Faceup Materials

[DiuralHime]

I know that several have heard this question before, but what materials do I need to do a faceup? Is there a difference between what I can use for vinyl and what I can use for resin?
Aslo, what sealing sprays are good for faceups?
Sorry for being an annoying noobie, but I need help.
Plus, if I get good enough, I might be able to start a mini business!!!
Thanks guys!!!

[SilverLining]

Okay I don't know terribly much about this stuff as I've only done a few faceups but here is what I use:

- Dry pastels
- Watercolour pencils
- Occassionally acrylics (Citadel paint like the one people use for Warhammer and such works well)
- MSC Flat sealing spray
And then some brushes and q-tips for applying the materials onto the doll.

I don't know if there's a difference from vinyl as I've never worked with it but I do know you should avoid products with oil in them on resin.

[toshirodragon]

I know someone will disagree with me BUT in my opinion, Testors Dullcote works every bit as well as MSC and for a third of the price. Also it tends to be available at hardware and craft stores unlike MSC.

It's only downside is it does attract dust a wee bit easier but if you spray in a reasonably dust free area, it's fine.

I know vinyl stains easily so avoid things that are difficult to remove unless you're certain that face up is a keeper.

I use:

pastels, the more expesive ones grind and mix easier but the cheapo set I bought works just fine
acrylic paint and a thinner= retarder, I believe it's called (I use water but I don't much paint really)
gloss
brushes, especially little ones, but a big one or even makeup brush for covering the whole face
Q-tips/cotton swabs for the lips and for erasing pastel smudges
Magic eraser- when using pencils magic eraser is great for evenin edges and smudging too solid of lines.

All this is based soley on my experience and my efforts, other folks' opinion and mileage may differ.

[SilverLining]

Originally Posted by toshirodragon

Magic eraser- when using pencils magic eraser is great for evenin edges and smudging too solid of lines.

Oh, that's a good tip (especially since I just bought some magic sponge). Thanks!

[toshirodragon]

Thanks!

With my latest face up on Elias I think I used half a sponge because the pencil kept bouncing and leaving wild marks as I marked in the areas around his eyes. A tiny piece of sponge or an edge was perfect for erasing those oopsies.

[Silence Spoken]

(This ... is going to be a long post But it will likely be very comprehensive.)

Sprays that tend to be used:

Testors Dullcote
ZM (Zoukeimura) Finishing Powder Spray (UV cut) (available from Volks/Volks USA)
Mr. Super Clear (MSC) -- flat, regular and UV cut (available from Volks/Volks USA, if in the US you can find it cheaper elsewhere, though ... Volks will rape you with UPS shipping XD; )

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Because I've used all three, I'll give you a quick comparison. Please note this is based on my own experiences and my own preferences, different people will have different opinions XD

Testors: In my experience I found that testor's spray tends to attract more dirt than the other two, so over time you may find that your finishing coat actually needs to be cleaned. It also has a noticeably yellow tint--though this could be a good thing if you have a hybrid that you are trying to match resin tones on.

I have had less problems with temperature/humidity related issues with testors than the other two.

ZM Spray: ZM spray has a middling amount of tooth (this will effect how well pastels will adhere to the surface), I don't actually remember how Testor's compares to it, but I know that MSC has much more. It'll take you a few coats to build up to brighter or darker shades of a color. I has no noticeable tint to it at all.

I have had less problems with temperature/humidity related issues before, but less than with MSC. (These kind of issues with spray sealants generally involve either taking on a foggy white cast, or otherwise not setting up properly ....)

MSC: This has become my personal favorite. It is much easier to do pastel work on MSC because it has greater tooth. You'll need less layers of sealant and the color you get brushing on will be much truer to the tone of the pastel itself (ZM spray tends to make it a bit lighter because it doesn't stick as well). Although I've not notice much tinting at all, other customizers have noticed a slight yellow cast to MSC (though not as much as testor's).

