!Damien*< wrote:Is there anyone that really upgrades as well as repairs Teddy Babes? I saw some minor skeletal upgrades here and from Ark Angel but I'm looking into more serious overhauls like the following...
1. Eyes. The painted fabric patches on Teddy Babes and Velour Vixens have limited appeal. I was hoping to see genuine eye sockets with stuffed fabric eyeballs and sewn-on iris with a small black button for the pupil.
2. Mouth. I have yet to see a plush doll where you could insert your hand into the back of the head and manipulate the mouth like an oversized muppet.
3. Skeleton. I think you tried gas line for the joints and something more solid for the leg bones. I had narrower electrical armored cable and PVC pipe and fittings in mind. It should be possible to build something like a genuine rib cage with sternum from this kind of combination. Another feature would be quick-connect joints at the shoulders and hips to allow at least rotation and, if desired, even detachment for easier storage.
Trust me mate, my skeletal upgrade was anything but minor.
Adding a rib cage would be a simple extra step, but every improvement and mod you do has some drawback and limitation, like stresses and extra wear on material and stitching, limiting movement, taking away from the cuddle factor, cleaning and extra weight, thinking about these consequences is key to successful mods.
TB eyes are laminated, blown up photographs of real human eyes, the eyeballs you describe would be overly complex and not able to move, Cuddly had someone make an embroidered set for his TB Lian, but found they took away too much of her personality, she does still have a material set of lips and plush hair, also he has replaced her skeleton with copper wires and tried some bone mods with varying degrees of success.
Karrot made an opening in the back of one of his TB's, so he could put an insert in and turn her head and wig around for oral, this could easily be made into an opening for a hand and moveable mouth, but why you would want to seems superfluous.
There has been a discussion and experimental thread about mouth mods by revoL annerB, with some pics and results.
Sate used to do mods from openings to custom extras and repairs, he is a registered service vendor here, but I haven't seen much activity there of late.
The trouble with swivel joints is the solid end plates are uncomfortable to cuddle, many have had the original shoulder swivels removed and arms sewn directly on like the legs, I think lovely Phoenix has had this mod done by Sate.
Remember, when you add one thing to a TB, you lose something else 90% of the time.
Many of us realize the best thing for TB mods and repairs is learning yourself by starting on small jobs and experimenting, anything you do can be reversed as long as you don't cut or rip the plush.
G-day to Dr Samara and Phoenix from the girls and me.
Pete.