How To Paint Delilah Noir Using Pastel Chalk and AcrylicsFor this tutorial I started with an unpainted mannequin Delilah Noir and took off her eyelashes. Whether you leave her eyelashes on during the painting is up to you. It might be a little easier to paint her when you don't have to worry about getting paint, pastel chalk and sealer on the lashes.

Materials:

Non-tinted acetone or non-acetone nail polish remover to remove paint Oil-free watercolor pencils in various shades of brown, gray, peach and black Pastel chalk for blushing in peaches, pinks and browns Acrylic paint in browns, peaches, pinks, grays or black Paint extender for diluting acrylic paint Clear gloss or satin sealer/varnish for the lips Clear matte sealer/varnish for the rest of the face Lots of cotton balls, Q-Tips and paper towels Toothpicks At least two tiny brushes

Step-by-Step Guide to Painting Doll Faces:1. Preparation: Although sealing the paint is the last thing you'd want to do when you repaint a doll, I'm going to talk about it first because it's important to have a plan in mind before you even start painting. You will have to decide whether you want to mix a matte sealer in with the paint as you go, or apply a matte sealer separately after all the painting is done and dry.

You don't want your finished doll to have a shiny face, yet you do want to seal the face paint so the paint won't rub off later. A lot of doll painters mix the sealer in with the paint, with good results. It keeps the finish on the painted parts from looking so radically different from the rest of the doll's face. Since you can't mix sealer with watercolor pencil, you'll have to seal any area done with watercolor pencil as a separate step.

Alternately, you can choose to brush a matte sealer over the paint after the paint is dry. The problem with this is that the finish might be obviously different than the rest of the doll's face, so you might want to do this only on the lips. Use a gloss or satin varnish for the lips, and a matte (flat) varnish for the rest of the face.

I'd be wary of a matte sealer you've never used before, because some so-called "matte" sealers are still shinier than you'd want for a doll's face. When you buy a matte sealer/varnish, test it out first before you put it all over the doll you just spent hours painting. Brush some paint on a piece of paper, let it dry, and then brush your sealer over the paint. When it's dry, see how shiny or dull it is. If the finish stays dull, then great! That's what you want. If the finish is a little shiny despite being called a "matte" sealer, then don't use it for anything except for the lips. You can also test sealers and paints on the inside of the head cap, if you wish. Once you decide how you are going to seal the paint, you can start the actual painting.

Other things to consider before painting: -- Never lay your doll on newspaper! The newspaper ink will come off and stain your doll faster than you can blink, Just think about how fast newspaper ink comes off on your hands. Also, you'll be touching your doll a LOT during the painting process, so wash your hands with soap before starting to keep bodily oils from getting on your doll. You could also use thin gloves.

I recommend removing the eyelashes before you paint. You could leave them on, but it will be really difficult to keep them from getting mucky when you paint around the eye area, or use any varnish. To remove, simply pull them off carefully with your fingers. Store them in a plastic bag while you're working so they don't get lost.

Using paint extender--Paint extender is mixed with paint to dilute the paint and make it flow better. The extender not only thins the paint so it blends better and looks more natural on the doll, but also keeps the paint from drying super fast so you'll have more time to work with the paint before it dries. If you make a mistake, it's much easier to wipe the paint off before it dries than after. You'll want to quickly correct mistakes before the paint dries, because once it's dry, it will take a lot more work to remove it. Read the fine print on the paint extender bottle to make sure it won't become shiny when it's dry. It should say it dries matte or flat, not glossy. If you use watercolor paint you won't need paint extender, just water.

Using pastel chalk--Pastel chalk is used for blushing the cheeks and doing eye shadow on dolls. The chalk comes in small sticks. Make sure you don't get anything that says "oil pastels." You want the oil-free pastel chalk, not anything with oil as an ingredient. You can use the chalk in two ways.

One way is to put the stick of chalk in a bowl and rub a butter knife along the side of the chalk until a fine power comes off into the bowl. Dab a dry paintbrush in the power, and then brush it very lightly on your doll. This is great for blushing the cheeks, but it takes a little bit of skill; If you brush it on the doll too thickly, you'll be sorry afterward when it cakes on the doll and looks blotchy. You want the pastel chalk to be very thin and translucent on

the doll, not caked on looking like a big, dark bruise.

A second way is to use a stiff paintbrush and rub the brush directly on the side of the chalk stick. This way is sometimes better for getting a more controlled spread of pigment around the eyes as eye shadow, or for creating dramatic, smoky eyes.

I've used both high-grade and low-grade pastel chalk, and I ended up throwing away the low-quality stuff. It doesn't stick to the vinyl like a higher-grade chalk does. The brand used for this tutorial is General's Compressed Pastel Chalk.