I have had more problems with temperature/humidity related issues with MSC than the other two sealants, it appears to be more sensitive to these factors. So you'll have to be careful. It is also more harsh in terms of fumes than the other two. Of course, it is generally recommended that you wear a mask or respirator when spraying any sort of sealant or paint ....

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Sealants out of the way, let's move on to materials actually used to paint a doll.

Airbrushing: I've ... not done a lot of airbrushing personally, mainly because all attempts I did at it failed. So if you want to try this you'll have to ask someone else 8D; Most likely you won't be doing fine details with an airbrush, just your blushing ... so you don't necessarily need to go buy the most expensive brush you can find. If you plan to give this a try, do a little research and keep in mind what you'll need it to do.

Pastels: Pastels can look just as nice as airbrushing if done right (and it'll take you some practice). You want to avoid oil pastels at all costs. The ones you are looking for are called soft pastels.

You can use cheap or expensive ones, the expensive ones tend to come off the stick smoother and have more range of colors. If you use cheap pastels make sure they are ground as fine as you can get them. In the past I've often scraped at a pastel stick with a knife blade to produce a powder.

(As a note, I have had slight issues with red and black cheap pastels staining, so if you plan to use these colors be sure to coat extra well on your base coat. I'd actually recommend doing this if you plan to use black, red, or any other highly saturated color period, no matter what materials you are using.)

The brands I use personally are Rembrandt and Schminke. These are both a tad more expensive, though (particularly Schminke).

You'll want to choose natural colors for your base. Reds, pinks, oranges, and browns. Also consider a good light blue, because it actually is a tone in human skin. If you plan to paint a doll with makeup or a dramatic/fantasy faceup then you may want to consider other colors as well.

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Detailing:

There are three options I've tried personally for detailing. Watercolor Pencils, acrylic paints, and watercolor paints. I'll talk about them all.

Watercolor Pencils: This is a good option for a beginner. Especially if you don't mind the grainy texture that the pencil will leave behind (I hated this so I moved on to brushwork). It is easier for most people to control and so long as you keep the pencil sharp you can get fine lines. They are also relatively easy to clean if you make a mistake, as they are water-soluble (this means that they thin/dissolve in water).

As a note, some people use colored pencils, but I do not recommend these. In particular I have seen Prismacolor Pencils mentioned--but these pencils are wax-based, and wax is an oily substance.

Brushwork: The alternative to pencils is to paint on details with a brush. You will need a small brush to do this and the ability to control it, which will come with lots and lots of practice. There is a learning curve to this, though ... so unless you paint a lot already don't expect to become an expert at it quickly.


Watercolor Paint: Tube or pan watercolor will work, though tube colors are easier to get working consistency with. Watercolor is very easy to thin with water to get different levels of transparency for working with faceups. It also has a thinner consistency than acrylic paints and so it can be easier to work with.

On the down side, if you compare watercolor and acrylic brushwork ... acrylic is always going to have sharper details, watercolor will always have a tendency to go fuzzy or to run/bleed a bit. People who paint the details on their dolls are often looking for this.

Acrylic Paints: Generally you will need to thin these with a paint thinner (you can thin with water, but thinner will change the color less; water has a tendency to make the color lighter as well as more transparent). I've personally not had much luck with thinners, so I don't have any to recommend at the moment--I will be trying out the Zoukeimura thinner soon on recommendation, so if it turns out to be as amazing for me as others I can write again about it.

Acrylic paints can be softened with a bit of thinner or water if it goes on too sharp for tastes, and thinned to be less opaque. Golden paints or Liquitex are the generally recommended brands, personally I tend towards Golden's Fluid Acrylics.


(As a general rule of thumb with paints, student grade paints are lower quality, artists grade are higher quality ... student grade paints are "watered down," so to speak, with more binder than the materials used to give the paint color--so basically you get less saturated, less rich colors. You can use this to decide what grade of paints you want to look at. People have used cheap acrylics to as much success as more expensive ones. If you plan to commission you definitely want more expensive, quality materials; but for personal face-ups you may find that cheap materials work just fine.)

