As some of you may know, I just got my first Fairyland doll, and Minifee Celine, last month. I decided to order her without a faceup because I wanted to send her to an artist to get a custom faceup done. While my doll was on the way I spent my time figuring out where to send her to get her makeup done, and by doing all of this research I realized that there is a lot more information to take into consideration when choosing where to get a faceup than I could have ever imagined! 

I was successful in finding an artist that fit all of my criteria (located in the United States, reasonably priced, beautiful and professional looking faceups, and easy to communicate with) and was absolutely thrilled to send my girl on her way yesterday. Right now she’s on her way to California to be painted by the lovely Darjeeling Aesthetics! Her work is stunning and shows so much skill! I am so excited to see what she can do with my girl. ^^,

The first artist I had tried to commission reserved for me one of their March slots and then stopped responding to me once I sent the commission form, even though I emailed her several times and tried contacting her through both her faceups and personal Tumblr pages.

This is part of the reason why I have decided to create this post about faceups, commissioning, and what to do and what not to do. There isn’t a lot of info out there for first time commissioners and I realized how easy it is to overlook important details in deciding what to do. I hope any newbies out there can find this helpful and informative! 

There are some very important things to take into consideration when deciding on a doll faceup, all of which should be thought of in depth before making the first move. The first thing is to decide if you want the factory/default faceup, to do your own faceup, or to commission someone to do it for you. 

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Factory Faceup

Some companies give the option of purchasing a doll with or without a faceup, which can be a really great thing for someone who is new to the community, doesn’t have anything specific in mind, or maybe is a bit nervous about a custom faceup. If you choose the factory faceup, there are some things to remember -  Your doll’s face will be the same as everyone else who got the factory faceup, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but if you’re looking to have a completely unique doll this may not be the option for you. But to counter that con with a pro, you will be getting a doll with a face! One of the worst parts about this hobby is waiting for your dream doll to arrive and then when they do they’re a blank faced alien. If you purchase the factory faceup, the waiting is done when the doll arrives!

 Something else to keep in mind about the factory faceup is that some companies charge extra for makeup or have an extended waiting period if the faceup option is chosen. If you’re a patient person or really adore the factory faceup then this is no problem, but if you’re impatient or plan on removing or changing the faceup in the future then this is a waste of time and money.


If you decide to go the more popular route of getting a custom faceup commissioned or done by yourself, then that’s a whole other story!

Custom Faceup by Yourself

Firstly, if you plan on doing a faceup yourself make sure you are 100% confident that you can produce the quality faceup that you have in mind. It doesn’t matter how skilled you are or how long you’ve been doing faceups or if you’re a “professional” or not. All that matters is that you can be happy with what you create. If you know that you are overly critical or can’t create the exact look you want, then you could end up getting frustrated and giving up which is never fun! 

First-time faceup artists should definitely do their research and look for reference photos of real people. If you look up photos of other people’s dolls or faceup work then you will end up trying to replicate their techniques or styles, even if you don’t mean to. You will also subconsciously compare your work to theirs.

Also keep in mind that it is absolutely crucial to have proper materials! The incorrect materials could end up staining, melting, or otherwise damaging your doll. No, this does not mean that you need to purchase the most expensive supplies, but what you do need are the supplies that are safe to use on the material your doll is made from. Again, research is a big part of this! Ask questions! A lot of artists out there will gladly share what their favorite supplies are and where you can buy them.

Commissioned Faceup

The third option in choosing where to get a faceup is to commission an artist to do one for you. This option is the most complicated because of all the options, benefits, and risks involved. Let’s jump right in!

Choosing a Faceup Artist & Grabbing a Slot

This is the most important part in commissioning someone to do a faceup! Remember that you are sending a doll worth hundreds of dollars to a complete stranger. This is something to be taken very seriously.

 Do research on different artists- look up reviews, the materials they use, and maybe even talk to some of their previous customers to get a feel of how they work from a buyers perspective.The worst possible scenario is that the artist is a scammer and steals your doll, or they damage it permanently through poor techniques or carelessness. Although the likelihood of these things happening is probably very slim (I have never heard of anyone having their doll stolen or trashed by an artist before), it is very well a possibility and it’s always better to be safe than sorry!

Respecting the artist and their style- An easy way to be disappointed with a faceup artist’s work is to commission them to do something that is clearly out of their comfort zone, style, or abilities. This, of course, isn’t true for all artists, as some do enjoy a challenge and are willing to try something new for their customers. It never hurts to ask if someone is comfortable trying something new, but there are always other artists to try if that isn’t an option. Try finding an artist with a style you enjoy. This works out for both you and the artist because you get the faceup of your dreams and they are confident with their work!

When you’ve decided on an artist, keep track of their slot openings. Artist’s usually open a select number of slots every month and they’re on a first-come first-serve basis. I’ve noticed that the majority of artists do not reserve future slots, but if you find one that does I’d take advantage of that! If the artist has a mailing list for updates, you should definitely sign up!

Your Ideas & Their Ideas

I’ve learned that a big part in getting a faceup you are happy with is how you fill out the commission form. The commission form is the list of questions the artist has you answer before they’ll accept your doll. It usually has basic personal questions, such as name and address, and questions related to how you want your faceup to look. I’ve seen forms have questions as broad as only wanting to know the colors and eyebrow expression you want, to forms as detailed as wanting to know the color of the creases above the eyes. No matter the questions, it is crucial to fill them out as thoroughly and with as much detail as possible. 

It’s easy to forget that not everyone thinks the same way you do and that the artist probably has a very different image in their head when picturing your idea. This is why you should be specific! Most artists ask for swatches of your color scheme, so send them! When I filled out my commission form I wrote that I wanted “raspberry colored eye makeup”. I’m a nervous nelly, so I decided to attach an image with the exact color I had in mind just in case. When I Googled “raspberry red” I was surprised how many different shades were considered the color of raspberries, which is why it is important to send swatches (try looking up teal one time to see all the different shades that are “teal” lol).

Some artists offer a mockup service, in which you send them a photo of your doll’s face and they create a mockup Photoshop image with the information you included in your commission form for a small fee. Of course, if you have some basic Photoshop knowledge and are a little artistic, it’s pretty easy to create one of these mockups yourself and send it to them as reference. 

Prices & Places

We all know this is an expensive hobby, the dolls themselves could cost you up to a thousand dollars in some cases, but luckily the wide variety of faceup artists means that there is definitely something out there in your price range.

When you choose and artist, make sure they have a price that you’re comfortable with. I’ve seen prices range from $15 a faceup to $100 a faceup. 

The tricky thing about prices is they cannot be trusted. You would assume that someone with lower prices may do a lower quality faceup and people with higher prices may do better quality faceups, but that is completely false. Personally, I feel that the prices of specific artists’ work are purely based on popularity and do not have any relation to the quality of their work at all. If an artist isn’t as popular- maybe they’re just starting out- then obviously they won’t charge as much because the demand for their work isn’t as high. I’ve found so many amazing faceup artists who have very low prices but whose work I would consider to be worth a hundred dollars! If you come across someone like this I would definitely grab one of their faceups as soon as possible, because the more popular they get, the higher their prices will become and the harder it will be to get one of their slots. The same goes for more expensive artists- just because someone’s prices are high does not mean their work is better. Don’t send your doll to an artist just because their prices are astronomical or that’s where everyone else sends their doll. Send your doll to an artist who has work you think is worth it.

Another thing that gets factored into the overall price of a faceup are extra fees such as faceup removal, eyelashes, or detailed makeup. Almost every artist charges a fee (usually 10 or 15 dollars) to remove your dolls previous faceup if they have one (this is another reason why if you’re planning on commissioning an artist you should probably opt out of the factory faceup when purchasing your doll). You can, of course, do this yourself to avoid this fee. Eyelashes also tend to cost extra, ranging from $2-$10 dollars, depending on the artist. I’ve also seen artists who charge extra for freckles, beauty marks and intricate makeup (such as facial scars, birthmarks, body blushing, or tattoos). 

Artists also charge different amounts depending on the size or type of your doll. A doll such as an MSD or SD may cost less than a doll such as a Monster High because the Monster High requires extra work to paint on the eyes. These prices usually only differ $5-$10, depending on the artist.

It’s easy to forget to factor in the shipping costs when calculating the total cost of your faceup. Remember- you’ll need to include the return shipping as well! This is why when I was choosing a faceup artist it was very important to me to find someone located in the United States because I didn’t want to get hit with any extra shipping charges or customs fees. Something else to find out is if the artist requires a specific type of shipping. Some artists base their shipping on how you originally sent the package, while some absolutely require you send your package priority mail or with a tracking number. The shipping is obviously personal preference, but it does involve the risk of losing your doll or it getting damaged so it’s important to give it some thought. 

It’s also a good idea to ask your postal worker about all the available shipping options. When my doll was shipped, the worker told me that overnight shipping, which was $22, would get her there on Monday, April 6th, but priority 2-day shipping, with a tracking number and up to $50 insurance for $7.15, would also get her there on Monday the 6th. That saved me almost $15 and my doll is guaranteed to arrive on the same day!

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So, with all that being said, I feel like this was really a great learning experience for me and I really look forward to sending more dolls out for commissions! I don’t think I’ll ever stop being nervous about mailing my little faceless head across the country though, haha.

I hope you guys found this helpful! Have a great week!

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NOTE: This blog post was reposted here via my old Tumblr page.