Deteriorating Outfits

I'm wondering what I could use after repairing Sakura's uniform to try and seal the outfit to help prevent any additional damage. All I did in regards to the boots was take them out of the packaging and touch them which caused tiny tears and cracking. 

On 3/6/2020 at 10:34 AM, hats said:

I'm wondering what I could use after repairing Sakura's uniform to try and seal the outfit to help prevent any additional damage. All I did in regards to the boots was take them out of the packaging and touch them which caused tiny tears and cracking. 

At craft stores or online, they sell a sealant for faux leather. Even after repair jobs this should absolutely be used to help prevent the layer still attached to the backing fabric from peeling off more. 

I've repaired multiple vintage toys (25 to 40 years old) using this method. Replacing the missing colour makes it look better but the sealant stops more of the stuff from peeling off. I definitely recommend using the sealant as well as any other paint/vinyl/goo repair 

14 hours ago, Katiazza said:

At craft stores or online, they sell a sealant for faux leather. Even after repair jobs this should absolutely be used to help prevent the layer still attached to the backing fabric from peeling off more. 

I've repaired multiple vintage toys (25 to 40 years old) using this method. Replacing the missing colour makes it look better but the sealant stops more of the stuff from peeling off. I definitely recommend using the sealant as well as any other paint/vinyl/goo repair 

This info has been a life saver - thank you!

I spent some time working on repairing all the tiny cracks/holes (while discovering new cracks in the process) this past weekend. Once I get home from work this evening I will be applying the sealant to the jacket, gloves and boots. In an effort to prevent further damage to the back of the boots I placed a spare pair of feet I had into them (they'll live there now) and will just change Sakura's feet when I put her into the outfit so I won't have to worry about putting them on/off and causing any further damage in the future. Likewise - the gloves will live on the spare hands I placed them on. They required almost as much repair work as the jacket. 

16 hours ago, Katiazza said:

At craft stores or online, they sell a sealant for faux leather. Even after repair jobs this should absolutely be used to help prevent the layer still attached to the backing fabric from peeling off more. 

I've repaired multiple vintage toys (25 to 40 years old) using this method. Replacing the missing colour makes it look better but the sealant stops more of the stuff from peeling off. I definitely recommend using the sealant as well as any other paint/vinyl/goo repair 

Do you have a link or anything to the sealant product you use?

Thanks!

20 hours ago, Mahoro said:

Do you have a link or anything to the sealant product you use?

Thanks!

The brand I've used is here 

https://canada.michaels.com/en/plaid-leather-studio-leather-and-vinyl-paint/M10509258.html?dwvar_M10509258_size=2 oz&dwvar_M10509258_color=Linen

But the actual sealant doesn't seem to have a page on the sales website. But it should just say sealant for leather paint. Alternatively you could ask your local craft store what they have for it since they would know where it is. I got mine at Michael's since it's the most convenient place but I imagine other stores would also be cheaper (or you could use a coupon)

 

22 hours ago, hats said:

This info has been a life saver - thank you!

I spent some time working on repairing all the tiny cracks/holes (while discovering new cracks in the process) this past weekend. Once I get home from work this evening I will be applying the sealant to the jacket, gloves and boots. In an effort to prevent further damage to the back of the boots I placed a spare pair of feet I had into them (they'll live there now) and will just change Sakura's feet when I put her into the outfit so I won't have to worry about putting them on/off and causing any further damage in the future. Likewise - the gloves will live on the spare hands I placed them on. They required almost as much repair work as the jacket. 

I'm glad it helped! It is pretty discouraging to spend all the time fixing something and then have it continue to fall apart! I find the sealant pretty necessary to keep everything in place 

On 3/9/2020 at 1:11 PM, Mahoro said:

Do you have a link or anything to the sealant product you use?

Thanks!

The brand I bought is Fiebing. I also got it at my local Michaels craft store. Can't find it on their website though.

 

It's seriously helped a ton. I'm able to handle the boots/gloves/outfit without them falling apart at the touch. I still won't be folding the jacket when I store it though - just to be extra cautious. 

 

Does anybody know where one can find a DD sized mannequin? 

8 hours ago, hats said:

Does anybody know where one can find a DD sized mannequin?

I was very curious about this. Searching for "bjd mannequin" turns up various results; here is one on ebay that looked possibly useful:

https://www.ebay.com/p/884694851?iid=132897032269

I see the F-Zero logo on that so this may be on their Taobao shop.

