Supplies Needed to Learn How to Paint Custom Barbie, Tonner and Fashion Royalty Dolls

Before you can repaint a doll, you need to remove the existing face paint.

How to remove the paint from your doll's face in preparation for repainting:

My preferred type of paint remover is straight acetone. I prefer Onyx Brand Acetone, which is sold in drugstores in the nail polish section. It runs around $4.25 for a 16 oz. bottle and lasts a long time. Acetone has the benefit of removing the paint instantly without smearing. The problem with regular nail polish removers that contain other ingredients, is that you need to work harder to achieve the same result. The longer the product is on the vinyl and the harder you are working at removing the paint, the more potential there is for damage. Straight acetone removes paint instantly.

Use a cotton ball or Q-Tip and it will take less than a minute to remove all the paint. Some artists like to use a baking powder and water wash to neutralize the acetone and wash the face after paint removal, but in ten years of repainting I have never done this. I don't feel it is at all necessary.

It's all about the eyes.....This is an Eve Kitten doll. She is a 12" vinyl doll.

Each doll artist uses a different combination of supplies; paints, brushes, sealers, and all vary slightly from artist to artist. I m going to show you what I use to repaint vinyl fashion dolls, such as Barbie, Tonner, and Fashion Royalty dolls. Some supplies are pretty much universal, and some are used by some artists and not others.

One of the very first things I generally mention when learning to paint dolls, is the ability so see very, very well. Now if you are not gifted with perfect vision, you are going to need some help. For many years now I have used a magnifying visor.

I had no idea my eyesight was so poor until a few years ago when I started using a magnifying lens to help me see better while repainting. I had no idea what I wasn't seeing until I started seeing it up close. Let me tell you, it was quite revealing!
Every little flaw that I couldn't see with my naked eye was very evident. I was shocked at what my dolls REALLY looked like close up. It was not good!

When I started using a magnifying visor to repaint my dolls, my Barbie doll repaints improved tremendously. As a result of this, my sales jumped up and I started getting repaint commission requests.

I highly recommend you use a magnifying lens visor right from the start. It is worn on the head and the visor part flips up and down as needed. They generally close with Velcro and are adjustable. As good as you may think your eyesight is, these dolls have extremely tiny eyes and you may be missing a lot that you have no idea of, except when you see your doll in a photo and realize he looks completely different. This advice can save you years of poor painting. In addition, when you can see your doll's eyes very close up on a much larger scale, you can add in detail that would be impossible to do otherwise. This can make the difference between mediocre painting and very realistic repainting.

One of my Tonner Doll repaints from 2009. Applied Dreadlocks by The Flying Ewe.

Brushes are your first crucial supply. The wrong size brush can make repainting correctly nearly impossible. A brush too large will not be able to create the fine lines you will need.

I have used the same type and size of brushes for years. I use an American Painter Spotter ( made by Loew-Cornell) , size 10/0, # 4650, which is the smallest I ever use. I find that although brushes do come in sizes as small as a 18/0 or even a 20/0, that they are too small and the bristles don't hold the point well enough for me. Some artists swear by them, but not me.

A brush that comes to a very fine point is essential. If it doesn't, you won't be able to create the effect you want. Anything larger than a 10/0 brush is too large. Loew-Cornell also make a nice 10/0 spotter, # 7650. I have found this once in a great while in a craft store, but as a rule they can be purchased on Amazon. These small brushes are sometimes very hard to find locally.

HANDY HINT

If you buy your brushes in person, actually wet your fingers and stroke them over the bristles. Make SURE they come to a point!

Also, in addition to the one brush you will use the most, you may want to have on hand a stipple brush. This type of brush has short , stiff bristles. I use a Dewbury Scruffy brush, but anything that is similar in style would work. This is the brush I use to apply, by dabbing on, blush and skin mottling to achieve a realistic skin appearance. I find this especially helpful when painting male dolls, whose skin appearance would not be as "porcelain" as a female doll's.

HANDY HINT!!!!

Buy more than one brush at a time! MORE than once I have bought a brush only to discover that the bristles were not just right...maybe they were bent or didn't come to a point. Sometimes you WILL get a funky brush. I always but three at a time an sometimes only one works properly. The duds I save for applying sealer, which requires a bit less precision.

The paints used for repainting Barbie and other vinyl fashion are always acrylic. Do NOT use oil paints on vinyl dolls. This is the quickest way to ruin a doll. The paint never dries. Never.

I use anything from Liquitex to Golden as well as some of the craft store brands. Golden is more expensive, ranging from $4.00 a bottle and up, and has a much higher concentration of pigment. The texture is perfect, and flows beautifully, but will still need to be thinned.

