~10mm, preferably low dome.

Face ups: Default faceup only.

Skin Tones: White or Normal.

Body Options: There are no body options, no bust options either.

Sales Types: Basic dolls only.

Other Information: It was hard to get info on these dolls, they are beautiful but not that popular.

Links: EOS-Doll sales page or Junky Spot sales page (official dealer).

Elfdoll 1/4

I wasn't able to find too much info on them, and the only site I found that sales them was The Doll Peddlar. The official website stated in DoA doesn't have any sale up, so I chose to only list the name.

OK, this was it! It took me around quite some work to prepare the list, so I hope you find this useful! I want to thank my friend Tsukiyono for helping me with the research so go and check her webcomic Fine Sometimes Rain! Also, if you want me to add more dolls to this list, let me know!

The next list would be "realistic minis" which are the pin-headed ones, and the third list will be mature bodies to make hybrids (but are originally sold with too stylized/big heads). I can make a fourth with "mature boys" sculpts, if anyone is interested! Let me know what you think :D

Have a perfect weekend everyone, and don't forget to check out the Etsy!