Dollcraft

  Cleo is so photogenic. She looks good anywhere, but I liked this tree as a background texture that is detailed but not distracting. Cleo is a fancy girl and not fully comfortable in the outdoors. But my Lammily doll, Margot, loves nature! Margot is not as posable as the Monster High ghouls, but some height shows her adventurous personality.   Best friends Birdie and Hester watch the sun set over the lake. They enjoy their new Liv bodies and dancing freedom. (Check out my post on re-bodying dolls.) Sometimes you don't notice a mistake until looking at the photos later, like Hester's unnaturally bent foot.    Duchess is going to model some lighting problems while she dances in the flowers. Purple everywhere This set of photos was taken in the middle of the day, not the ideal time. Photographers prefer morning or evening, when the light is dispersed and golden. Noon photos risk getting raccoon eyes, or in the case of Duchess, a shadow beard...

Inspired by  Limbe Dolls , I've been giving dollar store dolls a try. In Washington, we seem to only have Dollar Tree, but on vacation I spent some time at Family Dollar and Dollar General. They sell two knock-off dolls, Alice of "Fairy Tale High" and Pippa of "Midnight Magic," imitating Ever After High and Monster High respectively. Their prices are shown boldly on their boxes, $10 and $5. (Update: I have since learned that Fairy Tale high did not originally sell for this price, and is still available for inflated prices on Amazon. Don't do it!) Midnight Magic  Midnight Magic doesn't seem to have much in common, storyline wise, with Monster High. The back of the box tells a confusing tale. Pippa and her three friends are dimension-hopping, zombie-hunting superhero princesses attending high school. Pippa has telepathic powers to control animals. I'm not sure why they didn't pick one storyline instead of five. Pippa has gray skin, ...

I've found a number of guides on re-painting doll faces, but most of them seem far beyond the average level of skill. (But gorgeous!) I tried to take the tips and simplify them. Here's what was helpful for me. Materials paint thinner (everyone recommends acetone nail polish remover, but this is faster) q-tips, cotton balls a tiny paintbrush (10/0 spotter is nice to start) acrylic paints (liquid is better, I used the solid kind I already owned) sealer (Liquitex Matte Varnish is recommended, I already owned a glossy and used that) exacto blade a little bowl of water (clean brushes) clean-up cloth a lamp Tips Don't mix your paints with water. This will make them easier to be rubbed off. Mix with the clear varnish instead. Symmetry may be impossible- aim for balance. (Human faces aren't perfect either!) For practice, try painting on top of existing features first rather than wiping the face clean. Holding the brush: don't jam the brush ...