Introducing Cory

So two Sundays ago, I purchased a new doll on eBay. He arrived on Friday and I got him cleaned up. Then yesterday I made time to paint him.

I don't know what the previous owner was going for with his character, but the face-up was definitely messy. It felt really smooth too, like un-sealed resin. He's a Doll Family-H Nan Xing, which has always been one of my favorite sculpts, and he was a really good price, but I did worry a little because I had no idea how much effort would have to go into removing his face and what would be underneath. When I inspected him upon arrival, the black around his eyes and eyebrows looked suspiciously like marker, maybe dry erase? The line in his lips was definitely acrylic paint. The rest might've been pastel, but to be honest I'm not sure. All I know is it came off surprisingly easy with warm water and a magic eraser.

Fifteen minutes or more of a pain-staking scrubbing and he was almost as good as new. He had a few marks that didn't come off--some scratches and a little bit of the black in the corner of his mouth--but nothing too major, so I washed him good and rinsed him for painting.

I had to wait over the weekend before I could paint him because of meals and such (we always use the kitchen table to paint). But yesterday the weather was nice, and he was ready and I was eager, so I set about it.

It might be hard to tell in this picture, but his head is actually not the same color as his body. The previous owner said they got his head secondhand and then purchased the body from Alice's Collections' in stock section. So the body is in yellow skin and his head was in white... I wasn't sure how big the difference would be until I washed him, and then I saw the contrast was glaring. So I had to begin by blushing his head to match his body. Thus I did three layers of nothing but all over blushing in a yellow tone until his face matched his body. The only thing I didn't blush was his head cap. But I figure his head cap never sees the light of day because I will put a wig on him, so it's no big deal that I forgot.

For the last couple of layers, I gave him the blushing I would normally do on a head, as well as lip blushing, freckles, eyebrows, and eye "stuff." I am absolutely thrilled with how he came out! It's been a while since I've felt this proud of a face-up, especially on the first try.

And all done up. This is Cory, full name: Coriander. Cory comes from the Isle of Exiles, but, unlike Cal or Kit, Cory was born and raised there on the dark side of the island. He recently escaped and has come to the Wall's house to reunite with his old friend Cal. Having never met Kit, Cory wasn't expecting Cal to have a new friend and that threw him a little. He teases Kit relentlessly, which is a source of tension between the three of them. This is what he looked like when he arrived at the Wall's. Except I am changing out that wig, because I meant for his hair to be brown.

I wanted to take him outside for a photo shoot today, but it was way too windy. I also wanted to paint another doll today, but the wind again waylaid those plans nicely. Even while sealing in a well ventilated garage, the wind gets in and blows dust and lint onto the dolls, which is counterproductive. So maybe my sister and I will paint again tomorrow. She did two faces while I did Cory, and she's as eager to do more as I am.

~SilverStar-Burst