Friday, March 6, 2015

Nekkid Dolls: Okay or Not Okay?

A discussion post!

When I uploaded last week's post, I saw a notification from Blogger that they were going to be more restrictive on "Adult" content, including nudity and suggestive imagery. It made me wonder if that would apply to photos of nude dolls. I know a couple of bloggers who said that people have made comments about them showing unclothed dolls and the dolls weren't even making out or anything. They just said that because kids search out dolly blogs, the dolls should have clothes on.

Clothes my Mom made to sell my naked dolls

I post nude dolls all the time. Sometimes I cover their bits and junk with their hands if they have the articulation for it, but most times I don't bother. However, because I live in what is called the "Bible Belt," when I had my doll show, I purposefully clothed all the nude dolls in wraps (made by my Mom ^_^) so I wouldn't hear any crap from anyone.

Sign at my vendor table

In my opinion, my blog content is mostly PG to PG13. In private, I'm quite the potty mouth. I don't think I've met anyone as vulgar as myself. In public though, I'm very aware of who is around me and try not to subject others to my uncouthness. The same goes for my blog. It's public, so I act like I have some manners when I write on it... most of the time. But that's just me and I'd rather people not be forced to conform because some other people aren't policing their kids.

Draculaura wearing an outfit by my Mom

I read bunches of blogs with "Adult" doll content. The dolls curse, they fight, they bow chicka bow bow and it's awesome! Only a few of those are on Blogger though and I believe only one is actually restrictive to adults.

Blogger notice

Blogger has since rescinded their decision to be more restrictive so I'm assuming that people raised a stink about it? Either way, even though I'm not showing bow chicka bow bow on my blog, I'm glad I still get to see it on other people's.

60 comments:

  1. I was wondering the same thing about their little rules and our blogs. Sometimes it's necessary to post nekkid dolly pics for the sake of body comparison, and Blogger's little announcement freaked me out just a bit. I'm glad the won't be implementing the changes; that could've been bad for a bunch of us!

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    1. I was freaking out too, RagingMoon. I was looking back through my posts wondering, "Hmmm. Is this 'suggestive' or is it just a pic?"

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  2. I noticed their notice and their decision not to implement the restrictions, but I never once even thought about dolls being considered in the nudity restriction, at least not the way I photograph nude dolls for my blog.

    At times I have gone through the extra steps to cover private areas of found nude dolls. it's an unnecessary step in my opinion, but covering them up is something that I might need to consider.

    I like the wraps your mom made for your dolls.

    dbg

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    1. Thanks, Debbie. She whipped those wraps up really quickly compared to me who would have taken forever. She even gave me the men's pattern afterward and I took it, but inside I was like, "Uh, what am I going to do with this?"

      I don't know that I'll do anything different with my nude doll photos. Sure it would take a second to photoshop a covering but as you said, it seems unnecessary.

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  3. It's only 'adult' content if the dolls have detailed parts like nipples or genitals sculpted on in my opinion. Or if the dolls are in adult situations...
    Like the idea of undetailed, nude, plastic dolls is offensive to parents/children I think it's kinda messed up because it creates this vibe of being ashamed of nude bodies, and adding sexuality to nudity when nudity shouldn't be inherently sexual. I think it then creates a slippery slope where showing skin in an outfit can be seen as offensive (like how people think teen girls wearing shorts is too 'distracting' or whatever).
    idk I think nude dolls is so benign that i feel icky when people try to assign sexual themes to childrens toys.

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    1. Jawn, I've seen a lot of dolls with nipples and colored areolas and I thought that was something fancy fashion dolls came with. I didn't know people were actually making nipples and adhering them.

      Yes, I worry about the slippery slope as well.

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  4. I like the modesty wraps made by your mom. I wondered the same thing as you when I saw the new policy announcement. And I think people who are offended by nude dolls need to get a grip. Jawn Pickles made some excellent points regarding this.

