How To Do Cosplay Makeup For Beginners

A Beginners Guide to Cosplay Makeup

When I commencement started higher as an art major several years agone, I had intentions of becoming an fx brand-upwardly artist. I worked a few years before that in a haunted house as both a make-upwards artist, as well as a scareactor. Later, I started doing make-up for my own photo shoots as a photographer. I developed a love for the transformative aspects of make-up. During college, I worked for a local Halloween store and did brand-upwardly demos in store for the customers. Eventually, I realized this could be achieved with cosplay too.

Today, I've accumulated a list of 19 tips, tricks, and ideas to aid beginners discover some direction with their first cosplays, and mayhap even requite direction or ideas to help cosplayers that have already been at it a while. I asked a few lovely cosplayers (Instagram handles: @Rachel.Maksy, @Enasnivee, @a.li.as, @artsy_doodle, and @RubisComix) for their consent to employ some of their cosplays as examples in this mail.

Be sure to cheque their work out! And if you feel inspired by their work, particularly their original looks, make sure to appropriately credit them for inspiring your own looks.

i. First things beginning – Know the Nuts.

It's expert to know your foundation basics, how to do basic centre makeup, etc before diving headfirst into complicated creations. While I am not the best at beauty makeup myself, but there are loads of tutorials to get you started on those. Merely knowing how to practice the nuts tin be plenty to achieve your cosplay. For example, I recently did a cosplay of Lady Dimitrescu from Resident Evil viii: The Hamlet. For this, I just did foundation, a deep blood-red lip, and some basic endeavor at dark eye brand-up. I stayed pretty simple generally for exam purposes, and also because it was ridiculously hot that day and I just wanted to endeavour the whole look on.

Now, compare this to the absolutely STUNNING take on Lady Dimitescu by @artsy_doodle:

19 Cosplay Makeup Ideas for Beginners — *nineteen Cosplay Makeup Ideas for Beginners: Lady Dimitescu by @artsy_doodle*

Aforementioned character, two different levels of execution. You lot tin can start with but the basics for your cosplay make-up and still attain the look you're going for.

ii. What products to apply?

This can be anything from large box shop brands to drug shop cheap brands, and anything in between. When I outset started doing makeup, I had a scattering of fx nuts from a Halloween store and the residual was some basic stuff I picked upwards from Walmart. If you're a beginner on a upkeep, definitely try something similar. Every bit long every bit it can attain what you're going for, anything can work.

The multi-talented Rachel Maksy (@Rachel.Maksy) won the 2018 Nyx Face Awards, and in several of her videos on YouTube, I've seen her achieve looks with merely basic products – no fancy makeup kit, and all totally within the cost range of beginners. Now, there is nothing wrong at all with going for professional brands and fancy makeup kits if it's inside your upkeep. Just know you don't have to start in that location.

3. Contouring for likeness.

While we're talking about Rachel, she is one of my favorite examples of contouring your face to resemble a character or actors features. Watch her transformation videos on YouTube, and note how she compares her own features to the character she'due south trying to embody, and the contour techniques she uses to give the illusion of different features on her own face. This is an like shooting fish in a barrel makeup tip to utilize for your own cosplay.

four. Illusions through Makeup.

Since we're already discussing using makeup to give your face the illusion of different features, let'southward bound into another sort of illusion done through makeup – calculation tattoos, markings, etc. Here, for example, accept @rubiscomix as Sukuna from Jujutsu Kaisen:

Plainly, she only has two existent eyes. But Sukuna has the additional two lower eyes, as well as his markings/tattoos. This is something yous tin execute fairly simply using eyeliner to draw out the markings on your face, line out the place where the 2nd prepare of eyes should go, and and then color in the optics with white eyeliner and a red lip pencil.

five. Jail cell shaded characters.

