Learn the Most Reborn Coloring Techniques for Doll Kits

Learn the Most Reborn Coloring Techniques for Doll Kits + Soft Body Patterns in the Excellence in Reborn Artistry Series

This book is perfect for anyone waiting to learn how to paint reborn dolls with a variety of mediums which includes oils, acrylics and genesis heat paints (which we highly recommend).

The book is aimed at beginners to intermemidates and is split into 6 easy to follow sections which include applying base skin tones, blushing the perfect complexion on your reborn doll, and also the techniques involved in the most popular skin layering techniques.

This book makes the entire painting process easy to understand and follow, and is a fun read to learn one of the hardest aspects of reborning. Lets face it, if you dont know how to paint your reborn correctly, you can undo all of the work you put in elsewhere, where if you make a mistake you can still undo the problem - this often isnt the case with paints.

The book was released in 2008 and as such is fully up to date on all the latest reborn painting techniques. Some of the other books we looked out were a little out of date, and although they may be handy for reference, this book covers it all and more.

The book comes with full color photo’s and uses them to great effect when showing off some of the more advanced paint skills. As a book, you do not get any videos or additional CD’s etc which is a shame because this is the only way the book could be bettered.

If you are serious about reborning, then this is a must have book to have. The price is a little high but it reflects the excellent information provided. You may want to look out for this book on the new and used section on amazon.

The book assumes you will be working from a doll kit, as suggested in the title, so you may want to make sure you have a reborn kit available first, although it is not essential - you may want to skim over some of the content first before deciding on what medium you will be trying. It is impossbile to say which is the best, although we beleive the genesis heat paint sets are.

You can buy this book straight from amazon.

Ethnic reborn dolls

Ethnic reborn dolls are being created more and more, however there is still a distinct lack of them available for purchase on ebay or anywhere else. It would be a very good thing to see more ethnic reborns around; This is something that will surely change with more and more people taking up reborning. I for one would certainly love to see more ethnic babies created by reborn artists, although I guess a lot of it has to do with demand.

C’mon reborners; let’s see some more ethnic babies please!

If you are considering creating your own ethnic reborn baby then you should look at the ready mixed genesis heat paint sets available for the various skin tones. These sets have been mixed by reborn artists already, meaning that you do not have to practice your mixing to get the right skin tones. This can be quite wasteful unless you are familiar with mixing genesis paints, which will only lead to added cost on your supplies. (If you already have paint mixing experience, but not necassarily reborn making then the same should apply; concentrate on the other skills and techniques first, and you can refine the paint mixing at a later date).

Reborn Doll Paints

When painting a reborn doll, there are many different paints and inks to can be used to achieve lifelike skintones. It is important before choosing your colors to make sure your paints will not wash off, wear out or bleed into other colors over time.

The best paints for reborns are the genesis heat set paints, which are regarded as the finest for reborns by many artists. Genesis paints will not wear off the doll, and they also will not bleed through vinyl dolls - a common problem with acrylic paints is that they often do this.

Genesis paints come in a variety of colors, so you almost certainly won’t need to mix the paints before using them. Many artists sell premixed genesis paints on ebay as well. You can usually pick up ethnic paint sets as well, which is ideal if you are looking at making at ethnic reborn baby.

Genesis paints shoud be thinned before applying to the doll. You can do this with oderless paint thinner. Make sure you do not apply too much paint - more is less! You can always redo parts that need touching up.

Weighting a reborn doll

Getting the right weight for your baby is as important as coloring and clothing them.
 
You will find that most reborn dolls are filled with fiberfill, or fine sand as its very easy to get the correct weight with them.

Sand, while ideal for it does come with its problems however. For example, the baby is usually filled with bags of sand to make sure it gets weight in the correct places. If one of these bags splits it will make a large mess, and the baby will then be weighted incorrectly.

It is more common to find polypellets or even glass beads as weights in reborns. These are easy to use, will not leak and are also relatively cheap while not compromising on quality.