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    1. Thanks, Jewell, she did a great job with them and so quickly too!

      It's in my nature to be easily offended so I kinda get it when others find some things uncomfortable. What I don't like is when they then try to dictate other people's behaviors to make themselves feel better.

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  5. Glad to hear that this didn't end up becoming an issue. I personally find it hilarious that anyone would be offended by anatomically-incorrect naked plastic dolls. (And I currently do live in the "Bible belt") But whatever, I guess. I remember my mom used to get absolutely freaked out by the fact that I stored my dolls nude when I was a kid. My reason was practical; If I wanted to play dolls, I was out of the notion by the time I undressed them all, reorganized their storage, found where missing shoes had went, and so on. It was simpler to just store them nude and be ready to get started building outfits at a moment's notice. When I got tired of it, I'd strip them back down, put away the clothing, and back into the closet they'd go. We actually had a shouting match over it one time. I'm not sure when the light bulb went on for her that my toys weren't having a giant make-believe orgy in the closet, but eventually she got over it and quit demanding that I dress them all or she'd dress them herself. XD

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    1. Presto, your story made me laugh! My mom was forever trying to turn me into a "proper lady" when I was a child. Always telling me that's not what girls do, that's not how girls behave. One of the things she had to get me into the habit of was wearing a shirt. After a certain age, girls cant toddle around topless. According to her, I resisted for the longest and would randomly just take my top off and drop trou, saying I was hot. Eventually I learned to keep my clothes on, but I wouldn't stop scratching my bum and sticking my finger up my nose. She had to pick her battles, I guess.

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    2. Ha ha! Oh my gosh, Muff! That's too funny!

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  6. I haven't seen anything about this new Blogger policy, but I've seen similar discussions on Flickr. Personally I'm with Jawn here: nudity does not equal sex, and I'm not even sure unclothed 1/6 plastic qualifies as nudity most of the time... Dolls in suggestive poses and such would be another thing, imo, but just branding all photos of naked dolls 18+ is just silly. (And I've never been a fan of those molded panties.)

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    1. Anderson, Flickr is where I see the most doll nudity. And I mean suggestive, titillating nudity. It's all very glamorous and artistic, but still nudity. When it's presented in that manner, does it matter that it's a fashion doll? Would it be different if it was a blow up doll? They are both plastic.

      Is being suggestive where the mark lies or should ALL doll nudity be dealt with? Like Jawn said, it's a slippery slope. I remember when there was stink on Facebook about breast cancer survivors sharing their photos and having them removed or tagged as porn.

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  7. Nude not anatomically correct dolls are fine IMO. Some people are really strict on what they feel should be seen by children. If you feel that looking at a nude doll is wrong..hmm I won't finish my comment but suffice to say they have some issues. I don't mind nude dolls.

    Those wraps your Mom made are great

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    1. Thanks, Dollz4Moi, and nude dolls are okay in my book as well. However, I don't have kids so maybe I'm missing that "gotta protect mah babies from every single thing that could turn into something else" gene.

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  8. I was also a bit confused about the adult content note and if the dolls would fit in it or not. I'm glad they didn't put it in action after all. :''''>
    The dolls look cut with the wrap clothing! : D
    Have a nice weekend!

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    1. Thanks, Uraru! I'm going to have to tell my Mom that so many people liked her wraps. ^__^

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  9. Polite in public, vulgar in private? I think we'd get along very well in real life, because that's me, too. :D

    As for doll nudity, if I had kids, I think that out of all the dangers in the world, nude plastic wouldn't even register. I'm snickering to myself even thinking about it, because there are so many naked pieces of plastic in my house on any given day. I can just see myself going, "aaaah!!! My toothbrush is flashing me!!!" And then I'd have to knit it a tiny little sweater.

