When it comes to doll repainting, Mr Super Clear is the preferred sealant to use. No matter how good it is, it’s expensive to get unless you’re in Japan and the wait can be long when you’re relying on getting it back in stock at your favorite supplier.

Looking for an alternative has led me to Krylon UV-Resistant Clear Acrylic Coating. Krylon makes several variants so to be more specific, it’s this one:

Not this:

This particular matte finish was recommended to me by a friend who dabbled in miniature painting and occasionally used it to seal mecha-type cosplay outfits. It was designed specifically for plastics but will it work with vinyl used in dolls?

Our test subject… Ashlynn Ella.

She was chosen specifically because her face sculpt was generally flat which meant that most of the face will catch the sealant.

Ashlynn’s face is wiped…

Here’s the first coat of sealant. Notice how shiny it is? This looks a bit discouraging but the upside is that it does not feel gummy at all.

I felt as if the paints stuck to this sealant much better so I could do fine lines smoothly instead of using several strokes.

Pastels stuck to the sealant much better than with MSC. Unfortunately, dust and other debri were just as easily attracted so I often had to brush away unwanted artifacts.

Once the pastels were applied, they didn’t smudge off. I felt confident enough to do the rest of the details without sealing the pastel layer.

Notice how the sealant still looks just a little bit shiny? It could be that it’s being temperamental or that I didn’t shake the can well enough but the sealant did pretty well. It left the vinyl alone. The only real downside is that it wasn’t completely matte.

Not satisfied with the look, I did the final seal with Mr. Super Clear which took away the shine and gave her a true matte finish. Here’s the finished result!

For more photos, check it out at the gallery. She’s currently available at Etsy.

My final verdict? Krylon’s Matte spray was specifically designed for plastics, hard plastics. It will probably a better sealant for blushing Monster High bodies for example since the spray doesn’t atomize the way MSC is applied, hence, no risk of powdery side effects. It might even work really well for BJD dolls generally made with ABS or harder plastics.

Other repainters seem to be using Krylon Matte Spray… but I haven’t been won over completely due to the slight shine.

Further reading:

Have you used Krylon’s UV Clear Acrylic Coat spray? Please share your experience in the comments below!