I have been impressed with what I have seen of the dolls from the Chinese company Granado. The body sculpts look beautiful, and the company produces a variety of heads with features from traditionally pretty to more realistic in style. I really wanted to see one of their dolls first-hand, so I was quite happy when my Granado Guilem arrived from China.
Guilem’s entire shipping box was wrapped in bubble wrap. The doll was safely nestled in sheets of foam. A cutout in the center fits the doll’s body. Guilem was ordered as a basic doll with no face-up. His resin color is opaque white, but it actually has a slight pinkish tone. Granado dolls can be ordered in white, normal, pink, and “sunshine” skin resin. Guilem came with Granado’s shorter male body which makes a 64 cm tall doll. (The taller version body makes a 68 cm tall.) He is naturally proportioned with a smaller head and muscular build. The body was ordered with seams sanded, and the parts of my doll are perfectly smooth. The photos of Guilem on the website make him appear somewhat feminine to me, but the blank Guilem head looks more masculine in person with a distinct brow ridge and wide jaw. Guillem’s most feminine and distinctive facial feature is his well-modeled full lips. To me, he resembles a young man in his late teens or early 20′s. The doll has a face-plate system. Guilem’s face is held onto the back piece by magnets. The doll additionally comes with male heel feet, which is unusual. The company will hopefully release some interesting shoes for these in the future.
I compared Guilem to another 1/3 doll of mine, Ringdoll Pan. Pan has a much slimmer build and a younger appearance. Granado boys have thicker legs and arms and wide shoulders. I tried Pan’s stretchy black trousers on Guillem, and although they were skin-tight, they did stretch to fit him. The opening at the front, held only by a snap at the top, tended to gape open in certain poses. Guilem fit much better in a stretchy pair of custom trousers (made a few years ago by the late and much-missed Marshpants) for a Dollmore Youth line doll. Narrow-sleeved shirts can be difficult to put on the doll without first removing his hands to pull on the sleeves. Some 1/3 tops fit if they were loose or sleeveless. I tried on a shirt for the bigger 70 cm tall dolls from Angell Studio (part of the London Suit ) and it was an excellent fit. The trousers from the suit set were too long for a 64 cm tall doll but otherwise fit very well, so they would be fine if hemmed. The jacket sleeves were a tad long. Guilem’s feet fit all 1/3 boy doll shoes I owned, but his calves were too wide for the tall boots. I do not have any Iplehouse SID size doll fashions, but some collectors have reported success dressing the Granado boys in their clothing.
I tried a variety of wig sizes and colors on Guilem. He fit in stretchy 7/8 size and in 8/9 size wigs. I installed 14 mm glass eyes. Guilem has double-jointed knees and elbows and two joints to his torso. The knee joints are designed to create a smooth curve when bent. The hands can be easily be moved to touch the doll’s face. I wasn’t sure if I would use both torso joints much but found that it was quite fun to pose the torso. I took numerous nude photos to show how his chest looks in poses. Guilem is well-strung and holds poses incredibly well. He is easier than usual to balance. I could pose him standing on the ground or climbing in a tree with less fear of him toppling. One reason for this may be his larger bulk. He is not as top-heavy as my willowy dolls with large heads can be. The other reason Guilem poses well is that the Granado body is very well engineered. Parts slide and hold their position very well. The only (very small) criticism I had was that it may occasionally be handy to have upper torso joint notches to help hold the top piece in place.
In the future, I hope to get another face-plate for my doll, perhaps one of the occasionally released VIPO heads. I also wouldn’t mind acquiring a pair of jointed hands for Guilem, something I have never purchased before. The Granado girl dolls are also tempting, especially with the lovely Nuevo body. I look forward to seeing future dolls from the company.
Granado ~ Company website
The previous article on the company can be found HERE.
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