Halloween Make-up: Replicating Sylvia Ji's Girlies

I obviously got way into Day of the Dead imagery this season (we’ve done sugar skulls, profiled Catrina dolls and highlighted the artwork of Sylvia Ji).

Because I paint my face every year for work (the Friday before Halloween usually) I thought the Sylvia Ji look would be perfect.

What you’ll need:

White grease/ face paint

Black grease/ face paint

2 other colors of grease paint (your choice)

Black eyeliner

2 other colors of eye or lip liner

Big silk rose/s

First I selected an image I wanted to replicate:

Then I covered my face with white. I also dusted my face with a little foundation using a brush (it creates an aged, dingy look - more skull like).  I used the black eyeliner to outline my “orbital cavity” – around your eye – from the top of the brow. I also used it to outline the “spade” shape used for the nasal cavity and to mark the teeth.

Then I filled in my eye area with green and outlined my actual eye with black. I brushed a little green on for gaunt cheeks. I outlined the black circle around my eye with brown. Then filled in the nose with black paint.
 

I dabbed yellow paint on my chin and forehead in a rough shape of the flowers I wanted to add there. Then I outlined the flowers with red lip liner, and also added red petals around the eyes. I added swirls and dots with varying pencils.

 

I added the rose to my hair (you could use two!) and added some tears.

Sugar Skulls

Don't Laugh.....

This is my first stab at making sugar skulls (under the tutelage of my friend Danine), and I kind of forgot I suck at icing work. They look more like Luchadores....

Oh well – it was super fun! The boys had fun too and admired their handiwork.


Danine and I made the raw skulls in molds a week ahead of time, at her house, then let them dry. I didn’t document it but the process is simple enough. I purchased most of the supplies from  MexicanSugarSkull.com (which also has great, step by step instructions).

I am not of South American or Mexican descent, but I love to explore all the food and craft related ceremonies of different cultures, and of course, I am particularly attracted to something that melds skulls with roses!


Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) is not directly related to Halloween, and is celebrated on November 2nd (so you've got plenty of time to do this if you're interested!)
It is an ancient celebration traced back to indigenous Aztec cultures. The festivities involve visits to the graves of ancestors and loved ones, to both honor the dead and to commune with them; have your own prayers heard by those in the spirit world who may be better poised to help you. Sugar skulls are just one of the many foods and beverages which are prepared specifically as offerings to the dead.


While this is a good craft for kids, nobody eats the skulls – so just make that clear to everyone beforehand. They aren’t poisonous or anything but it’s just not recommended. Mine did nibble on a little one (it’s very hard to resist a skull entirely made of sugar and icing).

Hawk works on decorating a mini skull (we printed out inspiration pics from online).

Marley and Danine Decorate.

Here are Danine's (Danine is much better at it than I am....)

Sugar Skull Altar

 
What you’ll need:

For Skulls:
Skull Molds

Meringue Powder
Sugar
Water
A big bowl
Spatula
Index cards or squares of cardboard

For Decorating:
Powdered Sugar
Meringue Powder
Water
Beater
Gel food coloring
Icing bags
Paper bowls
Plastic spoons
Other stuff you may like to stick on your skulls: colored foil, mini roses, beads, jewels, glitter.


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The following instructions are taken directly from MexicanSugarSkull.com (so hop over there if you have more questions and need more photos);

"Sugar Skull Recipe:

CAUTION
Do not make sugar skulls on a rainy or high humidity day. They will not turn out.

Please don't forget the meringue powder!
It's necessary for the sugar skull recipe.

Meringue Powder Brand
Do not use meringue powder from hobby shops or cake supply shops as it's usually diluted and cut way too much for use with heavy granulated sugar. It's ok for icing, just it will not hold together sugar skulls! We get calls daily from teachers & folks who's sugar skulls are "sandy" and not sticking together and have a big mess on their hands and don't have enough time to get new meringue powder and redo the project. Start right from the beginning! The only reliable meringue powder is the one we sell or that of Sur La Table gourmet kitchen shop/ catalog.

