Firstly, I've been through Google, and the URLs provided here on the forum for custom follower appearances, and I've made sure to use any custom appearance mods as master files when in the CK.

The issue I'm having is that I'll create a modded custom appearance player in-game, export the face using spf , and then when I try to import it into the CK Chargen parts tab, I only get a vanilla Skyrim version of the face. Specifically, I'm using a race mod, and apachii hair mod (although I'm fairly certain I used a vanilla hairstyle). Here's the process I went through, step by step...

1. Started a new game as the Temptress race with a custom appearance
2. saved game (I imagine this part isn't necessary)
3. exported face data using spf
4. quit game and changed temptress race to a .esm using esmify self option in Wryebash. (Apachii hair already had .esm format by default so I left it alone)
5. opened CK, and saved new mod with same name as spf name to keep it simple
6. opened skyrim.esm, update.esm, apachiihair.esm, temptress.esm (displays as a .esp master file after the esmify), and .esp as the active file
7. Created a new actor, chose Lunari race, checked the female box (matching in-game face race and gender)
8. moved to chargen parts tab, and chose to import .npc file
9. Previewing the head or body showed that the face was totally vanilla: blue eyes turned green, face was low quality and dull. Hair seemed the same, but I'm 90% sure I chose a vanilla hair option
10. Repeated the entire process (after espifying the race mod before starting the game) with a new name, and received the same results

Is there something I'm missing? Everything I've read or watched makes it seem like converting the .esp files to master files is the key to using mods for custom appearances in the CK, but I'm not seeing any evidence that the CK knows that the mods are there.

Is this something you can't do in the CK? Do I have to create a racial preset instead? I noticed that in the guides, they tend to create modded racial presets as templates and import the appearance that way, rather than just making an actor, but nothing stands out as making one less possible than the other to me.

It sounds like you're doing everything right - not that I've ever tried to make an NPC with custom race or hair, mind you.

Still, if it's just things like hair, eyes and skin, you might be able to just reset the vanilla options to use the modded variants. The face geometry is the important thing, I'd have thought.

Alternatively, what happens if you try and make an NPC of that race from scratch in the CK? Can you get the hair/eyes/whatever to appear then? If so, what happens if you import your saved face over a char that's already of the correct race and so on?

I once created an npc as male when I needed a female. So I changed the six in the CK and the male face stuck for some reason. I couldn't get a female head on that actor no matter what I tried. Eventually I junked the NPC and made a new one. Maybe this is something similar.