Gold swirl and fuller’s earth experimentation
Positives: I think the pattern was good. I managed to get it fairly neat at least for my first attempt.
To Improve: I need to get a better ratio of pigment to mixing liquid and mix it better because the consistency wasn’t even at some points. Next time I’ll also be more light handed so that the lines are sharper because there was some feathering at the edges. I think some of the flower and leaf shapes were a bit messy and wobbly but the general shape was alright so I can focus on refining it more in my future practices.
Fullers earth and gold underneath
Positives: I’ve learned how to use fuller’s earth which I’ve not used before. I think it’s a technique I can use in the future and I think it looked best when I had a thicker layer.
To improve: I think the gold looked muddy underneath. It’s not a technique I want to use for this look because It makes it look heavy and rough but I want the look to feel lightweight, fun and clean.
Face Painting
I created a Chinese dragon on my arm.
Positives: I think the shapes were good and I added a decent amount of detail. I used the technique of using letters to make shapes, mainly S for the body and mane.
To Improve: I would have preferred to use the split cakes to get a gradient of colour on the body for more depth but other people had all of them. It would have been better on someone else so I’d have a better angle to work at but nobody else was free. The legs and scales could have been better so in the future I’ll practice that. I’d also use a reference in the future. The nose on the dragon was too flat so I’d also get some more face painting brushes because currently I only have flat brushes with a straight edge.
Airbrushing
Positives: I’m generally confident with using an airbrush.
To improve: I should practice more to get different effects and learn more about how the airbrush functions.
Testing Colour Ratios for Body Paint
I tested the drop ratios of red to white for the pink for my look and the ratios of red to blue to white for the lilac parts. I found that 2 red to 4 white worked best for the pink and 3 red to 4 blue to 4 white worked best for the purple. On the day of the assessment I’ll be working fast so I might not follow these ratios exactly but I’ll use these as a guide to follow closely.
First Practice for Sin
My main aims were to figure out what would give the best glossy look on the eyes and get the dewy, natural base. On my left eye I used a lip gloss and on the right I used a water based primer that Jasmin told me gave a really good hydrated finish. I found the lip gloss worked best and the primer reacted with the eyeshadow and made it look muddy.
For the base, I mixed my cream foundation with my primer to thin it out because it usually looks too heavy. The blush shade I used had too much of a white base for my skin, especially for the flushed look I want. I used my MAC Fix+ to hydrate the base between each step and used it on my brush when blending. I think it did help with the hydration but it was more subtle than the high shine that I need. Next time I practice, I’ll experiment with different products to help with the dewy look.
Second Practice for Sin
I wanted to practice the eyeliner because I know it’s something I always struggle with. I used my gel eyeliner but it just isn’t good. It’s dry and patchy. I tried to use mixing liquid to stop it from being dry but that just made it separate. I think the liner on my left eye is better but I still don’t really like it because it’s not smooth and it makes my eyes look droopy. The right side is far too thick and it’s patchy and because of the hood of my eyes the wing gets lost in the fold. I used a little bit of vaseline on my cheeks and temples of my forehead to help with the dewy base and I think it worked really well.
I practiced the bruise on the neck. I think I used a little too much red for the base and it was too big but I think it’s mostly realistic. I think the colour was transparent enough but if I used a sponge with just IPA on it I could’ve got some of the excess off so it looks more mottled.
Styling the wig for my theatre look
I started by steaming the wig to get the big knots out and steamed more as I put the rollers in to get the hair smoother and get smaller knots out. I mainly used the white rollers because they give tighter curls and the peach ones for pieces of hair that didn’t go into the rollers. I think I did a good job at getting the rollers in because I was fast and they were neat.
I used white wefts and a light coloured net to make padding for the wig. I sewed it into the side of the wig and wrapped everything round it to give it a cloud like shape and pinned the hair in. Because there are very large gaps in the wefts I sewed in cotton wool to hide it which I think worked. The gaps are still noticeable up close but I think on stage from far away tthey wouldn’t be as noticeable