DD Sailor Jupiter

@Galvatim She looks gorgeous in that wig!

30 minutes ago, BeyondTime said:

Yeah that never makes me happy either. All that anticipation and then they fail to deliver.

I can get that the driver has their own life obligations though, and once their shift is over they're done.

What really bugs me is when I see "Delivery Attempted" and I've been home all day with no knock on the door.

Ain’t that the truth, whats worse is when they don't knock and leave it at the back door.  I’ve had so many problems with package deliveries since coronavirus started 

25 minutes ago, Tokimemofan said:

I’ve had so many problems with package deliveries since coronavirus started 

I've had fewer, but I think that's because the expectation is now that people are home during the day.

Jupiter has put on her school uniform and is ready to meet the other girls.

 

It seems Rin has something to say to her first.

 

There was something she didn't realize she needed.

 

...

 

Now she's ready to meet the other girls.

 

Seriously Volks, they all need to come with a pair.

Edited June 25, 2020 by BeyondTime

Tracking still hasn't updated meh. Last time they kept Arle in customs for a few days too so it could still take a week or longer for her to arrive >.< I already prepped a place for her so ready for her arrival!

 

Edit: uniform and Mako-chan are now both at customs! Atleast she made it safely to the Netherlands. Now crossing fingers they release her quickly. I already know I have to pay ransom for her LOL 😂

Edited June 25, 2020 by Ylse

Congrats, she looks so cute! 

Mine is out for delivery today but I won't be able to look at her until tomorrow, since I'll be working (as expected- I feel like the postal system times their deliveries so that I'll be working when something big comes lol)- I'm happy she'll finally be home though! I kept having dreams that she got lost or Volks sent me the wrong doll or something 😬

Edited June 25, 2020 by Serena-Hime

Eep, Jupiter just got delivered! I was only able to take a peek at her face before putting the box in my doll room, but wow, she's gorgeous. I think her sculpt might be my favorite so far. 

I'm excited to debox her, but I think I'll work on her wig before taking anything else out- just so that it's ready for her right off the bat. Can anyone tell me if her ponytail is sewn on or if there's a lot of binding to the base of it? I can style it while still in the ponytail, of course, but it would be easier for me to take it down and redo the curls so that it's all organized when I put it back into the pony. I expect that I'll need to straighten the entire ponytail and recurl it from scratch, judging by how messy they seem to come lol. 

Edited June 25, 2020 by Serena-Hime

1 hour ago, Serena-Hime said:

Can anyone tell me if her ponytail is sewn on or if there's a lot of binding to the base of it?

I think the answer is yes to the both of those questions. There is a bunch of the stuff that wig fibers are rooted into at the base of the ponytail.

They also put the plastic staple that secures it to the cardboard through the ponytail and not the cap. After cutting it loose couldn't find the other end of it to take it out. Now I can't find it at all, so it either fell out or disappeared inside of it.

The one thing I don't like about her wig is how the right side of her bangs want to sit high on her head.

 

1 hour ago, Serena-Hime said:

she's gorgeous.

She is one of the prettier sculpts for sure.

Edited June 25, 2020 by BeyondTime

She went through customs and hopefully she will be delivered at the delivery point tomorrow so I can pick her up. Total ransom for her and the uniform total is a bit over 200 euros. Thanks Dutch customs 😐 but I am so exciteeeed 😆

2 hours ago, BeyondTime said:

I think the answer is yes to the both of those questions. There is a bunch of the stuff that wig fibers are rooted into at the base of the ponytail.

 

I just took it out to do a general look-over and yeah, it's basically that lol. I know the wigs are meant to be left alone, but I really hate these ''wefts glued over a stump' ponytail wigs; if the scalp/cap area gets messy, you can't exactly undo the ponytail to clean it up so you're just left with little hairs sticking out everywhere. I feel like there would have been very little difference if they did a traditional ponytail wig for Jupiter, it's not like she has a particularly intricate ponytail that required this kind of construction to look correct. A normal ponytail with some sewing around the elastic to keep it 'perky' would have been identical in appearance. 

