(photos from left to right: Belita (DIM) courtsey of Valerie, Choa (CustomHouse) courtsey of Ivy in MA, and Soah, courtsey of Tina)

 THE BASICS

So you are considering purchasing a Ball-Joint Doll.  The modern ball joint doll, or BJD, is typically made in Japanese or Korea.  The dolls have a number unique features, in this first guide we will be covering some of the basic features of the Ball Jointed doll. 

Modern ball jointed dolls are made of cast Resin.  But you may be wondering what makes a BJD unique to other dolls on the market today.  So here we will be covering some of the basics that tend to ring true for most BJD.

   1. What are ball joints?  A ball joint consists of two parts, a ball and a socket, when the ball is inserted into the socket it allows for articulated movement.  For example a ball joint at the elbow allows for the arm of the doll to move much like your own arm does.   BJD incorporate ball joints in their construction to allow for added pose ability and articulation.

   2. What holds the doll together?  Most modern BJD are held together by strong elastic cording, which holds the doll together but at the same time allows for plenty of movement in the articulated joints.

   3. How many Ball Joints will my doll have?  This is a bit trickier question, but most BJD tend to have articulation at the ankle, knee, hip, wrist, elbow, shoulder and one or two joints through the body, as well as articulation where the head joins the neck.

   4. What will my doll come with?  With the vast number of companies out there it is very hard to pinpoint exactly what you will receive when you buy your BJD.  A basic doll tends to come with a head, head cap, set of eyes, and a nude body.  But there are some companies that offer dolls that come fully clothed and/or with wigs and/or optional parts.

   5. What color skin will my doll have?  Most companies have 2 to 3 basic colors to choose from.  Normal/Natural is a very light fleshy color.  Beauty White /Snow skin is a very white color with little to no flesh tone, think Vampire skin, a ghost or the color of a white eggshell.  Tanning Skin is the newest offering that some companies have made available over recent months; tan skin dolls tend to have a slight orange or coppery tint to their skin.  There are definite benefits and downsides to each skin tone and we will cover this further down within this guide. (photos from left to right Lishe (CP/Luts) photo courtsey of Kim in OH, Miru (CP/Luts) courtsey of dolljewels, and Hound (dollshe) courtsey of Beamette)
   6. Will my doll arrive finished?  There are a few companies that finish their dolls completely, this means they come to you assembled, with their seams sanded and ready to be dressed and played with.  There are other companies that sell their dolls assembled but without sanded seams.  And still, other companies that sell their dolls completely unassembled and un-sanded.


   7. What about makeup?  Makeup or Face-ups as many call them are an optional feature from most companies.  You will find the price for a face up ranges from around $35 to $60 from the manufacturer.  But there are many talented individuals that offer custom face-ups as well.  We will cover face-ups in greater detail later on in this guide.

   8. What about cost?  The pricing of the Ball jointed dolls available varies as greatly as the sizes, editions and companies that create them.  Given the dolls are not your standard dolls; you can expect to spend around $600 on average for your typical doll.  Prices range from $100 to $1200+ depending on the size and company producing the dolls.

   9. What options are available for these dolls?   One of the most appealing aspects of the BJD is the ability to customize the doll and make the doll your own.  Many companies offer optional heads, hands and/or bust-plates for their dolls.  You can also change the eyes of the doll. Since the dolls wear wigs you can change the wig to coordinate with outfits and/or to change the entire look of the doll.  Customization and options will be covered in greater detail later in this guide.

DOLL SIZES

It is important to consider the size of the doll that you will be purchasing.  The modern BJD is available in a number of sizes ranging from as tiny as 4” tall to as big as 27.5” tall.  The body shapes and sizes vary a great deal too.  The dolls also vary in their age representation.  You will find dolls intended to be the age of a young child (2-3) all the way to young adults (13-19).  The majority of Ball jointed dolls on the market are anatomically correct.  There are a few dolls that do not have organs that define their sex, these dolls typically are meant to be younger children.    There may possibly be other sizes of BJD available on the market, but below you will find information regarding some of the most common sizes.

 Tiny BJD.  The tiny sized dolls are typically between 4 inches (10cm) and 6 inches (15cm) tall.  The tiny tend to be similar in height to miniature brats dolls or Kelly dolls. They are typically referred to as Pocket Fairys or Tiny Dolls .   Their chest plates range from that of a child to that of an adult woman (with breasts).  The cost for the tiny dolls typically ranges from $100 to $350.

Photo Sample of a Tiny BJD, pictured here is a  Tiny Doll Catsy from Elf Doll

Dollfie BJD.  Dollfie is actually a brand name of doll, owned by Volks.  The ‘standard’ Dollfie is approximately 12” (27cm) in height, similar in size to Barbie dolls.  These dolls tend to be on the lower cost end and feature considerable articulation for their size.  They do not tend to be made from Resin, but rather a more cost efficient plastic or Vinyl. The typical Dollfie sized BJD ranges in price from $30 to $100.   You may want to note that many BJD owners/collectors do not consider the 27cm Dollfie to be a true BJD since they are not made from Resin.  We include this information only to serve as a reference.
 
