Carnaval 2005 - my makeup page

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My makeup this year was a first for me, and I decided to chronicle it in a way I haven't done before. I hope you find it interesting! :)

Editor's note: This is not the most elaborate makeup I've ever done, truth be told, especially if you factor in hair with it (and this only required a bun for my hair). One Carnaval I had 20 yards of wire in my hair!! (I had to be cut out of it.) :) Especially several Halloweens, where I've worn lots of prosthetic horns/makeup - those are long, complex applications. But this is the first year I've waxed down my eyebrows - everything else was fairly standard, I've just never photographed it before. Maybe I'll start doing it! I've gotten great feedback so far!

 

This was my "dry run" for my makeup and especially for my eyebrows. Kevyn Aucoin (makeup GOD) assured me in his book "Making Faces" that this was doable, but if it hadn't been, I was seriously going to shave off my eyebrows. (No, I'm not kidding!). I'd shaved the edges for my costume three years ago, and I figured how much more different would it be to just do the whole thing? Well, I didn't have to, as Kevyn didn't lie. Eyebrow wax covered with sealant did the trick! My makeup was inspired half by photos of drag queens I found online and of some Cirque du Soleil makeup photos (also found online). It was a lot of fun to do, and I hope you enjoy what I have to say below! if you have any questions about any of it!

I will warn you that by 1:30am (my makeup had been on since 2:30pm that afternoon) my eyebrows were starting to "pop" back out. I got a glimpse in the mirror on the way home and I was all OH NO, but by that time, who cares. :) We got some great photos of them looking pristine, so that's all that matters, right? LOL!

Here's what I used, since some people have emailed and asked:

The wax is Kryolan Eyebrow Plastic (for stage, film & television) - should run you from $7-10

The sealant (that you can or can not use, depending on what you want - I used it, but am told you don't have to) is Mehron Fixative "A" Prosthetic Sealer #144, about $6

Kryolan makes their own "sealor" (their spelling) and it's called Kryolan Flexible Sealor. I've found that using products together from the same line can be really good.

I found a lot of places online that have the wax and the sealant that I bought. Not so many for the Kryolan.

 

This was my makeup the final night. I wasn't as happy with my eyebrows as I was the first time - I guess I couldn't expect to do them perfectly each time! :( I do prefer the pattern of the rhinestones (I'd purchased more) and I was way happier with my eyelashes (a new pair).

 

My makeup! I've done two animations of my makeup, one smiling, one not. Each frame was taken at a critical point in the makeup, so you see me start from nothing to completed makeup. They're a bit large, so forgive me, but they're good fun to watch. I'll explain what I did further down the page, but for now, here are the files: no smile, smile. They "loop" twice, so you can see the animation two times through, then they stop on the final frame.

 

Lane took this awesome photo of me and my lashes as I looked down to adjust my costume. I love it that you can see how huge they are. Fake eyelashes KICK BUTT.

 

My banana pasties! :) I'd started out with the intention of making "hot pepper" pasties to match the fabric of my hip scarf and my headdress, but when I started creating them, it just didn't work out that way. FOO. But I'm really happy with the bananas. They were great with the headdress, and the yellow color was great in the dark at Carnaval.

 

So you wanna be a Drag Queen??

No makeup, just moisturizer Eyebrows waxed down and covered with concealer; foundation (darker to match my fake tan) over entire face Contour makeup, dark and light, on face and on collarbones and chest
Translucent powder over contour makeup Eyeshadow (huge, over eyebrows) Eyebrows penciled in
Top eyelashes applied Blush on cheeks and forehead Bottom eyelashes applied (TWO pair!)
Application of extra black liner on eyebrows, eyes and white liner around eyes Red makeup Orange and yellow makeup
White dots, red and gold rhinestones Dark lip liner far outside boundaries of lips; lighter liner filling in lips Final lipstick with dot of gold in center of lower lip for highlighting
Final makeup, complete with smile! :)

 

And now WAY TOO FEW words about my headdress....

  1. Start with a plain baseball cap. Remove the brim. Glue the edge where the brim was closed wtih Fabri-Tac.
  2. Run 20 gauge florist wire up through the cap, weaving it in and out and then poking the long ends out the top. Secure the bottom end by turning it up.
  3. Weave the ends into one inch padding/foam (it's used for pillows and crafts) and create whatever shape you want for your hollow base (mine this year is like a fan).
  4. Help mold the shape and give it strength by wrapping duct tape around it.
  5. Cover in base fabric. Secure with Fabri-Tac.
  6. Add wide sequin band at the bottom of the cap to cover the fabric edges. Leave the back unglued so that you can use your ponytail as an anchor through the back of the baseball cap and cover it with the loose sequin trim.
  7. Bend 20 gauge florist wire in half and stick up through the very top of the hat so that it secures itself on the cap.
  8. Fill base with netting or foam or something to help support the fruit/flowers/whatever you're putting in your headdress.
  9. Arrange fruit/flowers/whatever into the base and secure them with the wire you put through the bottom of the cap.
  10. Hide wire with extra netting/flowers/fruit. Secure with Fabri-Tac wherever possible.
  11. Adorn carefully with sequins/trim/glitter/etc.
  12. Attach chin strap. I use a clear bra strap glued to the inside of the cap and then fastened under my chin.

Again, if you have any questions about any of this!

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