FA+
Shop
Dash's Guardian Angel - Recommending a Plush Maker
2 years ago
Note: This is a post about my OC plush. Only read further if you're interested. For the record, it's quite an interesting story so I encourage you to get to the end - especially for a special plush maker specifically mentioned throughout. Thank you.
Deep down I always knew that my OC, Rachel 'Dash' Dashner's plush version is a delicate thing. Honestly, what would you expect from a plush that cost me hundreds of dollars back in 2019? Anyway, the point is, in 2023, I made a mistake. I wasn't careful enough and Dash got hurt.
What you can see in the image I just linked is Dash's left hand. At one point, when I posed her arms so she could give me a "hug" while I lay next to her in bed, I broke a wire in her left hand. The damage wasn't visible outside, but I could feel it in the area I circled in red. I knew that I had to do something before the broken wire protruded her palm and the damage became more severe.
The country I'm residing in is far from being a plush maker's paradise but, thankfully, I had some options. The first option was a lady with a doll repair shop in my city but she kindly rejected my request, telling me that the repair was beyond her expertise. Then I turned to two foreign plush makers, Meplushyou and qtpony who provided me with some options and advised me on what to do if I had been forced to either find a plush maker abroad or, worst case scenario, repair Dash myself.
Thankfully, I didn't have to go for going abroad or resorting to self-repair in the end. I found someone in my country, a lady going under the name FunimalArtdolls - whom I contacted on Instagram. She not only accepted my request but also did the job within just two weeks. (I sent Dash away on October 10 and received her back on the 26th.) To top it all, I only paid roughly €36.50 (ca. $39) for everything, including shipping from and to my address, the repair fees, plus the tip of 20% I gave—basically, a fraction of her original cost.
Check out the result here.
Granted, Dash's left hand is now puffier and the color is slightly yellower than the original. But here's the thing - and the reason why I'm writing this journal entry to begin with:
- The plush maker managed to determine the damage pretty well.
- Showed me via photos what the internal structure of Dash's hand looked like so I could understand what needed to be repaired. (Not sharing it with you, but it still gives me the jinkies to have seen Dash's skeleton hand...)
- Revealed that Dash was put together with a serious design flaw - single wiring with no protective layer on the wires - so the snapping of the wire in her hand was only a matter of time.
- Offered an immediate resolution by replacing the original, snapped wire with a strengthened one.
- Gave Dash's left hand a new stuffing and fur "sleeve" as the original was ruffled too much to be put back.
- Oh, and she washed Dash's pajama top just because. :)
Guys, I cannot recommend this plush maker enough. The least I can do for her is make you aware of her social media accounts. If you can, please follow her here:
- Instagram: @funimal_art
- Etsy: FunimalArtdolls
By the way, her main profile isn't repairing plushes, but making them. Pretty good ones, mind you. So if you always wanted a realistic animal plush, even going as far as recreating your pet in a plush form, don't hesitate to contact her and order one for yourself.
Anyway, that's all I got for you today. Thanks again for meplushyou and qtpony for the help and advice. Your contribution greatly helped in getting Dash fixed in such a short time.
Now let's hope I don't have to relive that nightmare I had in the past two months and I can be a good companion to this wonderful plush. Still, I can sleep well knowing that should Dash be hurt again, I have her guardian angel only 75 miles (121 km) away from me.
Deep down I always knew that my OC, Rachel 'Dash' Dashner's plush version is a delicate thing. Honestly, what would you expect from a plush that cost me hundreds of dollars back in 2019? Anyway, the point is, in 2023, I made a mistake. I wasn't careful enough and Dash got hurt.
What you can see in the image I just linked is Dash's left hand. At one point, when I posed her arms so she could give me a "hug" while I lay next to her in bed, I broke a wire in her left hand. The damage wasn't visible outside, but I could feel it in the area I circled in red. I knew that I had to do something before the broken wire protruded her palm and the damage became more severe.
The country I'm residing in is far from being a plush maker's paradise but, thankfully, I had some options. The first option was a lady with a doll repair shop in my city but she kindly rejected my request, telling me that the repair was beyond her expertise. Then I turned to two foreign plush makers, Meplushyou and qtpony who provided me with some options and advised me on what to do if I had been forced to either find a plush maker abroad or, worst case scenario, repair Dash myself.
Thankfully, I didn't have to go for going abroad or resorting to self-repair in the end. I found someone in my country, a lady going under the name FunimalArtdolls - whom I contacted on Instagram. She not only accepted my request but also did the job within just two weeks. (I sent Dash away on October 10 and received her back on the 26th.) To top it all, I only paid roughly €36.50 (ca. $39) for everything, including shipping from and to my address, the repair fees, plus the tip of 20% I gave—basically, a fraction of her original cost.
Check out the result here.
Granted, Dash's left hand is now puffier and the color is slightly yellower than the original. But here's the thing - and the reason why I'm writing this journal entry to begin with:
- The plush maker managed to determine the damage pretty well.
- Showed me via photos what the internal structure of Dash's hand looked like so I could understand what needed to be repaired. (Not sharing it with you, but it still gives me the jinkies to have seen Dash's skeleton hand...)
- Revealed that Dash was put together with a serious design flaw - single wiring with no protective layer on the wires - so the snapping of the wire in her hand was only a matter of time.
- Offered an immediate resolution by replacing the original, snapped wire with a strengthened one.
- Gave Dash's left hand a new stuffing and fur "sleeve" as the original was ruffled too much to be put back.
- Oh, and she washed Dash's pajama top just because. :)
Guys, I cannot recommend this plush maker enough. The least I can do for her is make you aware of her social media accounts. If you can, please follow her here:
- Instagram: @funimal_art
- Etsy: FunimalArtdolls
By the way, her main profile isn't repairing plushes, but making them. Pretty good ones, mind you. So if you always wanted a realistic animal plush, even going as far as recreating your pet in a plush form, don't hesitate to contact her and order one for yourself.
Anyway, that's all I got for you today. Thanks again for meplushyou and qtpony for the help and advice. Your contribution greatly helped in getting Dash fixed in such a short time.
Now let's hope I don't have to relive that nightmare I had in the past two months and I can be a good companion to this wonderful plush. Still, I can sleep well knowing that should Dash be hurt again, I have her guardian angel only 75 miles (121 km) away from me.