The curls themselves aren't that bad honestly, it's just that the bottom isn't combining how it'd like so I'll probably need to recurl that by hand. The bangs definitely need some work too; I don't like the way they cover the entire forehead instead of being parted on the side, and I hate that little crimped section, so I definitely have some work to do. 

Once I finish this wig, I think I'll need to find an extra one or something similar online just because (if anyone plans on selling their Jupiter wig lmk lol). I already plan on getting a loose wig for her with a similar color/texture so that she can have her hair down, too. 

Edit: upon further inspection, there are already short hairs coming out of the base of the ponytail, probably from the stump underneath the wefts. Yeah...I'm gonna need to coat the crown area with Wig Mist to keep the hair in place once I've finished styling lol. I'd really like to remove the ponytail from the stump and then reattach it after I've organized, but I won't do that until I have a backup. 

Edited June 25, 2020 by Serena-Hime

28 minutes ago, Serena-Hime said:

I already plan on getting a loose wig for her with a similar color/texture so that she can have her hair down, too. 

I have to say that is one thing that is a lot of fun to do. I need to get Usagi and Ranko a hair down wig in their color, but I what I really want is a ponytail wig for Rei and Mio.

Mio's I have a specific style in mind where the back is in a ponytail and the side tails are pulled into it too, but the side tails aren't pulled all the way back and leave a loop of hair at the side of her face. It's hard to describe, but I have a picture in my head of what it should look like.

A bit of an aside, I'm almost at the end of a season 2 rewatch, and I really hope they make Setsuna. I know the Outers are unlikely, but Sailor Pluto is just so gorgeous that Volks really needs to turn her into a DD. Her height isn't really all that different from Makoto either.

1 minute ago, BeyondTime said:

I have to say that is one thing that is a lot of fun to do. I need to get Usagi and Ranko a hair down wig in their color, but I what I really want is a ponytail wig for Rei and Mio.

Mio's I have a specific style in mind where the back is in a ponytail and the side tails are pulled into it too, but the side tails aren't pulled all the way back and leave a loop of hair at the side of her face. It's hard to describe, but I have a picture in my head of what it should look like.

A bit of an aside, I'm almost at the end of a season 2 rewatch, and I really hope they make Setsuna. I know the Outers are unlikely, but Sailor Pluto is just so gorgeous that Volks really needs to turn her into a DD. Her height isn't really all that different from Makoto either.

Makoto's wig makes me a little scared for Minako's, but I'm hoping they just play it safe and give her a 'normal' wig with the sides pulled back instead of some weird composite wig with a big old stump in the back lol. 

I would really love them to do the Outers, Sailor Pluto is my favorite Senshi after Moon and I would love to see her, even though I am wary about her skintone- she's supposed to be tan, but they tend to make her paler in merchandise and I'm not sure if Volks would be willing to make her in tan. I think technically Uranus is the tallest Senshi, and she's only marginally taller than Makoto so I think Pluto/Uranus will be DD like her, with Michiru being DDS or DD and Hotaru being DDP if I have to guess. 

I've been searching for a long yellow wig forever and I've had no luck  I'm probably going to settle for a white or pale pink wig for Usagi, which wouldn't be too far off since Naoko loves to switch her hair color in the Artbooks. But first I need to find a backup of her stock wig lol

13 minutes ago, Serena-Hime said:

I think technically Uranus is the tallest Senshi, and she's only marginally taller than Makoto so I think Pluto/Uranus will be DD like her, with Michiru being DDS or DD and Hotaru being DDP if I have to guess.

That pretty much how I think they would do it. Setsuna is the only one who could remotely fit DDDy, and she would not fit DDDy at all; she's a DD-M imo.

One upside to the Sailor Moon license is that I seriously doubt they would ever approve a Volks L bust for any of the girls.

