Sad about wiping a dolls first faceup

I haven't done it yet, but I'm preparing to do the same myself. I'm really hesitant on doing it to the point where I'm tempted to just get a second head and work from that. Weird I know, but it's too pretty to remove even with its minor defects.

 

Of course! I’m not talented in faceups, myself, but I’ve had to have a few redone. Each time i tell myself that I’ll find new things to love about the new faceup they’ll have. Even if sometimes i miss the smokiness of the old eyeshadow, or the color being just right on the glossy lips. In time i come to love new things, and i try to look forward to watching my collection evolve and grow. It’s okay to be sad! But i hope it helps you bond even closer to your doll!

 

I have felt that way, but in the end, I'm usually happy I did it because I end up making it better than it was before. Even with company or artist faceups, I rarely regret wiping them because when I repaint the doll, it feels more like my doll. And then, I look back at old pictures and often cringe at how bad the first faceups were! I guess the best advice I can give is just remember that the more you paint, the better you'll get, and it will be worth it when you see your doll looking better each time!

 

Like @CloakedSchemer wiping the old faceup and making a new one makes the doll feel more mine.
I don't have that many though, and my dolls so far have either been blank or had a faceup I didn't like :P
Even if I got a really pretty one I think I'd change it after a while, I'd just take lots of pictures of it first ^^

 

I've always been afraid to wipe old faceup's especially when it comes to company ones because normally I get the face-ups cause I love them so much! But I also consider it a bonding experience with my dolls, especially the older ones I have -- a fresh face can make you fall in love with them all over again! Plus there's a sense of pride in your own work -- even if it's not as perfect as you would've wanted them to be.

 

I had to wipe my SDC Gretel's faceup and nearly cried. It had gotten so bad with chipping on her eyes and lips that it was really all I could do. I ended up giving her a satisfactory faceup on my own but some day I'd like someone with actual skill to redo it for me. The Gretel faceup was one of the reasons I fell in love with the doll, I wish it hadn't gotten messed up in the first place.

 

I understand! I felt sad each time I wiped their faceups, the only thing I can do is taking as many photoes to remember them.

 

I'm not talented at painting miniatures, but as an artist and toy collector, I always wanted to customize my own dolls.
Barbies always seemed too small for me (to paint), so when I learned about these customizable dolls I was beyond thrilled. I was a bit scared
of painting my first doll, so I purchased my first resin head with a custom face up from Luts, then after my first full resin doll I got my first blank one!
I didn't mind wiping him over and over again as much as I wanted. However, when it comes to face ups someone else did, I did feel hesitation and sadness.
My first and only mini had a custom face up by a talented artist, but I wanted to modify him to better fit my aesthetic so I had to remove his face up. I don't
regret wiping his face off, but I did felt sad at the time (he's been discontinued now, so I kind of feel a bit sad about modifying him as well, but I am still not sure if I want
to complete the mods or just leave him in limbo because I did plan on getting a second head sculpt and now I probably won't be able to!). DX

 

Did you do your doll's original faceup, or did he have a factory faceup? I wish I had the confidence to do faceups, but I am very happy to have a good artist do it for me. I hope everything turns out well for you and him!

It was difficult for me just to have my first BJD's faceup repaired after he had a few scrapes! It didn't seem to bother him that his face was messed up, but it bothered me! We lived with the repaired faceup for a few years, then I finally gathered up the courage to send him off to get completely redone. I am very pleased that he still has the same feel and expression, and he now has a smirky little smile he didn't have before, but it seems to suit him well.

But if I see an old doll with a default faceup like his, or if I look at his original pictures when he arrived here, I get a little wistful. It's like looking at his old baby pictures! LOL!

Linda S.
galatia9

 

I didn't feel sad about it because I couldn't connect with the doll and I wiped her in hopes of me being able to connect with her better. Unfortunately it didn't happen so I sold her

 

I felt sad too when I removed my boy's first faceup by me because my faceup skills are bad and I'm so slow at it. But in the end, I'm usually happy about the result since after a few faceups I do find myself improving even though just a little bit ^^

 

I wiped off the original faceup of my Bermann, I really hesitated because he was a fullset . I didn't like the faceup that much, faceup styles had kind of evolved from the day he had been made, what finally decided me was that he had wig stains on his forehead which I just had to get rid of, getting rid of them meant I could see the difference between the clean spots and the original , so off with the faceup. In the end I'm happier with the new faceup I got him.

 

I can complete relate to this post. I got my first doll secondhand and I fell in love with her faceup and the personality it gave her. Unfortunately she had some wear when I got her and I was so torn about the idea of wiping her that I actually ended up sealing in the damage and reglossing. This kept me happy for awhile but I realize that at some point I want her redone. I am so worried that her personality will go with the faceup. This experience has made me extremely bitter towards faceup wear. I have a difficult time bonding with dolls with faceup damage because of the emotional stress my first doll caused me. It has helped remind me to take extra good care of my dolls by handling them more delicately and taking extra time to store them as best as I can.

 

I have a boy that had a secondhand face up that suited him pretty well. Except for the eyelashes. They were too thick and dark and started to bother me. I know I have to change it eventually for him to really be himself, but for now I am trying to see if I can get away with changing one small part. I am new to faceups, so I am nervous about doing a worse job, but though the faceup made a good buffer, I knew it would have to change some day.

 

I wiped a face-up from a really well known doll artist, it was painful... BUT it was 8 years old and needed to be done so she could be cleaned and refreshed! She's with an artist now and i'm looking forward to getting her back!

 

I was really nervous about my first few faceups. They did not come out well, the lips were a little too orange, the brows not perfectly symmetric, the lower eyelashes little messy looking. I have practiced a lot over the years. I think my first doll has had at least nine faceups. I really hate taking them off. It is so much work to clean a dolls face perfectly, removing every last trace of the old paint. I have gotten a lot better though, I have better art supplies now, I am planning to get an airbrush soon. I would love to try my hand at doing them professionally, I think I am almost there. There is always a bit of doubt, and hesitation though, that kind of," Oh, my God, what if I mess this up and I don't manage to evoke the dolls personality?!"

 

It can be nerve-wracking! You feel like you have to hold your breath and paint as fast as possible.
But you'll like the new version of your boy even better, I bet!