 

 

11 hours ago, cfx said:

I was very curious about this. Searching for "bjd mannequin" turns up various results; here is one on ebay that looked possibly useful:

https://www.ebay.com/p/884694851?iid=132897032269

I see the F-Zero logo on that so this may be on their Taobao shop.

 

 

These would be perfect! Thanks for sharing. 

i had made this all-Pleather Pop-Idol costume for my very first Anime doll, (2001 TOYNAMI Tenchi Muyo! "Princess Ayeka") back around, -i dunno- 2006/2008ish?

anyway, it deteriorated with the usual rapidity, and i've pointedly avoided Pleather like the black death ever since...

 

 

Edited February 7, 2022 by Tasuke

I've been in the hobby for a long time and never had a problem with dolls and clothes until I put them in storage. I thought they would be more protected in storage than when I play with them every day and boy, I was so wrong! I came back to damaged face ups, shoes discoloration (the white shoes turned yellow/green), clothes damaged (faux leather clothes were ruined completely) and some eyes lost their shine, the color faded, for my BJDs their strings didn't work anymore so they all were like noodles and all just because they were in storage for like a year. None of that ever happened when I used to change them everyday and when they were on display for years. This is the reason I don't want more BJDs, they need care and the more you handle them the better but the circumstances in my life right now unable me to play with them and give them the care they need. DDs are better in that case, I actually put a DD with an ugly stain in storage, a year later the stain disappeared. The only damage I saw on my DDs is the color fading on the face ups but they weren't damaged (paint falling off etc) like my BJDs' face ups were.

15 hours ago, jazijaz said:

I've been in the hobby for a long time and never had a problem with dolls and clothes until I put them in storage. I thought they would be more protected in storage than when I play with them every day and boy, I was so wrong! I came back to damaged face ups, shoes discoloration (the white shoes turned yellow/green), clothes damaged (faux leather clothes were ruined completely) and some eyes lost their shine, the color faded, for my BJDs their strings didn't work anymore so they all were like noodles and all just because they were in storage for like a year. None of that ever happened when I used to change them everyday and when they were on display for years. This is the reason I don't want more BJDs, they need care and the more you handle them the better but the circumstances in my life right now unable me to play with them and give them the care they need. DDs are better in that case, I actually put a DD with an ugly stain in storage, a year later the stain disappeared. The only damage I saw on my DDs is the color fading on the face ups but they weren't damaged (paint falling off etc) like my BJDs' face ups were.

This is really interesting. Perhaps it's due to things like outgassing, and with a doll closed up in a box in storage, those gases can't escape and cause things to age and deteriorate.

In reference to the mannequins, I found a couple of other things. Volks has had them in SD sizes, but were not sold to the public, just offered to Dolpa dealers for them to display their stuff:

https://www.volks.co.jp/dolpa/dealer_item.html

SEN has a page, but the DD sizes are listed as unavailable:

http://www.from-sen.com/shopdetail/009002000025/ct445/page1/order/

 

The info in this thread is super helpful. I might just get around to trying to save some really nice YOSD sized pleather pants I got from a doll meet. As others have mentioned, I too went to pull the pants out of storage just to have them crumble up in my hands. 😢

On 3/15/2020 at 8:32 AM, cfx said:

In reference to the mannequins, I found a couple of other things. Volks has had them in SD sizes, but were not sold to the public, just offered to Dolpa dealers for them to display their stuff:

https://www.volks.co.jp/dolpa/dealer_item.html

It's been brought up elsewhere, but since this was in this topic, for a temporary time Volks Japan and Volks USA is selling a torso base (mannequin) for DDs, the same one I mentioned above:

https://dollfie.ec.volks.co.jp/category/D_DWC2020/4518992428680.html

https://volksusastore.com/webstores/dollfie/index.php?dispatch=products.view&product_id=11974

I wasn't sure if it was just me—I recently went through some shoes I had in storage (mostly from DollHeart), and 90% either crumbled or cracked when I touched them. I thought I was keeping them safe in a sealed plastic tote, but perhaps as @cfx mentioned the outgassing from the vinyl material or glues caused them to disintegrate? I was pretty disappointed and ended up throwing them away. I spent a lot of $ on them and many were barely worn. I think they were about 10 years old give or take. Now I'm wary about buying shoes. If I do I'll try storing them out in the open, or go for cloth shoes if they can be found.

