Ever thought of lessons?

Local girl I know is doing a mini meet with soul purpose of helping others do face ups. If nothing else join a loacl group near you and bring up that very subject. Good Luck, MK

 

I have heard of people going to face-up workshops done by more well known professional face up artists, like ones who work for volks. Dont quote me on that xD But I know ive read about that sort of situation several times.

I would love to do a sewing workshop for doll clothing, but im not very involved in my local doll community. Im sure that sort of thing would be really easy to put together if you have a regular meet-up group, and even notify other meet-up groups in the area so they had the option to travel to wherever it was taking place

Everyone has their trade secrets, but for the most part I would feel comfortable teaching people, because really when it comes right down to it, some people just have a knack for things and others dont. Teaching someone how to do something doesnt make you any less talented, it just helps other people get by without having to pay for everything. And if I create a protege, then GOOD ^___^ I can nag them into making me presents!

 

I'm okay at face ups and I have friends who want to learn. we usually just have days where we all work on stuff and they will peer over my shoulder when i work and ask questions. Nothing like lessons though but its an interesting idea.

 

While I'm not very interested in meet-ups at all, I hear a lot about groups getting together for sewing/faceup/restringing/cleaning time. If I didn't have a boyfriend I know I would appreciate another hand when restringing, sometimes :P and having someone available to immediately give help or feedback on a faceup's progress would be nice.

 

I remember seeing a girl a few years ago who got airbrushing lessons to help her faceups. If you're interested in learning something and have the means to take lessons, why not?

 

I'd say whatever helps you learn best I've had a long experiences and workings with various arts and crafts so it's helped me learn and figure out things even with reading tutorials to refine what I'm having issues with. So go with what you know and be open to learn more in various ways also helps to have a "dummy/testor" head to practice on XD

 

I think that giving lessons for face-ups and the like is wonderful! And I'm not just saying that because I'm a pre-service art teacher. I recently had a friend over at my home to learn how to do a basic body blushing. I figure, if enough people in the area are interested, I could also give lessons on basic face-ups. What is great to teach are the fundamentals, the building blocks so to speak, of the skill wanting to be obtained. You don't have to go too much into style if you don't want. After all, everyone has their own style, so even if you teach something one way, someone may find a different way to do it to make it their own. All they need is the basic premise.

 

This hobby sort of goes hand in hand with what I already know how to do. It's just applying what I've learned from other things to a more miniscule level.
I am always open for watching a video, or going to a meet to see how people do things though. There's always something new, or a different style to learn.

 

Idk, it'd be really cool to have a very small group of people meeting up for those sorts of things locally, but I'm not terribly active in my local doll-community. Workshops require materials. Materials require money. Money comes from a job. Jobs take the time needed for workshops. If everyone was prepared and had their own things, it's very likely that they already know how to face up/bodyblush etc... I'm not sure I'd appreciate someone watching over my shoulder etc.. I work in solitude best.

There are tons and tons of tutorials here at DoA and on youtube/ bjd/doll sites as well. The internet is a wealth of information!! I just did my first face up recently and even if I didn't know anything about art, I would be able to find info. I wouldnt be at a loss as to how to do it. :V It takes time and effort to sift through every thread etc... but if you're not willing to invest time in a hobby, why are you in it?

I think these things only advance when people forget their jitters, get their guts and just do it. If you've read beforehand about doll care and are clear on protecting your doll, there's no need for fear. Get through it once and it'll be a breeze the second time. So I don't see the need for lessons on topics as simple as face ups and blushing.

Sculpting/molding/casting/sewing would be a different story.

 

WHOOAaaa okay so I had to type this twice orz I despise the auto-log out function, I got a little frustrated the second time, forgive me if I'm unclear or rushed:

Of course ouo b! Everyone starts somewhere. I, too, started somewhere, a very long time ago. XD and I haven't forgotten that. I understand that there are different comfort levels between people too To each their own, for sure.

I think make-up lessons or portraiture would be best suited to your needs. Or classes having to do with soft pastels/ acrylic paints. Becoming familiar with your mediums is always a great place to start!

I think the only difference between an 'experienced' artist vs an inexperienced one [imho, please don't think I'm being condescending, I'm really not trying to be], is a trained eye. Familiarity with a medium can be gained through experimentation. The mechanical work such as applying the pastels/paint etc... can always be improved or worked upon with practice.

However, an inexperienced artist cannot always see their mistakes or the unwanted qualities in their artwork as clearly as the experienced artist, and does not intuitively know what process to go through to correct their mechanical errors. I think if you pay attention to the minutest details, and suffer what's needed to achieve that standard, you will improve very quickly!

I wish you the best !

 

In my local doll group we share a lot of stuff and just sort of teach and help each other at some of our doll work meetups. We teach each other restringing, give tips and hints on faceups and body blushing, help draft patterns for sewing, etc. We also recently had a doll store open in the area who will be hosting classes/workshops on all sorts of doll related subjects as well.

 

There were three occasions where lessons came up in our community:

1) Face-ups. There is a very talented faceup artist locally and we all would love if she just...let us watch her. Even better - if she did a tiny workshop and explained as well as shown us how she does certain things. But that won't happen - she already said it's very frustrating to do anything while others are looking over your shoulder, and I totally understand that. One can always dream though

2) Restringing/sueding etc. Well, while not exactly lessons, but I do plan to host a meetup where all the doll owners who are too afraid to restring/hot-glue suede their dolls can come and see how it's done. They can bring their doll and practice, too. It worked with one girl - I did one joint, while she looked, then she did the other side, and so on. These can of course be learned through online sources (experience talking), but I feel that it gives confidence to the less adventurous to have someone nearby who has already done it...

3) Doll sculpting. This was the most hilarious and aggravating thing that ever happened on our local forum. A woman came barging in with great plans of making and selling her own BJDs and already setting up a course, where she would teach us how to sculpt BJDs. The only catch - she has never sculpted a BJD before! She couldn't even write the three letters B-J-D down in correct order! Yes, she had artist figures, but that's so far from working joints, it's ridiculous. When we mentioned our skepticism that she can teach something she hasn't even tried yet, she left in a huff. I think her attitude was especially hurtful to all our members who were already in the process of making their own BJDs, or have already made one.