The order:
doll body:145minus | head:Fei | eyes:Blue | skin:LPink | joint:Tight | finger:Bones | nails:Nail | pubes:NoFur | wigs:GShort | package:Carton
the extra head: Saki, with Brown eyes, black wig.
1899 (145cm holiday special) + 500 (discounted extra head) + 499 (shipping to US, Boston area) x 1.044 (paypal fee) = $3025.51
I opted for paypal since my bank is dumb and I did not want to deal with the hassle and fees. There was an extra 4.4% charge to cover paypal fees, but since I used a credit card that gives me 1.5% cashback on any purchase, it mostly balanced the would-be cost of 2 transfers + currency conversion + my time, had I used the bank transfer method.
Choosing a skin tone was probably the most difficult decision in this purchase, since the yellow skin looks like a nice tan in natural light, and the white skin would make me want to dress her as a sexy goth. Multiple threads on TDF helped by showing how the skin tones look under outdoor and indoor lighting. I ultimately chose the light pink skin because the photography setting would be indoors under fairly cold artificial light, so the low kelvin effect on the pink skin would not make it look too pink, but closer to whitish pink (as shown in the photos below). I probably stressed out about this too much!
Head choice was the second hardest decision, since I find the majority of DS heads to be gorgeous. I wanted to get heads that I felt were underrepresented on TDF, and could give a range of personality/expressiveness. Fei reminded me of the beautiful Sandy head, but more Russian in shape and less "bed me ASAP" in expression. Saki reminds me of the YouYi head but looking quite pensive without the smile, and perhaps a bit like Jiayi but with fuller eyebrows and more European-looking eyes.
I got the 145- because the other 145's look unnaturally large-breasted to me, and what can I say? I'm an ass man. I could not pass up this deal at this price. If the 168cm ever goes on sale, I will hopefully be able to purchase, though my back and wallet might be angry. As doll tech advances, a 168cm with some robotic touches like face tracking, internal heating, and hip movement.
John explained that DS does not offer real hair (planted) eyebrows anymore due to "planted eyebrow is easy loss, and painted eyebrow is more realism." TDF user and DS aficionado haremlover further elaborated, "My Thera is the only one with planted eyebrows - and the problem is that the hairs do fall out. I've stuck a few back in. But the printed ones are excellent and don't fall out!" Initially I was disappointed as I was hoping for more realism, but their reassurance allowed me to proceed undaunted. The pictures of the Fei head on artetokio's site show the doll with blue/gray eyes, which is no longer offered by DS since they switched eye suppliers. I opted for the current blue instead, and it looks very good in the initial pictures.
In several posts, haremlover has stated the value of Permatex for repairing torn silicone as a functional glue. It's an alternative to silpoxy, and you have to wipe areas to be glued with acetone first in order to achieve proper adhesion. I ordered some Permatex for the future, as DS John stated "we have the repair kits for free, but I am sorry for that there is no any shipping company can take liquild form China." Not that I expect any issues, but might as well get it.
Without further adieu, here are some of the pictures DS John sent me using his cell phone. From the background of the pics, they are quite busy over at DS.
I had a laugh at that last picture, the doll head peeking out on the top shelf looked funny to me.
I'll update with an unboxing once I receive the doll.
Thanks to all of you who have helped advise me on my purchase over PM and in threads, and to TDF management for providing a place for doll culture & community. <3
