Hello all. l am new to the forum only joined today.
l am looking for some help on creating the natural human skin tone colour of a newborn baby along with a nice natural colour for blushing. Can anyone help please?

regards
Helen

Hello sweets - welcome to the forum.

Realistic looking flesh tones are some of the hardest to perfect. It took me many years to get anywhere near them (though for most of that time I was stoned )

Please tell us what medium you prefer to paint in, as it will make a difference to the way you approch it.

I prefer painting in acrylics and start with a base coat of light cadmium yellow, adding coats of beige and white and blending the whole thing with my fingertips while it is still wet. Over this I put some crimson and white for blushed areas and some light violet for shadow areas, blending all the time with the fingers.

For negro tones, I use a base of yellow ochre, with overcoatings of raw seina, burnt seina and burnt ochre.

Most of it, regetably, is trial and error ....
Bear in mind that most flesh is lighter than you think (except that which is darker )

Good luck - and let us know how you get on.

Hi and welcome!

I agree it's very trial and error. If I'm painting figures in acrylics they tend to be small and I find the system 3 flesh tint paint works fine, with a bit of burnt umber for shadows and crimson for blush highlights. For larger figures and portraits I now use oils as I've found acrylics hard to blend and I keep it pretty simple - I use yellow ochre, alazarin crimson and titanium white for basic flesh tones and a bit of burnt umber added for shadows. I'd just use more crimson for blush tints. I've seen textbooks which recommend adding ultramarine blue for shadows but that hasn't worked for me when I've tried it.

Good luck!
Elise

Hello everyone and thank you for your warm welcome.
Actually l have taken up the hobby of bringing to life doll kits and making them into life-like babies (dolls)
This has became a challenge. Although l have completed one or two l still feel l have alot of improving to do and who better to ask for help with colours but artists themselves.
What propted me to join the forum is when l seen an artists impression of a woman being shown on tv and l thought if only l could match those skin tone colours.

l paint with genesis heat set paints not sure if you have ever heard of them although l believe alot of the reborn artists use arylic paints.
l have to apply one coat at a time then bake in oven to set them and then carry on etc.
l have flesh colours, ultramarine blue,yellow ochre,red,white,burnt umbre,and a few others,although l feel there maybe some other colours l should add to my kit.
l am trying to use a natural sea sponge to apply the colours. If anyone has anyother advice please throw it this way.

Thanking you for your help much appriecated

I've just had a look at the "reborning " stuff - I'd never heard of it... do you make the dolls just for yourself or to sell?
flesh tones - i read once that the old masters used a green underpaint and tried that but really it didn't make any difference. I just use trial and error - pretty much the colours everyone has suggested and have alos learned that skin is much lighter than you think. keep to the alizarin - don't use a pink it looks awful - i know - i've tried it urgghh realy unnatural while just touching the alizarin gently and blending the edges in brings a good natural flush

Hi jeannie, nice to meet you.

l make the dolls as a hobby maybe one day l'll sell them if anyone is interested.

The doll in the photo is one l made she's only my first but she is still to pink l need to get a more life-like tone.
What colour is alizarin?

l have a Quinacridone Crimson but l'm not sure if they do a alizarin crimson in genesis paints.

The paints l use are listed in the link below if anyone can spot a good colour for me to use please send it my way as l would like to learn this art. Could never do what you guys do that requires skill and l haven't got any.


http://www.jacksonsart.co.uk/wildcardse ... oil_colour

used to watch watercolour challenge on tv omg loved that programme just wish they'd bring it back.

Its just a matter of practicing - I couldn't make the dolls - I have no skills at swewing and knitting despite mum and gran doing both constantly. I have tried but I find it boring so i don't practice. See? its just start from a small beginning and work on it - but if you have the interest you'll practice much more.
alizarin is a cool red, sort of blue toned and its transparent which makes it good as a glazing paint because its lets the undercolour show through so you can get fine differences in shades. The closet i think probably is the quinacridone it looks quite a cool red.
The doll is lovely but must take you AGES to finish - I guess its one of those hobbies where you need to find a market where people who collect will pay ££ to get you a decent return on time invested. But some hobbies are like that and its the creating thats the fun

The Baby looks so real it's scary.It's so beautiful.
Going back to your question the old masters used to do undertones of green.

You could try mixing ochre sienna red white and a slight touch of veridian and a smidging of ultramarine until you get the right mix skin has some yellowwhich I don't think has been mentioned.

Thank you so much for your kind comments. l enjoy this hobby very much.
l'm a very stubborn person who won't give up until l become one of the best.
l will start practising more and more and try out all your hints and tips on colours and you will be the first to see my next finshed doll.

l have looked at all your painting on your websites and your talent is truely amazing.
l love this forum it's so nice and very friendly and l am so happy to have met you all.

Helen

I find it helps to simplify the approach because the combinations become infinite. First mix some sort of orange that you feel is right - so find the right yellow and red mix - for me it's cadmium lemon yellow and alizarin crimson - and for babies it's closer to the reds than the yellows. Second mix the exact complement of this orange - ie some sort of blue/green - more towards green for a reddy orange; more towards blue for a yellowy orange. Bring the complement to the same tone as the orange by adding some white. Now you have two mixtures which you can add together in different combinations to adjust the saturation of the colour. By adding different levels of white you have nearly everything you need for the basic hues.

Hope this helps,
Ilsa

The doll looks scarily realistic! I ocurred to me that instead of marketing them as cute things a la Franklin Mint, you could go the fine art way and start doing them as installation pieces. Have a look at some stuff by Ron Muek for example. He uses very lifelike models of people in strange situations and scales of size. Very unnerving.

thanks dennis

Ilsa that has been very helpful thank you so much.

Regards

Helen xx