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ButtonsMcGee
22 hours ago, Eiko82 said:

Wait what? Felicity has only just been released and she is already leaving?!?! That is nuts! 

Okay so I was right about Felicity in tea being new. I thought so, but then when I saw this I wondered if my timing was off. @-@

5 hours ago, Eiko82 said:

 

But she has barely been out for 7 days!!! I don't understand how he can dismiss her THAT quickly. She is one of my fav sculpts from SmD

I honestly wanted to get her (well, trade my Courage for her) but at this rate, I doubt it'll ever happen.

Thankfully the Felicity in Cinnamon seems to be safe from the chopping block for now, so the sculpt itself is safe. However I am pretty sad that they're getting rid of her Tea version. 

It seems like Danny expects people to jump on new dolls, and if they don't sell a ton of them when they're first released, he dismisses it as a failure. Really, the reality of it all is that most of us need to be able to SAVE before we can purchase the dolls. $500 is a lot of money, after all. That's half (if not all) of someone's rent money, or enough money for a full family of four to buy groceries for a month. Not all of us immediately have the cash to burn. 

That or he may be looking for dolls to discontinue to make room for more newer ones? Idk. No matter what though, it's sad. 

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monkeypizzasonic

See, I think this is where longer preorders/signups would have been good, because then SmD would know how many people want a specific doll and how many they should make. But Danny keeps changing his mind about how he wants to sell his products.

But anyway, moar doll:

(the most upvoted comment is someone complaining about the white lines, so hopefully he'll change that.)

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Eiko82

The sad thing about Tea Felicity is that she was once a prototype that ended up not making the cut and was sold through the prototype garage sales. So I figured that she'd never get made again. 

Then Danny showed her again and said she was going into production before the summer. I was overjoyed. But now it seems that she'll be gone again before ever getting a proper chance :(

  • Sad 2

Living at my place: Rise (DD Rise Kujikawa), Chie (Smart Doll Mirai) and Aisha (Smart Doll Kurenai)

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Katsudon

It's a shame, because there are so few tea dolls as it is. :(

I hope the tea one/s I have my eye on will last longer. Saving up is tough rn ^^;

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Veravey
On 9/30/2020 at 6:55 AM, ButtonsMcGee said:

 $500 is a lot of money, after all. 

I'm saving for my first SmD as we speak and learning about CJ. Kind of scared that something will discontinue in the next couple months. And I already missed out on the milk girls, too.

Edited by Veravey
clarified shipping circumstances
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ButtonsMcGee
7 hours ago, Veravey said:

Try $750+ in CAD :'> In fact, I'm planning for $900 CAD with added hands, feet, and elf ears.

I'm saving for my first SmD as we speak and learning about CJ. Kind of scared that something will discontinue in the next couple months. And I already missed out on the milk girls, too.

I mean, yes $750+ is expensive of course. But that doesn't change the fact that $500 is still a LOT. Plus you have to take the exchange rate into consideration. 

According to Dr. google, $900 CAD = $677.44 USD

And $750 CAD = $564.43 USD

So they're honestly pretty even. In US dollars, the doll is $493, 1 handpack is $94 the feet are $104, and the elf ears are $45. So all together that's $736 USD. Oh! I almost forgot shipping. The doll shipping with DHL seems to be a flat $40? I think. So $776 USD, which = $1,030.95 CAD

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Veravey
On 10/1/2020 at 6:17 PM, ButtonsMcGee said:

So they're honestly pretty even. In US dollars, the doll is $493, 1 handpack is $94 the feet are $104, and the elf ears are $45. So all together that's $736 USD. Oh! I almost forgot shipping. The doll shipping with DHL seems to be a flat $40? I think. So $776 USD, which = $1,030.95 CAD

We also don't have many large local suppliers, at least not with anime figures. I'm assuming the BJD market is similar (I'm pretty new to it) so that often adds more shipping, and I've almost never been given the option for free shipping like some American companies give to orders within the US only. Expensive hobbies, am I right?

