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Author Topic: Questions about painting a pony.....  (Read 1598 times)

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Blackmp

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Questions about painting a pony.....
« on: July 21, 2017, 08:51:25 PM »
Ok,

I am not new to customizing. I am a long time Barbie/Monster customizer.

I was on youtube and saw a galaxy pony repaint that I loved. I have a very beat up, discolored pony, that I think would be a great candidate for this project.

However the customizer used nail polish on the pony. I don't use nail polish in my work. So is nail polish ok to use? Or are there issues with it?

My thought was to use aryclics on her for a full repaint.

Any advice is welcome.


Offline Uninu

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Re: Questions about painting a pony.....
« Reply #1 on: July 21, 2017, 11:35:01 PM »
Don't use nail polish, acrylic is the way to go :) Nail polish is not suitable for long lasting projects in my opinion.

Offline Pokeyonekenobie

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Re: Questions about painting a pony.....
« Reply #2 on: July 22, 2017, 01:02:35 AM »
I recommend glossy Testors or Model Masters brand Acrylic paints (they're made by the same company so they can be used together with no issues).  Or use the flat colors and then coat with a layer of the clear acrylic gloss to make it shiny like nail polish.  They go on smooth just like nail polish but won't damage your pony like nail polish can.

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Re: Questions about painting a pony.....
« Reply #3 on: July 22, 2017, 07:53:45 AM »
I have a feeling I know who youre talking about, If it is Iv actually talked to them quite a bit, but they insist on using nail polish, oh well to each their own. :p

But yeah personally I wouldnt recomend nail polish either. That stuff can get kinda bad down the road, especially when humidity is involved. x.x
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Offline Baby Sugarberry

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Re: Questions about painting a pony.....
« Reply #4 on: July 22, 2017, 08:07:54 AM »
Nail polish is a horrible choice for painting toys - it's prone to long term degradation, going sticky, yellowing, etc.
Acrylic is a much better option.  Might want to also check in with the community to make sure your 'beat up' pony isn't a rare one.  While it's not likely, there are some ponies out there that can be worth hundreds of dollars even in a condition most people would consider throwing them in the trash.
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Blackmp

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Re: Questions about painting a pony.....
« Reply #5 on: July 22, 2017, 11:34:25 AM »
Thank you! I would never put nail polish on one of my dolls. And if I wouldn't do it to a doll, I would not do it to a pony.

In my experience nail polish goes soft and sticky over time.

My beat up pony was a G1 Firefly. She was in a smoker's house and had yellowed. I tried my best to clean her up, but she was beyond just cleaning.
(She was my 1st buy off of ebay.) I will use Golden (brand, not color) paint on her and see how it goes.

« Last Edit: July 22, 2017, 08:31:24 PM by Blackmp »

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Re: Questions about painting a pony.....
« Reply #6 on: July 22, 2017, 03:36:06 PM »
In my experience nail polish goes soft and sticky over time.

In my experience as well - which is why I'm baffled that anyone would endorse nail polish as a long term craft supply.  :shocked:
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Re: Questions about painting a pony.....
« Reply #7 on: July 23, 2017, 07:11:59 PM »
I made a thread about this last year...http://mlparena.com/index.php/topic,383674.0.html

Nail polish will destroy the vinyl in the pony, ultimately melting the plastic and causing fusion of the plastic to the polish. Even with sealant there is no guarantee the pony will survive the process. Acrylic paint is the best medium for pony customs. :)
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Blackmp

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Re: Questions about painting a pony.....
« Reply #8 on: July 24, 2017, 02:55:58 PM »
Thank you for the thread ChocolateStarfire!

It was very helpful!

I am so glad I asked here before covering my pony in nail polish.

Like I said, if I wouldn't use it on my dolls, I wouldn't use it on a pony!

lostpony

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Re: Questions about painting a pony.....
« Reply #9 on: August 04, 2017, 09:25:11 PM »
Eh to comment on the content in that other thread, that youtuber has the most disgusting standards in acceptable paintwork too. She just slaps it on as says Perfect! and its not a "style" issue, shes promoting deadly poisons to children with no admonition as to precautions. I wonder how many people have serious neurological damage from trying to imitate her.

But on acrylics, i am dissatisfied tho i accept they are the currently accepted standard. At some point i hope to find the right paints for flexible pvc and until then i dont make any painted customs. But i applaud the rest of you who do such great work knowing how fragile the results are and the care required to keep them looking nice.

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Re: Questions about painting a pony.....
« Reply #10 on: August 05, 2017, 02:57:14 AM »
But on acrylics, i am dissatisfied tho i accept they are the currently accepted standard. At some point i hope to find the right paints for flexible pvc and until then i dont make any painted customs. But i applaud the rest of you who do such great work knowing how fragile the results are and the care required to keep them looking nice.

I've got to admit I'm curious now - what makes you dissatisfied with acrylics? I've only occasionally run into any fragility issues such as chipping when rehairing. Bleeding is another issue, but that mostly happens with customs without FBR, and with certain colours only.