For some characters, cell shading is a makeup yous'll need to arroyo for accuracy's sake. Y'all take on the task of bringing something to life that seems similar information technology could be hard or fifty-fifty come out looking a bit odd, if you aren't careful. The immediate franchise that should come to everyone's mind is Borderlands. And at that place is no ameliorate cosplayer to utilise as an instance here for me than @Enasnivee every bit Moxxi:

The execution for Moxxi is definitely executing the cell shaded vibe while bringing it into the real world beautifully. Start with a white face up paint base and add layers to it from there: the night, exaggerated brow, the thick black liner with the dripping streaks on the left side of your face up, pink blush and eyeshadow tones, a drawn on mole near the lips, and red lips lined with a black or dark ruddy pencil.

half-dozen. Interpretations.

For some characters, the makeup depends how you're approaching a character. For case, say you want to do Boosette. I'll utilize the incredibly talented @artsy_doodle here for reference:

If I were approaching a Boosette expect (which I'd honey to, some day!), a pale foundation or white body paint would exist the best starting place. From there, it'south all about shading, blending, and highlighting. Alloy the pinks and reds for contouring the cheeks, nose, and optics, with white highlights. Night eyebrows, eyelashes, and fifty-fifty red contacts if you're up for them. Add fangs and a glossy red lip, and yous can achieve a similar look.

seven. Genderbent.

A genderbent cosplay is ane where yous change the gender of the character yous're cosplaying. For example, this female Joker by @a.li.equally:

Again, offset with a white face paint, and then go in with red and blue face/body paint to add the eyebrows, eye makeup, olfactory organ, and of course – that killer smiling.

8. Crossplay.

Unlike genderbent cosplay, crossplay is when you cosplay a grapheme of another gender than your own, and try to adapt yourself rather than alter the character. I feel similar @Rachel.Maksy has some fantabulous examples of this:

19 Cosplay Makeup Ideas for Beginners 2 — *xix Cosplay Makeup Ideas for Beginners: Gender Bent!*

Once again, Rachel is a queen when it comes to contouring to look like a character. Then she easily uses these same techniques to give herself more than masculine features for male person characters.

9. Accuracy.

Some characters you just want to approach in a cut and dry manner. Y'all want to just be the physical embodiment of that character. And one of the all-time and most accurate Harley Quinn cosplayers I've ever seen is @Enasnivee:

Simplicity brings this archetype look to life. A white base for that classic wait, with some simple but beautiful eye makeup. Add a light blush, and those slightly curved black lips, and you likewise can exist the Clown Princess of Crime!

ten. Your own spin on it.

Sometimes, though, we want to venture into a character with a slightly unique approach. I'll utilise the talented @a.li.every bit here for some alternative Harley takes:

Over again, one of my favorite Harley cosplayers out there. For a look similar to this, you lot could employ a light foundation, with some drawn on hearts and stars with eyeliner. For the optics, practise a unmarried blackness themed centre, and a single cherry themed middle, with lashes and drawn on actress drawn on liner to accentuate the lashes farther. Some bones chroma and highlights, a blackness lip, and a Band-Aid on your nose completes it.

11. Coincidental cosplay

Maybe you just feel comfortable with a more casual cosplay to start. Throw together an outfit that gives off the vibes of the character you want to be, and make a makeup wait that goes with it. 1 more Harley in a row, for the sake of examples. This time, using my own casual Harleys:

I'm a naturally stake private, so I but use my regular foundation. If you aren't similar me, a lite foundation or if you really want, a white face paint, would work likewise. I similar to also alternate the cherry-red and black/blue (depending on the look I'm going for), black eyeliner, and a scarlet or black lip – again, depending on the expect.

12. Era Interpretations

For this, you're taking a character that belongs in one era, and interpreting them in some other era's fashion. @Rachel.Maksy has an excellent series on her aqueduct chosen "But Make It Vintage", where she interprets characters in a vintage fashion. I promise, this is my concluding Harley Quinn example:

Inspired by the art of Sandra Alexandra (@sandraalexandraart), Rachel recreated this adorable vintage circus clown version of Harley Quinn. The face up is pretty simple but completes the look. A white base, blush with red diamonds drawn onto the tiptop of the cheeks just beneath the eyes, and a red lip. A similar crimson and pink themed eyeshadow and eyeliner, and boom! You've got yourself a vintage Harley.