2. Removing the paint: If you didn't buy a mannequin Delilah, then you have two options. You can either paint over the existing paint, or remove all the paint completely and start fresh. I usually just paint over the default face paint. (FYI: On ball-jointed doll forums, the face paint is known as the face-up, or face up.) To remove the paint completely, either use a non-acetone nail polish remover or else use pure acetone. In either case, they MUST be untinted. If they are tinted pink or yellow or any other color, don't use them! The dye will stain your doll's face quite badly and ruin it. You can only use these products if they are completely clear and colorless.

Non-acetone nail polish remover takes a lot longer to use. The plus side is that it won't damage your doll. I'd still rinse it off once I was done removing the face paint, just to be safe. You wouldn't want any sort of chemical or harsh substance sitting on the vinyl too long.

Acetone takes off the paint very quickly, but is more dangerous to the vinyl. Don't ever leave acetone on your doll for any length of time! When I'm using acetone, I stand at my bathroom sink so I can rinse the doll immediately after rubbing acetone on the doll. If the acetone is washed off right away, it's

safe to use.

3. Blushing: Pastel chalk works great for blushing cheeks and creating shadow. You can get it at craft stores or artist supply stores. Spread powdered pastel chalk evenly over the cheeks so it is translucent, even and smooth. You want the edges to fade so that there is no harsh line that separates the blush from the rest of the doll's face. Use a cotton ball to quickly smooth the edges of the color after applying pastel chalk, so the blush will fade into the rest of the vinyl. If the blush is applied too heavily, the cheeks could just end up looking sunburned. Very cheap pastel chalks won't stick well, so use a fairly good quality chalk.

You can also blush other areas of the doll, not just the cheeks...anywhere you want to create a bit of color and shadow. Some people might blush the palms of the hands, lightly on either side of the nose, around the eyes or in the creases of the ears. Just don't be too heavy-handed with the blush. Don't use a pink blush to do the nostrils or under the nose, or it will look like the doll has a bloody nose. Light brown works great for nostrils.

I do NOT recommend using real human blush or eye shadow on a doll. There is a chance of permanently staining the vinyl, and it doesn't blend and smooth as well on vinyl as it does on human skin. A high-grade pastel chalk is actually cheaper than human makeup, and it's safer and works better.

4. Eye shadow: Eye shadow can be merely a slightly darkened flesh tone color around the eyes to simulate shadow on a real human face, or it can be dramatic color that makes the doll look like she's wearing makeup. It depends on the look you are trying to achieve for your doll. You can use pastel chalk or watercolor pencil to do the eye shadow, and do it at the same time you do the blushing. The trick is to apply lightly, and have the eye shadow fade at the edges so there isn't a harsh line between the eye shadow and the rest of the face. This could take some practice.

Uses a Q-Tip to apply powdered pastel chalk, or use a dull, oil-free watercolor pencil you'd buy at a craft store. Don't use any colored pencil that is oil-based, because any paints or artist pencils that have oil in them can potentially ruin the vinyl. A light brown eye shadow will look the most natural on most skin

tones.5. Lips:The lips will be the easiest part of the repaint. I use oil-free acrylic paint for lips, but you can also create a very natural look with powdered pastel chalk. You can blend colors to create some pretty shades. I like to blend peach or pink acrylic paint with a touch of brown for lip color.

Lips look best when they are more opaque in the center, and slightly more translucent toward the edges. After the lip paint is completely dry, finish by painting over the lips with a clear, glossy or satin varnish to seal the paint and give the lips some shine. Satin sealers/varnishes have a little bit of shine to them, but they're not as shiny as gloss varnishes. Matte varnishes are not at all shiny. I'd use a matte sealer for the rest of your painting work, but a satin or gloss for the lips.6. Eyeliner: My method to do the eyeliner is to use a small amount of dark brown or gray acrylic paint diluted with paint extender. You can use black paint, but I find it gives the doll a harsher look than using a brown or gray. A light brown would give her a more natural, makeup-free look; a dark brown or black will make her look like she is wearing some makeup.

Use the smallest of all brushes for tiny detail work like painting the eyeliner. If you make a mistake, correct the mistake immediately before the paint dries, because trying to correct it after it dries is much more difficult. Toothpicks are useful for wiping away that small mistake before it dries, without ruining the rest of your work.

Instead of using acrylic paint as eyeliner, you could also use pastel chalk to create more of a translucent, smokier effect. Rub a stiff, flat brush along the side of a stick of pastel chalk, and use it to paint a smoky line around the eyes in light brown, dark brown or black.

Don't use any oil-based paints on your

doll because the oils can ruin the vinyl. Only use oil-free, water-based paints.7. Eyebrows:Eyebrows are challenging, because you have to get each brow to be a mirror image of the other. The eyebrows are a huge part of the doll's final personality. How you draw the eyebrows can make the doll look mad, surprised, worried or calm, depending on their angle and position. If the inner portion of the eyebrow is too high in relation to the outer portion, the doll will look either worried or surprised. If it's too low, the doll can look angry.

