Aesthetics Third Face-up (or: I will never be a good FU artist xD)

Following, because I have the exact same issue with my pencils as far as never being able to get them sharp enough.

I think your faceup looks good! I think the eyebrows could use more pencil definition, personally, but overall, it's super cute.

 

Watercolor pencils will always be a little grainy. You can try to smooth them a little with water on a thin brush.

For sharp, thin lines it's best to use watered down acrylic paint with a thin brush with long bristles.

 

You did that face up? That looks really good to me !!!

 

It can be hard to get the pencils sharp enough. Which is why I generally stick to acrylics. I still have the watercolor pencils though, because sometimes it's helpful to draw a rough sketch first, or sometimes they are sharp enough! Or, as I have found, sometimes they are too sharp and scratch off the sealant!

I do find though, that not all pencil sharpeners are created equal. I have some general pencil sharpeners that I have around the house, but only one of them works well. The others end up just breaking bits of the wood from around the pigment core, so I end up needing to just use an exacto knife to actually sharpen the actual point itself. It could be that the sharpener blade is old, or off-center or something, so maybe you can look for a new sharpener.

But overall, your faceup is very good! She looks even and rosy-cheeked, with great blushing colors to blend with the resin color. The eyebrows might be a little uneven, but I'm not sure if that is due to camera angle or not; but either way, she looks great!

 

Look who we have here! :3
You do an amazing job and to be honest: your improvement is awesome.

Try to experiment with material to experience how how they work and how they impact your face ups.

For me, I am experimenting with acrylics at the moment. And I’m not used to that at all.

I’m very excited to see more from you, dear theru!

 

There is really no fastest way to improving. Like any artistic skill it'll require lots of practice and time. It's best not to rush things like this. Just take your time and explore different techniques to find your one.

Personally, I hate using any pencils on my face-ups. It's my peeve. It's my no-no. Even when I used to commission others to paint for me, I explicitly asked them to not use pencils. If they weren't comfortable using brush/paint, then I looked for another artist. The truth is, no matter how sharp a pencil is or how skilled an artist is, when you zoom or use macro lens... I just hate the way it looks. And, I've had work in my hands from top artists, and to me it's still "grain" and "chalk" and I want nothing to do with it on my dolls. I totally respect those who like it, but for me nothing will ever replicate and surpass the beauty of brush strokes.

To see those little hairs painted by brush — it's exquisite and truly admirable. I like brush work for brows, lashes, freckles, eye crease, beauty marks. Everything. It does take a longer time to master... it takes more practice, but the end results for me are always superior and look so much better in photography. Of course, this is just my personal preference.

If you do decide to give brush work a go, I recommend gouache. It's a lot more forgiving than acrylic when learning.

In the end only through experimentation will you find your way, your style, and your preferences.

With that being said, for your third faceup, you already have the talent there. All that is needed is more practice and definitely finding the medium that will allow you to achieve the look you desire.

 

I like your detail work on the lashes and the natural burnt sienna looking/brown color choices too. I'm personally unsure about the aesthetic of the eyebrows, but they are perfectly fine if they are your artistic taste.

 

I like it, I think the color of the eyeshadow is working really well with those eyes!

 

Woah, I hope when I get to my second and third face ups, they're as awesome as yours! I honestly think you did an amazing job!

 

It looks really good! The only thing I would do, personally, is draw the top lines (the little short ones) for the creases of her eyes going a littler big more downward. Generally creases make a parentheses-like shape, sloping downward in the corners.

 

It looks very nice, the blushing is good and the eyebroes too. I think that one thing yo could improve or rather think about is having a bit thinner lines for bottom eyelashes and eyelids and you're good to go!

 

This is really well done! I love how you did the lips! I would suggest making the creases of her eyes a bit lighter or a bit lower and maybe curve them more naturally. But I'm impressed that you drew those eyelashes rather than painting them! I don't think I could do it that well.