Cosplay makeup brings together all the worlds of love, art and science. Unlike regular makeup, the accurateness required in the cosplay world tin be pretty tricky, especially with the more complex characters.

Don't worry - whether you're a cosplay makeup newbie or a seasoned pro, this guide covers all of the basics, and so that your face can truly brand a assuming statement.

Prep Your Skin

Studio Pro Anti-Shine

Chances are, you're going to be using quite a few dissimilar confront makeup products, meaning that skin care should always be your very showtime step. The 3 things you need to do are:

  • Cleanse: removing clay, oil and other impurities will give yous smoother makeup application
  • Moisturize: this volition hydrate your pare, keeping it salubrious
  • Prime number: a mattifying face primer will give you the perfect blank canvas to work from, while giving your products extra staying power

Foundation & Concealer

Studio Pro Matte Finish Pressed Powder

Pretty much every anime and video game graphic symbol out there has flawless skin, which is where foundation  and concealer come in.

The products you choose should perfectly match your ain skin tone, so be sure to exam out diverse shades before making your decision. Experts tend to concur that the most accurate manner of finding your shade of foundation is by testing it out on the jawline, in natural daylight.

Trying out dissimilar foundation formulas is primal too. There are several out there, merely the two nearly pop options are:

  • Liquid Foundation: tin provide both light and full coverage, while also existence more than hydrating for the skin.
  • Powder Foundation: like shooting fish in a barrel to apply, powders provide a low-cal corporeality of coverage, while also absorbing away excess oil for a matte cease

Ane thing to keep in mind when choosing a foundation formula is your skin type. If you take oily skin, a powder will help to minimize shine and is less likely to clog upwards your pores. On the other hand, those with a drier peel type do best with a hydrating liquid foundation, since powders tin can often cake on dry out peel, exacerbating rough patches.

Contouring & Highlighting

Studio Pro Shade & Define

Contouring and highlighting are both slap-up methods for bringing attention to certain facial features, while also cartoon focus abroad from others. Whether your character has a super-slim nose, an ultra-divers jawline, or exquisitely-chiseled cheekbones, highlighting and contour makeup products are the way to replicate this. Highlighting is also a skilful method for adding some shine and luminosity to your face, which is especially useful for fantasy or magical cosplays.

Again, when it comes to highlighting and contouring makeup, you have a few unlike formula options. While creamy formulas tend to exist easier to apply, many discover powders more effective at carving out the confront, giving you a more than dramatic finish.

Incorporating a few different shades is always a expert idea likewise, as this enables you to mix and friction match until you take achieved perfection. For this, palettes are unremarkably best, non to mention so much more than convenient. Await for a dedicated palette each for contouring and highlighting, as this volition give you fifty-fifty more flexibility when creating your await.

What many cosplayers don't realize is that their contouring and highlighting is merely every bit good as their blending. Unless you are intentionally going for harsh lines, then understanding how to blend will give your face up a softer and more natural await. Brushes work well for this, just most pros turn to a dazzler sponge, non only for the ultimate blend, but also to make application easier.

Brand an Impact with Your Cosplay Eyes

Under Eye Brightening Powder

Eyeliner

BH Liquid Eyeliner - Black

Intense and defined eyes are key in a successful cosplay look, making eyeliner a must.

Liquid liners tend to be more dramatic and long-lasting, but they require a steadier hand to apply. Eyeliner pencils are easier to handle and can still provide sharp definition. A pencil tin can also give you that smoky result - useful if yous're dressing upwards equally an antagonist and want to mimic those aroused eyes. Either way, the goal is to apply your eyeliner in a way that makes your eyes appear striking and intense.

Some are able to become full-on with their liner while still achieving that coveted, doe-eyed expect, but others, particularly those who naturally take smaller optics, may need to exercise a lighter touch. If a heavily-lined lash line doesn't do your await any favors, turn your attention to your lashes instead.

Eyelashes

Stellar Lash - Volumizing Mascara

A few swipes of a volumizing mascara will immediately give your eye lashes a more noticeable flutter, making your eyes wait wider and more awake.

If you could do with a little assistance in the eyelash department, consider imitation lashes. Available in different sizes, shapes and styles, fake eyelashes are easier to apply than y'all would imagine, and have the power to totally transform your look.

Eyeshadow

Trendy in Tokyo - 16 Color Shadow Palette

It'south common for cosplayers to terminate afterward their eyeliner and eyelashes are done, but, even if the character you've called doesn't normally wear obvious eye makeup, an eyeshadow can still take your cosplay wait to the next level.

It's always worth having a couple of different eyeshadow palettes to experiment with for cosplay makeup. A selection of brilliant and vibrant hues, such as in the Trendy in Tokyo 16-Color Eye Shadow Palette, will complement even the near outrageous of makeup styles, while a more neutral eyeshadow palette will however enhance a subtle eye wait.

Cosplay makeup incorporates quite a flake of layering, meaning that blending your shadows well is key. A quality eyeshadow castor prepare will make this much easier, giving your look a polished and professional end.

Spending some fourth dimension learning how to apply your eyeshadow correctly will help to give you those pronounced eyes that all the best characters are famous for.

