Acrylic Paint Review

I am not a professional artist, but I've been at this for awhile so I thought I'd share my opinions on some acrylic paints that I've tried. I don't have an airbrush, so I can't address these types of paints.

Games Workshop Paints:

I bought this at my local hobby shop. It comes in a little bitty bottle for a hefty price (I want to say this was like $3-$4, a lot for so small an amount). It doesn't dry quickly, which is a plus for eyelashes, and it has a nice, thick quality to it. It is important to thin it because it is so thick. I find the pigments to be really strong, and I like to use this one for eye liner. I don't use it for super fine lines because it takes a lot of thinner to be useful for that.

I give them a 4/5 for vibrant colors, but it loses a point due to price point.

Walmart brand cheap paints (Folkart and others):

These things are great starter paints. They are mostly water, so if you thin them too much they lose their color. They dry very quickly. I use a little retarder to make them last longer. I liked to use these for most applications until I got an upgrade to acrylics with better pigment.

I give them a 2.5/5. Great starter paint, but you will notice the difference when you upgrade.

Martha Stewart acrylics:

These are surprisingly good. Not too thick, not too thin, so they are good for various applications depending on how much thinner you want to use. These are my default paints, and I like to use them on my pony repaints. They have good color and don't dry too fast.

I give these a 3/5. They are a step above the Folkart paints, but for the price you may as well save up a little bit more and go for an artist grade paint. They are definitely better quality than the folkart paints.

JoAnn Fabrics brand paints:

Not terrible. Slightly better than Walmart brand paints, so you get what you pay for. This brand does make an awesome affordable gloss, which I highly recommend. 

2.5/5 for the acrylics, 4/5 for the gloss (it takes a couple coats for maximum effect)

Prismacolor:

These are artist-grade paints. They are perfect. They do require a lot more thinner than the cheaper acrylics because they are thicker, but I really can't complain. The colors are more vibrant even when thinned. They were more than worth the funds. I haven't done a whole lot with them beyond some pony repaints for practice, but I'm looking forward to working with them on a face up.

So far, these babies get a 5/5.

Paints to avoid:

Spray paint- This shit is permanent (mostly, and I assume you can remove it if you really try and/or seal really well before you spray) and can damage resin. I've heard good and bad lately, but it's not a risk I'm willing to take.

Nail polishes- Same as with spray paint. I've heard too many horror stories to even chance this.

Paints with thick glitter in them- They won't look right on the doll, and the glitter will be way out of scale on the tiny area you're working on. They can also clump and look cheap. Avoid.

So there you have my little paint review. I hope it's helpful. ^_^

Amaranth's Guide to Filter Masks Part 1

I am by no means a professional. I did some research on DoA (there are really great threads with good information there), as well as on the internet. Knowing that many people don't have access to DoA, I thought I'd do a simple hobbyist's guide to filter masks. I tried to keep it really simple and not wordy.

Here is part 1, just some basic Q & A and terms. I'll go into detail about numbers and what they mean in the next post.

Amaranth's Face Up Rules

These are the rules I personally follow when painting face ups. Just some food for thought, and of course you don't have to do any of these.

1. Never paint with acrylics on the same layer as pastels.
   Why: If you try to use water to wipe away the acrylic or the acrylic smears, you will ruin the pastel and have to redo it.
2. When you like something, seal it, then keep painting.
   Why: If you like the way something looks, you can always add more. If you end up adding more and hate the result, you'll have to wipe all your work including the part you like. Seal often.
3. Never touch a face up before sealant or paint is dry.
   Why: You'll end up with smudges, smears, and tacky parts and sometimes your sealant will completely come off in spots, ruining your beautiful blushing. I hate when this happens.
   

   

   My face up was ruined because of this....

4. Wash your hands, and often.

Face Up Tips: Lips

As you know, I'm still working on improving my techniques so I thought I'd share what I've learned. Here is my trick for lips.

I'm addicted to shimmer powders.

A little background on this head: She's a recast Volks SD16 Kira. Her original owner tried to blush her to match a yellow skin body, and despite all my scrubbing, I can't completely remove it. [Edit: I have since removed it and redone the faceup.] So, this is making one eyebrow look really goofy. Please ignore that for the sake of the tutorial.



 

1. Block out the face up colors. On the lips, dab some color in the middle on the bottom and on the sides of the upper lips. (For a more solid lip, dab color over the whole thing).

Face Up Tips: Eyebrows

I'm still learning and improving my face up techniques. I'm not the best or anything, but I have figured out some things that help me with my face ups.

I <3 shimmer powders!!!

A little background on this head: She's a recast Volks SD16 Kira. Her original owner tried to blush her to match a yellow skin body, and despite all my scrubbing, I can't completely remove it all [edit: I finally got it off and redid her faceup]. So, this is making one eyebrow look really goofy. Please ignore that for the sake of the tutorial.

Here's my technique for eyebrows. Update: Scroll to the bottom of the post to see recent eyebrows done with this method!

Face Up Removal: Windsor and Newton vs Isopropyl Alcohol vs Nail Polish Remover

I've removed a lot of face ups in my short time in the hobby (I've been around for about 4 years). I've used nail polish remover, Winsor and Newton (referred to for the rest of the post as W&N), and various strengths of rubbing alcohol to remove face ups.

I have a few dolls I've been meaning to redo, and I thought while I was at it I might as well take some pictures and do a few comparison/tutorial posts. The next post will be my face up tutorial. I may film it, but I haven't decided yet.

I've decided to do a comparison/how-to feature for these so you can decide which is best for you.

I'm not getting into the acetone/no-acetone debate thing though. I don't know enough about acetone to say either way. I've heard horror stores, but then I've used products with acetone and had no issues myself. So, it's best for me just to avoid that subject for now.

 

FAQ: Items to have on hand for your first doll and What is a Box Opening

This is another question I find frequently on forums. I've put together a simple list for those who are interested. It's just my opinion, and nothing is really mandatory. I will add to it as I think of more things or get suggestions. Hope this helps!

You'll want basic things to clean and maintain your doll.

• Mr. Clean Magic Erasor or other magic sponge
• Isopropyl alcohol (for cleaning smudges and stuff)
• Elastic- not a must, but handy especially if you're buying second hand
• Eye putty- not a must, but handy to have

Face Up FAQ and Tutorial

This post is to highlight some of my face-up techniques. I'm by no means the best, and there are lots of face-up tutorials out there, but hopefully you will get some use out of this tutorial. :) I will try to update this post as I come across more face up questions. First, the FAQ, then the materials list, followed by the tutorial.

Note: I don't update this as I improve my faceups because that's a pain in the butt, so if you want to see my latest stuff you can always check my flickr.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/amaranthscastaways/

Face Up FAQ

Q:What materials do I need?
A:See below!