Mix together well in large bowl:
1 teaspoon Meringue Powder for every cup of granulated sugar used.

Step 1: Mix dry ingredients well.
Step 2: Sprinkle sugar mixture with 1 teaspoon water per cup of sugar used.

Variation: Colored Skulls

Most people prefer white skulls the first time they make them, but if you'd like colored sugar skulls, add paste food coloring TO THE WATER. For a 5 pound bag of sugar, use 1/4 cup meringue powder and 10 teaspoons of water. Yield 5 large skulls or 20 medium skulls or 100 mini skulls or any combination.

For a 10 pound bag of sugar, use 1/2 cup meringue powder and 7 Tablespoons water. Yield 10 large skulls or 40 medium skulls or 200 mini skulls or any combination.

Meringue Powder is a MUST and cannot be omitted. It is difficult to find, but may be ordered in 4 oz, 8 oz or 1 pound packages on our sugar skull molds and supplies page. Meringue powder is what makes the sugar and the icing hard. Its main ingredient is powdered dry egg whites & starch, but it also includes vegetable gum, cream of tarter, calcium lactate, malic acid & sodium aluminum sulfate. It's totally edible. 

Mix well with hands until every bit of sugar is moistened. If your fingerprints remain when you squeeze the sugar in your hand, it is ready to mold. (Right) It should feel like cool "beach sand."

If it doesn't hold together, mixture is too dry. (Left)

Remember, water sinks, so keep the sugar mixture mixed up frequently as you make your sugar skulls.

TIP

If all the sugar mixture does not fall out of mold easily, it is too wet. Re-mix with a bit more sugar. Hand wash and dry your mold after every 5 skulls to avoid sticking. Most Sugar Skull makers will have a collection of molds to make the molding process more enjoyable.

To Dry

All sizes of the molded sugar skulls need to air-dry on their card boards from 8 hours to overnight before they are ready to decorate. Medium and Mini skulls may be decorated after they are completely dry.

Royal Icing Recipe (for decorating):

Mix 2/3 cup water, 1/2 cup meringue powder and 2 pounds powdered sugar with an electric/stand mixer until icing peaks (about 9 minutes!) Don't mix up more than 2 pounds at a time. Keep in a tightly covered container. DO NOT REFRIGERATE.

Royal icing is a cement type icing used for gingerbread house construction. It isn't very tasty, but it is strong, dries pretty and lasts. Use ONLY concentrated paste food colorings (NOT liquid food coloring from the grocery store!) Yes, we have 12 great colors on our sugar skull molds and supplies page.

Mix icing & paste colors in disposable cups. Use pastry bags and metal decorating tips if you are a pro or into cake decorating. Yes, we have great disposable pastry bags on the Order Page!

Add 2-3 ounces of Royal Icing (no more than 1/4 full). Squeeze to decorate.

Calculate each 5 pounds of sugar skulls will need 2 pounds of powdered sugar Royal Icing. Most skull makers prefer 5-6 paste colors to decorate with and at least one pack of colored tin foil. Yes, we have tin foil in deep Purple, Magenta, Orange, Gold and Red, see sugar skull molds and supplies page."

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Creepy Chimera Decoupage Pumpkins

Despite my deep, maniacal love of Halloween, I have several issues concerning traditional Jack O’Lanterns:

1) They’re grody. Nothing is grosser than pumpkin guts – slimy and clingy and stinky. Then the kids always want me to go in and sort the seeds to roast, which is nasty, and anyway, roasted Jack O’Lantern seeds = not good…not worth it.

2) If you do it when you’re really in the mood to start decorating for the holiday (usually two weeks prior to Halloween) then they rot on the porch (whether you use that “anti-pumpkin-rot” spray or not) and become hideously deformed (not in a good creepy Halloween way either).

