Anonymous asked:
ladyyatexel answered:
Well, I’ve only been doing it for a little while, so if you want basics or someone who has done a ton, I’d go here. A little thing I haven’t seen mentioned elsewhere super often is to make a sketch or mockup.
When I take the factory paint off, I take a photo of the blank face and then do some work in Photoshop so I know what I want. Of certain dolls, you can find photos of the blank heads to work with already.
I didn’t do one for Gracey because I was just aiming for what she had originally, but like, not terrible. Here’s one of the Monster High ones, though:
And here’s how that turned out:
This really helps because it’s useful to build up dolls from the blushing/hazy stuff upward to darker and more concrete things. So if you do the sketch, you already sort of know the shape and colors you’ll want your base blush stuff to be.
You could draw the sketch, but I find it useful to have the head shape to work with since you’re limited when you’re painting by the shape of the facesculpt. You can fudge some stuff, but when beginning, it’s hard to make shit up that’s not there like an extended shape of the mouth or moving the eyes closer together or whatever and really sell it well.
Other stuff is just what I hear lots of places - invest in quality tools and materials, find thrift store dolls to practice on while you get the hang of it before you go on your own collection, have patience and use thin layers with your approach, and get a proper respirator for use with the Mister Super Clear sealant because that shit is going to destroy you.
I’m fueled by just the kinds of things I want to see in dolls or the aesthetic I want for the things I own, so that’s sort of my personal idea generator since it’s just built from years of doll collecting, but as far as ideas or inspiration, Etsy and Pinterest are your friends!
I hope that’s useful? I don’t know if these are the kinds of tips you were looking for!
t00thpasteface