__________________

Just a few other things that are helpful for faceups:

Wide variety of larger brushes: I find that round brushes work best for me in faceups in general, though you may want a flat or two as well. If you plan to use brushes to apply your pastels you will want a wide variety of sizes from smaller brushes for more detail areas (corners of eyes, lips) to wider brushes for large areas (cheeks). I find brushes tend to give a softer touch to blushing.

Cotton Balls: Cheaper alternative to brushes, but I also find you sometimes get a bit of cotton that comes off in your faceups.

Q-tips: Q-tips tend to lend a harder touch to blushing, and I find it can be very good for where you want a darker spot of color. I use these in conjunction with brushes. (In theory the pointed-end Q-tips would be better for details, but I can't ever find these to give it a try.)

Erasers: Some people have suggested using magic erasers previously. I would caution against this because they have a slightly abrasive texture to them that can take off your sealant. Wet they will certainly take off your sealant.

What I would recommend instead are white erasers, you can get these really cheap at an art store or kneaded erasers. I personally use both. White erasers are good to use when you want to take everything off, kneaded erasers can be used when you get something a little too dark and just want to take off a little color. You can squish it to a shape that will cover the area and dab at it till you get enough removed.

Gloss: I've heard excellent things about Tamiya glosses, which Volks sells ... but have never tried it personally. What I use is Liquitex gloss medium, which works fine.

(As a note, if you'd like a more matte gloss, the Liquitex matte medium, which I have mostly to lighten colors in my acrylics, has a slight shine to it. It can be used much like gloss if you want something not so shiny.)

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Additional note, relevant to the original question:

So far as I know people use the same materials to paint vinyl and resin. Vinyl is much more prone to staining, however. So I recommend you put a thicker base coat down (this will give you a surface to paint on and also serves as a buffer between the vinyl and the actual paints). I would also caution using very dark, highly saturated colors. Be careful if you use black or very dark reds--these stain surfaces the most easily.

Hope this is helpful ^^

[dollsoflace]

I know this was answered already and quite extensively detailed by the other posters, but I have to give a shout out to Unison Handmade Pastels. I've done face up for friends and use these on my own art and to me nothing beats the color. I order them from my old art teacher [since we combine shipping costs] but I'm sure many places sell them online.

[kiwae]

I used to use Model Masters but ever since I bought Tamiya TS-180 flat clear spray, it's a bit pricier but it works wonders. It dries really quick, if you like to do layers this is for you, and if you don't like layering, use stronger colors then.

Kneadable erasers helps getting specific areas.

If you're having trouble finding tiny brushes, just by the cheapest smallest brush you find and pluck out the hairs.

[Teacupdreams]

Just saw this thread.
I now Haute doll did a couple of issues where they did tutorials on repainting on the vinyl dolls, I will have to figure out which issues and post again.

I've done a bit of dabbling on the vinyl and it's fairly easy to do and I used acrylic paint and no sealer the first time lol and it did stain, was a very inexpensive barbie type doll so not too upset.

There are also powders you can get from Pearl Ex that are pigment powders you can use.
These can be used dry like eye shadow, blush etc, a little goes a Looooong way or they can be used mixed into the paint to create a shimmering effect/pearlescent effect in the paint itself.
http://www.jacquardproducts.com/prod...arlex/powders/
http://www.dharmatrading.com/pexp.html
This page has tips and such as well...
http://www.clayfactory.net/jacquard/pearlex3.html
http://softexpressions.com/help/faq/FAQPearlEx.php

[Jangki]

Thankyou ^^
I've always wanted to know

[luckyguess]

I think everyone has pretty much covered the materials I would recommend. However, I'd like to add that a good make-up brush kit comes in handy. Especially when working with pastels. Doesn't need to be a special kind of makeup brush set. Just average.