Delta, Apple Barrel and Folkart have the advantage of coming in hundreds of colors, and are very cheap. The texture is thick and often oily, and the paint tends to separate. When you buy cheaper paint you have to work harder to make the paint behave the way you want.

The bottles of Golden paint I bought at least three years ago are still working for me, and I have yet to replace any of them so far. A little Golden paint goes a very long way and although the initial cost is more, they last for years, and this is coming from someone who paints several dolls every week.

The choice of paint is yours, depending on your budget and preference. Try the Golden paints. Get the Raw Umber and the Carbon Black at the bare minimum. These are colors you will use frequently and when you do, Golden can't be beat. The majority of my work is done in Golden paints, although for lips and shading, I almost always fall back on cheaper brands as I have a preference for a few colors that I use often.

For painting eyebrows and lashes and eye details, I ONLY use Golden paint. The flow is perfect for creating ultra fine lines needed to achieve a more realistic repaint.

Just remember, a better paint won't necessarily make you a better artist, but it sure can help! When you are first starting to makeover dolls you do need to take advantage of the things that will help you paint better. Golden Paints are by far my preference, so do try some. If you compare Golden Paint for repainting Barbie or Fashion Royalty dolls, to a cheap craft store brand, you can definitely tell the difference in quality.

You can find every color of Golden Liquid Paints here at Dick Blick. MUCH Better prices than you find in the craft stores.

Other supplies include sealers, or varnishes. I have several on hand at all times. My preference is Liquitex, although Golden makes nice sealers as well.

I use Liquitex Matte Sealer for all areas where I don't want any sheen. I mix it with a little water, to thin it down further, as it still has a slight sheen. For areas I want to be glossy, I use Liquitex High Gloss Sealer. I don't water this down. I use this on eyeballs occasionally ( if I want a dewy look), and lips and nails on my female dolls. I have noticed that most top artists tend to use mostly matte sealers, as they allow for better photographs by not allowing any reflection.

Under no circumstances will you ever use a spray on sealer for a vinyl doll such as Barbie, Tonner, or the much more costly Fashion Royalty dolls. It will ruin the doll. On a fashion doll makeover you will only seal the painted areas-lips, eyes and brows. A brush on sealer is necessary for this. Spray sealers would not be controllable, and from what I understand, they never fully dry on a vinyl doll, but remain tacky.

You can find all the sealers I use here at Dick Blick.

So, essentially what you need is paint, brushes, paint remover, cotton balls and /or Q-Tips, and sealer. Another thing you will want to have on hand is paper towels for blotting the water from your brush, a small jar to hold your rinse water, wooden toothpicks for removing errant paint, as well as some thing to use as a pallet. I use a Styrofoam plate as a pallet.

And that is pretty much the supplies you need to start painting dolls. I am including some suggestions and links to my favorite supplies. If you are serious about learning to repaint dolls, do get a magnifying visor. Trust me when I tell you that there is a lot you may be missing.

I hope this lens was of some interest and help to you.

As a side note, I just want to say that I recently changed my website hosting company from a terrible one to a great one.

For almost ten years I went with a company that was recommended to me when I first started making One of a Kind dolls. I stuck with them even though they are more costly and their customer service was terrible, and outsourced to another country where I couldn't understand a word they said. I thought it would be easier than switching. Their poor customer service finally got on my last nerve and I HAD to find a better company.

After many months of exhaustive research, I found Hostgator. I asked around on many message boards and forums and read lots of website hosting company reviews and Hostgator came out on top every time. When I finally made the switch and started using Hostgator for my web hosting needs, I was thrilled.



First of all, haven't we all experienced calling tech or customer support and getting someone on the line with a heavy accent who is obviously not located in the USA? It is very difficult when they cannot understand you and help you because of a language barrier. To me, this is very poor customer support and tells you that your web host really doesn't care about customer service and outsources to other countries just to save a buck.

ALL of Hostgators customer service is done right here in the USA!!! I am now using Hostgator for three of my sites and plan on using them for the six new websites I plan on creating soon. They support Wordpress, so if you like to blog, they have a one click install. I love my new web host!

Hostgator has web hosting starting at only $4.95 a month! The interface is very user friendly. Pass the word!

Now the last thing you need to know after you get your supplies and some dolls to practice on is HOW TO PAINT DOLLS.
On my website you will find all the help you need. I offer instructional CDs on doll repainting and customizing.

Repaint Dolls

Donna Anne's Fantasy Dolls