Getting it just right

What do you do to keep your mottle from being too dark or too light? Always been something that evades me, no matter how I adjust the paint. Lately it’s too dark or too light. How do you mix your Genesis, how much thinner, etc. to get a subtle realistic mottle on your babies?

I go very light, almost as light as my washes. Like a slightly thickened watercolor. I always feel like you can always make it darker, but it’s hard to lighten it!

It also depends on the overall skintone of the baby. Paler babies usually get thinner paint!

4 Likes

I am pretty bold… I usually use 1/2 TB of thinner to 2 mop brushes (3/8”) for most of my mottles.

2 Likes

I’m still very much an amateur, so I might not be the best to offer advice, but here is some mottling I did with the very light paint. But I am a fan of lighter mottling.







I think @quiltsabunch does gorgeous bolder mottling! It looks amazingly realistic on her dolls. The mottling/veining she does on the foreheads reminds me so much of my little nieces and nephews

6 Likes

That might be some of my problem, I don’t use the 1/2 inch mop brushes to add paint and use the 1/4 inch mops and get an invisible mottle lately. Then when I add a little more it’s just too dark and I need to run a cosmetic wedge over it to tone it down.

1 Like

They do look amazing. When I try to get a bolder mottle it ends up looking splotchy and uneven in areas.

1 Like

Thanks so much @Helenabeereborns. Glad someone thinks it’s working for me :blush:

2 Likes

I feel like you can use the same mixture of paint on two different kits and get different results because they all take paint differently. Aldo old sponges and new sponges make a difference too. Old sponges seem to release more paint when wet so it comes out darker than it was mixed compared to using the same paint on a new sponge, well speaking about Genesis.

6 Likes

So true about older sponges. I’ve been using some older ones lately that I found, because they were so nice and the sponge material is smooth. So, the paint in them is probably causing the splotchy uneven paint.

1 Like

It’s so funny because I love my older sponges. I try making new ones and they drive me crazy. I’ve been washing and reusing my old ones until they fall apart. I just had to throw away one from 2018 :sweat_smile:. As long as there isn’t old paint in them, they usually work fine. The new ones don’t blend or pounce as well for me. Too stiff

2 Likes

I only make new ones when I’m forced to. Are you airdry? I never wash mine.

1 Like

Genesis. It’s not really ‘dry’ paint, just a thicker consistency, that has gotten splotchy on my before. I definitely don’t wash between every doll. Maybe every five.

1 Like

I’ve found that some of the sponges I’ve purchased over the past few years are not like the ones five years ago and before. The quality is not the same. They don’t see as smooth and quality. I still have some from six years ago but they are needing to be tossed because they are making the splotchy mottle. It’s hard to let the good old ones go.

I don’t wash mine either. Seems to wear them out too fast.