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Aesthetics My first faceup, what's missing?

May 12, 2019

    1. Hello. This is my first faceup and I have mixed feelings about it. It is a boy sculpt but many people are mistaking him for a girl, I think because of the faceup? So what have I done wrong? Also if you have any tips or advise on what to improve? Thanks!

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    2. I think you've done a really great job! I like it a lot. I think some people might have mistook him for a girl because of his long hair. I don't think that his faceup is too girly :)
      As for advice on some details, hair on eyebrows tends to point towards a central line starting somewhere from the middle of the eyebrow. Take a look at this because I'm really bad at explaining things :sweat
       
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    3. I think it's a pretty common problem with male sculpts - a lot of dolls are pretty androgynous and details added on them can come across as feminine really easily. Even my Impldoll Tony gets mistaken for a girl by those not in the hobby on occasion : D

      That being said, if you want to, there are a few things you CAN accentuate to make the face look more traditionally masculine. Less shapely brows, smaller lashes, and less bright lips can all be a part of this. I found this and this especially helpful to know where to place darker shades for a faceup to accentuate a more rounded("feminine") or a more angular ("masculine") look. They are intended for makeup contouring but the same principles apply with faceups!

      All and all, his faceup is very nice and even irl there are a lot of men who have a more androgynous appearance. And that's perfectly okay and normal! You being happy with your doll is the most important.
       
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    4. People from outside the hobby, or who are also not used to more feminine-coded male appearances (something you get used to by consuming anime/manga), have a hard time recognizing a doll as male when it isn't very obvious. Very obvious as in short hair, beard and muscular jaw line. Your guy is already difficult for them because of the long hair, facial shape and overall expression, not to mention that most people are used to female dolls.
      So if you like the face-up and how he looks like as he is, don't change him. The likelihood of people recognizing him as guy while still keeping him the way he is now is very slim, and in the end you should be happy with him.

      However, if yourself aren't happy with him looking so feminine, you can do a few things with his face-up.
      The subtle gray eyeshadow, long fake-lashes at the top, perfectly high-arched eyebrows and the dark, glossy lips all add to a feminine look. Go at first with more natural colored shading (peach/browns, colors that blend well into his skintone), keep the lips lighter and less glossed and give him more relaxed, less trimmed eyebrows. Eyelashes should be shorter at the top and angle more upwards as well.
      Frame the face with blushing differently, @ronnie92 mentioned that as well, to accentuare certain features better or to fake them.
      As it is, looking at faces from real people and understanding how they look like helps a lot as well!

      Like said though, if you like him the way it is, don't bother. You have to live with him, not others, and long-haired pretty guy dolls just always have to deal with being mistaken as girls by outsiders :sweat
       
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    5. Thank you so much! Yes I guess I should work better on the eyebrows, but I am so glad you like him! ❤

      Oh thank you so much, your advise means a lot to me! Yes I think I should take care of the contouring better, and make the eyebrows less shapely. And you're right it was mostly people out of the hobby who mistook him for a girl, but then someone from the hobby said 'she' and then I was like oh no he does look like a girl! But I am glad you think his faceup looks nice, thank you!

      Thank you so much for the great advise!! You are right about the consuming anime/manga thing, that's why my friends out of the hobby got appalled when I pointed ouy he's a guy, while I found it quite normal! :lol:
      Well I do want him to look a little more masculine, yet I don't really hate how he turned out actually, I didn't have a certain plan for him from the beginning, so I guess I will leave him like this for a while then change him later, and as you said make the eyebrows more relaxed and get rid of the feminine eyeshadow and glossy lips. I'll keep that in mind! Thanks a lot!! ❤
       
      #5 Mona_Amin, May 12, 2019
      Last edited by a moderator: May 23, 2019
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    6. For me, he looks like a boy. People sometimes thinks it's a girl because of long hair. Nice work on his face up!
       
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    7. Thank you so much! ❤
       
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    8. I think his faceup is gorgeous! It's feminine, but doesn't scream "I'm a girl!" to me. I think it's definitely the long hair and lace throwing people off. Not that either of those are bad, I just remember one of my boys used to have a very long wig and almost always got mistaken for a girl.:sweat
       
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    9. Oh thank you! ❤❤ its seems common then that long haired boys are mistaken for girls, poor boys :lol:
       
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    10. I think using nude lip is better than using bright pink or red for men's makeup. There's a lot of pink color, you know. Try to use nudy pink or beige next time. Check other manly bjd shops if it's hard to find exact color. I think your make up is really good even though this is your first time:)
       
    11. Thank you! Yes you're right I guess I used a bit too much red.
       
    12. Everyone else has already said everything you could do to make the faceup more masculine, I have nothing to add to that, just wanted to say this looks amazing for a first faceup! I think you did a great job, if you hadn't said it was your first, I wouldn't have believed it, lol.
       
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    13. Oh thank you so much, this means a lot to me ❤
       
    14. This is awesome! I love the lips the most! I probably would have done the eyebrows softer but i honestly kind of like how thic they are. Great work!
       
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