Faceups Preparing for Faceups

I usually wash my heads really well before spraying sealant. And make sure their well dried too. You never know there could be oils from your hand or dust and it might mess up the sealant so it’s just better to wash them before sealing them.

 

Like Ellie said, definitely clean it with soap & water and let it dry. But honestly, it’s best to do that right before a face up- even if you clean it now, it’ll still probably get some invisible stuff on it from handling it, storing it, etc. So probably a waste of water to clean it now.

I would say you can prepare by taking into account your workspace and the space you’ll be spraying in. Do you have a surface where you can put all your future supplies and work freely without worrying about getting paint/pastels on things? Do you have a respirator? Do you have a spray booth with ventilation indoors? Or do you need to spray outdoors? If you’re spraying outdoors, do you have a semi-enclosed space (like a big cardboard box) to block the wind? (Because there will always be wind, I guarantee it) Do you have space/an organization system to store all these supplies appropriately? For dyeing, do you have a big pot that you can use ~solely~ as a dye pot? (After you use it for dyeing you cannot use it for food anymore)

IDK how much you’ve looked into at the moment so apologies if some of this stuff sounds obvious, but if I had to go back in time and prepare my past self for doing faceups, that’s what I would ask.

 

There are two things you need to prepare: the pieces themselves, and your workplace.

For the pieces, be it a head or a body part, make sure they are clean and fully dry before you apply any sealant. This is true for pieces that have been painted before as well as completely new ones. New pieces still have been handled by bare hands, or might still have mold release residues or whatever on them. All these things can cause sealant not to properly adhere or leave the surface with dirt smears.
Some people wash the doll with water and dish soap beforehand. Personally I use a magic eraser and isopropyl (rubbing alcohol), with a water rinse afterwards. Dish soap is not created equal across the globe, it’s often dyed or even has ingredients to keep your skin soft. Isopropyl however is pretty much always the same, clear, has no dyes or artificial scents. It also helps with a wider range of things you want to remove from the surface, while not being overly aggressive.

Whatever you choose, make sure that your piece afterwards has ample time to dry.
Any moisture trapped underneath the sealant can cause huge issues. Do not think that just tapping it dry with a towel is enough. Sometimes water gets stuck in small crevices (inside the ears, nostrils, between the lips, inside the head etc.), and resin is porous to a certain degree as well. Give it enough time so any water can evaporate fully. The head won’t run away if you can’t start painting right away. It also won’t get dirty again if it is just lying in a safe spot for a couple hours.
Once that is all done, you can go on with sealing your parts.

Regarding your workplace, make sure you have a spot already prepared where your piece can safely dry after having been sealed. If you have kids, pets, clumsy partners, make sure it’s out of their reach. You don't want the piece to be accidentally touched or have hairs/lint fall onto while drying. Likewise, make sure you actually have a place where you can safely seal as well. Test how you have to handle parts while sealing them (can it be held with your other hand, and if not, how else are you going to hold it up while spraying?). I personally also mask off any areas I do not want to seal. That's true for joints on bodies, or areas I know other parts will rub over (like the top of the neck, the stomach area underneath the chest piece etc.).

For the actual painting, you don’t need that much space. Have a small pint of water, a plate you can use to mix paint, some q-tips, a piece of magic eraser and your tools laid out. Some paper towels can be helpful too.

Also for more painting tips, check out all the questions about customizing in the BJD FAQ:
/threads/the-big-bjd-faq-guide-for-newcomers.850259/

I will actually add this post to the FAQ list

 

Watching this thread as a little refresher!

 

If you check the FAQ, it talks about that in the section “How should I seal my parts? Is there anything I need to watch out for?“
Because yes, sealants require certain temperatures to properly cure and dry. If it's too cold they won't adhere to the surface and it can later crack or flake off.

 

Look for Liquitex matte varnish, must be the varnish as the medium (only) is made to be mixed with acrylic paint and can stay tacky. I haven't used mine yet (currently using a spray). There are a couple of really good (inspiring) tutorials out there, will have a look and when I come across them I will provide links. From what I can remind off the top of my head:
With Liquitex use in very very thin light coats... at least 3 for base and need to leave a long time between coats to dry (several hours). Use a makeup sponge as it has very fine pores to apply (with minimal varnish on sponge) and lightly dab evenly over. Pastels can lift so make sure to lightly brush away any loose powder before.

Makeup brushes are your friend for applying pastel tones and for brushing away loose powder.

Oh, and I have prepared my heads with acetone free nail varnish remover, but now use the isopropyl alcohol (only because I have some, as the nail varnish remover I could easily buy from local shops).

And nail art brushes are wonderfully fine pointed and quite cheap for painting with.

 

Sounds like you are 99% there I too do lots of research, even when there could be/is repeated info, you always find it presented in different way which can be just as informative I bought some more spray this weekend so will be using that as long as I can (weather willing)

 

MSC *can* be used in colder temperatures to some extent, but you will want to run the can under some warm water before hand and shake well. I wouldn't do it on days it's actively snowing or raining, but if it's in the 40's or upper 30's, running the can under warm water and bringing the piece in to dry can work ok. I don't usually leave things outside to dry personally.

Liquitex matte medium is pretty popular and fairly easy to get at Michael's. Andreja from Nicolle's Dreams used it in a lot of her faceup videos, and has a few videos going over brush on sealants.