Yellowing on a DD?

I took my Yoko out of her box today, and I noticed a small yellow spot near her head cap (not quite on the head cap though). It reminds me of the yellowing that resin dolls can sucbleepb to, but she was bought NRFB so I have no clue how it got there. The stain doesn't show up in phots of her face and I'm wondering if anyone here has had this problem as well. Hopefully I can find a good solution.

Hi Talolili,

 

Do you have a picture of that spot? I know there are cases where older generation DDs (Mirai, Candy, Kotori, etc.) end up with yellowish spots on their head when kept in a closed humid environment. Apparently it happens due to the heads having air holes in them and this reacting with humidity and the chemicals in the PVC. Since I've experienced this with my Mirai head, I can see if your's is a similar case or not if I can see a picture of it. The yellowing will look almost like a tiny pimple.

 

Regardless, all DDs do slowly turn yellowish due to deterioration of the material in relation with the amount of ultra-violet rays they absorb (hence the more you have your DDs in a place where they are under natural sun-light i.e. by the window, you will experience overall yellowing in several years time). You can't really stop this process completely, though you can slow it by keeping your girls away from direct sunlight. It is a popular misconception that DDs don't yellow as opposed to resin BJDs. This type of yellowing is quite obvious when you observe white-skin DDs. My white-skin MDD Al-Azif turned slightly yellow and it was pretty obvious when I compared her with a newly bought white-skin body.

 

Another case I have experienced is when I used masking tape on some of my DD heads to prevent stain. Some tapes actually cause yellowing on PVC. The only thing I can say is if you decide to use masking tape for stain prevention don't use the white one's, but the yellow-orange-ish ones (as you can find from companies like 3M and Scotch) which are designed to have lesser stickiness. I've never had experiences with yellowing with these yellow-orange masking tapes, but nothing's guaranteed. So I recommend not using tape at all really. I've since then converted completely to using a combination of both plastic wrap and silicon head covers for stain prevention.

 

In all three above cases, there is a way to reverse the yellowing to some extent which I have tried and found to be successful. The method is to soak the yellowed DD parts in 'active oxygen' type laundry bleach which MUST include the chemicals TAED and hydrogen-peroxide. Soak the parts in a clear container, then leave the container out under direct sunlight since the chemicals actually cause de-colouration by reacting with ultra-violet rays. Keep them out for about 3 days to a week depending on the level of yellowing on your DD. You can find the scientific logic behind this method here http://retr0bright.wikispaces.com/ Just like how these guys were successful in de-yellowing old computer ware, it actually does have effect on PVCs too. I've done this with several of my older DDs like Kotori and Nemu (which were turning pretty yellow due to aging deterioration of the PVC). I've also done it with my Mirai with the tiny yellow pimple, as well as DDs that yellowed due to masking tape. In all cases, I've had satisfying results.

 

HOWEVER, I strongly stress that nothing is guaranteed and if you are to try this, you really need to have a leap of faith and do it at your own risk. I of course can't take any responsibility for attempts going wrong. I do emphasize that if you have done face-ups on your heads using acrylic paint or sprayed it with clear "top-coat" spray paint, the bleach will actually cause whitening on the paint layer (this has happened with me). However, I've rarely experienced de-colouration on the default volks face-ups (except for with light pink pigment used on the cheeks in the case of Nemu). I've only used this method when I was going to redo the face-ups completely so I didn't have to care about the default face-ups being ruined. Plus, the long term effects of soaking PVC in bleach aren't clear so that's another element of risk. If you are worried it may be a good idea to just soak the bit that yellowed and keep the face-up from touching the bleach.

 

Plus, I do not know how laundry bleaches are outside of Japan. In Japan there's one called "Wide Haiter EX Power" which works perfectly (http://www.kao.com/jp/widehaiter/whi_wideex_00.html). There maybe types of laundry bleaches sold in the states which might include both TAED and hydrogen-peroxide, but may also include other chemicals which may do harm on PVCs. You'll have to do your own research on this.

 

If you're not so positive of soaking your DD, it maybe a good idea to just try to camouflage the yellow spot by using powdered pastels of lighter flesh tone (use sandpaper to powder them and then apply with a Q-tip or fine brush, then spray the area with mat clear coat paint, repeat the process till the yellow spot isn't obvious anymore. Pastel's don't stay on PVC surfaces without coating it.) Or you can of course air-brush the yellowed area with a tone similar to the DD flesh tone.

 

You can also try placing a neatly folded piece of tissue soaked with paint thinner over the yellowed area and hold it down/cover the area with plastic wrap. Keep it like that for 3 hours or so. This method certainly works with de-colouring dark stains you get on your DDs from clothes. However I've noticed it rarely works with yellowing. But you never know, might make a difference in your case. BUT I emphasize that this method can be the most destructive too. If you use too much paint thinner or leave the tissue on your DD for too long it can actually cause the deforming of the PVC surface (like how Remove-Zit does). The stronger and concentrated the paint thinner, the more deformation it will cause. I've only used Mr. Color paint thinner (http://www.volksusa.com/matlot0026.html), so this is the only one I can say is relatively safe to use. Again try at your own risk.