Use a slightly dull, regular #2 pencil very lightly on the doll first to mark where the eyebrows will go. You should just barely be able to see the pencil on the vinyl. Make sure they are even. Then go over it with watercolor pencil in small, quick strokes to imitate the hairs in the human eyebrow. You shouldn't be able to see the original pencil marks when you're done, and if you do, a quick dab with the eraser should get rid of them.

You could use an oil-free paint for eyebrows instead of watercolor pencil, but you'll have to be careful. Acrylic paint will make much harsher-looking eyebrows if you don't dilute the paint enough. Make sure the paint is good and diluted with paint extender before you dip the brush in it, or use watercolor paints. Then wipe the brush on a paper towel to get most of the paint off before using it for eyebrows. Use a brush that has had most of the bristles pulled out so you can get the tiniest little even strokes for the individual hairs of the eyebrow.

Look at the results in the mirror to check for uniformity and balance. If the eyebrows aren't symmetrical, it will be very apparent when you see the doll's reflection in a mirror. When you're satisfied, you can go over the eyebrows with a matte (flat) sealer/varnish to seal the paint, if you used watercolor pencil. If you use paint, then you should mix the sealer in with the paint first before you brush it onto the doll.

8. Lower eyelashes:Your doll will probably have real eyelashes along the top edge of the eye, but painted lower lashes. To paint the lower lashes, buy the tiniest brush you can, and then pluck it almost bald. Ha! Literally pluck out most of the hairs on the brush so that only a few hairs remain. This will become your eyelash brush. Dip the brush in either watercolor paint or thinned acrylic paint. Immediately wipe it on a paper towel to get most of the paint off the brush, and then carefully paint the eyelashes. Some people love doing eyelashes with watercolor paints, because they're great for getting a soft, translucent and delicate line. Be careful with them, though, because they can drip and run easily.

Some repaint artists spray doll faces with spray sealers like Testor's DullCote or Mr. Super Clear flat after the paint is dry. You absolutely cannot leave the eyelashes on your doll if you use a spray sealer. It will make the eyelashes mucky and ruin them.

Never spray this type of sealer inside the house, and never breathe the vapors in while spraying! The vapors are poisonous, so wear a facemask when you spray. Only do it outside, on a day that's not humid or rainy. Humid air adversely affects sprays like this and causes it to look cloudy on the doll, so only spray on a dry day. Testor's DullCote can be bought at most hobby stores, but Mr. Super Clear flat is only available at certain specialty stores online.

Before spraying, take out the doll's eyes if they aren't already out, and lay the doll on an old towel outside. Cover the doll's body with another old towel so the spray won't get anywhere but the head. Don't shake the can too vigorously! This creates lots of air bubbles, which look terrible when trapped on a doll's face in the sealer. When you spray, do a thin coat, let it dry, then spray on a second thin coat. If it's sprayed on too thick all at once, the results will be cloudy.

9. The sealer:If you didn't mix a matte sealer with the paint before you started, you'll have to apply a sealer separately. Wait 24 hours after painting before using any sealer/varnish to make sure the paint is 100 percent dry, then use a small flat brush to brush the sealer on just the painted areas. Test out the sealer first to make sure it's really as matte as it claims to be; some so-called "matte" sealers still dry with a little bit of shine. You can test the sealer inside the head cap to see how shiny or dull it will be when dry.

Some repaint artists spray doll faces with spray sealers like Testor's DullCote or Mr. Super Clear flat after the paint is dry. You absolutely cannot leave the eyelashes on your doll if you use a spray sealer. It will make the eyelashes mucky and ruin them.

Never spray this type of sealer inside the house, and never breathe the vapors in while spraying! The vapors are poisonous, so wear a facemask when you spray. Only do it outside, on a day that's not humid or rainy. Humid air adversely affects sprays like this and causes it to look cloudy on the doll, so only spray on a dry day. Testor's DullCote can be bought at most hobby stores, but Mr. Super Clear flat is only available at certain specialty stores online.

Before spraying, take out the doll's eyes if they aren't already out, and lay the doll on an old towel outside. Cover the doll's body with another old towel so the spray won't get anywhere but the head. Don't shake the can too vigorously! This creates lots of air bubbles, which look terrible when trapped on a doll's face in the sealer. When you spray, do a thin coat, let it dry, then spray on a second thin coat. If it's sprayed on too thick all at once, the results will be cloudy.

10. Replacing the eyelashes:Put a tiny dab of white craft glue on the end of a toothpick and run it along the bottom of the eyelash, wiping away any excess glue. Then carefully stick the eyelash on the doll, using a second toothpick to smooth the lash down until it sticks. Don't use superglue! First, if the superglue drips, your doll can be ruined. Second, if the eyelashes got damaged later, you wouldn't be able to replace them. They'd be stuck on there pretty much permanently. If you use plain white craft glue, you can simply peel off the damaged lash and replace it. Cheap white Elmer's glue works fine, as does Aleene's Tacky Glue.