So far, I have tried several genesis babies after running into problems on a luminaire painted baby with paint sticking. And because everyone always raves about genesis. I am so sick of genesis right now that I could scream! Just the problems with blending and the dry look (I don’t care if babies are supposed to be matte, I hate matte!) and the colors not being as pretty. I just finished making two NA babies with genesis and put the first coat on Leah today. Just need to bake them. And I’ve done a biracial baby and two caucasian babies. And I really don’t like the way it looks. I know it would come together eventually but what a hassle! I have all the shades of paints, I have tons of brushes, I have sponges galore…what I don’t have is any interest in doing another all genesis baby. In fact, I think that is why I haven’t done much reborning in the last few months.
Cait, my 14 year old, asked why I didn’t try a baby with both which is what I was thinking about doing with Leah. Make the skin tones with genesis since that seems to work but then do the blushing, creases and blood veins with luminaire. I just want to like the baby when it is done instead of just being relived to get it off the racks. I might use the sealers and some base colors but I really hate the rest. Maybe things will go well with the next one. Maybe the bad one was just a fluke. After all, I didn’t really let the paint cure before I tried to see if the repair worked. Air dry is just so much easier, so much prettier. Maybe I just need to see someone else’s babies cause my genesis babies are okay but not what I expected from all the praise of genesis.
Rant is over. You may now resume browsing but then get busy painting, you lazy person, you!!!
I totally understand your rant. I also tried using GHSP a few months ago after not using it for 4 yrs. It was not worth the hassle for me so now I am back to the ADP. I can get so much more creative with the ADP and get a lot more details than with the GHSP. It could be because I am so used to the ADP, but regardless I am sticking to them from now on. I have tried the Luminaire paints, but had problems with it adhering to the vinyl. I didn’t want to take a chance of it happening again so I stick with Liquitex or Real Effect paints which I have no problems with. If it works for you and you have had success with it then continue to do your thing. I just didn’t have the patience at the time to try it again. When I had switched from GHSP I had a doll that was partially done and I finished her with the ADP with no problems at all.
I was wondering, Rainbow, if you had switched to genesis or stayed with ADP. Good to know that I am not the only one that has had problems with the luminaire paint adhering to the vinyl. I need to look up your chart for mixing the skin colors with liquidtex again (well, it is for JoSonjas but I guess the same proportions). Or order Real Effects paints. I was wondering if it was just the type of ADP I was using or if it was the sealers. Do you do a base seal layer with genesis and finish with it? Trying to steal your secrets! I love your babies!
Back again after looking for Real Effects paints in the US. Rainbow, have you tried any of the other brands of the air dry paints that are available?
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I was wondering, Rainbow, if you had switched to genesis or stayed with ADP. Good to know that I am not the only one that has had problems with the luminaire paint adhering to the vinyl. I need to look up your chart for mixing the skin colors with liquidtex again (well, it is for JoSonjas but I guess the same proportions). Or order Real Effects paints. I was wondering if it was just the type of ADP I was using or if it was the sealers. Do you do a base seal layer with genesis and finish with it? Trying to steal your secrets! I love your babies!
Back again after looking for Real Effects paints in the US. Rainbow, have you tried any of the other brands of the air dry paints that are available?
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I only did the chart for JoSonja’s because at the time there were artists that used it, but there were mostly only tutorials for GHSP. To give them and myself a chart for mixing the JoSonja’s colors to match as close as I could to the GHSP so that we could still follow the tutorials and use the ADP. Real Effect paints are very expensive and I can only get them from Australia. They are excellent paints and give a very soft effect. The only problem I have with these are that the pigments are very light and it is hard to get a dark skin tone with them although I have seen it done. My 2nd favorite is the soft body Liquitex. It is a high quality artist paint and the pigment is stronger which allows me to get deeper skin tones. I also use the ultra matte gel with my paint mix which helps the paint to adhere to the vinyl and reduces the shine. Most of their paints are rated 1 on the lightfastness by ASTM, which means they will hold their color for a long time. I have also tried the Art & Magic paints, but have only done 1 doll with them so my experience with them are limited. But I can say that it was very easy to use and I really liked them. The paint did adhere with no problems and the effect of the paint was very good. Debbie Henshaw has a tutorial on her blog using these paints if you would like to review it.
I only use a base sealer (genesis matte varnish) depending on the vinyl. For example if there are shiny spots on the vinyl, which is hard for the paint to adhere to whether I am using ADP or genesis, I use the base coat of varnish. I always use a final coat of genesis varnish and I use about 1/3 satin and 2/3 matte. This doesn’t give it such a matte finish with the satin mixed in, but you can experiment with the ratio to get to the finish that you like.
I hope this helps you and let me know if you have any questions.
I really appreciate the info! This afternoon I started to touch up the wrinkles with luminaire to smooth them out. I had used some Liquidtex matte in the mix also. The wrinkles looked so much better that I ended up going over the whole kit with that color as a wash. Wow, what a difference. Baby is shiny but I can kick that back down. The main thing is that the paint looks smoother now. Hard to explain but I’m happier with him after being ready to get rid of him. On the other hand, after this evening, I don’t think I’ll be painting hair on him!