Face painting is a family favorite at fairs, school events, and farmer’s markets. Every child loves to come home with a gorgeous design or a cool animal painted on their cheek. Face painting is also one of the oldest arts, originating in cultures as far back as the ice age! If you’ve thought of starting a face painting job or setting up a table at a local event, you might be wondering if face painting is hard to do.
Face painting can vary in difficulty depending on the supplies you use, the time the design takes, your art background, and what designs you offer. Still, there are plenty of ways that you can simplify face painting.
Let’s take a look at the factors that go into making face painting difficult and how you can work to make them more accessible and get started on your own face painting opportunity today.
Face painting can be complex for a variety of reasons. Some of the most common difficulties people face in the face painting career include the following.
Some people do not have an art background and don’t know how to create realistic or layered designs that you may feel that you need to be successful.
If you’re someone who can’t even draw a stick figure, you may have some difficulty creating the artistic face painting designs that kids request.
There is a bit of a cost when first investing in a face painting career. You will need, at minimum, these supplies:
Although face painting doesn’t generally break the bank, it is still an investment and takes some overall planning.
To make a good penny off of face painting, you’ll need to research events in your area that have openings. You’ll often have to pay to reserve a space for your table.
It’s not so often that towns have fairs and kids’ events, so you may not make as much as you were initially hoping unless you can book yourself for more than one type of gig.
Face painting can take a while if you’re just starting or when your design is too complex. Since face painting is often done in fast settings, there can be considerable pressure to get the designs done as quickly as possible, which can ruin the quality.
Don’t worry. We know that it’s daunting to face all the challenges of face painting. However, it’s not as hard as some may make it seem. Here are a few ways to make face painting easier.
If you’re one of those people who has a hard time with art, you’re not out of luck. Some face painters use stencils for their original designs. These are cut-out shapes that you can press on the face and paint through to ensure clean lines.
Instead of allowing kids to request any design in the world, make sure you set up your own portfolio with pictures of the face art you can do.
The clients will then choose a design from the book, and you can recreate it for them. Don’t add any designs that are too complicated or that you haven’t done before. Ensure to factor in the time it’ll take you to do each design.
Before going out and offering face painting to the world, make sure to practice your designs.
You can easily practice on yourself and then move on to people in your family (preferably children) to get a feel of what it is like to paint someone else’s face. Once you have a good sense of the design, take a picture of it and add it to your portfolio.
At home, in a safe and non-judgemental environment, practice speed designs.
Here’s how to do it:
How did you do? If you’ve noticed that it’s difficult for you to get the design done in a short period, this is a sign that you need more practice before you can provide it in public or at events with lots of time pressure.
If you have trouble booking events, you can try to search out people who might be interested in having a face painter join their function.
Typical places or events that may need a face painter include:
You can check online job boards to see if someone is looking for entertainers at their event or party. Send them an email and see if they’d also be interested in a face painter.
Always include your portfolio, so they can see that your work is quality! You can also post an ad on job boards or Facebook groups for local communities. If someone is looking for your expertise, they’ll send you a message.
The easiest face painting designs are often thrown together in a small amount of time and offer cool effects. Here are just some that you can try:
Check online for some inspiration and get to designing! Face painting doesn’t have to be complicated.
Face painting can be challenging for several factors, including time, artistic expertise, availability, and tools. However, there are also many ways to make face painting easier for you.
If you’ve been thinking of opening a face painting stand at your local summer fair, get started practicing now so you can offer top-quality designs when it finally rolls around. You’ve got this!