If you're reading this, you've likely just fallen, head over heels like the rest of us, in love with Blythe. Her grapefruit head, her dazzling eyes, her mysterious and knowing expression... She is a charming doll like no other, and has passionate fans all around the world. How can you be a part of her world, you might be wondering? Where do you begin? I hope to provide an introductory crash-course here so that you can get started.

First and foremost, you should read up on her history. She was ahead of her time, and I personally am so glad she was given a second chance to shine.

With over 200 releases for Neo Blythe alone, your options can seem overwhelming. With the following factors in mind, I want to state that I personally do not judge anyone who chooses to get a fake Blythe doll. There are a lot of reasons why an official doll might not fit your needs. Here are some things to consider.

1. What do you want to do with your doll?
Are you a mint-condition-er, hoping to display your new friend in her box and original outfit? Do you want to dress her up and take her with you? Do you want to customize her hair and face plate? Do you want a mini-me, or do you want to explore and invent characters?

2. How confident are you in your crafting skills?
If you have any desire to modify your Blythe doll, there are a plethora of tutorials online on how to take apart the head, change the eye chips, give her sleepy or boggled eyes, or do a face-up. The tools are relatively inexpensive, but the dolls themselves are not exactly cheap, so it can be nerve-wracking to do something drastic like sand the face plate down or give her a trim.

3. The official Blythe doll shade range isn't great.
I love Blythe, and I think she's so cute in every release. But there's no denying the fact that of 207 Neo-Blythe dolls, only 12 of them have skin that is either tan or brown, with the brown-skinned Blythe being released for the Twentieth Anniversary. I do want to add that this is according to the official skintone classification from the manufacturers, and that I feel the real number might be like, five. I really hope that they will continue to release more and more darker-skinned dolls! Everyone deserves to be able to find a doll that looks like them.

Let's weigh some pros and cons.

OFFICIAL BLYTHE DOLL
The official dolls vary a little bit depending on the manufacturer and face mold; for instance, the earliest Takara releases came on Licca-chan bodies. Although she isn't articulated, something I like about the official dolls is that the legs bend without seams, which creates a very elegant look. However, the texture of the legs on the Blythe body is a tad bit sticky. I find that fibers and dust cling to them easily, but it's never been a huge issue or anything. For more about the different bodies, I recommend this article.

The eyes of real dolls tend to be closer to the face plate, which creates less gappage when looking at Blythe from a 3/4 view. Official dolls typically range from 100 to 400 USD, depending on condition and rarity, with the rarest of them fetching prices that I can only describe as "rent money".

The most important thing when buying an official Blythe doll, in my opinion, is liking the skin tone and the clothes. The hair, face plate, and eye chips can be swapped out with some quick tinkering, but well-made doll clothes can get kind of expensive, so it's nice to be able to get a full outfit. The base price of dolls can vary quite widely because some dolls come with more accessories than others. You also get a very cute stand; I adore the clover shape of the base.

Because most releases are limited to around 3,000 units, I think official dolls are good for people who want to do simple customizations, like eye chip and hair swaps. Not that I encourage thinking of all your purchases with a reselling mindset, but if you decide you'd like to part ways with a doll, you'll get a better price for dolls that are in their original state. Some official dolls are popular with customizers and for that reason are fewer in number in their original state. Perhaps it's silly to feel conservatively about them, since people should of course have fun and make their dolls their own, but I do think the new-in-box experience is quite special and wouldn't mind passing on a doll I wasn't crazy about as-is so that someone else can enjoy that moment.


by malupink

FAKE BLYTHE DOLL
The fake dolls, referred to in face-mold format as TBL (Taobao Blythe), are typically listed as factory dolls, and usually come with articulated PureNeemo bodies. They are also referred to as ICY dolls. They typically go for anywhere from 30 to 90 USD. They come with a variety of different faces and hairstyles; some of them come with eyebrows and pouty lips. It's good to look at a variety of listings to see what kinds of faceplates the fake listings come with; this can help you not get scammed down the road should you want to buy a custom doll.

The PureNeemo dolls are a bit curvier than the official body, so you may have some trouble squeezing your doll into clothing made for official doll proportions. I find that shoes and socks in particular are quite troublesome. The best way to find some that will fit is to inspect the model doll to see if it's a Blythe or PureNeemo body.

The PureNeemo bodies don't stand as well as the official Blythe body because the knees can bend, but they can be posed in so many more ways. Some listings come with extra hand gestures that you can swap out. I find the PureNeemo bodies extremely easy to work with, though you can't fight gravity. Sometimes her noggin is just too damn large. She looks particularly cute curled up in a ball for a nap.

Because the fake dolls cost less, there is less at stake when getting started customizing your dolls. There is a huge customizing community, with people giving Blythe eyebrows, toothy smiles, and even duck bills. Many of these artists offer in-depth tutorials.

As I mentioned before, official Blythe dolls don't have a great shade range right now, and the fake market offers many dark-skinned dolls with many different hairstyles. The fake Blythe dolls offer darker shades than the official line.

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One option I haven't mentioned yet, for those wanting customized dolls, is to buy a doll from someone who does custom face-ups, with the above comparisons in mind. There are a lot of great custom doll artists out there who might have the kind of doll you want but might lack the confidence to try making. However, it's important to vet artists before buying from them, as the recent resurgence in Blythe's popularity has led to a lot of scammers who will resell unaltered TBLs as if they are customs.

The more information a doll artist offers about a doll, the better. Sellers who lie about authenticity, sellers whose work doesn't have a unifying style, sellers who list too many dolls at once for someone to have reasonably customized, and sellers who charge prices inconsistent with other custom artists at their skill level should be avoided. Don't get scammed! Please don't buy from the website This is Blythe. A cursory search will point you to a rich history of controversy. There are many helpful people in the Blythe community who would be glad to help you determine the credibility of a seller.

I hope this breakdown was helpful to you! I wish you luck on your dolly journey. If you're moving onto the next step of buying a doll, I have a guide for that as well.