Virtually Stunning Alex Makeover Progress

I previously wrote that I was very disappointed with VS Alex. I purchased her impulsively and I was really sorry about that. There wasn't one thing I liked about her except her body.  I cut off all her hair and accidentally tore her scalp in the process. At that point I just wanted to throw the head away. I tried other heads on the body but her neck is huge and she is quite tall. Nothing looked right.
Using acetone, I removed her lips, cheek and eyebrow screening and some of the eyeshadow. I started liking the look immediately.
The third picture shows the current appearance of the head. I still would like to soften the eyeshadow somewhat and do something a little more defined with the lips. I used pastels and water color pencils the same way I learned to do a faceup on a resin doll. I sealed my work with a matte spray.
When I reheated her head to put it back on her body, I held my fingers on her cheeks and pushed in while it was cooling. This gave her more defined cheekbones.
She is wearing the same wig as the middle picture. The colors are different as I changed some internal settings on my camera to improve the quality of the pictures. The bangs were thinned.
I'm pleased with the progress. She looks less cartoon-like and I didn't completely ruin her and that's not an easy task. ;-)

Original Virtually Stunning Alex

After she was balded.

Now

I have to admit that I still do not like her face but it's much better IMO. What do you think?

Picture of the Week ~ Veronica Hage

This week's featured photo was taken by Veronica Hage who posts on Doll Divas and the W Club. The doll was originally an Aerodynamic Vanessa Fashion Royalty. She is dressed in the fashion from Bewitching Luchia.

Click on the picture to see it full-sized.

The re-root and styling is by Marina. Veronica enhanced the eyes and eyebrows and repainted the lips.

I asked Veronica how she set up the photo and about the camera she uses. This is her reply:

"I used a black velvet background made from an old skirt. I have to keep props to a minimum for quick cleanup as I don't have a lot of time with three young kids. I use two lights for my setup. One at each side. My camera is a Canon Rebel XSi. This is my first SLR and I took a short evening class on the basics at my local community college. I've been using it for about six months now and love it."

Her suggestions for other collectors regarding doll photography:

Look at the doll carefully before shooting. Look for stray hairs, little bits of fuzz, hand position, hair position. Look from the level at which you're going to take the photo. If you see something distracting remove it or fix it. Look again to double-check. Most of one's time taking pictures is setting up.

You can see more of Veronica's collection and photography on Flickr  and on her website.