(╯︵╰,)
Edited by Veravey
clarified shipping circumstances

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ButtonsMcGee
43 minutes ago, Veravey said:

Of course, that's why exchange rates exist. The annoying part is average income rates are pretty much the same between both countries, so you might be making $20 an hour USD and I'll be making $20 CAD an hour (entry level, basic jobs; I know minimum wage can vary pretty greatly state-to-state, and of course I have no idea what you make; these are basic numbers for a simple example) but the doll is still $630 CAD vs $475 USD.

We also don't have many (or any?) large local suppliers, at least not with anime figures. I'm assuming the BJD market is similar (I'm pretty new to it) so that often adds more shipping, and I've almost never been given the option for free shipping like some American companies give to orders within the US only. Expensive hobbies, am I right?

(╯︵╰,)

Wait... you're kidding, right? $20 an hour is NOT an entry level basic job for us. I currently make $12.50 an hour and I'm LUCKY to have that. Most people in my state aren't making more than $8.75 an hour. 

Only a few states have lifted it to $15 an hour because they actually recognized the high cost of living. 

Georgia's is $7.25 an hour. Same with Idaho, Indiana and maybe other states. Some are even lower. Our Minimum wages are low, our healthcare is stupid expensive so most of us go without it, and all kinds of other stuff I don't want to get into. 

So please be careful before you say things like this, because that wasn't accurate in the slightest. 

According to Google, your on average minimum wage in Canada is $12.15. That is equivalent to $9.14 USD, which is equivalent to some of our mid-range state-to-state minimum wages. But it's not equivalent to all of them. 

Also, honestly most BJD's don't come from state-side dealers. We have a few, but a lot of them can be really skeevy (like Denverdoll. NEVER order from them unless they state that it's in-stock right in that moment. Trust me, I and many other have had issues.) 90% of purchases in this hobby come from either used sales, or from dealers like Alice Collection that are in other countries as well. It's the same with Smart Dolls. It's either used sales, or the Smart Doll online webshop, with just a few sprinklings from their one and only US dealer, FabricFriends. 

Volks I can't speak on as much because I haven't bought one of their dolls just yet, but I'm honestly pretty sure it's the same. And the Proxies who go to the shops to help people with their orders make bank off of charging extra proxie fees.

 

As for shops that supply anime goods in Canada, I just looked it up. There's at least 60. All it takes is a quick google search, my friend. It pulled up a ton of them. I can't gaurantee they'd have any BJD stuff, but if anime figures are what you're looking for, they should have them there. 

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Veravey
3 minutes ago, ButtonsMcGee said:

So please be careful before you say things like this, because that wasn't accurate in the slightest. 

I was merely using numbers compared to my American friends in New York City, Northern California, and South Carolina. They all make more than me, and of course it's based on your field and profession.


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Zippercore
1 hour ago, Veravey said:

We also don't have many (or any?) large local suppliers, at least not with anime figures. I'm assuming the BJD market is similar (I'm pretty new to it) so that often adds more shipping, and I've almost never been given the option for free shipping like some American companies give to orders within the US only. Expensive hobbies, am I right?

(╯︵╰,)

Oh hey, I know of a couple Canadian dealers/shops! https://www.moonlightbjd.com/ is relatively new-ish, but they're always listing preorders for really nice stuff, especially clothing, and a Youtuber I on and off follow namedrops https://blackrattledolls.com/ fairly regularly and really loves them. They're both probably far from where you are, but I guess it's probably similar to how the, er... three or so US shops I know offhand are states and states away from me, lol

11 minutes ago, Veravey said:

I was merely using numbers compared to my American friends in New York City, Northern California, and South Carolina. They all make more than me, and of course it's based on your field and profession.

Oh, yeah, lol NYC is super expensive to live in. Most people I know of commute from Jersey just to survive. I think NorCal is probably the same way. We're all kinda screwed on the minimum wage side of things, though. RIP North American economy, lol

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ButtonsMcGee
15 minutes ago, Veravey said:

I was merely using numbers compared to my American friends in New York City, Northern California, and South Carolina. They all make more than me, and of course it's based on your field and profession.

