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Face Painting

Module 07

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7. Module 07: Special effects

Table of Contents

7. Module 07: Special effects ................................................................................................................ 1

7.1 Incorporating Special Effects Makeup ....................................................................................................... 2

7.2 Materials and Supplies for Special Effects ................................................................................................. 2

7.3 Creating Wounds and Gore........................................................................................................................ 7

7.4 Using Prosthetics ........................................................................................................................................ 9

7.5 Teeth, Fur and other Accessories ............................................................................................................ 12

7.6 Mouth Slashes Design .............................................................................................................................. 14

7.7 Supernatural Tutorial: Vampire Design ................................................................................................... 14

7.8 Transformation Tutorial: Demon Design ................................................................................................. 14

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7.1 Incorporating Special Effects Makeup

After all this practice, let’s kick it up a notch! Special effects makeup may seem intimidating, but many

aspects of it can be quite simple. Using a few specialized materials and techniques, you can create bullet

holes, claw marks, wounds of all descriptions, and many other creepy, scary effects!

In this module, we’ll teach you all about special effects makeup!

Materials and Supplies for Special Effects

Creating Wounds and Gore

Using Prosthetics

Teeth, Fur, and other Accessories

Mouth Slashes Design

Supernatural Tutorial: Vampire Design

Transformation Tutorial: Demon Design

7.2 Materials and Supplies for Special Effects

When it comes to scary makeup, you have a lot of options; you can do face painting, but there is also

sculpting wax, liquid latex makeup, silicone gels, and various premade prosthetics you can glue to your face.

The first step when working with a new product is to test for allergies. This is SO incredibly important! Never

skip this step.

Always double check that you are NOT allergic to any ingredients before applying ANYTHING new to your

face. You can always test a small area on the inside of your wrist where you might apply perfume and wait a

few minutes, if it seems okay, then go ahead and proceed. If anything makes your face burn or tingle unduly,

STOP and wash it off immediately.

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There are hundreds of products that are used in the making of special effects, but we’ve rounded up some

of the most useful ones that you should have in your beginner’s kit! This doesn’t meet that you need to buy

everything on this list, of course. When building your kit, begin by only buying what you’ll actually use (a

good rule for most aspects of life!) – this will help you keep your costs down and your kit uncluttered.

Spirit gum and spirit gum remover–Spirit gum is an adhesive used to keep just about anything lightweight

in place, including most small prosthetic and wax appliances. It goes on liquid, and requires activation to

make it nice and sticky. To activate, you apply it to area and gently tap it with a finger until it becomes sticky.

To remove, load a brush with remover and brush around the edges of prosthetic appliance to release. It’s

important to have the remover, or you’ll be in some pain removing your prosthetics, and run the risk of

tearing them.

Liquid Latex–Being careful of latex allergies, spot test this before using. If you’re using on an area with hair

(even little baby hairs!), put down aloe vera gel before laying down the latex. If you don’t, your hair is coming

out when you remove the latex! You can also shave the area you’re applying the latex to. It also will

absolutely destroy clothing, so use a drop cloth or other clothing protection while applying. Make sure you’re

using cosmetic or skin safe latex, as other types can contain twice the ammonia and may cause intense

reactions. Liquid latex is great for creating blisters, wounds and decaying skin.

Blood - If you’re gonna do special effects, you gotta have blood, right? There are three main types, with

different viscosities. The thinnest is stage (or liquid) blood, which is thin, bright right, and great for superficial

wounds and squirting effects. Next is gel blood, which has a lovely deep red color and a consistency similar

to honey. This is great for deeper wounds, never dries and has a fabulous drip. Thickest is blood paste, also

known as scab blood. This is very thick, and is great for simulating coagulated blood in very deep wounds or

burns.

Gelatin –This material has its positive and negative sides, but some artists swear by it! On the plus side, it’s

cheap, you can make it at home (although it is DEFINITELY different than edible gelatin!), it readily accepts

makeup and is highly moldable. On the negative side, it must be worked with while hot and cools quickly, so

you don’t have a lot of time to lay it down. This can lead to rough edges. It has a distinct smell that some find

unpleasant, and it’s not a vegan product. It can be used with molds to make large casts, or laid down to

create wounds.

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Injury Wheel – This excellently named tool is a must have for your looks! An injury wheel is a set of 5 colors

of crème makeup perfect for creating the appearance of various injuries. There aren’t just injury wheels,

though! There are also burn, corpse, zombie, and many more.

Nose and scar wax –This wax is applied on top of a layer of spirit gum and molded into Chelsea smiles, noses,

and various other wounds. This wax is best in photo shoots – a controlled environment where you won’t be

moving around a lot or getting too hot. If you’re planning on attending a party wearing scar wax, expect it to

look very different at the end of the night. Positives of the wax are low cost, long working time, minimum

amount of required equipment, and less chance of allergic reaction. Negatives are that it is very sticky, and

blending out the edges can be difficult for novice artists. As it is wax, it stays soft, and reacts to body heat,

but can be sealed with a layer of liquid latex.

