Buying a Blythe doll can be a bit daunting at first, especially when the market is now saturated with a lot of fakes or copies of Blythe dolls that have been labelled factory/nudes. You just don’t know where to buy a genuine Blythe from anymore.
I have taken some pictures to show you some comparisons between a genuine and a fake Blythe doll I own. If you are interested in buying one of these cute, pretty, collectable dolls on your future visit to Hong Kong, apparently CC Toys is one of the
highly recommended places to get a genuine Blythe from.Click here for CC Toys.There are 2 more stores I know of in Hong Kong that sell Blythe and other collectable dolls but I can’t guarantee they are genuine. One is in the Sino Centre around the corner from CC Toys so there’s no harm to go and have a look. Another store is in Wan Chai on their Toy Street. I found this shop buy accident when we were looking for the hub’s toys. I’ll add more detail at the end of the blog.
I first got my Hello Harvest Blythe around 2007. I paid around $1000 HKD for it. A friend helped me buy the cheapest from the range as there were just too many to choose from. I didn’t mind which doll she had chosen because as long as it was GENUINE and it was BLYTHE the rest didn’t matter. Fake Blythe’s came on the market around the time I was buying this doll so I was a bit scared of being ripped off. I didn’t want a copy. I wanted the real deal!Owning a genuine Blythe is like owning a genuine designer handbag, you wouldn’t want a fake, but I could accept a fake doll knowing it was fake before I purchase it.
The first thing I did when I got my Blythe was to take off the disgusting outfit! Urrgh!
I waited over 10 years before committed the ultimate sin of purchasing a fake doll, especially I am an owner of a genuine Blythe too. I bought the fake for around $300 HKD from a college kid. It was already fully customised, and looking at the kids Instagram page, I could see the she was really into customising her Blythe dolls. I didn’t question her about the doll. Not many college kids can afford more than 3 Blythe dolls. I only had 1! I’m sure you get what you pay for. I just wanted something I could take apart and learn from it.
The good thing was, she had already shaped parts of the fake Blythe’s nose and lips so it was close to what I would have wanted for my Blythe. Also I wouldn’t run the risk of shaving too much off. The bonus bit was the face was matt and the eye mechanism was altered to give the Blythe a not so downward gaze and that you could lower her eyelids. Those were the few things I didn’t like about the original Blythe, the gloss skin, the dazed eyes. In a way I bought a fake to make sure I had a genuine. Nothing wrong with that, right? Ok, the doll wasn’t in the best working order but it was something I could play with.
I won’t go on too much about the types of fake Blythes on the market like the ones labelled factory Blythe, etc. There are many website dedicated to weeding out these fakes. Click on the links below for more information. I am not a pro or against Real or Fake Blythes. Like all nice products you have to accept there will be a time when things are going to be copied. There’s going to be copies out there to cater for all markets. After all I was intending to give my fake Blythe to “My Dumpling” to play with until she’s old enough to have a genuine Blythe Doll.
THE COMPARISONS: FAKE BLYTHE ON THE LEFT VS REAL BLYTHE ON THE RIGHT.
Face: Here I am comparing the two Blythe faces. I know the fake one has already had the nose and lips altered so I am going to analyse just the shape itself. As you can see on the real Blythe the chin is much lower and ends in a slight tip. It also has a slight dimple effect in the centre of the chin. The centre of the forehead seems a bit more rounder and bulges out further than the fake.
Back of Head: The first thing I noticed was the scalp (A) does not fit the rest of the head. Some have a slight gap while others just don’t fit. Some people claim the distance (B) between the screw hole and where the scalp joins has a distance or only 1mm, I don’t see that on my comparisons (see pic below for better view). Like all fake Blythe’s, the pull string was not coming out of the hole (C). My fake Blythe had 3 missing screws, which wasn’t a problem. Makes it easier for me to take apart and learn to customise my original at a later date. The writing is exact word for word but the font on the fake is a little wider. On the real Blythe the scalp fits perfectly (A). The pull string is coming out of the hole (C). The hole is kind of a silver/brassy looking ring. The fake Blythe hole (C) is more of a bronzy/brass but without them both side by side it is very difficult to tell the difference. I didn’t bother showing real Blythe’s screw and scalp gap (B) because both looked the same distance to me.
