I remember watching the ladybug from the cartoon movie A Bug's Life and laughing out loud when he complained that people immediately think he is a female just because he is called a ladybug.
I had to face paint for a school function, and the booth was actually the most popular (kids just loooove to get their faces painted). I was approached by a little boy and his older sister. His sister requested the snake face which took a little over 5 minutes, squinting and forehead wrinkling included. When it came for the little boy's turn, he very confidently announced that he wanted a butterfly. It was as if the world stopped and at least 2 other people, apart from his sister gasped in utter shock. A few seconds later, the parents walked over, and of course, they were told that their son wanted a butterfly on his face. Mom was quite nonchalant about it, but Dad was 3 breaths away from throwing a hissy-fit.
I calmly pointed out that big sister got a snake face, so it's perfectly okay for little brother to get the face he wanted. Apparently, snakes can be for both boys and girls, but not butterflies. A butterfly on a boy's face simply won't do. In between dabs of my sponge, I assured the father I will not be using any princessy pastels and did a red a black butterfly with pointed, not rounded wings, very few dots, and no glitter. The little boy and Mom were pleased, Dad walked away with them scratching his head, and big sister was visibly displeased that her sibling did not choose a more fitting design.
Really now, do we genderize face painting designs?
My personal, and probably unpopular take on it is, face painting is supposed to be fun. Creativity is supposed to be fun. Why the need to take something fun and make it out to be so serious? It doesn't make me any less female to be in love with the color blue, I don't think any less of a man who wears the color pink.
It was a butterfly...just a simple butterfly.
The poor thing was probably more attracted to the line work and the colors. maybe he's seen butterflies in their garden and thought they were lovely. I don't really care that he wanted the design on his face, it just bothered me that people reacted that way towards his choice.
I may vary the colors I use, to make the pill go down easier. Maybe I'll even make 3 or more samples of manly butterflies, I don't know. But the thing I am certain off is, IT IS FUN....
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Friday, October 30, 2009
REPOSTED FROM SILLY FARM SUPPLIES - a most read article regarding the safety of face paints...
Hello friends, fellow painters, and concerned parents,
Silly Farm Supplies is a proud retailer of professional face and body art supplies.
We are distributors for several major make up manufacturers and we'd like to
take this opportunity to address a recent article published by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33524058/ regarding lead in face paints.
We at Silly Farm stand behind our products and their manufacturers. We have been
the leading provider of face and body art supplies for over 20 years and have a close
working relationship with the manufacturing companies. We stand behind their safety
ratings, trust that they have the best interest of the customer in mind, and that they take the necessary steps in making sure the products we use on children are safe and do not cause harm.
Ben Nye Corporation, one of the industries oldest and most notable make up manufacturers released a very informative and useful article in response to Safe Cosmetics article claims. Please take a moment to review the release. We are confident it will set your mind at ease and give you piece of mind when speaking to concerned parents and for your own concerns.
US Snazaroo Distributor, Gary Cole has also released a very informative statement which will also help you gain more insight into the materials and safety concerning face paint.
Official Release by Ben Nye Corp:
On Tuesday, a report was released by an organization called Campaign for Safe Cosmetics indicating that there are "potentially hazardous levels" of heavy metals in face paints. Ten products were tested including our LW Lumiere Wheel, and competitor products from Mehron, Snazaroo and Wolfe Brothers. All ten products contained lead; some of the other products tested also contained nickel, cobalt and chromium. Our LW was reported to contain .19 parts per million (ppm) of lead (but no other metals).
This morning, NBC announced the CSC's claims on their news program. Product names were not reported. You can view the article here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33524058/
Most manufacturers and professionals in this industry know that groups such as CSC are irresponsibly reporting information to the public, causing consumer alarm and panic. This same organization issued a similar report in 2007 regarding lead in lipstick. The FDA performed their own analysis of lipsticks and found that Pb (lead) levels "are within the range that might be expected from lipsticks formulated with permitted color additives and other ingredients prepared under GMP (good manufacturing practice) conditions.