3) Unless you are able to do the entire carving process alone, as an adult, in a private studio where no kids are allowed to give their input – they come out mediocre. 

4) You also have to cut out your kids pieces (even if they are old enough to use the cute little saws and pokey tools) because they get so lazy and discouraged half-way through. By that point I am SO OVER Jack O’Lanterns that the craftsmanship gets really shabby.

THIS year, as the first year I’ve been doing this blog experiment, I came up with something different. Don’t get me wrong – this new approach was a hard sell with the buddy boys, but I finally convinced them they would be so impressed with the end result that they wouldn’t care about the missed pumpkin gutting. I think they just like that it’s the one time they can wield sharp instruments.

First:

I compiled a little library of spooky vintage black and white art (some skeletons, some bats, some insects and some other objects like a top hat). I got all of my images (except the black widow) from The Graphics Fairy; a great provider of public domain vintage images.

Next I took them into Photoshop and cut out the black shapes; using --->Select --->Color Range (black)----->Cut---->Paste (on a new layer).

Then we had fun creating Chimeras (hybrid monsters using different animal parts; depicted in the art of various cultures since ancient times). 



A chameleon skeleton with horns and bat wings was my boys'  favorite (they fought over who'd use it on their pumpkin). I pasted (in Photoshop) brightly colored googly eyes on each creature at the end. 
 
We printed both positive versions; black on antique white (I added a bit of a parchment background) and “inversed” versions; white on black.


We painted some of the pumpkins antique white and some matte black (using acrylic paint from Hobby Lobby - $2.49 a bottle). 

Once the pumpkins were dry (just a half hour later), we cut around the printed images (about 1/4 inch around the outside of the image) and Mod Podged them onto the pumpkins.
[One note: a brush laden with Mod Podge in the hand of an overzealous child, may rub the acrylic paint off a little – you’ll either have to supervise gentleness, or touch up afterward.] 
For more weather proof pumpkins you could varnish them.

 

Because these pumpkins don’t glow, I added strings of orange lights around the patch when we put them on the porch. I think they’re masterpieces (and they’ll last at least until Halloween!). If you use synthetic pumpkins to do this they’ll last forever.

 

Original Graphics Fairy links to images used: SKULL, TARANTULA, BAT, CHAMELEON, GOOGLY EYES, HAND

Blackbirds and Bones Wreath

Because my Four and Twenty Blackbirds Halloween pie idea didn’t pan out, I still had blackbirds on the brain. I had an idea to make a black feathered wreath with bones caught in it, and a parchment set inside displaying a curse.


I wish I could have found synthetic, decorative bird bones or skeletons for this project (THAT would have been perfect). But all I could locate were real bird bones (sold for laboratory and educational use), which were a) crazy expensive, and b) yeah, okay, really gross.


I guess this is where I’ll have to admit that birds creep me out.  Wild birds, cute birds, pet birds, chickens (don’t even get me started on turkeys….). I see them as little, feathered lizards. Ancient, soulless dinosaurs that’ll peck you soon as look at ya. So there you go.


Anyway, I did find well-designed mini skeletons (originally strung on a twine of nooses) which had a nice aged patina appearance, and were cheap at Big Lots ($3.50 for 6).  I plucked them apart to use the individual pieces, which seemed scarier.

I started with a base of an inexpensive grapevine wreath from Hobby Lobby ($3). 

There I also found a garland of black feathers (ordinarily $9.99 but 50% off – as most everything you need usually is at Hobby Lobby).

I love everything about Hobby Lobby, except the fact that they close to go to church on the very best crafting day of the week.

I also got a really cool roll of black snakeskin ribbon trimmed with feathers to hang the wreath.

For the parchment I started with an image from The Graphics Fairy (an old opera sheet music border: Original Link is HERE).

My son Marley wrote the curse; “Treaters beware, you’re in for a scare”. 

We hot glued the feather garland along the grapevine.

