As dolls can be so frightening it makes them the perfect costume for Halloween. Many of you may have seen a scary doll as a child or watched killer or haunted dolls in terrifying movies. That said, I do have a pack of cheap-o brushes that I use for stuff like applying glitter/glue, building texture, or anything that doesn’t require a fine point.Dolls are one of the creepiest toys every created. The cheap kind get misshapen, lose their point, or shed hairs easily. If you’re going to be doing a lot of painting projects, it’s a good idea to invest in some good paint brushes. I wanted bold lines and colors, so I chose to stick with acrylic paint. Doing it that way results in a much softer look. Some people can actually do an entire face almost entirely with watercolor pencil. With a watercolor pencil, you can easily wipe it away with water if you need to change your sketch. DO NOT use a regular graphite pencil or colored pencil because they are impossible to erase if you mess up – it will only leave a black smear. I use these to sketch on my toys and dolls before painting.

Watercolor pencils can be found at any art store.

It comes in a spray can and actually doubles as a sealant! It doesn’t have as much tooth as gesso, but the smoother surface might be more suitable for doll faces. The texture is great for helping paint stick to whatever surface you’re painting on, but if you want something that’s more smooth to the touch, you should use Testor’s Dullcote. However, it has a gritty texture when it dries. I have a big bottle of it so I use it for everything. For this project I used Liquitex Clear Acrylic Gesso, which is a brush-on primer. You will need to seal and prime the doll’s face before painting so that the acrylic can stick onto the surface. Make sure the nail polish remover is 100% acetone or else you won’t be able to remove the paint no matter how hard you scrub! I made that mistake once and it wasn’t pretty. If you need to wipe off a doll’s old face paint, use 100% acetone (aka nail polish remover).

Cracked doll makeup face off