 

Hope that helps. Good luck!

Thanks for the suggestions, I'm actually afraid to try most of these methods on Yoko!

I can't provide pics because I have no camera, sadly. Maybe airbrushing would be the safest, but I have no idea what colors to get for the task. For now, I'll just try to keep the spot covered with a wig.

I have the same issue with White Skin body...

That yellow spot on the Yoko may not be resin-type yellowing. SakuraSylph and I have gotten dolls that have random yellow spots on them. Generally they are stains. Some of those are removable, some of them are not. All you can do is try removing it and see what happens. If it's non-removable, you might be able to lighten it up via stain treatments.

@ZepSnufkin The DD 'skin' is Vinyl, not PVC. Their internal frames are a mixture of ABS and PVC.

Well, in many cases and in common knowledge, vinyl *is* PVC

Anyone knows, what specific material is the DD "skin" ?

I think I might try that retr0 bright method since my DDH04 is quite yellow >_<

I'll make a post if I get good results and let you guys now how it goes.

If someone has tips for WS feel free sharing with us T-T

I would like to know how to de-yellow a WS doll to. My girl is REALLY yellowed in some places and I would like to get you looking normal again.

what doll is she?

Not 100% sure but I think a DD2. I am like the 4th owner but she looks like the DD2s that I see posted.

i meant what head mold the body came with? or did you buy doll body separate

It looks like the 02 head on the volks site. The head is darker than the hands which are DEFINITELY white skin but the body is stained from the full body tattoo that somebody put directly on the doll. Which ii found out after I wiped it.....

ah i thought it was natural yellowing. but this is staining. there is benzoyl peroxide that is usually used toremove stains but it leaves a residue on white skinn girls that is very hard to remove

I figured it was staining. I got some of benzoyl peroxide stuff and it is lightning the stain a little at a time but the paint used was alot of orange and red and it like turning the doll more of a normal shade in places.

Well, in many cases and in common knowledge, vinyl *is* PVC

Anyone knows, what specific material is the DD "skin" ?

 

@Kumi Much belated, but thanks for your supportive info. Yes you're right. PVC does mean "polyvinyl chloride" and while it is a term that stands for a particular type of vinyl, it's also a general term used on any "vinyl-based" material used on figures etc. In Japan PVC-related materials used for character toys'n such that are "soft" to the touch are differentiated with the label, "soft-vinyl." The Skin of Dollfie Dreams also qualify for that label.

 

For everyone: I just use the term PVC for it's general sense, but in any case whatever the precise material of the DD skin is, the bleaching technique does work and that's the important point here (and sorry! I'm not sure what the precise material of the skin is - the VOLKS website and the Japanese Wikipedia article on Dollfie Dreams just says PVC).

 

ADDITIONAL INFO FOR VIEWERS OF THIS THREAD: For those willing to try the laundry bleach technique on yellowed DDs. I forgot to stress that yes, you do have to remove the skin from the internal frame. Only soak the skin in bleach not the ABS frame! It's been two, three years since I tested the technique on some of my dolls and got satisfying results, so I can attest through actual experiment that there seems to be no long-term defects of soaking the skin/head in bleach (at least after 2 years and only when using a specific bleach called Wide Haiter EX). The only after-effect maybe that the heads now have a nice aroma due to the aromatic additive that was in the bleach

 

I subsequently figured that the bleach technique also works on dark stains although you will have to keep the stained skin parts in bleach and under the sun for a much longer period of time than needed to white yellowing. I had a bad time with my Melty DD getting stains from her default dress, so figured testing if bleach will help get rid of it. Conclusion: though it took about a whole month or so of soaking the stained parts in bleach under direct sunlight, the stains were almost entirely removed. So worthwhile technique, yields concrete results, at least no defects after 2-3 years, but super-long-term defects are still unknown so try at your own risk!

 

Although I add that personally, I think it's a safer option than going for Remove-Zit cause that stuff on a bad day can cause permanent deformation on the surface of the skin. With Remove-Zit, it takes some getting use to to figure how much of it and for how long it should be applied to get a proper result without having to deform the surface. With bleach you don't have to think, just dump the parts into the bleach in a clear container, leave it out in the sun and wait, and it causes no deformation of the surface. So I do recommend those brave enough to test it to try it out (especially when you're out of other options to reverse yellowing and/or stains on your DD skin).

I might try using bleach on some stained white skinned hands myself. I've still never tried remove zit yet, but I have used some regular acne cream on a fashion doll. Some, not all of the stains are gone.

I might try using bleach on some stained white skinned hands myself. I've still never tried remove zit yet, but I have used some regular acne cream on a fashion doll. Some, not all of the stains are gone.

 

were you able to do the bleaching method mentioned here? how was it? i'm in need of confirmation if this works because my Mariko head is mildly yellowed due to exposure to sunlight by its previous owner.