    But on a more serious note, I think context matters with nudity, whether it's a person or a doll. When I buy dolls on eBay, the nude photos are helpful because I can tell if they have any scratches, stains, or bite marks. But there's also some creepy stuff on Youtube involving naked dolls, and I personally would rather not watch any of it. But I just choose to ignore it, and I think good adult supervision and a discussion on the context of nudity will do kids a lot more good than censoring ever could.

    So that's my two cents! Now... I kind of want to start dressing up my toothbrush. Maybe I'll put it in a tutu the way I did with my Ken dolls that one time. <---- Is weird.

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    1. Sarah, just yesterday I was mad about something and the filth that fell out of my mouth was astounding, but I would never do that in public. Well, I take that back, I do curse a lot while I'm driving but no one hears me, lol.

      LOL, I want to see a tiny sweater on your toothbrush! I think a few years back a lady went viral on the web because she knitted sweaters for trees and street signs or something.

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  10. Whoa, I never payed attention to that lil notice from blogger team...until now. I think I have one post that could be put in "suggestive" section- the doll is in her panties, on feathers, and I mention American Beauty movie, so it's triple fest for censors. I never consider that as pornographic (or erotic), but this whole discussion makes me wonder about future posts. I always write/take pics for myself and tend to forget, that some plp may see things in different light. However, I just cannot imagine how can you find nude doll (like in your pictures above) "dangerous" and suggestive? I mean... how?

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    1. "You" meaning you, not "You, the Muff", ya know? ;)

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    2. LOL, Major, I knew you meant general public and not me specifically. Guess some people don't want to see adult situations applied to "children's" toys.

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  11. Hi Muff, I hade your same fears when the banner showed up. I agree with Sarah, context is the thing that matters, but I really don't like censorship at all, and I believe kids shouldn't be allowed to browse the net alone.
    Prudish people are a whole diffrent story. How can anyone be offendended by a naked doll is beyond my comprehension, and I'm not talking about creepy things (of course)..But "sin" (as beauty) is in the eye of the beholder, and I think there's a lot of people that is "disfunctional" from this point of view. I've been reading some comments on FB that stunned me.
    I don't have any problems posting pictures of a naked doll if it this suits the topic of my blog entry.
    Maybe it's that I'm European, but I'm not offended by doll nore human nudity.....
    So, to make a long story short: I'm so happy Blogger dropped it!
    Kisses Billa

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    1. Billa, despite my vulgar nature, I can also admit to being a bit of a prude. I'm quite the dichotomy, lol. In my view, some things should be done in private and everything doesn't need to be shared with the general populace. Naked dolls don't bother me, but naked people do -- probably because I'm just not a fan of people, I guess. ^_^ Things like boys walking around with their underwear showing or girls prancing about in see through yoga pants bothers me too. I don't even like it when people kiss in public. I'm literally that old lady sitting on her porch yelling at kids to take their simple behinds home and stop that foolishness.

      Yep, we (i.e., me) are pretty uptight in the States, lol.

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  12. I have never noticed the banner from blogger. But I am also of the opinion on the plastic nudity that hey they are dolls. I think it may make some people uncomfortable when it comes down to the sexual acts they may be perceived they are enjoying in their little plastic world, snicker. I myself was hesitant to post some racey photos with handcuffs nearby and one of the dolls had lingerie on, but both gave plastic consent. I think if sexy photos of dolls of opposite or same sex make you uncomfortable then click to another blog, but remember, they are dolls and at the end of the day, they are plastic. It sounds like blogger might have rethought their deicsion which is a good thing. Many times it is necessary to show dolls nude for size and body comparisons since there are so many body types out there now as far as clothing and shoes.

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    1. Lisa, I think the notice was up for only a week and it got rescinded pretty quickly. LOL at the dolls giving their plastic consent. Blogger didn't say anything about dolls in the notice, of course, but they did talk about erotic and suggestive imagery. It made me think of the stink Facebook and other companies went through when their policy changes affected broader strokes.