The general feeling by the ICMAD (a cosmetic association to which we belong) is that the CSC got nowhere with the lipstick results, so now they're going after face paints. The CSC's goal, it seems, is to force the FDA to require that cosmetics be free of contaminants such as lead and other metals.
The bottom line is this: Lead is everywhere. Lead is found in color additives and other raw materials used in the manufacturing of cosmetics. The FDA is the U.S. agency that has legal authority over cosmetic safety, including certification of the color additives that are allowable in food, drugs and cosmetics. The maximum allowable level of lead in a colorant is typically 20 ppm.
The FDA-recommended limit for lead in candy is 0.1 ppm. The FDA has not determined that there is a safety concern regarding lead in cosmetics which are applied topically (not ingested), therefore, no upper limits have been established.
Please read the attached bulletin for your own benefit. If questions come up come up from dealers and end-users, please feel free to email or fax the attached as our "official" statement regarding this issue. You are encouraged to visit both websites listed for further information.
We at Silly Farm have the upmost concern for the safety of our customers and our industry. We will continue to follow studies, work with the manufacturers to bring you pertinent information, and keep up to date information regarding the materials used in the products we carry and sell.
Please keep in mind that the face and body art industry has experienced amazing growth over the past 10 years and the manufactuers such as Mehron, Snazaroo, Ben Nye, Kryolan, and Wolfe have invested millions into research, development, and follow the required steps to ensure a safe industry. With the continued success and growth we can look forward to a safer and healthier industry with better product awareness.
Please feel free to contact us with any concerns or questions. We are always glad to help.
Sincerly,
Silly Farm Supplies
866-871-9403
Silly Farm Supplies is a proud retailer of professional face and body art supplies.
We are distributors for several major make up manufacturers and we'd like to
take this opportunity to address a recent article published by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33524058/ regarding lead in face paints.
We at Silly Farm stand behind our products and their manufacturers. We have been
the leading provider of face and body art supplies for over 20 years and have a close
working relationship with the manufacturing companies. We stand behind their safety
ratings, trust that they have the best interest of the customer in mind, and that they take the necessary steps in making sure the products we use on children are safe and do not cause harm.
Ben Nye Corporation, one of the industries oldest and most notable make up manufacturers released a very informative and useful article in response to Safe Cosmetics article claims. Please take a moment to review the release. We are confident it will set your mind at ease and give you piece of mind when speaking to concerned parents and for your own concerns.
US Snazaroo Distributor, Gary Cole has also released a very informative statement which will also help you gain more insight into the materials and safety concerning face paint.
Official Release by Ben Nye Corp:
On Tuesday, a report was released by an organization called Campaign for Safe Cosmetics indicating that there are "potentially hazardous levels" of heavy metals in face paints. Ten products were tested including our LW Lumiere Wheel, and competitor products from Mehron, Snazaroo and Wolfe Brothers. All ten products contained lead; some of the other products tested also contained nickel, cobalt and chromium. Our LW was reported to contain .19 parts per million (ppm) of lead (but no other metals).
This morning, NBC announced the CSC's claims on their news program. Product names were not reported. You can view the article here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33524058/
Most manufacturers and professionals in this industry know that groups such as CSC are irresponsibly reporting information to the public, causing consumer alarm and panic. This same organization issued a similar report in 2007 regarding lead in lipstick. The FDA performed their own analysis of lipsticks and found that Pb (lead) levels "are within the range that might be expected from lipsticks formulated with permitted color additives and other ingredients prepared under GMP (good manufacturing practice) conditions.
The general feeling by the ICMAD (a cosmetic association to which we belong) is that the CSC got nowhere with the lipstick results, so now they're going after face paints. The CSC's goal, it seems, is to force the FDA to require that cosmetics be free of contaminants such as lead and other metals.
