Reduction of a doll's head at home

Congratulations! While I was still thinking about how to make my first publication, the topic appeared by itself. Or is it just me?
Have you ever wanted to shrink a doll's head? For example, in Monster High? It is possible to do this - there are quite a lot of guides on this topic on the Internet. Why then is this publication necessary? And because this topic is quite difficult.
Let me remind you that it is not possible to reduce the size of the doll's head without changing its skintone, and it is desirable to completely remove the factory make-up and hair. So this method is mostly used by OOAKers.
Indeed, there are many guides - in English and other languages. They are all quite easy and repeatable - wash, soak, dry. We will talk about what exactly and how to soak.
A doll head made of vinyl can be reduced with acetone. But where to get that acetone?
I warn you - you can't take a technical one! It is never pure and it is not known how this mixture can react - each manufacturer has its own composition of both acetone and vinyl!
Pure cosmetic acetone is best for removing gel nails. In the guides, it is recommended to dilute it with water, but I personally do not recommend doing this - you can miss the right moment.
If it is too difficult for you to get cosmetic acetone, the domestic nail polish remover "Nagotok" is suitable, colorless chamomile - it has the highest content of acetone. I do not recommend using other means with acetone - it has been tested.
Next, let's move on to the dishes where this same head will get wet - we need a screw-on glass jar with a tight metal lid. Choose the size of the jar yourself - I only have 250 ml. It should be taken into account that the head will increase from acetone.
So, let's move on to the process itself. I would like to remind you that you need to observe safety techniques, and also do not carry out this experiment in the cold, and do not leave the solution somewhere on the battery or windowsill, as well as in direct sunlight.
1 - you need to prepare the doll's head. Wash and dry it well. If it has plastic parts, remove them. It is also advisable to remove the hair - it is not known what the composition of that glue is inside and how it will react with acetone. Factory makeup can be left - but it can change color, disappear, or leave stains.
2 - place the head in a jar, fill it with acetone. The solution should cover it by 1-2 cm. Before closing the jar, you need to put a cellophane bag under the lid, which is not afraid of acetone, and twist it tightly - this way the acetone will not evaporate, and the lid will last longer.
3 - next comes the most important stage - you need to wait until the head in the solution doubles in size and only then pull it out. Of course, no one will prevent it from quadrupling in size - but then it will become too fragile and will not be able to maintain its own shape, it will not even be possible to hold it with hands. When drying, all deformations will remain!
How long will I have to wait? Depends on temperature, chemical composition and atmospheric pressure. For the most part, pure cosmetic acetone needs from thirty minutes to an hour and a half, "Nagotka" - from three to twelve hours.
4 - the head must be carefully removed and washed with warm soapy water. Dry it in the open air, preventing deformation. It is best to hook on a wire hook. I also recommend making a hole in the makitra - so that the acetone evaporates evenly from the entire surface. It takes at least a week to dry. After drying, the head will become very hard, stony. To remove or put on such a head, it will be necessary to immerse it in boiling water for a minute.
If necessary, the head can be dried on the doll's body - but you need to put it on a layer of bags that will protect the plastic from acetone during the first two days of drying.
To strengthen the reduction, you can repeat the procedure. But each time the result will be less noticeable.
Also, the more the head increases, the more it will dry out. So, to bring the size of Monster High closer to the game Barbie, you need to soak twice to double (for boys) or three times (for girls).
That's all. In the end, I can only warn - it all remains an unreliable experiment. A different doll, a different mix of vinyl, a different solution composition, temperature - the result is also different. Of course, following the advice, everything will not end with a "squeezed" torn head with a slanted face. But even if everything is done correctly, the color of the skin tone will fade. Pinks and reds especially lose their brightness - they can become either pale pink or pale orange.
*Soaking in "Nogotka" can remove stains from a pen or felt-tip pen.
*You can also use colored "Nagotok" - it will not paint the head, but for some reason this tool is less effective than transparent.
*Clear solution, even cosmetic acetone, is colored with skintone pigment during soaking. The already used solution can be used further by adding the necessary amount (approximately 20 ml is used for each soaking). But the obtained very bright solution can give its shade during further use.
I hope this post helped you somehow :)
In the photo: Laguna without hair, Heath with a reduced head (double dip), Ken BMR1959 with partially erased makeup and no flock.
The hit is now a bit bigger than the collectible Ken.