Then I hot glued the individual bones around, and tucked into, the feathers. I attached the parchment with wire in the corners from the back of the wreath . Then tied the ribbon around the top of the wreath and pinned it, and draped the ribbon over the front door and tacked it on the inside.

Kids' Halloween Capes - 101

A cape is the most versatile Halloween costume piece imaginable. Depending on your fabric and color choice they can be used for super heroes, super villains, vampires, princesses/ queens/ kings, knights, Robin Hood, fairy tale heroes and heroines, etc…..

Kids Halloween costume making should be quick and easy, and very customizable. 

I came up with these two simple patterns (one for little kids, and one for big). The most important feature of these is the stand-up collar. It’s much more dramatic (and not any more work) than the ones I’ve seen in Martha Stewart which are collar-less.

What you’ll need:

 
Two contrasting fabrics for the inside and the outside. (These capes are completely reversible.)

My guys chose a super shiny wet-look for one side (one chose gold and the other red) with a black satin on the other. 

 (1 yard each for the small cape, 1 ½ yards for the long one)

 
1 yard decorative cord or ribbon for the tie
½ yard interfacing (I used black)

1/4 yard 1 inch wide elastic (optional)

 
Note: Sewing shiny fabric to shiny fabric requires LOTS of pins – get more if you don’t have a ton.

Cape #1:

 
Measure the width of your fabric folded (it’s probably about 30 inches).

 
Measure this length along the fold and place a pin on the fold. Cut a semi circle as per sketch (see below).

If you are very bad at free handing, you can tie a thread (30 inches long) to a pencil, hold the thread end at the top of the fold with one hand and sketch a semi circle with the pencil onto the fabric. Do this with both fabrics. 

Cut out the collar pieces – 11 inches long by 3.5 inches high (from both fabrics). Cut a piece of interfacing  11 inches long by 8 inches high and fold (the fold gives the collar extra oomph).

Find the center of the collar pieces, and the center of the cape pieces, and sew the collar pieces to their matching cape pieces (right sides – or shiny sides – together). 

 

Pin both sets of shiny sides together, and pin interfacing ½ inch below top edge of collar (you won’t be stitching the top fold). Stitch all around cape and collar edge using ½ inch seam allowance (leaving 6 inches unsewn at bottom cape edge).

 

  

Flip the cape right side out. Use your scissor points to get the collar tips good and pointy.
Topstitch the open bit of hem closed. Pin decorative cord over one side of the collar seam and topstitch down (leaving enough on either side for tying).

 

 

Cape #1 used for this Dr. Jekyll Cape (he has a vest on in photo 2):

Cape #2:

 
Measure the length you want the cape to be and cut (we did 42 inches long). Do this with both fabrics.

Cut out the collar pieces – 11 inches long by 3.5 inches high (from both fabrics). Cut a piece of interfacing 11 inches long by 8 inches high and fold.

Find the center of the collar pieces, and the center of the cape pieces, and sew the collar pieces to their matching cape pieces (right sides – or shiny sides – together).   

 

Pin both sets of shiny sides together, and pin interfacing ½ inch below top edge of collar (you won’t be stitching the top fold). 

 
Note: Alternative tie method - pin two pieces of decorative cord (long enough to tie in front) with 1 inch sticking out, away from the collar, and the long ends going into the body of the cape (you’ll have to be careful to only sew the ends into the collar, and not accidentally sew the cords into the seam anywhere else – pin it to the center of the cape if you have to).

 
Stitch all around cape and collar edge using ½ inch seam allowance (leaving 6 inches unsewn at bottom cape edge).

 

Flip the cape right side out. Use your scissor points to get the collar tips good and pointy.
Topstitch the open bit of hem closed. Topstitch the collar seam.

 

Measure wrists and cut elastic this measurement. Sew ends together to make two cuffs. Tack or sew these cuffs into the corners of the cape for added drama.

  

Cape #2 used for this Heavy Metal Demon Costume: