Not on scale, but at least it's in-theme.

A few years ago my sister passed along a miniature copy of Sebastian Faulks' Birdsong, both because she figured it would make a good doll prop and because I'm a First World War buff, and would appreciate the theme.

The book is actually just a touch too big, even for the big dolls like my Dollmore Mettaa from their Glamour Model line, which they list as 75cm (although he's really only 73cm).  Still, since I did have a uniform in his size (although not quite of the right vintage), I thought it was worth using in an anachronistic and not quite in-scale photo shoot.

I was going to try to make him a miniature poppy as well, but my attempts were even more off-scale than the book, so that will have to be a project for another year.  And in a way, that works for where we're living. Although it's not Remembrance Day here in the US, Americans do mark a military-themed holiday today (Veteran's Day), but they don't wear poppies. I suppose because their involvement in the First World War was so short (when I was living in DC, during one of my mother's visits we walked through Arlington National Cemetery - she pointed to a First World War grave with a birth date of 1899 and wondered if he'd lied about his age to enlist. I had to remind her that by the time the US joined the war he'd have been 18.), so it seems to be less of a cultural touchstone that it is in so many other countries.

In any case, on with the photos!

Out of the box: Grant (Dollmore Glamor Model Suntan Mettaa)

Dressed for some early 20th century conflict

Towering over the rest of my collection at 73cm (not quite the 75cm that Dollmore advertises) is this example of Dollmore's long-limbed Glamor Model line.   Supremely well articulated, they're fantastically fun to pose and to move around.

For dolls with such stylized proportions, they have surprisingly realistic faces - this guy's furrowed brow is almost a work of art on its own - and very detailed hands.  The sculpting of the veins and nails is stunning - in certain lighting they look blushed even though mine is actually blank.

My version is from the tan run of late 2010, and his colour is lovely.  He's a solid deep brown colour (similar to my 2007 Iplehouse Dk Aaron), without any of the colour variations that some darker resins can be prone too.  He has also maintained his tone for the 3.5 years that I've had him.

If I have any complaint about this doll, it's that he's almost too poseable.  The unusual chest joint allows him to be positioned into all kinds of ultra-natural positions that are impossible for dolls with a standard chest, but it also causes him to default into a slouch, which isn't always what I'm looking for.

Dressed for the modern age, with SD16 Daria

Height Comparison: He's on the far right(and slouching!)

One additional warning I would give to anyone considering adding a doll from the Glamor Model line to their collection is that they're quite a challenge to dress.  They're slightly too large for most standard 70cm/"Uncle"-size BJD clothing, but aren't as broad as the EID/ID72-types who are large enough to fit into infant clothing.  So owning one of these guys is a commitment to either sewing for them, commissioning or shopping almost-exclusively from Dollmore's own shop.

Still, they're fabulous dolls, and this guy in particular has a fantastic sculpt.

Cross-Company Comparison: Tan Resins

One of the big challenges that I hear about from people who want to hybrid tan dolls is the near-impossibility of finding matching colours without having to resort to custom batches or blushing an entire body to match a head.  With that in mind, here are a couple of references based on my own collection:

1. Illusion Spirit tan (ZhuQing, 2011)
2. Secretdoll tan (Binu, 2008)
3. Dollmore Suntan (Mettaa, 2010)
4. Iplehouse Ebony (Chase, 2009)
5. Iplehouse old Dark tan (Aaron, 2007)
6. Soom Dark Brown (London, 2011)
7. Iplehouse Light Brown (Arvid, 2011)
8. Limhwa tan (Half-Elf, 2011)
9. Dollzone tan (Alpha, 2011)
10. Volks ebony (Irvin, 2008)
11. Island Doll tan (Kevin, 2011)
12. Iplehouse old light tan (Cocori, 2008)
13. ResinSoul coffee/light tan (2010)

Clockwise, starting with the feet:

1. FantasyDoll Dark tan (Charlotte, 2013)
2. Iplehouse ebony (Boris, 2013)
3. Soom dark brown (London, 2011)
4. Dollmore suntan (Mettaa ),
5. Island doll tan (Kevin, 2011)
6. Illusion Spirit tan (ZhuQing, 2011)
7. Souldoll tan (Rouse, 2010), 
8. Iplehouse light brown (Arvid, 2011)
9. Limhwa tan (Half-eld, 2011)
10. Dollzone tan (Alpha, 2011)

Personally, I thought the biggest find was the similarity between Iplehouse's light brown and Island
Doll's tan (although the IS tan does have slightly more red to it).

That's EID Arvid in light brown holding Island doll Kevin in tan on the left.