Pull String: Original Blythe pull string ring are suppose to come in the same colour skin tone as the doll itself. The fake ones sometimes don’t even bother to hide the fact they are copies. My one had Angela on the end of the string. My fake one had 2 cords. The extra cord was for controlling the eyelids.
Side of Ears: My Blythe didn’t have earring holes but the fake did. There are slight markings above and below the ears. The genuine Blythe’s markings are a lot closer to the ear. The fake Blythe had around 3-4mm gap between the top of the ear at the faint line.
Eye Sockets: I can’t comment of the gaze since my fake one had her mechanism altered so the pupils were further up in the socket but I can comment on the position of the eyeballs. Notice the distance between the two. There is definitely a lot of space under and around the eye. Looking in the corners you could see the quality isn’t as good compared to the genuine. On the fake Blythe you can clearly see the other pupils in the sockets when she is gazing up.
Eye Turning Mech: I can’t comment on this one since my fake Blythe had hers altered and the mechanism wasn’t allowing the eyeballs to change colour and stay. The genuine Blythe had a nice tug at the string. It wasn’t easy or difficult to turn the eye mechanism to change the eye colour. It just felt quality. Even after 10 years (Not that I pulled my Blythe’s pull string often) it still has a strong tug and a heavy click.
Body and Skin: Genuine Blythes should have the same skin colour from top of the scalp down to the toes. Even though the limbs and the body is not made from the same plastic, the colour should be close matching. The genuine Blythe has a harder, matt plastic body while arms and legs are a slight softer, grippy plastic texture. The boobs meet up in a cleavage. The fake Blythe is usually made up of all sorts of coloured parts. My fake Blythe had a bit of paint work on it. Maybe to cover up the different colour body arts. This is a prime example of a fake. The scalp colour does not match the face colour. The face does not match the torso/upper body colour. The upper body does not match the lower body. The arms don’t match the legs either. One good thing though, at least they made an effort in matching the arms, and the legs. Btw, this fake Blythe had a cleavage gap of 3-4mm.
Toes: Real Blythe’s toes are a bit more flexible compare to the fake. Also the hole at the bottom you could actually see the hole flex when squeezing her heel and toes together.
The back of the genuine Blythe has the same copyright markings as on the back of the head. As for the fake, there are no markings.
Box/Packaging: I don’t have my original Blythe packaging with me to compare but it should look like this since my one was a Hello Harvest Blythe. The fake Blythes usually come in boxes that looks like this on the right. I mean it is so blatant to anybody that this is not a genuine Blythe doll. The manufacturers don’t even bother to copy the packaging or the labelling! It’s the sellers you have to be careful of!
Conclusion: So far I think my Blythe is genuine now that I have a fake to compare it to. When I got my Blythe, many years ago, there wasn’t that much information on the internet about fakes. I did some research after I got my Blythe, and the first obvious thing to looked up of course was the colour of my Hello Harvest eyechips. I got a fright when I found out what the colours were:
Light Grey (front), Tan (front), Blue (right), and Auburn (left). My Blythe’s eye chips were:
Light Yellow (front), Light Green (front), Blue (left), and Brown/Auburn (right)! Unless Tan is Light yellow and Light Grey was Light Green to us meer mortals, does it mean my one is a fake? Either that or the person naming the colours (Not the order of the colours) Colour Blind! I have even checked on YouTube and other owners with Hello Harvest Blythes had the same colour and order eyechips as mine.
If any of you Hello Harvest Blythe owners out there want to share your thoughts please do. I like to know!
You get what you pay for, so do your research before you buy. Either buy it in person so you can ask questions or examine the product or get a trusted friend to get it for you from a reputable distributor/stockist. I have now had my Blythe for around 10 years and it is slowly showing signs of deterioration even though (I now hope it’s genuine, after the eyechip fiasco) I hardly play with it. Mainly used for display and photoshoots only. Her blush seems to be darker on one side than the other. Her cowboy boots are losing the brown paint on the top edge of the boots.