You also just listed two of the most expensive states to live in. They make more than you because their costs of living are higher. They make that much so that they can actually pay their rent. New York and Cali are both STUPID expensive. I'd know, I used to live in Cali and my family was from New York. I moved to a different state because I recognized it would be too expensive to try and live there. 

 

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Veravey
10 minutes ago, Zippercore said:

Oh hey, I know of a couple Canadian dealers/shops!

Oh, yeah, lol NYC is super expensive to live in. Most people I know of commute from Jersey just to survive. I think NorCal is probably the same way. We're all kinda screwed on the minimum wage side of things, though. RIP North American economy, lol

Thanks for the shop listings! I was hoping the BJD market would have more options than my previous hobbies so that's some great news. I've been so used to ordering everything (new and used) from Japan or directly from previous owners, but since dolls have so many other components like accessories and clothing (where figures are just a big, solid chunk of plastic) it kind of makes sense that there might be more avenues. I'm so excited! And the crafting community seems huge. It's lovely.

And yeah, NYC is ridiculous. My dad was doing exactly what you described, he worked there for 2 years in 1999/2000 and commuted in from NJ. It was the best experience he could find right out of university (he went to school late after immigrating from Europe) so despite the long distance and traffic he said it was worth it. It's really changed now, though, and I feel for my friend out there. Even despite the field he's in, it's tough staying in the city.

22 minutes ago, ButtonsMcGee said:

I moved to a different state because I recognized it would be too expensive to try and live there. 

I can respect that, it's really tough. We moved from Ontario to Alberta 15 years ago for the same reason. Good thing, too, because even though prices are going up here, Toronto and chunks of southern Ontario are going crazy right now. It's really scary when you make under $20 with rent, students loans, and life.

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BeyondTime
21 minutes ago, ButtonsMcGee said:

They make that much so that they can actually pay their rent.

As a tech worker in CA, I can assure you we make more and still can’t afford the rent in the Bay Area. XD

You pretty much have to be a senior engineer to manage rent on your own, and house payments take two people at that income level. It’s not uncommon for tech buses to pick people up at 4 am outside the bay to get them to work at 7 am inside the bay.
 

3 hours in the express lane as a commute. >.>

25 minutes ago, ButtonsMcGee said:

New York and Cali are both STUPID expensive.

And how!
 

What’s frustrating is the housing costs have more to do with building codes, permits, and environmental group suing anyone who tries to develop. We grow our adult population by about 180,000 a year, but add half as many housing units each year. 

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The difference between Dollfie Dreams and Heroin? Heroin is illegal, Dollfie Dreams probably should be.

“Empty wallets, full hearts.” That’s probably an apt description for the effects of DD addiction

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ButtonsMcGee
10 minutes ago, BeyondTime said:

As a tech worker in CA, I can assure you we make more and still can’t afford the rent in the Bay Area. XD

You pretty much have to be a senior engineer to manage rent on your own, and house payments take two people at that income level. It’s not uncommon for tech buses to pick people up at 4 am outside the bay to get them to work at 7 am inside the bay.
 

3 hours in the express lane as a commute. >.>

And how!
 

What’s frustrating is the housing costs have more to do with building codes, permits, and environmental group suing anyone who tries to develop. We grow our adult population by about 180,000 a year, but add half as many housing units each year. 

Oh man yeah. Cali is killer. It's beautiful, but it's killer. 

That commute sounds like a real horror. I'm sorry you have to deal with that. @-@

Yeah that makes a lot of sense. It's all about supply and demand, and with the cost to produce and the high demand, the rates just go up, up, up, and through the roof!

