If you’re going to spend hours delicately painting layer after layer of paint, hours detailing, and days micro-rooting hair, it’s worth the effort to open your reborn’s nostrils to complete the newborn look. This is fairly easy to do, although with most revivals the techniques vary depending on what suits the artist best. There are two most popular ways to open the nostrils, firstly, after baking for the first time, while the head is still warm, gently push a toothpick through the nose, working it in a circular motion to open the nostrils nasals to the desired size. This process can be repeated after any of the heatsetting, and it is recommended to do it at least a few times during the rebirth process to ensure that they do not close again. Another option is to drill the nose with a file, which can be attached to an electric drill or simply held by hand and pushed.
Once you break the vinyl at the nostril, keep filing back and forth until you’re satisfied you have a smooth finish with no sharp edges or rough spots. This method is more effective as it opens a larger hole and actually removes a certain amount of vinyl instead of just pushing it to the side. If you decide to use the toothpick method, it is important that when you are heat setting your final layer you take two skewers of bamboo, or similar, the intended width of your nostril and cut them into 4cm long pieces. While your head is still warm, insert them into your nose and leave them in place while it cools down. Once your doll is attached, they can be removed and will leave a more desirable and permanent nostril on your reborn, consistent with that of a real newborn. Once you have the hair in place, it is recommended that you cut a small piece of felt, using a darker neutral color, and glue it inside the head behind the nose when you glue the hair in place. This does two things, it will keep the stuffing from leaking out or, if the stocking containing the glass beads breaks, it will keep it contained inside the head. It will also give the nostrils a look of depth, which only adds to the realism. The way you open your reborn’s nose will be something that you decide for yourself to what best suits your technique and will evolve over time until you find what works best for you as an artist.