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  13. When I go thrifting,the dolls are mostly sold nude. It is more likely that a child will be browsing the toy aisle of Goodwill than reading my blog.

    When I look at dolls on eBay, many dolls that aren't NRFB are sold nude. Though children can't buy, they can certainly browse, and the way eBay saturates Google results, they're more likely to see that than my blog.

    My latest thrift find is a non-Monster High doll from Mattel with an MH-ish body. She will absolutely be compared to other dolls while naked because that's the most interesting part of the article for doll collectors.

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    1. Smaller, those nude comparisons ARE often times the most interesting part of a review. We want to see what's under the hood so we can make informed decisions about our own future purchases.

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  14. Hello from Spain: when I read the message blogger scenes I thought I posted my Barbies in the shower and bath. I do not know if nudity of the dolls was within the rules. I think our blogs are for adults and girls playing dress up naked dolls. Keep in touch

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    1. Yep, Martha, kids do play dress up with their naked dolls, so don't know why some parents freak out it. Guess they don't want them to be naked too long. Kids might get "ideas."

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  15. When I started reading this post, I thought to myself "I'm going to get into trouble eventually...". I'm glad and relieved that Blogger rescinded.

    When I read your comment "I don't think I've met anyone as vulgar as myself.", I thought to myself "She will have met her match if she ever meets me...".

    As far as doll nudity, it greatly amuses me that people get offended over nude plastic dolls. However, I can understand the discomfort of others regarding naked dolls in adult situations. A few of my dolls have found themselves in some PG-13 rated adult situations. In one of my FB groups, I found out that some would consider me a "perv" for doing that, and that bothers me a little, but also makes me laugh a little. I don't see my stuff as being erotic, I see it as being humorous. On the other hand, I joined a doll group on FB and had to quickly remove myself within minutes because I don't ever want to see dolls doing THAT. I cannot unsee what I saw. :(

    For people who are concerned about children finding naked dolls on blogs, all I can say is that if a child is left to surf the internet unsupervised, they have almost certainly seen things 1,000 times worse than anything they would see on a doll blog.

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    1. LOL, Roxanne! No wonder your videos are so rich. All that vulgarity shining through! I'm not a Facebook member so I'm missing all this brouhaha over dolls being naughty. I'm a little creepy and weird and probably perv-like could be thrown in there as well. Guess I'm not missing anything by not being on Facebook.

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  16. Usually, I don't have a problem with naked dolls. Lots of my dolls are lying around, naked. I have shown naked dolls in my posts. Why? To show what the doll looks like undressed. What are the proportions of this part to that? For identification: dolls are sometimes stamped "where the sun don't shine." (Stamped on one or both buttocks.) Laziness on my part. To show the absence or presence of damages. There are probably other reasons why we photograph naked dolls. Not related to sex.

    You notice how some people mock Ken for "missing" a body part? Let's travel back in time to 1961 when Ken was first produced. Imagine if - instead of giving Ken a "boy bump" - Mattel had given Ken a penis. Can you imagine the outrage and the mockery?

    Aside: isn't it interesting how Ken is derided for "missing anatomy" while no one mentions that Barbie is not "anatomically correct" or complete below the waist? Not that I'd call for anatomical "completeness" on either, but the omissions say something about us, [North] Americans.

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    1. D7ana, you made me go check out my doll's bums! I never paid attention to their markings before.

      I think it was on Flickr where I saw that someone had used clay to make a male doll's junk bigger so he was practically bursting out of his speedos. I didn't get it, I didn't see the point, but I didn't knock it either. Different tastes and interests for all.

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  17. Oh the modesty wraps are adorable. I missed the Blogger announcement. Shrug. Glad they've regained their sense of proportion ;-)

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  18. I also missed the Blogger announcement. And I'm reading all these comments and laughing because, after all, originally dolls were designed as children's playthings and children dress and redress their dolls all the time, so they often see naked dolls. I find the comparison pictures of doll's bodies useful as often these dolls are not readily available in Australia and so it helps to know more about them (and as a dressmaker, I'm always interested in proportion.) And Muff, your story reminds me of how my mother used to take a blanket to church to wrap my dolls up because I always undressed my dolls in church and left her to carry them out.

