What is it?

Guide by Lauri Guardi

Welcome to the elusive world of THE SYBARITES by SUPERFROCK LTD. the most glamorous fashion dolls on the planet! These 17 inch resin, ball jointed dolls are for the adult collector who wants a true haute-couture, contemporary, fashion doll with an exquisite up to the second wardrobe and plenty of attitude. They are not intended as toys for children.
The name "SYBARITE" means "a person devoted to luxury and pleasure" . The creators of THE SYBARITES are Charles Fegen and Desmond Lingard who began SUPERFROCK LTD. in London about ten years ago. At first the artists created beautiful one of a kind couture for Barbie, Tonner and Gene yet they longed for their own fashion doll to refelct their own aesthetics. Their dream became a reality in 2005 with the release of the first Sybarites.

The trademark SUPERDOLL is often used by SUPERFROCK LTD. In other words: Superfrock is the parent company, Superdoll is their doll making business, and the Sybarites are the product.

This Guide is meant to be a straightforward nuts-and-bolts description of the dolls, yet the most significant things about the Sybarites as a fashion doll are the imaginiaive original concepts behind their styling and their totally captivating presence. There is really nothing like a Sybarite.

WHAT A SYBARITE IS LIKE:
In a word: precious. And beautiful, as you may have discovered here on eBay or in some of the online doll collectors' forums and photo sites. Sybarites have been regularly featured in HAUTE DOLL magazine, DOLLS, FDQ, Womens' Wear Daily, and on a recent BBC news feature programme among other places.
SYBARITES are 17 inches tall, slightly taller than the vinyl fashion dolls currently on the market. They are made of resin which is strung with elastic. The joints are engineered to rotate (15 poiints of articulation) and this, along with the elastic, gives the doll a wonderful 'live' quality when you hold her. While the dolls will not stand without some help (such as a stand, or careful posing in the right pair of shoes), they can assume many many lifelike poses, far more than the average vinyl fashion doll.

Sybarites are all wigged dolls. Some of the Sybarites are designed so that their wigs may be removed. Others have more elaborate hairstyles which are not meant to be taken down and these wigs will be firmly glued on. It is not recommended that you remove the wig from such a doll as the glue is quite hard to remove from the head, and the base of the wig may become distorted. Sybarites have attached eyelashes. The eyes themselves are painted.

The Sybarite figure is gorgeous and very womanly . The dolls are anatomically suggestive. The hip joints are not meant to be on view and all Sybarites originally come with hose. Like fine porcelain the resin can be breakable and some ordinary sensible care should be used when handling a Sybarite, such as dressing her on a padded surface and preventing falls. The doll should be well wrapped and double boxed when shipping.

There are three body types: the handmade early dolls made in England (such as Tattoo, Cosma and the Chalk Whites), marked on the small of the back SDMDR © 2004/5, the original factory body in a lighter resin, made in Asia, marked SYBARITE ©2004/5, and the revised factory made dolls which debuted in 2006 marked THE SYBARITES ©2006/7 . The later dolls are slightly larger in the bust and hip, but the difference is not very great.

HOW MANY SYBARITRES ARE THERE?
Sybarites are sold on the website of SUPERFROCK, LTD. as they are released. Special edition SYBARITES have been sold by HAUTE DOLL, MARL & B, JEFFREY NY and ANGELIC DREAMZ and recently, the first Sybarite 'convention doll' debuted at the PARIS FASHION DOLL FESTIVAL. These much anticipated dolls sell out very quickly to the avid collectors whose numbers are increasing daily. The edition sizes for the factory produced dolls have ranged from 350 pieces down to just twelve, (see chart below).
The rarest Sybarites are the one of a kind artist dolls produced in the London studio which are highly coveted by collectors. Occasionally unique sample or variation dolls which are factory products in variant hair or eye colors turn up on the market.

THE SYBARITES can be grouped by body type and also by clone which refers to the head mold used. There are slight differences from mold to mold. The new French Resin Sybarites have new head sculpts (see the note beneath the list of 2008 dolls, below).