At the end of the day, what is the point of having doll that you cannot play with? I am actually liking my fake Blythe more because she seems to have more character, especially with the worn out look. The genuine just looks boring like all the other copies. Maybe it is time for me to customise her!
Where to Source?
There’s so many websites out there that can help you identify if your Blythe is a fake or a genuine as well as recommended retailers to purchase genuine Blythes from. Click on the links.
Great sources & forums for getting help in picking a Blythe.
Facebook Groups
100% Stock Blythe Adoption for Blythe dolls that have not been customised.
DollyAdoptionIf you want to a Blythe, Pullip, Dal, Momoko, BJD, and other dolls. Please be aware you buy dolls on this site. You don’t get to adopt for free.
Retailers
CC ToysBased in Hong Kong, they ship internationally.
KGHobby.comBased in Hong Kong, they ship internationally.
Julie MoonBased in Japanthey ship internationally.To buy the latest Blythe you can always buy them directly from Junie Moon. This is the official shop for Blythe in Japan. Buying directly from Junie Moon will gaurantee that you are buying a genuine doll.
Hobbie LinkBased in Japanthey ship internationally.
Magma HeritageBased in Singaporethey ship internationally.
MandrakeBased in Japanthey stock a mixture of custom dolls and second hand Blythes, they ship internationally.
If you are going to be in Hong Kong in the near future, here is where you can find some toy shops that sell Blythe. Please do your research before purchasing as there will be fakes on the market:
Mong Kok, Hong Kong
CC Toys 312, 3/F, CTMA Centre Shop, 1N Sai Yeung Choi Street South, Mong Kok, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
Sino Centre. 582-592 Nathan Road, Mong Kok, Hong Kong. I will up date this blog when I find out the exact location. Sina Centre is a centre where all things to do with toys, manga and a bit of random stuff congregate. You need to walk around and checkout all the stalls before finding and buying what you want as prices varies. I remember coming here and not going up the 3 escalator but the elevator. Not sure which level but it was quite high. I know Hot Toys Secret Lab is located on the 20th floor but I actually wondered off to another floor just to explore the place. I accidentally stumbled upon a toy shop and found a few Blythes in the back.
Update: September 2018. I found it! But it is not so good news though.
Room 304, 3rd Floor is Naughty Guy toy shop. I recently went to visit and found out they do not stock Blythe anymore. The only one they have left is the Petite version, at $1680. I even checked all the other toy shops in the building (not including the floors accessible by escalator). No Blythes in sight.
Hung Hing Toy. 19B Tai Yuen Street, Wan Chai. Apparently this is Wan Chai’s famous Toy Street!
Very easy to get to from Wan Chai MTR Station. Exit A3, once you exit the station, cross the main road, Johnston Road, to the other side. There’s a small alley just to the right. The start of Tai Yuen Street is there. There are around 4-5 toy shops here mainly looking like your neighbourhood cheap toy store.
If you walk towards the middle you should get to some decent toy shops on your right. The hubs spotted one store that had a few Blythes in the window but mostly locked up at the back. Prices here a little pricier than in Mong Kok. Genuine or not? Looks more genuine than the shop below! But don’t my word for it.
Out of all places, I found some Blythe dolls in a random shop selling mainly cheap plastic toys for couple of dollars to fake and nasty Peppa Pig, Hello Kitty and other Disney imitations. It is also a stationery shop too. These dolls are not cheap either, if they are fakes. Please do your research before purchasing from this shop.
I haven’t placed a marker for this shop on the map but I can tell you how to find it. Download this Map I have created for shopping in Sham Shui Po.
The location of the shop is on Ki Lung Street, roughly behind Red dot 11. Around the 5th to 7th shop starting from Yen Chow Street. You cannot miss it because they are the only shop that sells cheap toys!
I will be customising my fake Blythe in a future post. Keep an eye out for it. See you there!
Shan x
(Disclaimer: I am no expert at spotting a genuine doll. My friend helped me buy my very first Blythe from Hong Kong many years ago from a reputable toy shop called CC Toys. It had the box, markings and clothing same as the ones advertised on the Takara Tony website as well as on other Blythe dedicated websites. I did a lot of research before purchasing this doll. Let’s just hope she is genuine!)