 

13 minutes ago, Serena-Hime said:

Makoto's wig makes me a little scared for Minako's, but I'm hoping they just play it safe and give her a 'normal' wig with the sides pulled back instead of some weird composite wig with a big old stump in the back lol. 

I think it could be done like Asuna V1s wig but not as bulky.

Edited June 25, 2020 by BeyondTime

I'm at work right now, but I can't stop thinking of ways to do Jupiter's wig lol. I think if I'm feeling risky, I might take off the ponytail, style it separately, then spruce up the base wig with a comb and a ton of Wig Mist and reattach the ponytail to the stump with a buttload of thread lol. 

Edit: I found some repair threads in here for Saber's ponytail wig...yep I think I might be deconstructing Mako's wig lol. 

Edited June 25, 2020 by Serena-Hime

Mine just arrived, unfortunately I won’t be home until Monday...

Alrighty, after a few hours of thinking it over I've started on Jupiter's wig lol. I detached the ponytail, fully straightened it and then did a more uniform wave pattern (which I can already tell will look way more accurate than before, thanks to the layers it came with)

The bangs took a little more work; the right side stuck up SO much thanks to a few strands in that back that were (intentionally I presume) crimped to stick up so that everything on top would have a little more volume, which I had to iron down to get flatter. The side parting definitely needed to be fixed to be more prominent, too, and I had to straighten those hideous kinks in the front (why do they do that? It just looks messy lol). I do have to say though, I really love the rooted skintop they did for the bangs- it looks so realistic and enables for the wig to have some more versatility in how you shape it etc. 

Now...the stump. The hair is really short and there's a lot of it looool. I did a few test runs at tying an elastic around the stump and it's really hard to get it to stay on, but I finally got it down once and then I wrapped some thread around it to keep it in place. I'm not looking forward to doing it again for when I officially reassemble the wig but at least I know I can. I already know that I'm going to have to coat the entirety of the ponytail-base in gel to brush it down and shape it correctly before I tie it up with elastic and thread and reattach the tail. 

This is going to be a stressful little project and it does mean that Mako will have to stay in her box a while longer, but I know the result will be worth it in the end. 

Sometimes I wish I wasn't such a perfectionist when it comes to doll hair, it would save me a lot of energy lol
 

Edited June 26, 2020 by Serena-Hime

She's on her way to the delivery point!! Yaayy!! Now I just need to work for 4 more hours and I can go pick her up! 

Also @Serena-Hime I'm curious about the result of your hard work! 

Sorry for the double post but she is here and for the last like 3 hours I've been putting her together. What is taking so long? Her flipping wig. It's a pain to get on and while slowly trying to put it on the tail part just slipped off 😐

So yeah, now I have a loose tail here and a huge stump of hair. Seemed there was some elastics holding it and a thread but it just slid right off while not even putting a lot of pressure. The thread was also loose. 

So now I'm sitting here wondering how the heck am I going to fix this and reading Serena-hime's post about the stump of hair lol. Even if I succeed to put an elastic on it, would a clip on the tail part be able to hold on? 🤔 seeing as the stump hair part on top isn't that long.  I could maybe also sew the tail on but then I still need to try to put that hairlump(😅) somewhere in there.

 

If anyone has any suggestions or help on how to tackle this, I would be very grateful.

 

Positive note: she is truly gorgeous 😊

18 minutes ago, Ylse said:

If anyone has any suggestions or help on how to tackle this, I would be very grateful.

@Serena-Hime is probably your most likely bet for a solution.

Found someone online who also had the same problem with the saber lily wig. For now I have also send a mail to Volks. Who knows if they know a solution or if they will send a replacement maybe 🤷‍♀️ it also seems as if a part of the ponytail hair net was also not properly attached to the elastic. Thought it would probably be wise to mail Volks about it.

3 minutes ago, Ylse said:

Found someone online who also had the same problem with the saber lily wig.

The Saber Lily wig is notorious for breaking off. I have Lily, and I don't think her wig is quite the same as Jupiter's.

