Wednesday 21 October 2015

Labyrinth Bomb Goblin

   8" handmade sculpture, the cannon ball goblin from Labyrinth.


   Currently available at auction here.

Sunday 18 October 2015

Labyrinth Eye Lichen

   Another fun project from Labyrinth! This eye lichen plant sculpture sits in a real terracotta pot and would make a great ornament for fans of the movie.
 
labyrinth eye lichen

   Eye lichen is currently available at our eBay store, for a short time. Check out the auction here.

Wednesday 14 October 2015

Groot Sculpture

   This cute little chibi Groot from Guardians of the Galaxy was a sculpture we made and designed back in 2014 around the time we saw the movie! 

groot statue

   Another sculpt also inspired by GOTG, and by Japanese chibi style:

groot sculpture

   Chibi Groot proved a big hit and even the director of the movie complimented him! :)

Tuesday 13 October 2015

OKAMI Amaterasu Sculpture

   This furry statue of Amaterasu from Okami by Envydolls now resides with private collectors in Japan. We had a great time making this one and hope to make more Okami projects in future. 

amaterasu statue

   We are currently open for commissions, so please use the contact information on the Contact Us page if you would like to request a commission.

Monday 12 October 2015

Friendly Yan

   This friendly Yan sculpture!


   Friendly Yan is the 'black sheep' of the Yan clan from Final Fantasy 9. If you encounter him in the game he will ask for a diamond, and in return grant you the abilities to fight the toughest foes.

[SOLD OUT] 

Sunday 11 October 2015

Kitsune Fox Doll

   An Envydolls original, this dancing kitsune fox doll was inspired by the antique woodblock prints of Ohara Koson. Standing nearly 12" and wearing a leaf hat, this young fox is attempting the art of transformation into another shape or form. Japanese folklore has it that all foxes have the ability to shapeshift, like their tanuki (raccoon dog) cousins, and are mystical beings.

kitsune statue
[SOLD OUT]
 
   We hope to make more Japanese folklore themed-sculptures in future. We can also be commissioned to create one. Please use the email address given on the Contact Us page to contact us about a commission.

Saturday 10 October 2015

Moomba Sculpture

   Another commission from a short while ago - a plush statue (not soft toy) of a Moomba from Final Fantasy VIII. He stands about 11" tall.

moomba sculpture

   There are no existing Moomba figures like this, despite Moombas having a sizeable fanbase. We will consider all commission requests submitted to us, so if you'd like to submit an idea for commission, please use the email provided on the Contact Us page. :)

Thursday 8 October 2015

REDXIII Sculpture

   Occasionally we take commissions from clients and these can lead to some interesting requests! Here is a detailed statue of a character known as RedXIII (or Nanaki) from the game Final Fantasy 7. 

redxiii statue

   The figure is almost 12" long, with realistic texture and metallic feather barettes. We wanted him to look as realistic as possible so he has a 'real' mane and coat. He was great fun to do and with the Final Fantasy 7 remake on the horizon, we look forward to doing more FF themed sculptures!

   To request a commission, please us the email provided on the Contact Us page. :)

Thursday 1 October 2015

Is Storenvy Really Free?

   Last year we made a post about using Storenvy, a selling platform that offered a free storefront to online merchants. At that point the only fees any online merchant would have incurred by using Storenvy were the inevitable Paypal fees at whatever rate Paypal was charging in their country. It was free to have a Storenvy storefront, and free to have your items listed in what they call the "marketplace" - an internal search engine system whereby customers can find your goods from Storenvy's main page by entering keywords.


   Storenvy has since changed its policy to rival eBay and Amazon by charging around 10% of the final sale price for using their marketplace. You're paying 10% to be visible to their search engine, and are also required to sign up to using "Stripe" - something designed to make buying from sellers with multiple Paypal accounts a more "seamless" experience for the buyer.

   If you want automatic exposure for your wares, Storenvy is no longer "free" as it once advertised itself to be. eBay likely still has a bigger audience and potential for exposure for the same fee, although eBay remains notoriously indifferent to the concerns of sellers about its site and policies. Etsy still has a smaller audience than eBay but also smaller fees, but has grown considerably in the last few years and is recognized as a dedicated venue for hand-crafted works, so for OOAK artists like myself hoping to sell their dolls, Etsy might be your best bet at the moment.   

   Thankfully, Storenvy still allow users to operate their own free storefront, provided they remain invisible to the marketplace. You can still direct potential customers to it from your own site, or even a Facebook app, which is handy. So to answer the question "is Storenvy really free?" - yes and no. If you want to do all the leg-work with your own advertising and customer base, then yes it is. If you want to be searchable there and take advantage of the marketplace, get ready for eBay and Amazon-style commission fees. For OOAK artists selling hand made or high-end art, Storenvy's marketplace may not be the best place to find customers and grow a customer base interested in fine art (compared to sites like Etsy, or an actual art gallery).    

   Envydolls has a Storefront on Storenvy, Etsy and eBay - please do check them out! :)