First doll w/ or w/o a face-up?

I just got my first doll last month, and for most of the time that I was saving for her, I was convinced I was going to get the factory faceup and then maybe add/edit it a little. I was just scared to mess her up because I'd never done a faceup before and she was my dream doll. But impulsiveness won out. I decided I was done waiting and didn't want to save up the extra $55 or have the extra order processing time, and ordered her head blank as soon as I realized I had enough cash. Doing her faceup turned out to be an awesome experience, and I'm really happy with how she came out. I would not recommend a DIY faceup on the first doll to someone with no art skill/experience, though. I have been a serious artist for a good many years and have plenty of experience with acrylics, pastel, using fixatives, brushwork, color theory, etc. I would imagine it would be a real bummer to look forward to your very first BJD and then not have him or her look the way you dreamed of because you don't know how to bring their face to life.

 

With a face up so you get the full effect right out of the box.

 

I got my first girl with a face-up because the dealer I got her from only orders her brand with face-ups. :P But I still like getting them with face-ups so it's one less thing I need to worry about. I have a blank, floating head right now, and though I don't regret getting him, I still need to send him out to my friend for a face-up and get his body :P

 

I got my doll with a face-up, purely because I'd never done one, and I didn't want my first to have a face-up I wasn't happy with (and I really liked the companie's face-ups). However, I also got a spare blank head for practicing, and I intend to give him his own someday (haven't had a lot of time to do that, though, unfortunately, so he's still in his default, orz).

 

My first doll came blank, I wanted to send her over to a professional face-up artist that I admired a lot. Also because I didn't like the factory face-up that came with the doll. Plus it made her more personal to me, and special. Because no other doll has that face-up that she has now ^^

 

I've just bought my first doll with a face up.....the face up was free & nothing to loose if I didn't like it As I don't have other dolls to compare the face up with, I don't know if it's a good or bad one but I'm happy with it I don't trust my artistic skills & future dolls will also be bought with face ups or if I can find someone who does custom ones, I'd be happy to order a blank doll & send her off for a makeover

 

I got my first doll with a face up. I'm afraid of messing up and ruining the head if I tried to do the face up myself.

 

I buy all of mine with a face up, I reason it as this, I get use of the doll from the very beginning, I find faceless dolls kinda creepy and if I want a new face the old one can always be removed. Plus I'm no artist so would have to pay extra for a face and that could end up a lot more than the company faceup...plus I actually like a lot of the company faceups.

 

I just recently ordered a doll and I got a face-up, mainly due to the fact that I don't know how to prepare for such on my own. No experience and all makes me very hesitant to go without.

 

This is pretty much 95% how I feel, except for the changing genders bit, I tend not to do that. I imagine with time I might become competent at doing a faceup. However, there are so many talented artists out there that can do it better than I ever could. So why not commission one of them and get a beautiful faceup that is more what I have in mind?

Besides, as much as it costs to be in this hobby, a faceup is not the most expensive thing you can buy. A high-end pair of eyes, a complete outfit, even a high-end wig all costs about the same if not more. If the price of a faceup is too steep, then this hobby might become problematic for you.

Another point that someone made is that each artist has their own style. If you commission different artists, you get a broad sampling of the artistry that is out there. That's a great perk, too.

Now, I'm not saying that learning to do your own faceups is a waste of time. Quite the opposite, actually. If you think you might have a talent for it and/or enjoy it, go for it! It's just not the thing for me, that's all. I know myself and my limits, and that's one of them.

 

I ordered my first with face up, because I'm sure I can't do it by myself...

 

I bought Anora blank. After doing research on safety and sealants, I experimented for a couple of months with soft pastels and watercolor pencils, making her up over and over. When I'd gotten that out of my system, I blanked her face again and sent her to my favorite artist. I paid a lot for her faceup, but it was completely worth it to have a unique and gorgeous doll.

 

I've ordered my first doll with a face-up, partly because I like the look of the company one anyway, and partly because I don't want to have to send him away again as soon as he gets here! I do intend to add some freckles, but I don't have the skill to do a complete face-up myself.

 

I got the default faceup done on my first doll mostly because I didn't want to have to worry about sending my doll away to a faceup artist or doing my own faceup with my less than stellar artistic skills. I also didn't want to wait what could be up to a whole month for my doll to get back from the artist after I'd already waited 2 1/2 months for her. Honestly, I think that a lot of people get their first doll with a faceup simply because they are a bit newer to the hobby and it's just easier to do that.

 

With a face-up, of course! I think it's good to get your feet wet and see if you enjoy a complete BJD before investing even more into potentially getting him/her a face-up or possibly facing the (seemingly infamous) heartbreak of a bad transaction with a face-up artist. Getting the first doll is always so exciting and it would be even more enthralling if they were complete with a face-up by far.

 

I got my first doll with the default face-up, although custom face-ups were also offered onsite. Unbeknownst to me, there was a summer event going on, so I ended up getting a blank head along with my order. I'm hoping to practice a future face-up on that, but I have no idea where to start getting supplies. xD

 

Def company face up for a first doll. So much easier

 

I ordered my first doll without a faceup. I don't know if I'll get any default faceups in the future, since I want some pretty specific things (so defaults rarely have what I'm looking for), plus I dislike the idea of my dolls being identical to hundreds of others. I'm not going to venture into making faceups myself, though.

I would advice newbies to either buy a doll with a default or custom faceup or send the head to a more experienced artist. Then again, if making faceups is something you know you want to get into, why not start with your first doll right away? I mean, as long as you can accept that it won't look good until you get more experience.

 

I got my first doll without face up because she was the last one in stock on Mint on Card and didn't come with it, however my friend did her faceup for me and then again when the first started to chip XD;;