Warning abiout Classic Hans' outfit

[Elphaba]

I wasn't sure where to put this but doll collectors may find it helpful.

The black dye on the Classic Hans jacket trim is not colorfast. I had Alladin wearing that outfit, resting on top of Hans wearing a different outfit, for about a week, I picked them up today and Hans now has a black nose tip where the back of the jacket rested on him :sad:. If you have this outfit deboxed, store it in a way that doesn't touch your other deboxed dolls!

 

[staykawaii]

I have never tried but I've heard putting acne cream on the spots and letting it dry in the sun will get rid of marks left by doll clothing. Has anyone else done this?

 

[Elphaba]

Thanks for the idea! I'll give it a try. I'm just relieved it didn't happen to a more expensive doll. I didn't expect color transfer like that over so short a time!

 

[LMB925]

So sorry to hear that happened to your doll. It's always so disappointing to see that. It's nice you warned everyone. It's amazing how easily something like that can happen.

I've heard about the acne cream and leaving it in the sun, but never tried it myself. Living in FL it always seemed a bit extreme to me. I'm sure the doll would melt and bleach out here. Probably wouldn't be so bad elsewhere, though. Let us know how it works if you do it.

It's such a bad spot for staining. I've never tried to remove a clothing stain from a face before. I've had face staining, but always took off the entire face up anyway for repaint. I can make suggestions based on experience with body staining, but you'd have to be extra careful dealing with the face because you don't want to damage the face up more. If the staining isn't that bad, or too set in, you might just try working in some Dawn dish washing soap and warm water with a soft bristle brush first. I have a bunch of soft baby toothbrushes I got at the dollar store I keep for smoothing doll hair and various cleaning projects. That might work on a nose if you're careful. If that doesn't work, I think next step might be whitening toothpaste if you have it and can localize it to the affected area, or maybe Shout for clothing stains (I've not tried this one). You could also try non-acetone nail polish remover (w/o additives), and then acetone (w/o additives) if that doesn't work. Just be very careful to wash it all off really well right away, and make sure you don't get any of it elsewhere on his face as you don't want to rub off his face up. It'll rub off very quickly if you get even a little on any face paint, so you might not want to do that. Maybe use a toothpick, or cotton swab to apply it with very precise, small strokes if you do it. Of course, no matter what you use, test a small bit first. There's also the option of trying to cover it up, but I think that's pretty involved and might make things worse.

I tend to do Dawn first and then move on to acetone for body staining. I've gotten mixed results. Whitening toothpaste has worked, but it's not my go-to, and there's so many different types with different ingredients in various brands. I'd be worried it might make things worse on a face up. For overall cleaning I've used peroxide and baking soda on some tougher dolls, also vinegar and baking soda, but again, that's for body, not the face. If the staining doesn't show when the doll is dressed, I normally don't worry if Dawn and acetone doesn't work. Good luck. I hope it works out.

 

[Elphaba]

LMB925 thank you so much for the many suggestions! On my own I tried liquid hand soap, acetone nail polish remover, and varsol, to no effect, but I'm not giving up yet and will definitely try the methods you suggested as well as the acne cream one.

Luckily it is just the tip of his nose, so worst comes to worst and nothing removes it, I will mix some paint to match his skin tone and just put a dab on the end

 

[LMB925]

Wow. It sounds like a really tough stain, and to have happened over such a short period of time is so upsetting. I really hope it works out. If it had been anywhere but is face you'd probably have an easier time of it. But like you said, at least it wasn't an expensive doll, so at least you're not likely to have it happen with a more expensive one in the future. Do you have any chalk pastels (not oil) that you can try as a cover up? And maybe a matte sealant if you get the right color? Might work out better than paint and would be easier to remove it doesn't work out.

Just totally off topic, I have to say... I love your icon. She's one of my favorite dolls. Wicked witch dolls are one of favorites to collect in general. Tonner has some really nice Oz dolls too.

 

[Elphaba]

I do have pastels, though I'll have to see what kind they are. I'm hoping acrylic paint will work if needed, as I can mix until I have just the right color. His nose ends in a rather narrow point though, so this is a small flaw and would only take a little dab of cover-up if it comes to it. Have you had bad experiences with paint - I take it oil paint in particular is not a good medium with dolls? This would be my first "painting" of a doll's face, not including touching up a skewed eyeball on one doll, and unmatching eyelashes on another, with a fine-tipped permanent marker.

Thank you for the compliment She is one of my favorites, if not my favorite. She is intended to be a glamor version of the Wicked Witch of the West, but I see her as Elphaba from the musical Wicked (it's the Wicked Witch of the West's story, retold, in which she is a troubled hero rather than villain).

 

[LMB925]

I use acrylic paint when I need paint on a face up, but I mostly like water color pencils and non-oil pastels. Oil can degrade vinyl. I just thought if it were a small spot pastels would be easier to match and you shouldn't have to worry about a shine as much. I kind of saw it in my mind more like covering a blemish with face powder since it seemed a rather small spot. I'm sure either way it'll work out using the media that's most comfortable for you. There are probably a lot of ways to do it that will work well.

I read the book Wicked quite a while ago, but never saw the musical. I really loved the character, and the overall plot, but remember not being found enough of the book to read it again.I saw this Barbie as Elphaba too when she came out. I actually liked the wicked the witch from the Wizard of Oz when I was a little kid. I think if felt sorry for her, and kind of thought she was cool with the pet flying monkeys. I never thought she was scary and used to create more of a back story for her in my mind. I did the same thing with Maleficent. I was a bit odd.