Being Alive

 Menagerie by Marmite Sue is Elli Effenberger's brand of highly articulated resin BJDs. 

With a unique aesthetic and feel, Menagerie dolls' design is meant to challenge expectations of a body smooth by presenting a highly-segmented-in-order-to-be-highly-articulated representation of the human form. And said segmentation does not - in any way - impact our certainty of the palpitating hearts in the chests of these beautiful creatures. 

The Menagerie doll invites us to play, to engage in the process of coming to life: from the most subtle movement of the head to the careful posing of the articulated fingers. We, convinced of our role as animators, complete the many tasks of doll play and suddenly realize that the creatures in our presence have been alive ever since their boxes were opened. Their eyes tell us so. 

Dolldom was delighted to adopt two Menagerie males at the beginning of the new year: Saturn and Jupiter. With face-ups by Steo's Studio, the handsome duo boasts the 43 cm Natural Posing Male Body with jointed hands (8 finger joints per hand), magnetic jointed feet, and 6.5 mm custom made glass eyes. And as impressive as they are au naturel, a fashion spread is not unless the guys are dressed. 

These 1:4 scale male dolls have dimensions all their own, meaning that garments made for other dolls of the same scale will be big. But fret Dolldom's stylists did not, as the accompanying photos illustrate. 

For their first Dolldom feature, Saturn and Venus present a sartorial philosophy not bound by gender binary constraints but inspired by beauty, comfort, and lifestyle. 

Jupiter takes on Tyler Wentworth's "Casual Luxury" cashmere wonder and pairs it with the sequined shirt from Thêatre de la Mode's "Le Petit Ensemble Noir" designed by Robert Tonner. His pants are from Mel Odom's "Neat as a Pin" fashion for his Trent Osborn doll. Faux suede shoes by Dollcis. 




Saturn's rocking the rocker look in Virtual Doll Convention's separates from their Grace Boutique.

A versatile black jumpsuit is an ideal foundation for a tough-as-nails faux leather biker jacket. Boots by JAMIEshow for Mel Odom's Trent Osborn doll. 

Stylists' note: All garments modeled by Jupiter and Saturn are in their original factory condition and required no alteration to fit the dolls.