BJD with original faceup VS artist-made faceup? I am struggling

So my opinion is that your enjoyment of the doll matters more than future collector value. The reason it could be worth it to keep the original faceup is because you could possible sell it for more of you were to sell it. If you’re not planning on selling it, all that matters is that you’re making yourself happy, and if a new faceup does that for you, I say wipe away!!

besides which, if someone was really passionate about having one that looked like the original, they could commission an artist to do something similar to the default faceup. That option always exists.

 

I feel this is a very personal thing, there will probably be people who will cry bloody mary, as well as those who won't give two sh1ts about it.

I personally have wiped one of my discontinued BJD face paint, which wasn't a default one at that (it was a custom request). It was more of a nostalgic factor for me, than resell value of a sought after doll (I don't own any of those). I regretted it for a while, then I started to mod the HS, which was my intention. I regretted it some more because I didn't know the company was going to discontinued the head sculpt, only after the fact. I left the head partially moded and blank since then. I don't regret it any more, but I do wish I would have gotten a second unmodified HS, for my collection.

At the end of the day, it's your money your doll. Do what will bring you the most joy out of it. If resell value worries you, then maybe that is something to reconsider and hear DoD collectors, who might have a different perspective. However, it's your doll, even if you still want to sell it off at some point. Good luck. (:

 

Chase your bliss! I'm sure there's people out there whose doll has the original faceup, so it's not like you're permanently deleting the faceup from the world.

 

Do what makes you happy, most definitely! It’s your doll, not a museum exhibit (unless that’s the focus of your collection, which is perfectly fine too.) The truly amazing thing about these dolls is that they are completely open to individual interpretation…and therein lies the true magic of BJDs. You can make them your own vision which is why our hobby is so endlessly fascinating. There are plenty of photos of DoD Shalls with company faceups to enjoy. But people will also enjoy an original artist faceup that uniquely explores the versatility of the sculpt just as much, if not more. In this hobby it’s all good!

 

I also have a doll who is discontinued and I had an artist paint his face My reason- there are already pictures of the original and I want to see my doll in different faceup styles. Especially since the doll I have, not many people have when he was still around (Doll in Mind BBjorn). Hope this helps and you get the face you want

 

It's your doll, a highly customisable at that - do what makes you enjoy her more! Shall in her original state has been well documented but you can always take some pics of the old faceup before you have it wiped Plus, I'm sure that there are many faceup artists who would love to paint a Shall, I'm really curious to see one with a more modern faceup myself!

 

It’s definitely to one’s personal taste. I have an older Volks Chris who should honestly get his face redone but I love the old face and don’t find myself wanting to have it redone, even if it’s dated and fading.

 

I told myself when I got my Peakswoods Dandy Han, who came with a face up already via DDE, that if I liked him but not his face up when he arrived, I'd wipe him, and would only keep it if I didn't like him after all and planned to sell him. I made this decision because I didn't like his company photos at all, but still had a feeling about buying him. Turned out I loved his face up when he got in, but the point is: You like the doll? You want to enjoy the doll? Congrats! It's yours to do with as you please. Face ups come in so many styles that there will always be people who love and hate every face up your dolls will ever wear. The important bit is that you like the ones your dolls have, because you are the one your collection should bring the most joy to.

 

I felt the same way about a Soom Heliot head I have. I really liked his default faceup but I wanted to see how yellow he really was underneath it all. So I sent him away for a new faceup - based off of his original. He's just as beautiful and possibly just as yellow. He's still waiting for a body but resin matching will be hard hahaha.

 

it's your choice whether the history or charm of the face up matters to you. it's not a crime to change it. do what makes you happy
I will say I'm usually someone who values company make, and I take no issue with changing it. This is your doll. There may be other collectors who choose to preserve it, but it doesn't fall on you to do the same. and I look forward to seeing your Shall's updated face up if you would choose to share it

 

This varies from person to person, but I can say without a doubt that not once have I ever regretted wiping a company faceup. I just need that unique faceup to fit my characters, and the company faceups tend to be either too bland or too "perfect doll-like" for my tastes. (And I don't mean that offensively--it certainly takes skill to do professional faceups, and they can be beautiful, they're just not personal enough for me.)