2005: EARLY DOLLS: (Clone 0101)

PROTOPTYPE, EXPERIMENTAL and EARLY DOLLS which remain in the posession of Superdoll
TATTOO LE30, studio piece doll, (i.e. assembled and dressedl in the London studios)
CHALK WHITES: One of a kind dolls in a hand cast chalk-white resin. These may be Clone 0101 or 0102. They are of course studio pieces. The Chalk Whites were made between 2005-7. They are the 'ultimate' Sybarites--very hard to find and priced accordingly.
The earliest dolls were made of a medium weight resin. One of a kind dolls are marked by a red string tied around the wrist.

LATE 2005: FIRST FACTORY DOLLS a.k.a. TRANSITIONAL DOLLS (Clone 0103)

SUREAL Haute Doll Exclusive, LE 100
THE 400 CLUB: Sugar, Sushi (LE 75 each) Sabbatha and Skye (LE 95 each), these two were exclusive to Haute Doll Magazine
Note: These dolls are made of a lighter weight, more fragile resin but they are exquisitely detailed. Many were repainted and a good mint example is harder and harder to come by. They are more loosely strung than the later dolls. The joints are not felted.

From this point onward each Sybarite is tagged with a small metal wrist tag.

2006: SECOND GENERATION SYBARITES (Clone 0104)

COUTURE SAVAGE GIFT SET Haute Doll Exclusive (doll, clothing and additional accessories) LE 350
SANTA BABY Marl & B Exclusive LE 100, $NO BABY LE75, COAL LE 60 Note: Made of a heavier resin material, these dolls are more tightly strung, and had glued on wigs. The joints are not felted.
Note: Another doll made in 2006 was:

COSMA SHIVA GALAXINA LE30, the only dark skinned Sybarite, with a painted finish, a Studio Piece Doll handmade in London She was of the first type body (handcast resin made in England)

2007: REVISED SECOND GENERATION SYBARITES (Clone 0104)

CHELSEA GIRLS: Savoy, Sloane and Eaton LE 134 each
PONY LE 134
BLADE Jeffrey NY Exclusive Gift Set (doll and two extra outfits) LE 150, Indigo Blade LE 10 and Cocoa Blade Le10
PANTHERIA Sybeau Monde Excl. LE 12
COUTURE SALON Haute DOll Exclusive LE 250 (A chair for Salon was sold separately LE 100)
LIMOUSINE Marl & B Excl. LE150
MOON LE 100
SInce mid-2007 all Sybarites have felted joints: i.e. the joints are lined with a material which provides an improved handling quality and helps with posing.

In 2007 some Sybarites had unique details. EATON has a separate big toe for wearing thong shoes. MOON has newly resculpted hands, feet and an inset arm band which cannot be removed. PONY was the only doll produced in 2007 with a removeable wig. The color BLADE dolls were made for store display and are very rare as some were damaged while on display and their numbers are now much smaller than when originally issued.

2008 SYBARITES (Clone 0104):

TRAPEZE Angelic Dreamz Excl. LE 300
EPOCHALYPSE Paris Fashion Doll Festival Excl. LE 75, Epochalypse Noir LE 20, Epochalypse Bleu LE 6
FASHION VICTIMS: Parsley, Sage and Rosemary LE 100 each
The alternate color EPOCHALYPSE dolls are very small edition variations. Note that these dolls will all have the newly resculpted hands and feet that debuted with MOON in 2007.

In late 2007 Superdoll began to make a few dolls in French Resin. These were all one of a kind artist dolls. Following that Superdoll released one gift set in French Resin, the PATIENCE AND YVES dolls. These dolls had new facial sculpts and interchangeable hands. These dolls were sold privately and will not be available on the secondary market.There are no plans to offer French Resin dolls in the future.Superdoll is also experimenting with porcelain dolls and dolls in other sizes than the 17 inch.

Some unusual sample, variant or photo model dolls have turned up on the market. These very rare dolls were not meant for sale. These may include a Savoy with blonde rather than red hair, or a retouched Couture Savage used in a special display.