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Veravey
19 minutes ago, BeyondTime said:

As a tech worker in CA, I can assure you we make more and still can’t afford the rent in the Bay Area. XD

Absolutely. My friend in Santa Rosa applied for work there after graduating just to get out of the Bay area, and he's still struggling with a decent job (he completed his masters.) And just an hour ago, I was talking to a friend selling his house somewhere close to the Arizona border and he was saying how houses are in such short demand. It's crazy.


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Gabihime

Ahahaha just as an aside, it’s perfectly possible to only ever order from the domestic Volks shop and have an army full of DDs :)  I know many ladies in the hobby who come from the antique side of collecting and don’t have any interest in navigating ordering from Japan.  The Volks shop is generally well stocked and timely with shipping, you just have to accept that it will get fewer items than the Japanese flagship stores.  It’s similar to the lolita brands Baby the Stars Shine Bright and Angelic Pretty, both of which also have domestic shops based in the U.S.  Sure, you can order from Volks international if you want to, but you don’t have to. (If there are high demand items you want, it’s best to get two chances at them after all).

And when I first started the hobby I literally had a shop that I could go to downtown which had many Dollfie Dreams and Super Dollfie in stock, and could do all special orders, regular orders, and lotteries.  That was when Kerbey Lane Doll Shop was still open (;_; goodnight, sweet princess).  I was really lucky to be near one of the only Volks dealers in the country, I know, but I loved it.  It that era I was there all of the time because I was friends with the staff, and there was a little table and chairs and I would just loaf there lol.

Edited by Gabihime
Typo
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forged_in_mess

I feel like it's totally different in Europe. I live in Netherlands, but I'm polish. In Poland a good paid job will leave you with 600 EURO monthly. Of course, living there is cheaper. But... Goods like SmD are not getting cheaper. So polish people still need to pay over 500 euro for it, which makes for some people whole monthly earnings. I do the same job in Netherlands, that pays me 2k euro, and even with higher living costs - I could afford it sooner.

 

So maybe a used market doesn't exist in Europe as well because of that. If someone buys a doll that costs monthly wages - they are not poor people who would need to sell it to get another one.

I am quite scared of ordering from Japan when it comes to mandrake etc to be honest, but looks like that will he the only way to get cortex... 

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Gabihime

Is there a particular reason you’re scared of Mandarake?  I’m just curious.  I’ve been ordering from them for almost twenty years.

 

And I understand.  I have a friend in Portugal who makes what amounts to USD $4.00 an hour. For her, these dolls are incredibly hard to afford.  It becomes difficult to buy anything at all outside the Portuguese market.

Edited by Gabihime
Portugal addition

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Noxxbunny
9 hours ago, BeyondTime said:

As a tech worker in CA, I can assure you we make more and still can’t afford the rent in the Bay Area. XD

You pretty much have to be a senior engineer to manage rent on your own, and house payments take two people at that income level. It’s not uncommon for tech buses to pick people up at 4 am outside the bay to get them to work at 7 am inside the bay.
 

3 hours in the express lane as a commute. >.>

And how!
 

What’s frustrating is the housing costs have more to do with building codes, permits, and environmental group suing anyone who tries to develop. We grow our adult population by about 180,000 a year, but add half as many housing units each year. 

Mood. I worry about my boyfriend and I being able to afford to move back to the bay(our home area) on the salary of an engineer with a PhD and whatever measly entry-level income I bring in($15 an hour if I go back to San Jose) until I have some upwards mobility in a company. My morning commute was 1.5 hours on a good day, 2 hours on a bad day...both ways. The scary part about that? When I was a kid, it used to only take 35 minutes to go the same distance! People just absolutely flooded the area I come from because it was cheaper than living in San Jose.

But relating that to the topic of SmD, I just personally don't see them as a good value at their price point compared to Volks or Azone or Obitsu. As mentioned before, as someone who makes $15/hour, feeling like I'm getting a bang for my buck is important to me. Every time I think of buying a SmD(Danny shenanigans aside), I just ultimately can't get excited about what I get for $500. I would also consider the aftermarket like I do for many of my dolls and doll parts, but I never see them for sale for less than the retail price because every doll is a discontinued doll. Only time I see price dips is for Mirai, and I'm 1000% not interested in her sadly, lol.