Eyebrows

Power Pencil - Waterproof Eyeliner

Just like with eyeshadows, the brows are quite an undervalued office of cosplay makeup, but they can really make such a difference to your finished look.

If your character's eyebrows look like to yours, then there isn't much you need to do. Only make certain that yours are well-clean-cut and defined, so that they don't detract from the rest of your makeup.

Many cosplayers tend to struggle when their character'due south eyebrows are of a lighter color to their own. Yes, you tin e'er leave yours every bit they are and so fix them on Photoshop later, or you can strive to attain a more authentic look to brainstorm with.

The glue stick method is a popular technique, just, if you would prefer to get the safer route, attempt using a white eyeliner pencil instead. All you need to practice is comprehend your brows with the pencil, before topping with an eyeshadow shade that matches your character's forehead color.

Freckles

Wondering why freckles are beingness listed with centre makeup products?

Because those same products that work wonders on your eyes can also be used to create freckles on your confront. From brow pomade to an eyeliner pencil to a dark eyeshadow colour, drawn-on freckles can expect surprisingly natural if you utilize the right products.

Don't Ignore Your Lips

Waterproof Lip Liner - Earth

While lip colors may be quite subtle and light in the cosplay world, this doesn't mean that yous should completely ignore your lips. You take probably noticed many cosplay photos where the grapheme's lips expect washed out, and this is usually considering they have been left bare. Even if information technology looks equally though your graphic symbol goes au-natural with their lips, a nude lipstick will still actually help your look to pop, peculiarly in photos.

Begin with a quick exfoliation to remove any roughness. And so, find a lip colour that matches the lips of the character yous're dressing up as. Light pinkish is always pop, although you will likely need to go for a matte formula, rather than a glossy liquid lipstick. A waterproof lip liner tin can likewise be helpful when it comes to keeping everything in place, too as for simply calculation a bit of actress definition.

What should you lot practice if your character has a noticeable lack of definition and color in their lips?

In this instance, you may be best off applying a coat of lip lotion, following this up with a calorie-free wash of foundation. Sometimes, under-emphasizing your lips can make only as much of an impact every bit a bright pop of color.

Glitter & Shimmer

Base Booster Glitter & Shadow Glue

Although not every bit common as some of the other makeup features seen in the cosplay world, magical characters lend themselves well to the shimmer that a fleck of glitter makeup can provide.

Makeup glitter couldn't be easier to apply - whether on your eyes, your cheeks, or fifty-fifty on your body, make certain that you begin with a glitter mucilage to go along that sparkle lasting for hours.

All of these actress products may seem like quite an investment to begin with, but the key is to shop smart. Regularly cheque your favorite cosmetics brands for makeup sales and deals - you never know, your newest bargain detect could exist perfect for your side by side cosplay expect!

Face & Body Paint

Many costumes require something a fiddling extra, usually in the form of face or body paint. Whether you lot demand to recreate a facial characteristic or completely color all areas of exposed skin, quality paints are a must for and so many characters.

The ii almost popular options for face and torso paint are either liquid formulas or powdered formulas. Liquid tends to be easier and faster to apply, but it does have a while to dry. It can also bring the disadvantage of dripping over time, in one case the sweat and oils from your skin mix in with the pigment.

On the other paw, powdered paints take a flake more staying power, but do take longer to apply. They usually require at least two coats for their color to be noticeable, but, practice dry quickly.

The Terminal Touch on

Translucent Setting Powder

Once yous're washed applying all of your makeup, there's one more thing you demand to do…

Terminate it off with a setting pulverisation or spray!

Sprays are faster and easier to employ - a few quick spritzes and you're ready to go. However, a setting pulverisation with a fine, calorie-free-diffusing formula will give your skin a softer and silkier finish, while blurring away any imperfections that may however be showing through.

Cosplay makeup can be difficult to master - this is something that really does have so much do! All the same, making sure that y'all have the right products to work with is a keen outset - this will requite you lot the opportunity to experiment with a much wider variety of unlike character looks.

Demand some Character-Specific Cosplay Makeup Assist?

Hither are a few useful tutorials to check out:

Abaddon from Supernatural: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ELYgt4ZhuU

Ashe from League of Legends: http://prettymuchgeeks.com/ashe-makeup-tutorial/

Annie from League of Legends: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRYKO5GpP9I

Asuna from Sword Art Online: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1ORrNnBTZw

Harley Quinn from Suicide Team: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ii2bbzSqYYI

Jolyne from All Star Battle: https://world wide web.youtube.com/watch?v=SFZpt7Zyzsw

Mirai Kuriyama from Kyoukai No Kanata: https://world wide web.youtube.com/watch?5=c-buP5637iU

Wendy from Gravity Falls: https://www.youtube.com/sentinel?5=FipJJLpoDJw

Blood Elf from Earth of Warcraft: https://world wide web.youtube.com/watch?v=G_X7oHkbBoc

Zarya from Overwatch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?5=UulmeR0Xooo

Face & Trunk Paint Prototype Credit:: ractapoulous / Pixabay