thePULSEBy Jennifer Russo
Halloween ~ a holiday that has taken on a life (or death, if you will) of its own. Once a hallowed religious holiday, Halloween has become more about nightlife, parties and, of course, costumes. Whether you are going for the whimsical or gothic, sexy or all-out gore, this is a day when you can be something or someone else. Halloween is the day jeans turn into shrouds, wigs replace your daily ’do, and you can push the boundaries of reality, sensibility and political correctness ~ just for a night. Whatever your costume may be, if you aren’t wearing a full-on rubber mask or something else that covers your face, you will need to think about makeup. Though the classic cat whiskers painted on the face are simple and cute, there are some people who like to go the extra mile in making themselves over.
I had a chat with local makeup artist, Britton Atchley, asking her for her guidance on how to achieve the perfect makeup results for some classic costumes. Atchley, who studied makeup artistry and special effects at the Make-Up Designory school in Burbank, Calif., and has lent her talents to independent horror movies such as She’s Crushed, provided excellent advice on nailing some of the most popular Halloween looks.
Zombies
Let’s talk zombies. Being as AMC’s The Walking Dead has drawn massive amounts of attention the last few years and spurred Hollywood to film both serious and funny movies around the idea of flesh-eating former humans, the zombie has become the costume of choice for many (not only on Halloween, but for parties and marches around the city, as well). So how do you get the look of this rotting entity down perfectly?
“Start with a subtle base color for the skin. Browns and greens are used for zombies to [create] the look of dead, decaying skin. They make temporary tooth gel that you can apply to your teeth to make them stained,” Britton said. “It’s the extra little details that help sell a character, though. Whichever color you have chosen as your base color for your skin, you want to have additional darker colors to use around the eye sockets, the temple areas, under the cheekbones and around the mouth to help suck those areas in. If you are comfortable using latex, it will really help sell your zombie makeup even more. Latex is a tricky material to use, but it can help pull the skin in directions. You can use it to put holes in the skin ~ and again, coloring your application helps pull the overall look together.”
Vampires
What about vampires? Though it seems that the vampire boom has died down slightly, this is still a very popular choice. From the traditional Dracula and Anne Rice-style vamps to today’s teenage love-struck Cullens, there has always been a fascination with these immortal and cultured bloodsuckers.
Britton suggested that it’s best to “create pale skin for vampires, not white. That, to me, is completely overboard on the fact that they can’t see sunlight. I personally like to lighten the person’s natural skin tone a few shades to give the appearance that one is lacking color, and definitely no glitter effects. (Sorry, Twilight fans). Obviously, you need the fangs. They come in many sizes and are very easy to apply.”
What about the small details that really pull in the entire idea of a vampire?
“In my opinion,” Britton said, “the use of veins is extremely important in selling the look of a vampire. Think about the movie Interview with a Vampire, the hint of color peeking out under the pale skin ~ showing that there is blood under the skin ~ can be achieved by using a teal makeup pencil. You want to concentrate on the veins in the forehead, neck and hands.”
Wounds
For those of you who relish the idea of creating convincing slasher-style wounds, Britton divulged her secrets to pulling these off flawlessly.
“For wounds such as stab wounds, gunshot wounds, lobotomies, slit wrists, etc., I like to use a product called mortician’s wax. It’s a buildable, waxy product that allows you to shape the wound according to how the wound was inflicted. Also, I would have to say that understanding how wounds look from the beginning ~ freshness all the way until it is healing ~ is vital, because that will determine how you color around the wound. The severity of a wound and if it’s recent or old will also play a large part in making a fake wound look real. A new or fresh wound will require your color palate to be in the reds, purples, maroons and blues. You will want to also consider the possibility of the wound being somewhat swollen and puffy. If the wound is in the healing process, you then want to be looking into more yellow, browns and greens for the bruising effect around the wound.”
And the blood : “Everyone also loves to use blood to sell the wound, and of course, it is needed on all types of wounds all the time, but it is important make sure you get the good blood. Some blood sold in Halloween stores ends up having a green tint and drying on the skin rather quickly and giving a cheesy effect. But good blood is sticky and dark,” Britton said.
Want to hire Britton to make you over this Halloween? She is happy to take appointments. You can email her at britton.atchley@gmail.com for more information.