Kimmy from Souldoll, Photo Courtsey of Breck in CT.

Cutie BJD.  Cutie sized dolls are typically between 8” and 11” in height.  They tend to be proportionally sized much like a toddler child.  They are similar in size to a 10” Anne Estelle doll.  Many Cutie BJD are gender neutral, meaning they do not have organs that specify their sex.  Cutie Delf Pricing for the Cutie BJD tends to range from $200 to $400.

Mini BJD.  Mini or Kid BJD are commonly referred to as MSD, or Mini Super Dollfie.  The mini dolls range in size from  14” to 18” in height.  Their bodies are fashioned after that of a typical 8 to 10 year old child.  The MSD tend to have gender specific bodies.  They tend to range in price from $250 to $500.

HappyDoll Elf Judy, Photo Courtsey of Jewel

Super BJD.  Super BJD are commonly referred to as SD, or Super Dollfie.  These are the largest of the Ball jointed dolls on the market, and the most popular, and tend to range in size from 22” to 27.5” tall.  They tend to portray teenagers and young adults in their bodies, typically in the post puberty range, and they tend to be gender specific.  The pricing for this size range tends to be from $450 to $1000+.
Sooah  (ElfDoll) and Yukinojo (Volks) Photo courtsey of Patrice S.

Each size of doll has its own benefits and disadvantages.  The larger the doll the greater the possible detail in customizing and dressing your doll, the downside of the larger dolls would be the space that they require.  The smaller dolls typically feature less detail in their bodies and sculpting, and require less space to display/play with them; they also tend to have less detail in their clothing.

DOLL MANUFACTURERS

 There are a number of companies creating modern Ball jointed dolls, so many that it is really impossible to go into detail about them all. In an effort to expand your knowledge however here is a list of a number of companies that create Ball Jointed dolls, as well as some details regarding each company and the dolls that they create  and/or sell.

Volks.  Volks is a Japanese based company that many credit for the revival of the Ball jointed doll.  They would be the equivalent to Mattel in the world of ball joint dolls.  They are the creators of the dollfie , Mini Super Dollfie (MSD) , Super Dollfie and Dollfie Dream .  Because they were the first company to revive the BJD, they are also one of the largest, and the terms Dollfie, Super Dollfie, Mini Super Dollfie are all used to describe BJD in a generic sense.  They offer a wide range of dolls to collectors, as well as many higher priced Limited edition dolls.  The Volks limited edition dolls are very hard to come by and most are only offered through a lottery style drawing or at special events held at locations around the world.   Many of the older styles of Volks dolls and the Dollfie dream dolls  have a definite anime aspect to them, featuring exaggerated eyes and smallish noses and mouths.    The current Dollfie still tend to feature these same attributes, but many of the current release dolls feature more realistic details.

Elf Doll.  Elf doll is a South Korean based company that creates Tiny dolls and Super BJD sized dolls.  Their primary characters  are Soah , Sooah , Wu and Ryung . Soah , Sooah and Ryung are the female Characters and have options available for their bust plates for small sized breasts or large sized breasts.  The small bust plate body has 1 torso joint, while the large bust plate body has 2 joints throughout her torso.  The breast sculpting on the Rainy dolls has a very natural slope.  The facial sculpts on the rainy dolls is quite realistic.  They have a definite Asian flair in the sculpts.    The rainy dolls are available in both standard and limited editions. Primarily they are available in normal/natural skin tone with the snow color being reserved for some of their limited editions.

Luts.  Luts is a South Korean based company that is a distributor for a number of different brands of Korean ball jointed dolls.  The most popular dolls they carry are the Delf.  The standard Delf (like SD) range from 22.5” (57cm) to 24” (60cm) in height, Kid Delf (like MSD)  are approximately 16.75” tall (42.5cm), and the cutie delf are approximately 10.25” (26cm) tall. The Standard Delf female has 2 available body types, a smaller bust (Soo type body) and a larger bust (Lishe type body).  The bust line is very perky on both bodies.  The Delf girl body also features a second joint at the shoulders allowing her shoulders to move forward or ‘slump’ and to move backward with more range of motion at the shoulder than some of the other dolls available on the market.  Some of the most popular girl Delf are Lishe , Soo, Dark Elf Soo ,  Angel Elf Soo , Soony , and Miyu .  Some of the more popular boy Delf include El , Chiwoo , Shiwoo , and Yder .

There are a number of other doll manufacturers in the BJD business, these include, but are not limited to SoulDoll , Dollmore , CustomHouse , OrientDoll , Domuya , DIM Doll , Leeke ,  Dollstown , Angel Region , dollshe , NotDoll , Dream of Doll DoD and DoT ,  Unoa , HappyDoll and Hypermaniac just to name a few.

The second Part of this guide will dive a bit further indepth and explore in detail the customization of Ball jointed dolls as well as the available optional parts.  Stay tuned for more to come soon!