1 hour ago, dark_dollies said:

I think they were about 10 years old give or take.

At that age I think it's fairly likely that no matter what you did they would have deteriorated.

A "new old stock" DD I got earlier this year is showing some slight cracking on parts of her outfit, she was released about 6.5 years ago.

The Sakura Taisen outfits being discussed that are falling apart are about 6 and 7 years old now.

I have a pair of shoes that the insoles are deteriorating that are probably somewhere near that age.

Some or all of the above would've been partially or fully sealed for a significant portion of that time, but I suspect that most of this vinyl material isn't going to last past 10 years no matter what you do with it. Maybe something might last longer, but I have decided to not expect it to so as to not be disappointed and to think about that on whether something is worth the cost as well.

Semi-related anecdote: Probably ~15 years ago, I bought a pair of athletic shoes from some store's going-out-of-business sale. I liked them so before the store closed, I bought a second pair of the same shoes, thinking I'd keep them stored and use them after the first pair wore out. The first pair lasted however long in good shape, eventually the vinyl surface cracked all over the place but the shoes were still intact so I continued to use them doing yard work etc. for a number of years. After around 7 years I believe, I tossed them finally and started wearing the other pair. Within a week or less that pair looked almost as bad as the first pair, with the vinyl cracking and falling off all over the place. I think this might have been the first time I was really aware of how this type of material deteriorates even without being used at all. I cannot remember now if I stored them in the box during those years or if they were just in the open under my bed.

Yeah, faux-leather materials just do not last. I suspect that unless they are put in museum-quality storage and never handled, the delaminating, cracking, and flaking are inevitable. This is one of the reasons why I have started making my own doll shoes, using real leather I have dyed, finished, and sewn myself. I know using animal products can make people uncomfortable, but real leather, if properly cared for, can last for decades.

Edited June 9, 2020 by RainbowNanaki
typo

Oh no, I bought a faux-leather jacket a few months ago (I loved that this one in particular didn't look all plastic-y), I guess at some point it will probably start to disintegrate. It still cost less than one pair of doll shoes lol. Like you said at least now I know what to expect from this material. 

No experience with this personally as I avoid pleather like the plague, but a couple years ago someone in the Omocha Crush Pullip group had a doll where the jacket was badly coming apart (Pullip Celsiy). They brushed off the crackling plastic layer and used an acrylic paint in the similar color. Jacket looked wonderfully restored and even better than it did originally. These are NOT my photos! First photo is what her jacket looks like in stock pictures and the second is what someone modded.

 

veering almost off-topic .. but all this talk of deterioration made me dig up some old Rayearth dolls (late 90s) and their fancy armor sets
...and wow, did the boots of Hikaru's "final form" did not survive. The knee-cap bits are hardplastic, but the rest was just white vinyl~ish thing and it all flaked off and disintegrated at my just poking it ;_;

Dang. I bought a used Chihaya and her outfit has that same vinyl stuff. The seller said they didn't use the outfit much but it was still falling apart. And it really is. I'm afraid to touch it for how damaged it is.

The fabric looks great on their dolls but it seems like it might be time to consider other options lol. The stuff Miku's outfit is made of would be a fine alternative, actually. Still shiny but not likely to crumble apart like that.

Oh, I swear of pleather and vinyl clothes for my dolls now. My dollheart pleather boots, and some pleather jackets and belts have completely disintegrated, leaving black bits all over my dolls.

But apparently, if you must have pleather or vinyl, you should oil them a little bit now and then with mineral oil, same as what we do to furniture and car seats.

On 6/18/2020 at 9:10 PM, Chise said:

veering almost off-topic .. but all this talk of deterioration made me dig up some old Rayearth dolls (late 90s) and their fancy armor sets
...and wow, did the boots of Hikaru's "final form" did not survive. The knee-cap bits are hardplastic, but the rest was just white vinyl~ish thing and it all flaked off and disintegrated at my just poking it ;_;

 

i once had a SEGA MKR Hikaru Shidou that i ported over to an OBITSU 27.

this was the better part of a decade ago, and even then, her original boots were deteriorating badly. i ended up making her new ones...

 

 

 

 

Edited February 7, 2022 by Tasuke

I saw last years’ Kaede casual set at Mandarake and sun ate the top colors! Sigh