So I’m on about my 4th doll, and only the 2nd I have tried to make uber-realistic. I have learned from youtube videos, this forum (thanks everyone!) a few R.E.A.L. ebooks, and facebook groups. These are things that make sense to me now that I didn’t appreciate fully before.
Yes, layers do need to be THIN. And later layers will not cover up my booboos, although they WILL wash out all my meticulous mottling and veining. How can this be?! 
When tuts say to avoid the lips and nails AVOID THE LIPS AND NAILS. I just screwed up a little fist trying to strip JUST the fingernails. 
Keep your workplace dust-free. I was blaming old paints for those little speckles in my creases until I figured this out. And scrubbed random dabs of paint from little heads when I did not realize I had gotten some on my hands from opening lids, etc.
Bake with care. It is no fun trying to reshape deformed little heads!
And also…even though I started this because I love Halloween and wanted some creepy dolls, I have gotten addicted to all things reborn and now this is by far my favorite craft.
I will add one of my own…don’t even look at the BB website unless you have a little money to spare and space to store kits! It takes me a couple of months to complete one and I bet I have 20 kits stashed after the July 4 sale lol!
I love halloween too!!!
Absolutely 100 percent yes to all of that!
, absolutely!!
@Creepytina You may want to join our Parade. No prizes just fun. If you do make sure you take a safety pic of your baby before you start to paint!
http://discourse.bountifulbaby.com/t/formal-halloween-parade-rules-and-wips-2019/76665
Hope you can join the Halloween parade, the more the merrier.
One big reason I use acrylics…no baking! Id be spending all my time staring into the oven to make sure my kits didnt melt. Id probably have an anxiety attack on my expensive kits . Maybe its good that I decided against Genesis for health reasons because cooking kits would make me more crazy than I already am LOL.
I can’t tell you how many times I have gotten paint, or Panpastel, on my hand and then picked up a kit piece. I have little hand wipes now and I also started using disposable, cloth, gloves.
I do that ALL the time! If it’s red I can make it into a birthmark, because that’s exactly how I purposefully make birthmarks lol Gloves irritate me so I deal with the surprise spots because I can usually make those work out fine.
These cloth ones I got are pretty awesome, when I remember to wear them LOL
I just can’t deal with having them on my hands. Even cold weather gloves bother me so I just suffer with cold hands 
Greatly put together!