types of figures popular are usually small and cute and are cheaper to purchase and more economical to store. Nendroids (pictured above) are small action figure type dolls with interchangeable faces, hands etc; usually comedic in nature. They are small and very cute and have a large popularity in the Japanese otaku community. Blindbox style statuettes are typically small and stationary with no moving parts such as these black butler figures. They are simple and cheap to produce and ship due to the small size and weight
Figures and statuettes have been used as cheerful decoration for years. They are often bought by dedicated fans or those who simply like the personality/design of the specific character. I personally enjoy collecting figures but there is also a large market for dolls and action figures. A figure is more so intended for posing and display. An action figure is meant for "play" and heavier use and dolls are often for play and "dressing up".
Dolls and figures come in such a large array of styles and brands. Barbie is the most well-known fashion doll of our era, having cemented herself into pop culture for many years to come the Barbie brand is a 12-inch fashion doll with 3 main points of articulation (typically the head, arm and hip) The popularity of Barbie is undisputed however has since had almost an equally popular counterpart by the same company; Mattel which is Monster high. The fashion doll expressed character by taking the old premise of monsters and turning them into a new fresh line for the youth of 2010. Monster High was also one of the first fashion dolls to have a web series made specifically for it. Mattel utilised a completely unique torse sculpt along with very thin fingers and long legs. The brand also used 6 points of articulation at the head, shoulder, elbow, wrist, hip and knee, which was typically was only seen in 16 inch collectors dolls such as Gene Marshall, Integrity toys and silkstone (property of Mattel) Here I have listed some interviews pertaining to more information on Gene Marshall and Integrity toys.
Images below credit to the makers above.
Some dolls with more interesting moulds exist such as one of my favourite lines Novi stars show. I shall be using the monster high as a base as they are easy to collect and remove the paint from; I follow a lot of prominent doll artists in which ill be taking inspiration from such as dollightful, hextian, moonlight jewel and Mozekyto. I first started by removing the factory paint with acetone and the hair through the neck with pliers. Image taken from Blue Duckie on Youtube
After that the face is cleaned to remove any excess acetone and is prepped with a few layers of watered down sealant. Many doll customisers use a spray sealant called Mr.Superclear however it is rather expensive and isn't very environmentally friendly, watered down sealant takes longer to dry however I prefer the safety of a sealant mix. Then I go onto the face directly with acrylic paint which has been cut with 1/3 water which allows the paint to go on smoother
Next I added a wire armature inside the head to support the weight of the 3 dimensional hair, it has also been filled with hot glue to make it less weighted. The hair was smoothed with water and left to dry for 3 days before It was painted with black acrylic and sealed with a matt sealant to prevent chipping. (pink doll images are used from Hextian on youtube)
Then I went to creating the clothing. I started with some white cotton and dyed it in the 2 colours; blue and yellow. The fabric was left for 2 hours so they retained a pastel hue. I then stitched the arms separately and added them to the arms; I made a disposable pattern which consisted of a single piece with 2 arm holes cut out. I then cut the pieces out of the fabric and stitched them directly onto the body. I did this because I feel the clothing will be more durable and less likely to be lost if it is connected to the body.
The face I drew followed my concept art but also followed the mould of the original face. All of the colours harmonise with each other and I steered clear of the colour black for the eyes as they came across very hard and I wanted my design to be light and fun. If I were to sculpt my own doll I would add a more prominent smile and different nose to the other characters. This would make the dolls apear more friendly but allow children to relate to the facial structures of each doll.
I added the pink details with acrylic paint so it would look flat and part of the fabric. for the trousers I created 2 pieces in a upside down U shape and sewed them together. I added details with lace to hide seams and match the concept art. Finally I added the black on the legs and sealed them so there would be minimal scratching of the paint.
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For the packaging I wanted to focus on a classic doll packaging with an open window box . to the right are examples of more expensive doll boxes. you can see these are more high end as they are interesting shapes and include intricate designs on the front,
The Monster High boxes are typically more minimalist on the back of the boxes with a beautiful piece of artwork and a little bit about the characters personality.
These monster high boxes are the basic boxes. When purchasing I liked that the box was still colourful yet didn't overshadow the doll inside. It also allows for the consumer to see what they're purchasing.
Japanese packaging is typically brighter and more eye-catching; featuring a product photo rather than fan art. The nendroid figure features the artwork in boxes whereas the hanairogoromo figures picture is placed on the front like the western boxes
for my box design, I wanted to focus on American sideshow art such as the art of Glen C. Davies. The sideshow was popularised by American P.T. Barnum; his plan was to take oddities of the human condition that was unknown at the time and charge a small profit of a dime (10 cents USD).
Though these fell out of fancy due to the advancement of modern medicine determining the "freaks" to be a medical deformity; some still enjoy the pass time of a sideshow. Although there seems to be ethical issues with the idea of freakshows the "freaks" would often prefer to work this way instead of taking any kind of benefit.(1)
For the front of the box, I wanted to take heavy inspiration from the monster high freak du chic boxes. I love the way they used draped curtains to frame the character inside, the background is a continuation of the circus theme however for mine I intend to keep it a solid colour as to not distract from the doll. I also intend to keep my doll posed in the box to make it more interesting to view in the box for collectors who keep their dolls in boxes however I will attach mine with ribbon as to not damage the doll with heavily attaching it with plastic. the however coloured ribbon may stain the doll over a long period of time which would be something to consider in future.
This is the line art for the finished box design. I put the name of the brand in the font Unicorn Giggles at the top of the box and I will later surround it with shiny stars. The name tag is in the shape of a circus entry ticket to tie in with the theme and this also contains stars. To the left of the box I drew Iris in a pose that reflects her demure yet regal personality. I then tested the illustration in pencil and in marker and decided on marker as it gave a clean feel. I added pencil accents to make it look abit more traditional and unique much like the sketchy quality of ever after high box art.
This is my finished box design. Overall I am very happy with the outcome but it wasn't without its challenges. firstly cutting the box left for the edges to be weak due to the pressure of sawing through the cardboard. This then meant I had to re-enforce the sides with paper mache like a cast and then painted it. As this is a prototype it isn't as polished as the finished product would be. the texture and colour would be consistent and the plastic thinner and more environmentally friendly. I would have liked to improve on the back by adding some text like a biography about the character, title and barcode. The biography would allow people that don't know who the character is to decide if they'd want to look into it. e.g if the character loves music and the customer also does they may feel a connection and thus building an audience.
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Sources:
http://animetoystore.com.au/vocaloid-hatsune-miku-nendoroid-274
https://www.dhgate.com/product/cute-mini-black-butler-kuroshitsuji-sebastian/249374219.html