Larissa

janda309

I need face painting help.  My niece's 4th birthday party is Saturday.  Apparently I'm doing face painting on a bunch of 4 year old's.  Obviously, I'm not doing a whole face like you do.  I'm just going to do like little lollipops or something.

Any ideas or tips?

 

ETA - forgot to mention it is a Candyland theme!

LarissaAnn

Ha, awesome! Just wait, you'll get sucked in like I did. Do you have supplies? Your best bet is Snazaroo brand, it's the easiest to use. The biggest trick is getting the right consistency. You want the paint to be nice and creamy, so when you add water to the cakes, really work it in. Not violently, don't smush your brushes and destroy them or anything, just keep working it til it's well mixed. If you have a small spray bottle, you can actually spritz the cakes with water at the start of the party so it starts to soak in and then you can just re-spritz as needed. If you do it that way, you don't even need to dip your sponges or brushes in water except to clean them off. The brushes that come with the small kits are crap, so if you want to make it easier on yourself buy some inexpensive brushes from the art brush aisle of a craft store. You want ones that come to a nice point, and I prefer synthetic. The most useful size tends to be #4 round, and if you've got a good point and a light touch, you won't need skinny brushes. If you want skinny, try #2. For small cheek art, you shouldn't need much more. To keep a nice point on your brush, load it by dragging it back along the paint. What else? Dots and swirls can jazz up any design. Don't do glitter unless you can find cosmetic glitter. I wish I had more warning, I'd send some. But if you want, you can use cosmetic shimmer powders over the paint, which you can find in a lot of makeup places. Oh! Try to stay out of direct sun and extreme heat, those or humidity will make the paints mushy and really tough to work with. If they do go mushy, it's counterintuitive, but you need MORE water. Dip the brush and then work just one small area of the cake into an inky consistency to be able to use it. Sorry for the wall of text, no time for html. If I think of more, I'll let you know, if you're confused, just ask.

janda309

I think I've got it.  SIL bought the paint already and I have no idea what it is, lol!  I'll call and ask but I figure these are 4 and under year old's - how much will they really notice how much I suck?  lol

I'll be inside so, that's good!

LarissaAnn

Trust me, they'll love you! Look at the first or second post of my face painting blog at the photos from my first party... I was HORRIBLE and the kids still loved me and wouldn't leave my line to go do the pinata! And they were 7!

LarissaAnn

Here: http://njfacepainter.blogspot.com/2009/08/looking-back.html. And if I remember, I'll post more photos from that party tonight. It was a travesty, but it's nice to see how far I've cone.

LarissaAnn

Oh, and if she got you the Klutz kit, that's Wolfe Brothers face paint, so use a lot less water. It's beeswax-based and doesn't blend well, but has great, sharp, bright colors.