Baby fat pellets are also used, and can give a more realistic feel to the reborn if used correctly. It is important however that you are careful which body parts you use them in. They can react negatively with some silicon. Where possible, you should keep the pellets in fabric or nylon bags inside the body to stop this happening.

Before making your baby, you should know how old you are aiming the baby to be. You will need to choose how heavy to make the baby depending on this.

An average, babies gain about 1-2 pounds (1/2 to 1 kilogram) per month for the first six months, and n average of one pound (1/2 kilogram) per month from six months to one year. When deciding on the age of the baby at this to the babies starting weight. You can also find the average weight of babies for the first 36 months at the following sites as another indicator.

Click here for the average baby girls weight.
Click here for the average baby boys weight.

Reborn Dolls: Toys or more?

Reborn dolls have featured in the news and on TV in recent months, and the focal point is where they belong; Are they merely toys, collectors items or are they more than that - can they replace a real baby?

These dolls are certainly not toys; they are not designed for children to play with and although they may be suitable for some ages, the price that the dolls can fetch should be a good indicator that they are more than a plaything. There are many commercial dolls that are better suited for this, that have been through rigourous testing processes to comply with standards. They will also usually come with an age rating, that you wont get with reborns, simply because they are designed for adults.

They are often referred to as unliving dolls, although some artists do their best to make them as lifelike as possible - the latest gadgets appearing in these baby dolls are hearbeat simulators and artifical breating. This can be an attractive addition to potential buyers, although it also makes others stand back and question the concepts; on one extreme there are those that treat the babies as a real offspring while the opposite are those that find the realism ghastly.

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The story of Jane, 32, USA

Jane first found reborn dolls after losing her baby of 3 weeks. She tells us “I was devasted after my baby died and i didnt know what i was going to do. While still grieving i found reborn dolls on the internet and immediatly ordered one - to this very day i would not go anywhere without it. She hasnt replaced Amy [her baby that passed away] but I often think of her as her sister.”

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The story of Sheila, 28, UK

Sheila tells us that she has 23 reborn dolls in her home, and she likes to change their clothes from time to time and that it brightens her room up. However, she cannot possibly think of them as more than collectible dolls as its not in her nature. Sheila says “I love my reborns but my love only goes as far as someone loves their car, or any other material belonging. Love to another person or child is entirely different”

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As a collectible item the price reflects the artistic skill, and techniques involved in making a reborn and its not wonder the rise in populatity is seeing a whole new wave of artists cropping up. This also brings new ideas to the table and improved techniques for creating them. There has recently been a rise in the number of ethnic reborn dolls created which can only be a good thing.

While there is nothing wrong in cherishing a reborn, there are some questions that need to be asked on the psychological factors involved. They are not replacements for children although they are often perceived this way and a TV program in the UK (channel 4) touched upon this by getting into the lives of women who did this. They wold often take the reborn out in prams, and carry them around wherever they went. Sadly, the program did not touch upon why the women did this, and what made them so attached to the doll.

A relative of mine has several reborn dolls now, and each one has a name, a history and their own reborn birth certificate. However, the line is drawn there and the dolls are never taken outside, or even moved from the room she keeps them in. There is no harm in this, but its only slightly less of an extreme. She says its because her children have grown up, and being on her own can get lonely. When she looks in the room of these dolls, she is reminded of all the family moments she cherishes and it always puts a smile on her face.

Please contact us if you carry your reborn doll around, and are willing to explain why you do this, perhaps you lost a child and this is a constant memory dedicated to him/her? or maybe you find them so adorable you cant help it?

Reborn Mohair and wigs

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Painting a reborn doll

Microrooting a reborn doll

First you need to prepare the head. The head should be attached to the body through a plastic rod. Remove this and keep the head on its own. There should be a circular flat entry hole the head will stand up on.

Reborn eyes and noses

 

 

If you have any problems with the eyes, there is another method, however it is less desirable. You can find this at the end of this entry however.

Preparing a reborn doll

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