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What attracts you more: the head mold or the faceup?

Dec 16, 2005

    1. Hmm... faceups are what get my attention, but there are molds I won't be fond of no matter how beautifully they're painted... So a bit of both, I guess. I pick out dolls by the personality they seem to portray, and while faceup has a LOT to do with that, the mold underneath sets the mood in the most basic way, sometimes... (like smiley molds or pouty molds or sleepy molds..)

      You always have the most interesting topics, shimmeringcat. XD
       
    2. I like the face mold more. And I noticed I have a weak spot for smiling faces. XD
      Sometimes I don't like certain face mold, but a very good custom make-up can change my mind.
       
    3. I notice the faceup more. Honestly, I also have a huge difficulty telling unpainted heads apart.
      But faceups have so much possibility. I've fallen in love with dolls I thought I hated just because the faceup was so wonderful.
       
    4. Head mold...but...the face up can help with first impressions : ) Once I started looking for bodies for specific characters, I was forced to look more at the sculpt and it's gotten easier to ignore the faceups and wigs in pictures.
       
    5. both for me :) while some dolls will be beautiful and appealing to me from the start, there has been some dolls were I didn't give them much thought untill I saw them with a face up that I liked. I think its very difficult to see all the potential and possibility that a doll has with just a one or no face up.

      Its a good idea to expirament or look at all the faces ups cause one could change ones mind :D I recall looking at cyworld and realising how nice ALL the Dods were rather than just the one I had because there was suuuuch a variety in the creativity there. X)
       
    6. I have to say that it's definitely the headmold that I try my hardest to look at.
      I am rather against company-done faceups simply because I have itchy fingers and I like to take things apart and put them together, etc... I wouldn't be able to leave the company faceup on for too long. Even though I KNOW I couldn't possibly do a better job (I've only just gotten around to being able to do a PASSABLE job at all...), I'd get restless for change, and wipe it. Because of that, I think it would be very rare for me to order a doll with a faceup, as it'd really just be a big waste of money.
      So I have to like the headmold over the faceup, or I risk not liking my new doll once I get it. :(

      Besides, there are some molds that even the best faceup in the world can't make me like, such as how I dislike overly smiley guys, for example.

      Anyway, there's my rambly answer!
       
    7. Faceups for me.

      An attractive faceup can make me fall in love with a mould I never paid much attention to.

      I fail at seeing faces in blank heads. XD;;
       
    8. I think it's sort of a mixture. When I first see a doll on the company's sight that I think is pretty I'm always aware that these are special photographs with face ups that are designed to be flattering. I have to realise that if I buy the doll it wont look exactly like that. I've felt I'd absolutely love some dolls until I saw owner pictures and vice versa.

      In fact, if it weren't for some truly lovely owner pictures I probably would never have ordered the doll I did.

      Besides, (if you're not into customizing) face ups can fade or get scratched or anything, the headmold is far more permanent. Make up may completely change the look but that make up may only work for the one headmold. So really it's hand in hand to me.
       
    9. Face-up for me, most definitely. Of course, I've had no desire to change the faceups of any of my dolls (and still don't), so that could be why. Faceups to me are pretty much as permanent as the headmold. Of course, there are headmolds I flat out don't like, and not even a faceup can change my mind... but there are others out there that I thought I'd never like... and then came the infamous mindchanging Y!J seller's auction.
       
    10. Honestly, and I feel dumb, but its the makeup. If I see a gorgeous pick of the doll on a website, thats when I love it. I cant seem to see past the makeup and see the mold and what a doll could look like. Which is why all my dolls still have their default makeup! =/
       
    11. for me its both-mainly faceup, but if there have been lots of nice repaints of a certain head, or one that has a nice smile, or a pretty eye shape I'll still like it even if I'm not too attracted to the faceup, after all faceups are easier to change than heads! ^__^
       
    12. It's a little of both for me. There are some specific molds I love, but I may not like the face-up on some of them, and vice versa. It's almost like looking at people. Person A may be a beautiful model, but with the wrong make-up, they're not necessarily ugly, but not as. . . asthetically pleasing. And Person B may look rather plain in their everyday make-up (or lack thereof), but give them the right hairstyle and make-up and they're stunning. I have some consistantly favorite molds, but every once in awhile, I'll see one that is absolutely amazing, and it's because of the face-up, or mods, or even both.

      For my own dolls, it was more dependent on the headsculpt, because they're all pre-existing characters, but both were still factors. The head's features are close, if not exactly what I had pictured, but it was seeing different face-ups that was the deciding factor. I loved the F-16 to begin with, but had never really thought of that for Azure until I saw just the right face-up. And he's perfect. I never considered Yder for my twins until I started seeing pictures on ebay and owners' pictures, and realized that Yder's features (especially the eyes and mouth) are just right, he just needs the right face-up to bring out the twins' personalities.
       
    13. Hmm... I think head molds. I seem to picture an "ideal" faceup for every mold and judge the molds in their prime. But then again, a great faceup can initiate my love for the mold, like how some gorgeous Lishes made me set on buying one.
       
    14. Ooo. I enjoyed reading the diverse comments and opinions. =3

      I guess, for those of us who can't recognize head molds, the faceup is more important... for better or for worse. XD I've come to love the Michele head mold over time but it was really his default faceup that first blew me away. Since then, I have seen how other customizers have painted Michele and how versatile his head mold really is. There is something about the heavy lidded eyes, the full lips and the gentle slopes of his cheeks and jaw that I find utterly attractive. =)

      Still, it's the faceup that gets to me first, where other head molds are concerned. When I look at a blank head, I see too many possibilities, which is why I cannot connect to a blank head. When I see a faceup, though, there is instant personality and attitude. A blank head is like a skull to me. I can't read it, so I don't feel emotionally drawn to it. A head with a faceup, however, is distinctive. It's special.

      I'm not sure if I can ever learn to tell head molds apart. Maybe it's not even necessary to, since we all relate to dolls in different ways. It's the love that counts, isn't it, be it love for a head mold first or love for a faceup first? =)
       
    15. I also choose dolls based on head mold. All of my boys are pre-exsisting characters that I've drawn pictures of, so I know what facial characteristics are important to capture their look, i.e.Max has a particular shape of upper lip, Magnus has a particular nose and narrow eyes, etc.

      Certain head molds don't appeal to me at all and yet I've seen great doll artists make them beautiful. This does not make me like the mold more, but it does put the artist on a pedestal in my mind. :blush
       
    16. I don't think preferring it one way or another is shallow. After all, as long as you love the doll you are going to spend $300+ on it. I myself choose dolls by their head molds, because a face-up isn't permanent but (unless extremely modded) the way the head looks is. A face-up is the first thing that attracts me to a doll, but even the most wonderful face-up can't attract me to a doll I don't like. Just like even the worst face-up can't repel me from a facemold I like.
       
    17. I'd have to say faceup, because I've seen headmolds that I thought I hated... until I saw them with a different faceup... so it's got to be the faceup.
       
    18. For me it's the head mold my sister was into this way before me and she showed me lots of dolls to try and peak my interest and nothing really clicked until I saw the Guoxya Myonyang head. I had to have that head my sister bought and I'm buying it from her.
       
    19. For me, it'll be the head molds first then the face-ups.

      Having said that, face-ups do make a huge difference. There are times when I don't care much about certain face molds then I start to see owners' amazing customised heads, I have a change of heart.
       
    20. head-it is the only thing that will be permanant.You can always change a face-up