13. Original Characters.

If you've spent whatsoever amount of time on TikTok, you may have seen some cosplayers makeup some of their ain OC looks. Immediately, I think of @artsy_doodle and the overwhelming amount of talent and creativity:

I won't break down how to practice these looks. Simply I will say the takeaway hither should exist to be artistic and don't exist afraid to exercise something original and unique with your makeup. Try something out at that place.

14. Liquid Latex

Fun fact: The kickoff article I ever had published was a how-to on creating a basic wound with liquid latex. Simply cream dirt, liquid latex, and toilet paper (aye, toilet paper) were used to create this incredible cosplay makeup by @Rachel.Maksy:

For something like this, you lot'd need to mold some foam clay to your confront to create the boney face effect, with the toilet newspaper and liquid latex creating the rotted flesh look. Add some pigment to bring it all to life (and hide the fact you've attached a bunch of random stuff to your face), and tah-dah! Y'all've got yourself an undead Jack Sparrow.

15. Prosthetics

If you accept the skills and supplies, you can make your own prosthetics. Or if you're not quite up for that nonetheless, you can buy some. Take a wait at this incredible cosplay transformation by @a.li.as into Nebula:

A bald cap to hibernate hair, with the head and middle prosthetics attached, and blackness contacts are the major pieces to this look. Then trunk paint and blending bring information technology all together for an eerily accurate Nebula expect.

16. Body Paint

Okay, I know I've mentioned using body paint a handful of times so far. But this time allow'south talk about actually using it to paint, you lot know – the trunk. Take, for instance, @Envasnivee as Ghoul:

A grey body paint on the face, cervix, breast, arms, legs, and abdomen, with drawn on black stitching to match the character. Blackness lips and heavy black eye makeup all seem simple. But this makeup takes about ii hours to complete.

17. Getting teary eyed

So, this trick may likely not be how @a.li.as likely accomplished this look for Magik, but I'll include an example of using this makeup technique on someone years agone too:

Around 11 years ago, my friend Skylar and I (@spook.spice on Instagram, for anyone interested since she does hair and makeup!) were doing some promo stuff for Women in Horror Calendar month, and nosotros did this look generally because I wanted to play with this "crying" technique:

Basically, I took a hefty helping of black eyeshadow to her bottom lid, some water, and a Q-tip cotton swab and made her makeup run. You can achieve this is a manner less dramatic manner by property back on the amount of eye shadow used. Simply nosotros were going for some dramatic and distanced shots.

eighteen. Claret.

I used to make jokes that my resume is mostly "I'm qualified to play in false blood" – and, hey – it isn't entirely faux. So let's talk about some fake claret uses in cosplay makeup, featuring @a.li.as every bit Daniela in Resident Evil: The Village and @artsy_doodle as Himiko Toga from My Hero Academia:

We all know claret can exist used for wounds and injuries. But it can also be used every bit a means of accentuating makeup for characters that may be homicidal, or merely really dig the gustation of blood. Some tactically places smudges, splashes, and splatters can really take some cosplays to another level.

19. Be yourself and take fun with it.

I know, this is a lilliputian cheesy every bit far as tips get. But cosplay (and cosplay makeup) should exist something fun that you lot enjoy, and that'due south definitely the nearly of import part of it all to me. This class of self expression and art is open up to anybody – any gender, race, historic period, weight, skill level etc. Never permit anyone tell you that you don't belong in the cosplay community.

Many thank you again to all of these lovelies for their participation and willingness to trust me to ramble most their cosplay makeup. Get bank check out their pages and various other platforms for more incredible piece of work!

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