 

I usually get my dolls without face-up because they don't usually vibe with me or the character but I can totally understand what you mean, the doll being so old and rare nowadays that it feels almost like a limited one and that the original face-up should be preserved somehow even if it does not fit your vision.
Still, this hobby is all about customization and having the dolls like you want them so, if you love the doll's sculpt, I encourage you to make her what you want and not worry about some ancient face-up. If you think at some point you may want to get back to something similar, you can always take a picture and keep it so you can have it as reference.

 

Like other have said, it's really up to you. As someone who would love a DOT Shall for nostalgia's sake, I wouldn't change it or at least I would get it updated.

 

I think you should do whatever will make you happiest. If the only thing holding you back is feeling like you shouldn't, rather than worrying that you'll regret it, then you should go for it. I have two old dolls with default faceups, but it's less about me wanting to keep them original and more of a sentimental thing. If I change the faceups, they won't feel like "them" anymore. If I didn't care about that I'd get them repainted in a heartbeat.

 

If you sell the doll the next person probably will want their own again and wipe your face up.

 

I have a habit of ordering a doll blank or wiping the faceup if the doll came with one like dollfie dream dolls for example.

I always love customizing my dolls and have a unique look to them, I don't do my own faceups, I commission artists, but I feel like my dolls feel special when they have a custom faceup. If wiping the old faceup makes you happy then do it.

 

I am pretty new to BJDs and I am really attached to my doll face ups. I don't think I would be able to get a new face up. I think I would try to find someone to make it look as close as possible to its original look, if there was a chip or something. It's like the Velveetn Rabbit story, boo boos happen.
I may change my mind about this in time. I have bjd friends who have no problem changing face ups to look very different.

Should we reseal them periodically to prevent this? I'm a bjd newbie.

 

Oh my god! I swore I’d own only 5 (which, I now own closer to 50), I’d commission the same artist for all their faceups (I now do my own, and I don’t have any of that artist’s faceups left in my crew), and I’d never sell one (I am a revolving door collector, and I’ve sold more dolls than I can count).

 

Well said! Hehe! I too have intended to get serious about sewing & haven't done it! I think in time I'll be ready to wipe a face up, for the ones that came with an old faceup. But I have 2 that were commissioned and were very expensive, I don't think I could on them. They are the 2 dolls in my profile, Ying & Lusan. Thank you for your reply!

Lol, Ima follow you!

 

Let me share you a story. Like I've said I usually love the default make. I accidentally damaged a face up I loved. I was really sad to send her to new make up. The artist I found had worked on other dolls like mine and they looked nice in pictures, so I sent her and hoped for the best, but I had a feeling it would never shine up to the original work and I just had to accept that. Happiest accident ever, she was even more perfect than the original in my eyes. And if you didn't know her default makeup already, you would guess she came like that from Volks. If you need to get a face up fixed, look for an artist who can work in a similar style as your damaged make up and share them the things you loved most about the old make up. But also don't be afraid to let them put their own style on it too. The cute little eyelashes the artist made increased my doll's adorableness by 100 percent and I would never see this potential if I stuck with the damaged make up out of stubbornness. I'm so much happier to have gotten artist make up than I was staring at the broken make up wishing I had kept it safely. Definitely not the reluctant repair job I expected it to be.

 

Wow! That is a happy ending! Thank you so much for telling me about this! I could really see this happening to me because I play with my dolls a lot! I am a hands on doll person! It seems as though nose chips are a common problem. Thank you again! I will take this to heart!

 

I think that the best choice really depends on the person. If you feel like you want to try a new faceup on your doll, I say go for it!

 

I say dress her up and take a lot of photos before deciding to do it.
Fashion changes with time. And, people have photos of decades of their lives, good and bad. Since you're so dedicated to her, it'll be nice to have something to look back on. I'm not sure if the photos will include things that you made for her yourself, but it could also help document how far you have come with customizing her look.
(Maybe, whomever owns the doll after you, might not care about the doll's past history. Maybe, I'm just being sentimental?) Gosh, I'm not even sure what I am trying to say. But, let's make a little celebration of it, anyway.