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Face Painting

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Butterfly face painted on a childs cheek

How to Face Paint: 5 Things You Must Know Before Getting Started

Hardly a fete or event goes by without somebody offering face painting (certainly in the UK), its simple and fun and can also be an entertainment event by itself. Here’s a great article about getting started with face painting and steps on how to face paint a butterfly sent in by professional face painter Philadelphia Tivoli.

Learning how to face paint can be easy and lots of fun once you know how. It’s a great way to have fun with the kids especially at birthday parties and special occasions. By learning how to face paint you can save yourself a fortune by not having to hire a face painter, but you’re probably too busy to go out and take a face painting class right? You’d rather learn how to face paint from home and that’s exactly why I wrote this article and The Comprehensive Guide to Face Painting”

Here are 5 things that you need to know about learning how to face paint:

1. Face Paints:

You’ll of course have to buy face paints, but what kind of paint do you buy? You should only buy/use face paint that’s specially made for the face and body. The most important thing to look out for when buying face paint is whether or not they comply with various authorities in your country (e.g. U.S. FDA.) within the guidelines for use on the skin. Water based face paint is the most popular and easiest to wash off – It’s used by people just starting to learn how to face paint and by professional face painters.

2. Paint Colors:

Start out with getting a palette that has black, white and the primary colors – red, blue and yellow. With these colors you can mix what ever color you need and this will you give you great practice if you have just started learning how to face paint. Then once you’ve started painting quite often you’ll start to notice that you’ll need certain colors more so than others. And you can buy these specific colors in addition to black, white, red, blue and yellow. E.g. You might find that green is a popular color so instead of constantly mixing blue and yellow together to make green you might want to buy a palette of green paint.

3. Brushes:

When I learnt how to face paint I used a thin brush for detail, a couple medium sized brushes and a large brush for larger areas. This combination of brushes worked really well for me and I recommend it to you

4. Hygiene:

Hygiene is extremely important in face painting and something you must be aware of when learning how to face paint. Never paint someone who has: any open cuts or sores on their face, a cold sore or conjunctivitis or any other known infectious skin condition, a food allergy or allergic reactions to soaps, skin creams, etc without a prior skin test.

5. Get Designs:

Coming up with your own designs can be difficult and coming up with popular designs that kids will definitely love is even harder that’s why I created The Comprehensive Guide to Face Painting” (Downloadable PDF) it has 50 popular step-by-step photo designs and much more need to know information about learning how to face paint. It will fast track you as a painter!

Face Painting Ideas

Running out of face painting ideas and need to spice things up a little? I know how hard it can be to come up with new face painting ideas when you’ve got ‘painters block’ so hopefully these 5 ideas will help you out at your next face painting gig or party. 

1. Glitter:

Glitter can add a whole new dimension to your face painting! It can also transform your face paintings for amateur to professional! They can be pretty cheap if you know where to buy them and it’s very easy to apply!  They work especially well with ‘princess’ and ‘fantasy’ designs and kids love them! As with face paint, you need to remember to only use glitter and stick on jewels that are safe to put on a persons skin (eg. body glitter) Do NOT use aluminum glitter – polyester only.  Aluminum glitter can hurt the eyes and skin. There are different types of glitter – Glitter Gel, Glitter (Iridescent) Powders and Glitter Dust. I suggest you try them all out and see which one works best for you.

2. Stick – On – Jewels:

Stick on jewels can also add a whole new dimension to your face painting, transforming your face paintings for amateur to pro.  And they’re so easy to use even kids can do it. Simply peel off the back of the jewel and stick the ‘sticky’ part of the jewel directly onto the skin or onto the paint that’s on the skin. That’s it! Also you can get plastic jewels that need to be stuck on with a little dab of paint.

3. Combining Makeup with Face Painting:

Combining cosmetic makeup with face painting is a great idea if done right and it can save you time! For example Blush can be used to make rosy cheeks on a bunny rabbit instead using pink face paint. Blush is creates a softer color and is quick to apply. Eye Liner Pencil can be used to outline the eyes or any part of a design. For beginners it’s much quicker and easier than using a brush. Eye Shadow can also be used and perhaps blended with paint on the face. It’s up to you!

Experiment with these different mediums and find out what’s right for you, what you like to use and what you think looks most effective!

4. Body Painting to Match the Face Painting:

Kids love this idea, trust me – I’ve tried it many a time, it makes them feel like they have a costume on and really lets them have fun with the character they’ve been painted whether it be a princess or vampire! Although this might sound like it’s complicated and will take up heaps of time – it won’t. As long as you keep them simple.

For example if you’re painted a pretty pink princess face design, why not complement it with a pretty pink bracelet. All you do is take some pink paint, and paint with a brush, a line around the wrist. It’s that simple, just use your imagination!

5. Costumes and Face Painting:

Costumes and face painting, its fun no matter what age you are! And it can be quite easy too, the costumes don’t have to be over the top. Try a pair of bunny ears to go with a bunny design, or a tiara to go with a princess. How about a black cape to go with a vampire design or a stocking filled with newspaper, pinned on the end of your t-shirt to look like a tale to match a tiger design? The ideas are endless, just get a little creative, use your imagination and most importantly, have fun!

How to Face Paint a Butterfly

Here is a face painting design of a small and simple butterfly that you can try at home. You don’t have to use the same exact colors, do some experimenting of your own and most importantly have fun!

Step 1: With a small paintbrush take some pink paint and paint the wings of the butterfly.

Step 2: Take a paintbrush with a pointed tip and use black paint to outline the butterfly and paint a vertical line for the body.d see our current exhibitions here.

Step 3: With the same paintbrush with a pointed tip, use black paint to the antennas. And that’s all there is to it!d discounts.

About the author

Philadelphia teaches people how to face paint with her popular ebook “The Comprehensive Guide to Face Painting” – it has 50 fantastic step-by-step photo designs and all the information you need to know about learning how to face paint. Grab your copy today and/or check out her free face painting lessons! Click here to learn how to face paint with FacePaintingTips.com.

Copyright Philadelphia Tivoli, 2006
This article has been reproduced courtesy of http://www.FacePaintingTips.com.
You may freely reprint this article on your website or in your newsletter provided this courtesy notice and the author name and URL remain intact.

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