Current Crew: Kaito(DDH07), Miles(DDH06), Lyca(DDH-10), Hotaru(DDH09), Kagamine Rin, Maron(DDH01), Mikuo(Snow Miku), Nagisa(DDH01)

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Katsudon
8 hours ago, forged_in_mess said:

I feel like it's totally different in Europe. I live in Netherlands, but I'm polish. In Poland a good paid job will leave you with 600 EURO monthly. Of course, living there is cheaper. But... Goods like SmD are not getting cheaper. So polish people still need to pay over 500 euro for it, which makes for some people whole monthly earnings. I do the same job in Netherlands, that pays me 2k euro, and even with higher living costs - I could afford it sooner.

 

So maybe a used market doesn't exist in Europe as well because of that. If someone buys a doll that costs monthly wages - they are not poor people who would need to sell it to get another one.

I am quite scared of ordering from Japan when it comes to mandrake etc to be honest, but looks like that will he the only way to get cortex... 

Don't be scared of ordering from Japan! I've done it many times, although mostly through English speaking sites. XD I've ordered from South Korea from a Korean only site though and that was fine. I also did some taobao shopping through a service, and it was smooth and easy (and my bjds arrive tomorrow! Eeeee!)

I think you might have more luck with cortex soon as everyone looks to offload the spare shells and heads from the buy one get one free event. The only difficult thing would be finding a frame. ^^;

(Which shade of cortex are you thinking of getting?)

There is a market for used dolls in the EU, but Smart Dolls are hard to find used anywhere ime. I think most people sell them through Facebook. (tbf my experience is coloured by me not looking hard, and wanting an obscure doll, so yeah... and I'm comparing it to bjd sales, which are much easier to come by. Ignore me - keep looking and you'll find stuff eventually! :3 )

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Veravey
13 hours ago, forged_in_mess said:

So polish people still need to pay over 500 euro for it.

I am quite scared of ordering from Japan when it comes to mandrake etc to be honest, but looks like that will he the only way to get cortex... 

I believe it, my family is from Poland actually, they're still there in Warszawa and and the itty bitty town my mom came from Nowa Deba. I can only imagine importing even that much further is more expensive. Have you looked at some of the European doll websites? Like I said before, I'm new to the hobby but I remember people talking about some German and Dutch (I think it was Dutch at least) sites that have been around a long time? Or does that still create a lot of extra importing fees?

Also Manadrake has treated me well; I've been using them for figures for years, and haven't had any problems with used goods personally. Of course, there's always a chance someone could be unhappy with a second-hand purchase, but their descriptions of the items are quite honest. (∩_∩) The largest issue I had was a nendoroid I bought smelled of second hand smoke, so I kept her in a bag for 1 month with fabric softener sheets and she's perfectly fine now.


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Veravey
9 hours ago, Noxxbunny said:

I just personally don't see them as a good value at their price point compared to Volks or Azone or Obitsu. As mentioned before, as someone who makes $15/hour, feeling like I'm getting a bang for my buck is important to me.

That's a really good point, I'm beginning to really debate this as I decide which doll to first get. I'm still saving but the prices play such a big factor. I really appreciate the SmD sculpt, just out of preference, but you guys make some good points about cost differences.


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forged_in_mess
4 hours ago, Katsudon said:

hich shade of cortex are you thinking of getting?)

I was thinking of cinnamon. 

 

Actually i liked how anime like they looked, like less robotic than DD. But the more I look at angelphilia (ignoring their faces haha) and their legs... The more I love it haha

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monkeypizzasonic

Interrupting this discussion for Strength in tea:

Appropriately, the tea doll is wearing the British dress.

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Gabihime

She looks really pretty!  I love the dress too.  I want to see more different kinds of fashion for SMD.  Even if he isn’t into moe culture or alternative Japanese fashion, there are so many different fashion styles that would look awesome on a doll.

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