HOW TO KEEP A SYBARITE HAPPY
Buy them a lot of clothing of course!! And shoes. To the delight of their fans the Sybarites have an especially glamorous shoe wardrobe.
The world of Sybarite clothing is a fascinating one as these high fashion dolls are given every luxury. To describe all he fashions we will need another guide, but briefly, the first factory-made outfits, under the trademark FBR (Fashion Beyond Reason) were the CLASSIC 8 sets from 2006: Kick, Powder, Parfum. Magi, Oyster, Speed. Nylon and Tribe. These were boxed sets of outfit with accessories including shoes and wigs. Four boot packs were sold in 2006, two COLOUR SHOP wig sets, and two accessory packs, AUTOMATIC and SNO ORCHID. 2007's outfit selections included the BAN THE HUNT outfits for the CHELSEA GIRLS: Foxhole, Bloodhound and Dearhunter. The Sybeau Monde exclusive, Beaumonde was a limited edition (100). Along with MOON a separate outfit, Nitro Glisten was available. There were five wig/shoe sets sold separately when PONY was released and three shoe/purse packs.A most amazing rhinestone studded bustier, JOY! was a special holiday surprise. For 2008 we are awaiting some additional fashions for the FASHION VICTIMS: Kill Kelly and Thyme plus sunglasses- the I-Beans, and a mirrored chaise.

Superdoll also produces the occasional gown or accessory in-house. These are mostly limited edition fashions but 4 mohair wigs called HEADSKINS and a chair, the SPLINE CHAIR, were made for Tattoo in 2005.

While bits and pieces of other dolls' clothing will fit the Sybarites they will wear them in their own unique way.. Sybarites must wear Syb shoes (other dolls' footwear will not fit properly). Superdoll wigs fit the Sybarites much better than other wigs as their heads are 'between' sizes.

BUYING A SYBARITE ON eBAY
The secondasry market for the SYBARITES is very lively and you can expect plenty of competition -- especially for the latest issues and the harder to find dolls.
You may find repainted Sybarites for sale, but as with most repaints, the artist's selling price is rarely gotten back if the doll is resold later by the purchaser. On the other hand, mint, NRFB and perfect Sybarites retain and exceed their original selling prices in the current market. Nude Sybarites may sometimes bring more than the original price for the complete doll/costume, depending on their scarcity and condition.

In the world of collectibles buy with the heart, as you should. It makes no sense to buy something just to keep it in a closet. Yet affairs of the heart are subjective, and three things count the most when determining what to pay: condition, completeness and scarcity. If you are longing for a particular Sybarite, study the market a bit before buying. Know what you are getting: often dolls are sold without their wigs, stands, hose (all Sybarites come with these basics), or an outfit may be sold without the shoes or other bits and pieces. WHile the seller has an obligation to be honest it is the buyer's responsibility to ask questions about any concerns they may have before bidding. Unless you require a mint doll, dolls with minor defects offer a good value so long as the defect does not interfere with the doll's ability to pose. Chips around the joints of the doll or broken fingers are the most often seen kinds of damage, The resin can become stained and stain removal will also remove the matte coating on the dolls, this should be handled by someone familliar with BJD repair and stringing. Dolls whose wigs were removed may have glue residue, scrape marks or staining on the head.

Edition sizes do not necessarily predict the desirability of a doll to collectos, though it can. Some of the most beautiful Sybarites were larger edition sizes. For example, DOTY Awards were given to COUTURE SAVAGE and BLADE, who were relatively large edition pieces. Bear in mind that in a world where products are mass produced in the thousands, even an edition of 350 is quite small.

Sybarites mailed can be anywhere from 4-8 lbs. packed. Providing some space in a shipping box for plenty of cushioning material such as plastic peanuts, and insuring the box, are highly recommended.

I am not affiliated with any doll company. Opinions expressed herein are mine. All trademarks and copyrights are owned by SUPERDOLL and SUPERFROCK LTD.