Tried to gather the hairlump with a thin elastic but especially the hair on top is just so short that the elastic just flies off. Gonna continue trying and also just wait to see what Volks says about this.

If everything fails I would need to look for a replacement wig myself if Volks doesn't replace it. 

Also not familiair with the saber lily wig but the photo I found showcased exactly the same problem I had before it became loose completely 😅

 

Edit: for now I put on the ramune blue dollpoint bob wig on her so she doesn't have to go bald LOL. Must say the short hairstyle also looks cute on her. Tried to take a photo but already dark out her so that didn't work out hehe.

Edited June 26, 2020 by Ylse

29 minutes ago, Ylse said:

Also not familiair with the saber lily wig but the photo I found showcased exactly the same problem I had before it became loose completely

Saber Lily's wig has that same lump, but it's not as bulky as Jupiter's, and seems to be bound a good deal tighter. Her ponytail is a different style and has a large bow at it's base.

I haven't disassembled either of them in order to really to compare them in a technical way.

I'm also super careful about touching any Volks ponytails just because they can be so fragile. The only reason I even poked around in Jupiter's was to try and get that plastic staple out.

Edited June 26, 2020 by BeyondTime

Not to whine (well, okay whining a bit), but has anyone else here that ordered Jupiter the first weekend (June 5-7) not had their doll ship yet? My credit card has been charged (at the same time it was charged for the outfit, which I have received), but I'm still in the "Preparing for Shipment" stage. I know a couple of people posted they ordered near the end of the ordering window and their dolls have shipped. I'm just wondering at what point I should follow up with Volks. I definitely don't want to be pushy, but I want to make sure there isn't some issue.  Thanks for any intel!

 

2 hours ago, Ylse said:

 

There's this thread about Saber Lily's wig that has been very helpful! After deconstructing Jupiter's wig, I can confidently say it's pretty much identical in construction to Saber's wig- the only difference is that Jupiter's base wig is a lot thicker, which makes it more difficult to gather up the stump and wrap an elastic around it. The ponytail is thicker too but that wouldn't make much of a difference re: sewing it back on. 

I find it a little odd that they didn't apply any glue to the stump or anything to reinforce it, especially considering how heavily they reinforced Usagi's odango hairstyle. The ponytail took very little effort to pull off and I imagine tons of people are also having it fall off without meaning to. 

Don't get me wrong, I'm personally glad they didn't glue the stump (otherwise I wouldn't have been able to deconstruct and organize it), but most people don't just take apart their 600$ doll's wig like I do lol, nor would they have any desire to have to deal with that kind of defect. 

I'm about 90% done with Jupiter's bangs, but here's a photo I took this morning after the first styling session (modeled by my vintage Jennifer doll- her head is the same size as DDs, and she's very stable so I use her as my mannequin when I'm styling DD wigs lol)

 

I would have stopped there, but I felt the left side was just a little too thin and short in comparison to the right, so I pulled a little extra hair forward from the back- which required me to then flatten that hair down, then curl and layer it to blend with the rest of her bangs, and then I washed and conditioned it so it's drying now. 

I think my plan for the ponytail stump right now is to coat the hair with gel, then brush it into shape with a toothbrush, then gather it all up into an elastic and wrap a buttload of brown thread around it- then I'll likely soak the ends of the stump with vinyl glue to keep it combined, as well as sew around the base to keep it anchored and stable enough to support the ponytail when I sew that back on. 

As for the tail piece, that came out wonderfully after a full straighten, re-curl and wash with hot water:

What's funny is...this is objectively more accurate to the anime than how it originally came.🤣 Even worse, this is also likely how it looked before Volks intentionally made it look messy and added all those weird kinks into it lol. 😬 Hair comes in standardized curl widths; Volks would have had to intentionally, purposefully add in all of the weird texture themselves to make it look how it does fresh out of the box. 


I'm going to leave it disassembled for a couple of days, just to make sure I'm 100% happy before I go gluing and sewing the parts together. Will update once it's all done! 

 

Edited June 26, 2020 by Serena-Hime