Applying Halloween Makeup

From LoveToKnow Makeup

Applying Halloween makeup can be a daunting task. Even the pre-packaged kits in the drugstores may always seem not to turn out quite like you'd planned—or how they show it on the picture. That's ok. With a few tips, you can become a few steps closer to a master.

You don't need to hire a makeup artist for this.

MAC Halloween Makeup

It may take years to perfect your skills as a special effects makeup artist. However, with a little contouring, the right tools, and a tube or bottle of fake blood, you can create the perfect Halloween face for yourself, your partner, or the whole community if you're up for a challenge.

The Tools for Applying Halloween Makeup

Be ready for spills.

You'll want a towel for cleaning up spills and keeping the makeup off the costume. Ideally, you'll do the makeup application near a sink so you'll have access to water to use in conjunction with the towel when needed. When you start out, go ahead and wrap the towel around the shoulders of your "victim."

Take care of hair.

If you or your subject has long hair, you'll need a hair tie to keep stray strands from interfering with your ghoulish masterpiece. There's nothing like green face paint in a witch's black strands to ruin the illusion of ghastliness.

Keep sponges on hand.

Sponges are great because they can really pack on the color. You can get makeup wedges or rounds in the cosmetics part of any drugstore. Buy whichever style you feel most comfortable working with, but wedges are usually easiest to work with because the corners are conducive to precise application.

Don't forget the makeup palette.

And of course you'll need a solid makeup palette. You may not want to use your department store cosmetics for most of this. Drugstore lines like Wet n Wild, Rimmel, Jane, and NYX have good quality colors (for eye makeup, bruises, dark circles, etc), shimmer products (great for little princesses and fairies), and more. You won't be finding the aforementioned creamy green base there, though, so check your costume store or the Halloween section of your favorite catch-all store.

A word on sensitive skin.

For foundation, you can even take a light color from one of the drugstore lines and add crushed up, cheap eye shadow and mix them together. This works especially well for those with sensitive skin who don't wish to put the thicker costume makeup on.

Note: make sure you do an allergy test at least 48 hours before applying the Halloween makeup to your whole face.

Shadows and Light

If you know anything at all about contouring when it comes to regular makeup, you'll utilize that knowledge now. If you don't, that's fine, too. It's easy.

Add darker colors to the areas you want to recede.
Add lighter colors to the ones you want to pop forward.

When applying Halloween makeup, you'll make your lines more distinct and your color contrasts more obvious.

Here's an example: skeleton makeup.

You'll use black and white makeup to complete the look. On the forehead, cheekbones, chin, and end of the nose, you'll see the white makeup (apply it to your whole face first. You'll go over it later). Since the cheeks should be sunken in and the eye sockets should be empty, you'll use black surrounding the eyes (follow your eye sockets in a circular motion for guidance) and underneath the cheekbones, blended downward. In a triangular shape surrounding the nose, you'll need to add black as well.

You can use a deep gray or charcoal color to blend the white areas and black areas together if you wish. This creates a gradient—and more believable shadowy appearance. For the mouth, you'll again use black and white. Paint your lips black with either lipstick or black cream makeup. Then add short vertical lines above and below the lips to give the illusion of teeth.

The Magic of Making Things Disappear

Sometimes you just need to make things go away. Your eyebrows, for example. Or your lips. To make your eyebrows disappear, as in vampire makeup (you'll want highly arched black brows for that), you can cover your own with spirit gum and then draw on more with waterproof black liner. For lips, it's best to use a concealer in a shade that matches your skin tone (or your face makeup, if different from your skin tone).

Blood, Gore, and Special Effects

If you want to be a believable zombie or monster, you're going to have to dabble in the fine art of blood and gore application. AllHallowsEve.com suggests using red food color, corn syrup, and chunky peanut butter to make believable gore. Now that you've got the blood and gore down, you can apply it to make it look like a gash, a bullet wound, or something else. This site explains how to create realistic wounds.

A Final Word

Practice makes perfect, so give yourself time to perfect your skills. It really helps to study your face in the mirror for the most adequate placement of the colors. Also, don't forget that allergy test before applying Halloween makeup to your whole face. Nothing kills the Halloween spirit like an itchy rash all over your face and neck, or a trip to the hospital..

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