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    1. Carrickters, I guess that the kids are being protected from us adults who use the dolls for naughty practices. ^___^

      LOL at the church blanket. She had to shield the parishioners from that naked plastic!

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  19. Hi Muff :D Yeah I also receveid that notice, I know many gay bloggers who are having hard times for this and may of them are opening an account on Tumblr. I don't think this should worry us dolly people. I mean, it's only plastic and vinyl. Anyway, my blog has a warning contents message, I want to be free to post whatever I want. If sensitive parents are shocked by naked dolls, they need a doctor IMO

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    1. Hey, Sergio! Yes, yours is the only blog I follow on blogger that currently has the warning block to get to it. My concern was that other blogs might be forced to do that instead of doing it voluntarily. Glad they back out of that though.

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  20. I like mature content, but I don’t actually think of nikkid vinyl as being obscene. I’m not sure Blogger should have rescinded their decision because some stuff just isn’t fit for viewing by anyone, let alone children. But dolls? I think it behooves us all to protect children, but don’t kiddies redress their dolls and know what is underneath?

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    1. The eye of the beholder, Roville. Perhaps it was easier for Blogger to leave the policy in place than go through the crap storm of people saying nothing is wrong with their content.

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  21. I'm late to the discussion because I was up in the mountains where there is no WiFi over the weekend. I was very worried when I saw the original Blogger announcement. I have posted nude pictures of dolls in reviews, I've posted pictures of dolls in "adult situations." I also published a series of tutorials on making lingerie for dolls. I figured my blog would be deep sixed.

    I was very relieved when Blogger backtracked. I never had patience with people who project their own prurient interests onto plastic figures. I'm still trying to understand why people compulsively look up dolls' skirts and then get shocked and offended if the doll isn't wearing underwear or molded on panties. Anyway this whole Blogger controversy has made more determined to treat nudity as natural. I'll include a warning of the post presents dolls in adult situations but I'm not going to censor or apologize for showing naked dolls on my blog.

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    1. No wifi, Limbe Dolls? Perish the thought! Your post reminded me that one time I was in Walmart and I hear a lady in the toy isle over say, "That's obscene! They should do something about that." I'm nosey, so of course I go over to see what was obscene. You know those old Justin Bieber dolls that could sing? They had a hole in their boxes so you could push their tummy's and make them sing a demo. Some jerk had reached through and pushed down the pants on each of those dolls so his junk was showing. I found it hysterical, but that lady found it obscene. You never know how people will react.

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  22. Personally, I'm not at all offended by nude dolls...I mean...come on...they're just smooth "there". Unless of course if the dolls are atomically-correct and that's a horse of a different color...

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    1. Ken, I've seen those horses with those colors and it's always a little weird to see a doll in that fashion when as you say, they usually are just smooth.

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  23. Yeah, for me, the dolls actually have to be in the middle of lewd acts to be considered even remotely obscene... just a naked plastic doll can equal nothing more than laziness on the part of the person who owns it, XD (I speak from experience)... or it could be a body comparison, which, in the doll world, we all know can be priceless when it comes to the information you can glean about a possible future purchase.

    I'm not offended by naked dolls doing lewd things either. If I don't want to see it, I simply won't look.

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    1. Heather, it seems like I always look, lol. I might gasp and pretend to be shocked, but I most definitely look.

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  24. Please excuse my dryness on my topic; there are a lot of things involving humans that are natural, like say, childbirth. I have no desire to see that. I don't mind seeing naked dolls for reviews and comparisons, but Mr. BTEG and I are both believers in modesty. And in a world where we can see Cyrus and Kardashian and Minaj @ss all over the place, I think we need more modesty.

