Experimenting with the Makeup Look

I first decided to do my practice face chart 1 on my face to see how it turned out. I didn't apply any foundation or even moisturiser as I wanted the makeup to look as natural as possible.

Step by step:
1. I first mixed together some brown bronzing mousse (the one from Bourjois) with some black and white supra colour. I thought that the brown colour was too warm on its own to I added the black and white to give it more of a grey tone.

2. I applied a tiny bit of this under my cheekbones to make it look like a natural shadow was falling underneath. I blended this out really well with my fingers to make it look as realistic as possible.
3. I then added some coming down from the contour to the outer sides of my chin to make me look more gaunt. I, again, blended this in very well so that it didn't look too obvious.
4. I then added some of the same grey toned brown at the sides of my temples to make my forehead look slimmer. I blended this into my hair line very well.
5. I then added some of this grey toned brown from the beginning of the eyebrow down the sides of the bridge of my nose to make it look smaller and to make my eyes look more sunken in.
6. I added a very small amount of this cream colour under my smile lines to make the skin look less plump and more like it was sagging down.
7. I added some of this same colour under my eyes, where the darkest part of my bags were and blended it in to make it look very natural. I also added this in my inner corners to make the eyes look very tired.
8. I added some of this into the sockets of my eyes to make my eyes look more tired and sunken in. I blended a very small amount of this on the eyelids to add to the overall dark effect.
9. I added a tiny bit of purple and a small bit of green under the eyes in the areas where these colours were naturally showing through. I will accentuate my model's natural shadows under her eyes so this colouring may vary slightly.

Before - side on.

10. I added some red supra colour on the outer part of the lower lash line and blended it in very well to accentuate the red that was already there.

Before - front on.

After - side on.

After - front on.

I love how natural the makeup looks and how the subtle changes have made such a difference in how ill and tired she the model looks. I really like how the grey toned contour look like natural shadows being cast on the face. I am happy with the blending of the contours because they look very natural. I could possibly go slightly heavier under the eyes to make her look even more tired and worn out because some of the colouring was bleached out by the bright natural light I was using. I might want to accenturate the redness around her nose to make her look even more run down. In my next practice I am going to add some skin coloured foundation over the lips slightly because all the examples I showed of people who have been addicted to heroine had very pale lips; it will also add to the sickly look I am going for.

Possible added Mascara
I then looked at face chart 2, where it looks like the inmate has worn mascara a couple days ago but hasn't bothered to remove it so there is still smudged and flaked off mascara round her eyes. I had a go at this and I like how it turned out. It added general darkness to the eyes, and made them look more tired. I like what this aspect of the makeup would add to the character too. It would give the impression that she is lazy, doesn't look after herself well and doesn't really care what she looks like. I think I will add this aspect in to my character's look in my next practise and see how it turns out.

Before mascara.

After - smudged mascara

Cracked lips
I also tried out the cracked lips look from face chart 3 and I am really happy with how they came out! I first applied some light coloured foundation all over the lips to mute out the natural lip colour. I then added strips of duo eyelash glue to the areas on the lips that I want it to have split. I added a bigger section of duo lash glue on the corner of the mouth. Once the glue had dried completely, I started to pick at the glue to split it and make it look like the skin was splitting. Once I was happy with all the split/cracked marks, I added some red supra colour on the inside to make it look really sore and raw. I am really happy with how realistic it looks; however I think it might be too much for this one character. I am planning on including the smudged mascara aspect so I think if I also add the cracked lips, as well as the scabs all over the face, it might look too over done and over the top.

Creating the Scabs
Below is a close-up image of a real scab. Someone had cut their knee and it is now healing and scabbing over. The scab looks very rough and slightly risen. The outside of the scab has the same texture as the skin, but it is slightly red/pink. The scab itself has many colours; it is predominantly a very dark red/brown and then their are yellows, brighter reds and greens blended in as well.

WISCONSINART, 2015. Stock Photo: Knee Scrape, Scab, Scar, Injury Close-up Detail [18 October 2015]. Available from: http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/knee-scrape-scab-scar-injury-closeup-detail-24314710.jpg

Attempt 1
When it came to creating the scabs on the face, I had a couple of ideas and so I wanted to test all of them out. I knew I wanted to text out using liquid latex with tissue underneath to give it texture and height. I also knew I wanted to test out using flour and water to create a cracked effect. I then thought of using eyelash glue and also an egg white. Below are images of the different substances on the face and what I think of them.

-The one at the top is a mixture of flour and water. I like how it cracks to form sharp and defined edges and it is easily achieved. However I think that the cracks are too big and that the skin would be more flakey on a scab instead of harsh cracks.
-The second one down is egg whites. I like how it goes on almost colourless because I would be able to add colour to it underneath and it would still show through. I also like how when it dries it becomes very rough, with tiny cracks in it. However I don't think this product would give enough height, even if many layers were added.
-The one at the bottom, on the left, is the liquid latex. I applied some liquid latex straight onto the skin, then added some scrunched up tissue and then covered the tissue with more liquid latex to give it that height and texture. I really like how much volume you can get from using this technique and how you can manipulate the shape of the scab easily; however I don't like the finishing texture because it is too smooth.
-The one on the bottom, right, is the duo lash glue. I let the glue dry and then rubbed it and pinched it until it created a texturised lump. I wasn't a fan of this method because it didn't create a rough texture and it didn't add much volume.

Attempt 2
As I wasn't completely happy with any of these techniques, I decided to combine some of them together. I decided to try to use the tissue and liquid latex to create the overall shape and volume and then, once that was dry, I would add some egg whites on top to create the rough skin. Below was the outcome of this.

Step by step:
1. Apply some liquid latex to the area where you want the scab to be, with a spatular or cotton bud.
2. Rip some tissue in half and then take a small section of that half, screw it up, and press it into the liquid latex.
3. Apply one more coat of liquid latex over the top to seal down any edges and blend into the skin.
4. Once this has fully dried, take some egg whites on a cotton bud and apply it on top of the liquid latex.

5. Once the egg whites have fully dried, scratch at the scab with your nails to loosen some of the egg whites and make it look flakey and rough.

6. Smudge some red supra colour around the edges with your finger and blend very well.

7. Mix some blue, purple, red and yellow supra colour together to make a red/brown colour and, using a small angled brush, apply this over all the white tissue showing.

8. Add some more red to this mixture and dab it onto the scab in random patches.

9. Take a tiny bit of black on your small angled brush and dab it into the crevices/dents in the scab to give it more dimension. 

10. Take a small flat brush and dab a small amount of red round the edges of the scabs and blend the edges well.

11. Add some yellow into the red/brown mixture and dab some with the small angled brush on some of the high points of the scabs, again adding dimension. 

12. Blend edges further and mute the red slightly with a small flat brush and some light coloured foundation.
13. Add some blood paste to one or two of the scabs with a cotton bud, to make it look like she has just picked at it and it is bleeding slightly.

I am really happy with how the scabs finally came out. I had the image of the scab, above, in front of me the whole time I was doing it so I could make the colours as realistic as possible. I am really happy with the colouring and the texture of the scabs; however I think they look slightly too big for the face, so I will try to make them smaller next time I practice. I also think they could be improved by blending the edges of the latex a bit more smoothly; I don't like how you can see the outline of where the liquid latex stops, so I will go around the latex with a cotton bud and soapy water if the edges are particularly obvious to smooth them down. I will do this before colour application.