Canadian artist Aileen of Call Me Gorgeous has been painting face-ups for over 10 years and regularly opens commission slots. She recently taught a face-up workshop at Doll North.
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Q: First, tell me how did Doll North go?
A: It was fantastic! I always love visiting and hanging out with the GTA (and everyone else who comes to Doll North) community, I hope I can see everyone again soon. There was lots of fun stuff to do and so many cool dolls I’ve never seen in person before.
Q: So, what did your workshop consist of?
A: My workshop at Doll North was a hands-on beginner’s introduction to face-ups where we focused on learning the basic skills and techniques for the students to then take and practice further at home with. Even though I stressed that you might not leave with a complete face-up and the focus was on the skills, just about everyone left with something complete! It was a fantastic class with lots of talented students.
Q: Sounds like a great experience for everyone involved! Can you tell me a little bit about yourself?
A: There’s not too much to say about myself. I’m a late 20’s crazy cat lady who lives in Canada. Outside of collecting dolls, I dabble in photography, cosplay, and figure collecting.
Q: When and how did you become interested in BJDs?
A: I got interested in dolls way, way back in 2004 when a webcomic writer I follow got their first doll of one of their characters, Hitasura with their Volks old F-28 Shikai to be exact! I was immediately obsessed with them but it wasn’t until early 2008 that I got my first doll.
Q: When did you open your face-up business? (I love your business’s name BTW!)?
A: It’s been so long that I’m not sure of the exact date I “officially” opened my face-up shop, but I’ve been doing face-ups for people outside of my close friend group since at least 2009. And thank you! I don’t really have a story behind the name, three-word names that sounded really posh were all the rave when I started so just threw something together.
Q: What dolls do you collect?
A: I collect both Dollfie Dreams and regular resin BJDs. I don’t have a particular brand I’m loyal to, just whatever I can make cute.
Q: What do you like about doing face-ups?
A: Honestly my favorite part is having the opportunity to see so many different dolls that I might otherwise never see.
Q: Are there certain projects or doll sizes or anything you prefer not to do?
A: I’m not terribly fond of painting teeny tiny fashion dolls because they’re so small it hurts my eyes, and in the similar vein I don’t really like gnome-ish dolls like some of the older Fairyland Realfee’s, I just feel my style doesn’t suit them very well.
Q: Can you tell me about a few challenging commissions?
A: Anytime I have to freehand paint designs is a challenge for me, I wish more people would request them so I could get more practice, but outside of that, everyone is so nice to me and doesn’t send anything too hard. I’m sure way back in the day I had some really challenging commissions but it’s been so long I can’t remember!
Q: Is there anything I haven’t asked that you would like to add?
A: Than thank you for reaching out to me? I can’t think of anything else!
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Gallery:
