What’s your favorite way to seal your dolls?

I'm married to Zoukeimura powder spray at this point. It seems to be the least temperamental with weather for me, and the silica powder in the spray adds a softness that I really like. MSC is my second choice, but I find it dulls colors a little too much for my taste. I try to avoid testors when I can, I don't like how much tooth it has, but I'll use it in a pinch. I try to always have Zoukeimura on hand tho I'm planning on testing some airbrush sealants at some point. People seem to have mixed feelings on those, a lot of people say it doesn't have enough tooth, but it may be a workable fall back when the humidity here reaches catastrophic levels

 

Light resins are MSC, since I can't find Zoukeimura. I've always wanted to try it though! Dark and fantasy colors I use the Army Painter Matte sealant. It's a little shinier than MSC, and you need to be gentler on the first layer (colored pencils should be saved for layer two unless you have a light hand), but there's no ghosting/filmy effect that MSC gives to darker resins. I really like it, and it's well priced for a large can.

 

I use Testor's just because it's easier to get my hands on than the stuff from overseas. In addition I live in Texas where the weather can be unpredictable humidity- and temperature-wise, and Testor's is just less finicky with all that than MSC. Back when I used MSC, I'd often get chipping on the eyebrows, and Testor's helped with that.

@Thymeseer This is super good to know! I have been worried about face-upping on darker resin and was putting off buying a doll as a result. Would you say the shininess of Army Painter Matte is noticeably different compared to the natural shininess of the resin? And given how reflective darker skin can be, would you say it's still pretty natural-looking?

 

I've been doing doll mods since, let's see, 2009. I use either MSC, or Testors Flat. MSC is an industry fave for a reason, and it gives such a nice finish. Testors is nearly as good, way cheaper, and behaves well in humid weather. I never get "frosting" using Testors on dark resin.

 

I use citadel munitorum when possible (old name was purity seal). Cons are that the performance (texture) is radically different in different temperature + humidity brackets but the pros are I can (currently) get it at a shop IRL, it's large volume for price, and it's not as fragile as MSC, meaning my finished works have a longer shelf life.
Munitorum is good on very dark resins but only within the ideal temperature range listed on the can and humidity under 55%

 

My main has been MSC since 2008, with nearly no issues.
Most of those issues were my own fault when I still didn't really know its limits...mostly spraying in waaaay too cold temperatures

Aside from that I use Citadel's Munitorum Varnish for darker skintones as a base. I only use MSC for the final layer because I prefer its texture and feel like it also is more durable. As long as you don't cake on the MSC too heavy it's fine, and adding a semi-gloss layer also reduces the effect.

I also have Vallejo's Premium Airbrush Varnish here. I love to use it as a brush on sealant for areas that need some extra protection, can be hard to reach with a spray can OR when I need to repair spots.
It's also a good alternative for darker resin.

 

I absolutely love Zoukeimura Finishing Powder! It's so easy to work with and not too finicky about weather--I've even sprayed in the rain and it was fine. I always bought it from Volks, but it's not always in stock.

My second favorite, and the one I use most, is MSC (Mister Super Clear). It's much like ZM, but a bit more finicky--it doesn't do as well in high humidity, and has a tendency to chip if you're using watercolor pencils instead of paint.

I have tried Testors and hate it. I've heard plenty of others had luck with it, but in my personal experience, it always looked shiny, sticky and yellowed quickly. It kind of makes me wonder if I had a defective can...

 

I plan to attempt my first faceup next week and I've chosen to try Vallejo's Premium Airbrush Varnish as my sealant. We shall see how it goes!

 

I have MSC since it seems popular to use so I bought it, but of course people say you shouldn't use it when temps are too cold or too hot though. I will be using that for my main faceup of my character. I also have Liquitex Varnish I decided to use for the practice head I have that people do the brush on method for. Sounds like some people also use it as their main sealant.

But hearing how MSC works perhaps I should've gotten a different varnish for the darker resins since I am wanting to shell my character who has dark skin. Guess I'll see how it goes when I got everything for him!

 

ZM spray is my favorite too. I worked with MSC in the beginning and the results were good, but ZM spray is less temperamental in cold and humidity, and that’s worth a lot to me personally.

I’ve also used Vallejo, which is 100% impervious to weather conditions and that part’s nice, but the constant cleaning the airbrush needs to keep it from solidifying into plastic in the chamber will slow you down.

 

@cosmicakes I feel it's pretty natural! It's a touch noticeable on my little red one since I was too heavy handed with it, but my tan seems very natural. I'm going to redo a face on one of my dark brown gals and that's going to be the stress test. With only 2 layers of MSC her head became much lighter than her body and I rather have a little shine than lightening.



@Zoe Theobald Well I feel kind of dumb for never checking the Volks USA site!! Thank you so much! I'm going to have to try it out.

 

I use Vallejo Premium Varnish Spray Matte. I feel Vallejo is more well known for their airbrush varnish, but the spray can varnish has been serving me well. I originally chose it because it was cheaper and came in a bigger can than MSC
Never gave me much trouble, I never had problems with humidity or clouding on darker resin. Temperature might be a problem if it's colder, but nothing that a hair drier can't fix.

 

If you’re looking for a non-aerosol option, I use Liquitex matte varnish and a makeup sponge. One of my dolls has had a faceup for two years and I removed a piercing off her face the other day and absolutely nothing happened to the sealant. Unfortunately, pencils don’t work well on the sealant, but I might just be heavy handed Anandoll has a video on YouTube with more info, but I have not had any issues yet!

 

I use this too! After seeing the respiratory thread I was nervous about sprays and this option has worked way better for me, plus I can add it any time and not worry about humidity or light outside.

 

Munitorium varnish is my go to as it's pretty easy to use and seems to be quite forgiving to my heavy handedness (lol. but ymmv)
Unfortunately it hasn't been in stock since December with no word over whether it's coming back, whether they're reformulating or what.
eugh.

So i'm on the lookout for something available easily in the UK and that doesn't irritate me like MSC did (it's SO temperamental. I got endless ghosting/frosting problems with it, plus it STINKKKKKSSS)

 

I use Citadel Munitorium. I don't do a ton of faceups, but a fair amount of my dolls have dark resin, so I wanted something that didn't have a reputation for dulling and ashiness on dark resins that MSC does. It's still a bit picky about the weather conditions, but it's a reasonable range most of the year for where I live. Definitely still one I have to be careful about respiratory protection with, and I'm vigilant about that.

I do like that, so far, the faceups I've done with it are still looking good. I used Liquitex matte brush-on sealant for faceups on playline dolls, and those aged pretty poorly, and it was easy for me to get a bunch of particles stuck into the faceup. No need for special protective equipment while spraying, though, which was nice.

 

I use tamiya TS80. I had issues with MSC some long years ago, and went to tamiya since.
But it's an aggressive aerosol for the lungs. Must be used with a respiratory protection mask (like the other you will told me). It is great for dark colors dolls, but it can be a little complicated to use watercolors (or diluted acrylink inks) on it.

 

For light resins I use MSC and for dark resin I've used Tamya, but they don't sell it in my town anymore. After some try and errors, I've found Citadel Munitorium Varnish and I'm really happy with it.