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    1. Barb, I remember the first time I saw Nikki Minaj's Anaconda video and I was thinking how can they show this without a parental advisory? Then I thought well I'm an adult and Youtube knows that so maybe it DOES have one but it doesn't come up for me. Gratuitous or hyper sexualization does nothing for me and a little definitely goes a long way.

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  25. Muff, I was laughing as I read your post, but then realized you were quite serious, once I began reading the comments. I did see Google's announcement, but frankly, never assumed it pertained to what most of us are with our blogs.

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    1. April, I was taking it on humorously by the photos, but it was certainly serious business on Blogger's part. It may not have affected us, but you never know.

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  26. Hi Muff, when I still had my blog, I once have censored a ball jointed doll's boobs, because it were very realistic ones. At first I wanted to show her nude, but changed my mind, to not offend the kids who read my posts too sometimes. I'm still glad I did it. For Barbie & similar dolls it's totally different, kids see them in the "plastic" all the time at home, don't they :-). I'm glad though that Blogger didn't go through with it, because where do you draw the line? At American Girl and other stuffed dolls? At Barbie dolls? Interesting topic! Night Owl

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    1. Linda, I understand. I think if my dolls had realistic privates I'd probably want to give them some modesty. I recently read about a ball jointed doll that has an articulated penis. Yeah, that I would definitely cover.

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  27. I didn't see the announcement. At times I have covered up naked dolls or posted that there was doll nudity in the post. I didn't really do this for the kids, I did it for the uptight, crazy adults that would have a problem with it. Just think, what is the first thing most children do when they get a doll? They remove the clothes. The 7 yr old I tutor has a box full of naked dolls, just like most kids. So a kid is not going to be scarred by seeing a naked doll. If they have dolls they see it all the time.

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    1. Yes, Vanessa, it's the adults you have to watch out for unfortunately.

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  28. I thought they might be including dolls in their announcement when I saw that too! I have heard comments about nude doll at our Philly doll club meeting. People asked why were some people's dolls nude? What was I to tell them "put some clothes on your dolls because I plan to post pictures"? I sold a lot of dolls to a woman on EBay who "fixed" the dolls and resold them. She most have done well with them. She purchased alot of them. Anyway, nude dolls doesn't' bother me much. It does influence doll purchase.

    I love the wraps! I wish you would post how to make them. Oh and bow chick a bow bow.... you crack me up! You are the funniest blogger!

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    1. Ms. Leo, if I was buying a doll that wasn't new, then yeah, I would definitely want to see her nude. Even when I buy clothed dolls at the thrift store I still shift them all around in the plastic bag trying to push their clothes up to their joints to make sure nothing is wrong with the body underneath.

      I had absolutely nothing to do with the wraps! My mom did it all. I didn't even buy the fabric but bummed from my sister whatever stretchy remnants she was willing to give up. My mom even took all the dolls to her house and just brought them back to me clothed. I would have to get my mom to make a post about the wraps and she loathes all types of technology so I know that will never ever happen. I'm going to ask her anyway. If you see a post about it, you'll know she agreed. If you don't, you'll know she told me to go to H.E. double hockey sticks.

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  29. plastikowa nagość nie stanowi dla mnie problemu -
    pod warunkiem, że nie idzie to w parze z pozycjami
    seksualnymi i imitacją czynności o charakterze
    erotycznym - a rzeczywiście, na różne sesje można
    się natknąć w necie...
    wiele osób korzysta z etykiety "dla dorosłych"

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    1. Inka, nawet wtedy, gdy rzeczy są oznaczone jako "dla dorosłych" Ciągle widziałem ludzi denerwować. Chcą kontrolować wszystko oprócz samych siebie.

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  30. There is a probability that for some people like introverts, or one with a medical condition Love Dolls can become their companions, but i don't think they would replace spouse in general.

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