♡ studio darjeeling ♡

handcrafted dollworks since 2013 retired faceup artist

[studiodarjeeling]

Long time no post! Cross-posting from IG:

FOR ADOPTION: MNF Sircca in NS with faceup by me. $300 + shipping OBO (international customers, please contact me first!) PayPal G/S only

Originally was hanging on to this head for possible MNF version of Polaire but decided against it ultimately. I've dressed her up nicely with a new faceup featuring painted upper & lower lashes and embroidery floss bows inspired by Simone Rocha. Bows are attached using white glue so can be easily removed with a quick water soak if they're not to your taste.

Nothing under $250, please! Faceup is painted with Tamiya and Golden acrylics and soft pastels, fully sealed with MSC UV Cut. Does not include eyes.

Ships from USA. Priority Mail is domestic default, First Class International for international shipping. Please let me know if you require additional services like insurance or Registered Mail. Allow 1-2 weeks for packing and shipping process.

Message me here or DM on Instagram if interested in purchasing! Priority will be given to customers who are willing to pay in full. Thank you!

[studiodarjeeling]

A blushy, sparkly Maddybear Dolls Elle faceup I did as a special commission for the creator of Maddybear Dolls herself! Forgot to upload here.

As a reminder, general Studio Darjeeling faceup services are permanently suspended. I do offer occasional faceups for trade or as commissioned work for fellow artisans but as a business those days are over :)

[studiodarjeeling]

While I'm at it, let's catch up:

Tamako Rocket had her face refreshed by none other than the world-famous, talented @micaeverywhere!

Femtocell's signature outfit was completed and I also indulged in some very pricey hand-tufted rugs.

I finished the faceup on Polaire's second head (Little Monica Sweet Sophia) and became very sad over the fact that Little Monica shut down. If time/budget allows I'll trawl the secondhand marketplace for an Innocent Sophia, Sarubia, or Yuria.

For Polaire's 8th birthday I also commissioned a peach Selkie-inspired dress from hauteplastic/lovelywoods to match my own Peach Skin French Puff. We also have matching Nodaleto dupe shoes.

[studiodarjeeling]

A little moodboard I made for rebranding Studio Darjeeling! I want this blog to be my little hobby space, where I show up occasionally to craft & create or take nice pictures of my remaining collection.

These days I don't have nearly as much time to focus on my dolls as I used to but coming back to this archive of my past faceup work has been refreshing :) I am more active on Instagram also as @studiodarjeeling but I'm testing the waters to see if coming back to Tumblr as a platform might be more rewarding.

[studiodarjeeling]

A whole 2+ years later I think I finally have a working concept for my Nimphaery Tales Quimera, who's been sitting on my shelf half-finished this entire time. This idea happened completely on a whim on a random Tuesday morning so I'm not completely sold on it yet, but if I end up going through with I'll unfortunately have to scrap her current faceup. I just like the idea of having her be a dragon scholar with big bushy eyebrows and a monocle...

Her new look doesn't really quite speak "Nell" to me anymore though, so I'm now considering fancy-sounding A names for the character. Suggestions welcome!

[studiodarjeeling]

Made my first doll company purchase in years this week - can't wait to give this sculpt some sultry makeup and matte red lips when it arrives! I know it'll look great with Polaire's mint hair ;')

[studiodarjeeling]

It's so good to see you back on my dash! I look forward to seeing your collection more, they're all so beautiful!

It's nice to be back! Glad you're still here :D

[studiodarjeeling]

Will you ever open another Ery pre-order? Sorry if this has been covered elsewhere--love your work!

I think you have me confused? I’m not Culur.

[studiodarjeeling]

New outfit doesn't quite fit her so there's a safety pin for now, but I'm happy with this secondhand outfit I just received! I've always dreamt of putting Polaire in the fancy stuff that Angell-Studio produces and thankfully the dress has just enough leeway to fit her into it.

[studiodarjeeling]

If you'd like to ask me any goofy questions my inbox is always open! I'm still figuring out what to do with this space. My current style/aesthetic is so vastly different from what I liked 3?? 5??? years ago and now that this is more of a doll blog than a portfolio I'll probably have to do some restructuring...

[studiodarjeeling]

Your faceups are utterly gorgeous, I'm in love with your style and skills! Do you have any advice for someone wanting to start dabbling in doll repaints themselves? Any tips for what supplies to use?

Hi! Chances are your question is answered somewhere here: https://studiodarjeeling.tumblr.com/tagged/faq

I also have an ages-old tutorial I made here: https://studiodarjeeling.tumblr.com/tagged/tutorial

[studiodarjeeling]

Also just wanted to add that I'm back, sort of, and taking things at my own pace. I still have no intention of returning to faceup commissions but over the past couple of months I've been liking my dolls a lot more again, and I'm enjoying the hobby as a self-indulgent creative outlet this time. I have a new doll, femtocell, who is a Studio Bitamin Enkiri (human version) with a new faceup by me and the first doll I own under 43cm! Polaire and Tamako have also received light touch-ups, mostly just extra blush on the cheeks and lips so they won't look as washed out in picture. Babyfrog (Daydream Grace) is now pending changes because femtocell stole her entire color scheme, and Nell (Nimphaery Tales Quimera) is still pending on character and style.

I might also rebrand Studio Darjeeling and give my site/graphics/logo etc. a little facelift. I have so many fun fonts now and I've been dying to use them on a personal project.

[studiodarjeeling]

This lovely lady has already been sold, shipped, and accounted for but I thought I would post her here as part of my faceup portfolio. I wanted to try something very different from my usual fare and I'm honestly super glad I took the leap into the unconventional with this "Lovesick" faceup. She is a Fairyland F60 Nanuri 2016 with no mods, but a whole lot of face paint and pearl cabochons.

[studiodarjeeling]

Tamako Rocket has achieved her final form! Soy wig w/rainbow bangs fashioned by the wonderful and talented Steo’s Studio :)

[studiodarjeeling]

Hello. My name is Alexander and I've recently really caught on on the SIO2 dolls. And I saw how beautifully you painted the Dragen-Li/Civet Cat and noticed that you do commissions. While I understand that you're not currently accepting new clients I was really hoping that you might consider opening up again down the road? So beautifully made and I would love nothing more than to have one of my own. Thanks, Alexander.

Hey -

Sorry this is probably coming a year late. I do not foresee myself opening up commissions anytime soon or in the far future. If I choose to paint dolls again it will be pre-customized and sold as a completed item. Thanks for your understanding!

[studiodarjeeling]

Hi! What has made you leaving the hobby? (No judgement, just curious!)

I don’t know when this question was asked, and I haven’t been here (as in Tumblr) for a very long time. I think it was a combination of things that made me not want to continue pursuing the hobby - I felt a lot of pressure to keep spending money to “upgrade” my collection, maintain a squeaky clean online persona, and I really didn’t like the person I was turning into. Being someone with a name in the community was giving me major anxiety, too. On top of that I was experiencing health problems due to long hours & bad posture with trying to do faceup work as a means of sustainable income.

I’ve been pretty inactive in the hobby minus commissioning one thing for my dolls recently and I’m doing much better.

[studiodarjeeling]

Finally tackled one of the last two commissions in my 2018 backlog - full artist’s choice SIO2 Ragdoll! This has honestly been one of my favorite commissions to date and it’s been inspirational going wild with the airbrush and trying out coloring styles I normally wouldn’t touch.

I’m extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to do so. Thank you @uravityochakos!