Rigid Collodion – This excellent liquid is a simple and effective way to create scars! You simply paint on

several layers, allowing each one to dry fully, and it creates the illusion of a deep scar. It is best used with

grease paint underneath to create color and depth.

Setting powder and spray – You’ll want to use both if you want your look to last! Setting powder is applied

on top of foundation, color, latex, or wax. Setting spray is your finishing move – the last thing you do before

you’re done. Both will ensure that your look is locked and loaded, and won’t be going anywhere all night!

Latex Sponge Wedge, Stipple Sponge, High-Quality Brush, Palette Knife, and Scissors – To apply all of this,

you’ll need many of the same types of brushes and sponges you would use for non-special effects face

painting. The only real difference is the palette knife, which you’ll use when working with the various waxes,

latex, and blood.

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Makeup remover – Isopropyl Myristate is the most common and popular makeup remover, but different

products require different removers. Water based makeups with only require soap and water. The various

glues and other products you’re putting on will require specialized removers, which will often be listed on

the packaging, or sold as a set.

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Contacts –These are not a ‘must have’ item, but we wanted to take a moment and discuss them. For the

zombie tutorial, we used two different colored contacts for the zombie’s finished look. Be careful with non-

prescription colored contacts and be sure to clean them thoroughly after each use and store them properly

until next time. If you’re going to wear these, buy quality products from stores you trust, and be very careful

– this is your vision we’re talking about! They can be uncomfortable and may take a moment to acclimate

to. Also, true “white out contacts” will impair your vision to nil while wearing them, and are generally used

for photo shoots, music videos, or filming… not attending parties. If you want eyes that look all white and

still want to be able to see you need to get the ones with the grid lines.

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7.3 Creating Wounds and Gore

To create realistic wounds and gore, you must first have to study them a bit! If you have a sensitive stomach,

this might not be an easy task. An alternative is to look at how other Special Effects Artists create their looks

– but there’s no substitution for the real thing!

When you are sitting down to plan your injury, there are some key questions to ask yourself.

What is this for? A photoshoot, a Halloween dance party, a costume competition? Depending on what you’re

doing it for, the medium you use will change.

What is the type of injury? A fresh cut, burn, scar, zombie bite or bullet hole? Take a look at the colors that

each one produces in real life (well, for the zombie bite perhaps look at animal bites!) and think about what

you’ll need.

Where will the injury be located? Again, depending on your plans, you’re going to want to place the wound

in a different place. If you’re going to dinner and drinks, having a ‘Chelsea Smile’ or other wound that goes

over your mouth and cheeks will end up being a giant pain for you. Think about what you’ll need to be able

to use… Your hands, your mouth, your eyes? You don’t want to do fantastic wounds on both palms only to

find that you can’t open doors for the rest of the night!

So – you’ve sat down, you’ve planned, and now you’re ready to start! For this example, we’re going to say

we’re going to do a cut face look for a Halloween party– but these steps will work for any large, single cut

wound.

As this look is for a Halloween party and we want it to stick and move well, we’ll use liquid latex.

To begin, either shave the area or apply aloe vera gel. This will make sure the liquid latex doesn’t pull out

your hair when you remove it later. Pull back your hair and secure it with clips or pins to get it completely

out of the way.

Get your supplies! You’ll need liquid latex, tissue paper, application sponge, blood, injury palette, makeup

brushes, setting powder, scissors, and foundation.

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Start applying a thin layer of liquid latex with your sponge, covering the full area of where the

injury will be. Over that, put a single ply sheet of tissue paper. Tear off the edges of the tissue

paper so only the paper on top of the latex is left. The latex should soften the edges of the paper

so you can pull the excess paper off easily.

Between each layer, blow-dry or fan the latex to ensure it is completely dry before starting the

next layer.

Repeat this step until you have a wound that is as deep as you desire – anywhere from 3 layers

for a shallow cut to 10 or more for very deep cuts. You don’t want to go too deep, though, as

you want it to look realistic.

Once you have applied all of the layers and allowed them to dry, apply some foundation on top.

You don’t need to worry about making this match your skin exactly, but try and make it close.

After color, dust with setting powder.

Take a pair of scissors and CAREFULLY cut a slit horizontally across the latex and tissue. You can

cut away some of the latex and tissue to open up the slit even more, and put on it gently to make

the edges curl like skin.

Using blush, red eyeshadow, red face paint, or your injury wheel, add red around the outside of

the wound – if it were real, it would be red and livid all around the cut, and it would be more red

towards the cut itself. The inside of the wound should be a deep, rich red color – you can play

with this as much as you want to create the look you desire!

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Finally, let’s get bloody! Gel blood is best for the inside of the wound, with stage blood all around

the outside to get those great bloody drips.

There you have it – a great, realistic cut face effect!