My collection comprises customs made by myself and by others and none of them require any special care, unless you count glass cabin. Customs can be dusted, wiped or gently vacuumed just like any other ponies; I'm only careful with sculpted parts, styled hair and other "additions". That said, I don't really touch or handle my customs often, and I only dust them if I'm reorganising or moving the collection (which doesn't happen often! :lol: )
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lostpony

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Re: Questions about painting a pony.....
« Reply #11 on: August 05, 2017, 11:34:23 PM »
Well Griffin, a while back I bought a box of customs projects on ebay and I inherited a number of different things in that lot including some customs that had outlived their lifespans.  One was a G3 styling pony painted as the green unicorn, and it was made by a member here for a trade who recognized it in my stuff, and that was kinda fun.  But its paint was peeling and had separated from the pony surface quite a bit, even in places being soft and wrinkled similar to house-paint that has had a paint remover applied to it before being scraped off.  It was also worn through in some places that weren't separated or wrinkled.  It was whatever sort of acrylics people are generally using here, and it's true that I don't really know what all it went through between the time it was made and when I got it.

Pony PVC sweats plasticizer and I believe that is likely what caused the failure of the majority of the green paint job...there was a lot of plasticizer smell.  On most customs given enough time or poor storage conditions, and because acrylic paint is basically water-soluble, even if you seal it you can never subject it to the sort of heavy scrubbing I find seems to be necessary on ponies like the ones I come across that have had their tough lives of play.  If the plasticizer or solubility aren't to blame, then I am dubious about the paints not intended for flexing surviving "play" on flexible surfaces.  I don't think acrylics are actually very flexible and I don't think you can mash a customized pony without damaging the paint (though I have no tried it).

The original pony symbol and eye paint seems to survive all this just fine, however...this is the sort of durability I would be looking for, or at least something close to it.  I know, PVC paints like are used originally are toxic and can't be used outside of manufacturing environments, and might not even be legal in the US even in such environments.  Paints that are available that are anywhere near as durable are generally incompatible with the PVC and probably not flexible, so it is unclear whether there is a better solution for painting ponies than acrylics or not.

I think the best customs that last the longest are first created by those with the knowledge of what undercoat to use on the pony (and I think most good customizers use some sort of undercoat yes?) and then the right choice of which acrylic paint (because if I understand correctly, the "acrylic" is the pigment itself and there are a variety of materials it's mixed into to be paint, so not all acrylic paints are the same, correct?) followed of course by the right choice of what to "seal", or cover it up with to give it some stability against atmospheric moisture and surface contact.  But the key factor is to be treated more like art than a toy.  I don't think the best most durable customs can handle a cleanser scrub, or being "played" with. 

I don't personally want to make anything that can be so easily damaged, or acquire anything someone else invested such work and talent into that I have to treat so well to preserve.  I am rough on my possessions, and sometimes that isn't by choice.  Something very special will inevitably fall prey to some kind of foolish disaster if left in my possession, and one of the best things about original ponies (to me) is that they can handle quite a bit of such circumstances without being substantially damaged.

By no means am I saying that customs aren't wonderful.  They are, absolutely.  But they are no longer toys.  They are museum pieces, like any painting or sculpture.  That's a lot of responsibility.  I own toys.  If I customize a pony, it has to still be a toy...which means I can still drop it, step on it, have it fall into some kind of unexpected difficulty and be brushed off, maybe scrubbed, and returned to play.  Because the very best I can do to for my things is to treat them like toys....which means valuable and delicate works of art just aren't suitable for me, personally.

I believe the paint problem can be solved.  I haven't even exhausted the limited research I would have to do to know if there is actually a compatible solution readily available, and part of why I haven't is that I am basically ignorant and it's going to be a big undertaking to catch up on paint and chemistry/materials knowledge to find out, and the other reason is I don't want to lose hope by finding out there IS nothing readily available.  So I don't know. 

Offline Baby Sugarberry

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Re: Questions about painting a pony.....
« Reply #12 on: August 06, 2017, 01:25:52 PM »
Customs can be made as durable as the originals, though possibly not with full body repaint.

Personally I have always dyed my customs or used a bait that was already the right colour.  I have several that are over 20 years old, and still look just as nice as they did when I made them.  Paint doesn't always hold up as well, but you are correct in that not all acrylics are made equal.  High quality acrylics stand the test of time.  I played with all my customs, they were not display pieces, and I never sealed any of them.  The worst 'damage' I've had is some colour bleeding around orange and red paint.

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lostpony

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Re: Questions about painting a pony.....
« Reply #13 on: August 06, 2017, 04:48:09 PM »
Those are very cute Baby Sugarberry, especially Baby Sugarberry.

Yes matching the color of the bait, for example one of my projects is Applejack made from TE Partytime with laser-engraved symbols begun by someone else. I plan to use glitter-podge to complete the lasered symbols and replace her eyes with pale green zirconias and rehair, but leave her body in PartyTimes color which is pretty close but not exact.

The question i have, then, is what is the correct best-for-ponies acrylic paint? What undercoat? What sealant/top coat? For use either through airbrush, or for details with brush.

Thanks!

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Re: Questions about painting a pony.....
« Reply #14 on: August 07, 2017, 04:14:41 AM »
Those are very cute Baby Sugarberry, especially Baby Sugarberry.

Yes matching the color of the bait, for example one of my projects is Applejack made from TE Partytime with laser-engraved symbols begun by someone else. I plan to use glitter-podge to complete the lasered symbols and replace her eyes with pale green zirconias and rehair, but leave her body in PartyTimes color which is pretty close but not exact.

The question i have, then, is what is the correct best-for-ponies acrylic paint? What undercoat? What sealant/top coat? For use either through airbrush, or for details with brush.

Thanks!

I've been reading up on things that can seal the acrylic paint. And I've just brought Mod Podge Matt glue, I see if that works because I've got a cat LPS that I painted black to look like Luna from Sailor Moon.

Don't get gloss glue or spray don't work with acrylic paint.
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