The process is basically the same for each type of material you’re going to use –plan the wound, choose the

material and placement, build up the material, clean up the edges to keep the wound looking realistic, scoop

out or cut into the material to create the wound, add color around the outside of the wound to create the

irritated, hurt skin, and then add deeper colors on the inside to create the wound itself. Add blood, and voila!

7.4 Using Prosthetics

Prosthetics are a great way to make extreme changes to the actual structure of your face or body! Often

referred to as ‘appliances’, these can be latex, silicone, gelatin, clay, papier mache, or many other materials.

They are attached with spirit gum or other prosthetic glue. With prosthetics, the same allergy rules apply –

test the glue and materials first to ensure that there will not be any reactions!

The easiest type are pre-made prosthetics, which you can order from any one of the many specialty shops

online. These are easy, but might not give you the perfect fit, as they are mass produced, one-size-fits-all

items. For the novice, however, they are the best place to start! There is a massive range of prosthetics –

You could have a bigger nose or chin, horns, half of your face hanging off, a cat’s nose, pointed elven ears or

so many more options.

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Custom made prosthetics will of course fit better, but are much more difficult and time consuming to make.

Something like antlers or horns would be fairly easy to construct with a paper clay, but appliances custom

built for your face will take a lot more work. They require casting – a process in which you build the shape

you desire, cast a negative, and then fill the negative with latex or silicone to produce the final appliance. In

these cases, you sometimes also need a mold of your own face – a process that you can do with a life casting

kit. This is something that is time intensive and can be expensive.

For the beginner, premade prosthetics are what we recommend. What you want to look at (if possible) are

the edges of the prosthetic. That’s going to be where quality is important. If your edges are thick, it’s going

to be extremely hard to blend the appliance in with your skin. You’ll end up with lines that make your

prosthetic extremely obvious.

For application, start with your plan the same as with wounds – where is the prosthetic going? Is it in a place

that will disallow eating, drinking, or movement? Are you using more than one appliance that overlaps?

Which should go on first? Clean the application area, and using spirit gum or the recommended adhesive for

your specific prosthetic, attach it to the desired area. Using makeup, blend out the area of attachment. Add

some blood or other assorted gore, and you’re all set!

For removal, use the recommended removal agent for the glue you used. Carefully remove the appliance to

protect both your skin and the appliance itself – the great thing about them is that they are reusable!

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7.5 Teeth, Fur and other Accessories

For these, the cardinal rules apply – beware of allergies when applying anything, think about if it will stop

you from moving, eating or drinking freely, and plan your look in advance!

Teeth are much like other prosthetics in that you can buy them premade for ease of use, but have a worse

fit, or make them yourself, which is more difficult but means that the fit will be more comfortable.

For making mouthpieces, a great medium is polymorph plastic. Polymorph plastic is an amazing sculpting

medium. All you need to do is put the beads of plastic into hot water, which softens the plastic, and then

you can sculpt it into whatever you want. Once it cools, it hardens. You can warm it back up if you need to

change anything. Using this medium, you can make custom mouthpieces using your own teeth as a mold,

and then adding teeth (also made with the plastic) for any effect you’re going for. It’s easy to add food

coloring to add color, otherwise the plastic becomes white when it is set.

Don’t be afraid to have fun with your accessories! Take inspiration from your fellow face painters. Look

around online – Pinterest, YouTube, and Instagram are all great resources to see what other people are

doing. It’s ideal to pick something that you are passionate about. If it’s for a particular party or event, see if

there is a theme that it is centered around or a costume contest and what the categories are and work with

that.

Pun-based costumes can be cute, funny, and/or groan worthy. It definitely is a conversation piece where

people try to guess your costume. A particular favorite was a person who was covered in red hairy looking

flames, and they were “Hell Toupee.”

Be aware that if you are wearing wings, tails, or something else that sticks out, you may have to be careful

about not smacking people in a crowded venue or even having your costume damaged from being in closed

quarters. Are you going to be able to get into the doorway? Are you going to be seated? Can you drive in the

costume and is there a bathroom there you can use to change into/out of costume?

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7.6 Mouth Slashes Design

In this video, The Ginger Artist and Tessa teach you how to create dramatic wounds using Liquid Latex and

tissue paper!

With a small variety of supplies, you can create intense special effects like these with ease!

This video features products that may cause allergic reactions – Be sure to test for allergies before using

any of the products mentioned on your face or other sensitive areas.

Share your looks with #facepaintwithtrendimi

7.7 Supernatural Tutorial: Vampire Design

Take to the night with this Vampire look! The Ginger Artist turns Tessa into a Mistress of the Night in this

video.

Follow along, and don’t forget to share your looks with the hashtag #facepaintwithtrendimi

7.8 Transformation Tutorial: Demon Design

For this look, inspiration came from traditional demons, the movie Mad Max: Fury Road, and from the bead

store! Switching up classic looks, incorporating interesting found objects, and creating something

otherworldly and new is what this look is all about!

Watch as Tessa takes The Ginger Artist to the underworld with this demon transformation, and share your

looks with the hashtag #facepaintwithtrendimi