The bottom line is this: Lead is everywhere. Lead is found in color additives and other raw materials used in the manufacturing of cosmetics. The FDA is the U.S. agency that has legal authority over cosmetic safety, including certification of the color additives that are allowable in food, drugs and cosmetics. The maximum allowable level of lead in a colorant is typically 20 ppm.
The FDA-recommended limit for lead in candy is 0.1 ppm. The FDA has not determined that there is a safety concern regarding lead in cosmetics which are applied topically (not ingested), therefore, no upper limits have been established.
Please read the attached bulletin for your own benefit. If questions come up come up from dealers and end-users, please feel free to email or fax the attached as our "official" statement regarding this issue. You are encouraged to visit both websites listed for further information.
We at Silly Farm have the upmost concern for the safety of our customers and our industry. We will continue to follow studies, work with the manufacturers to bring you pertinent information, and keep up to date information regarding the materials used in the products we carry and sell.
Please keep in mind that the face and body art industry has experienced amazing growth over the past 10 years and the manufactuers such as Mehron, Snazaroo, Ben Nye, Kryolan, and Wolfe have invested millions into research, development, and follow the required steps to ensure a safe industry. With the continued success and growth we can look forward to a safer and healthier industry with better product awareness.
Please feel free to contact us with any concerns or questions. We are always glad to help.
Sincerly,
Silly Farm Supplies
866-871-9403
Thursday, October 29, 2009
My face staring back at me...
I don't usually get cooperative people around the house. My daughter does not revel at the thought that I will paint something "unpretty" on her face. Heaven forbid if I indeed paint a monster face, or something thereabouts on her. As for the husband, well he believes he can survive on hard-boiled eggs, and although I may just call him on that one of these days, I don't feel like closing down the kitchen just yet.
My first attempt at painting my own face was a tropical scene I saw on youtube. This was initially done by Curlie's Face Art. Although it seemed simple enough (and it was actually, quite easy when I painted it on someone else), it was a beast to paint on my own face. A beast....hilarious.
First of all I couldn't get the colors right. They were blotchy as hell, and I was getting frustrated. Then the line work was not clean, darned dashes were pissing me off.
There is truly impeccable beauty in learning from your mistakes.
Getting to know how to effectively paint my own face allowed me to sport a painted face during gigs,lovely. It makes me sound more credible when I say..."You can have it on all day and not worry about breaking out because it is made to be put on your skin." or "I never have breakouts because everything I use is FDA approved, it's safe for my skin, and it's safe for my daughter's."
The best part about it, I can keep the idle time I spend by myself less idle. I still get bored at home (first time being a housewife, sorry) but now that I can play with my face I have at least 9 minutes of occupied time. Of course I bask in the glory of a completed face and rarely do I paint two different designs one after the other, but hey, I can transform...
And then of course if I am pleased, I do a little victory dance, by myself.
My first attempt at painting my own face was a tropical scene I saw on youtube. This was initially done by Curlie's Face Art. Although it seemed simple enough (and it was actually, quite easy when I painted it on someone else), it was a beast to paint on my own face. A beast....hilarious.
First of all I couldn't get the colors right. They were blotchy as hell, and I was getting frustrated. Then the line work was not clean, darned dashes were pissing me off.
There is truly impeccable beauty in learning from your mistakes.
Getting to know how to effectively paint my own face allowed me to sport a painted face during gigs,lovely. It makes me sound more credible when I say..."You can have it on all day and not worry about breaking out because it is made to be put on your skin." or "I never have breakouts because everything I use is FDA approved, it's safe for my skin, and it's safe for my daughter's."
The best part about it, I can keep the idle time I spend by myself less idle. I still get bored at home (first time being a housewife, sorry) but now that I can play with my face I have at least 9 minutes of occupied time. Of course I bask in the glory of a completed face and rarely do I paint two different designs one after the other, but hey, I can transform...
And then of course if I am pleased, I do a little victory dance, by myself.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
brushes 101
I do not have an degree in fine arts. I was not known to have an artistic ability in school. As a matter of fact, most of my high school friends were surprised i actually knew how to paint, much less face paint.
I have to say however, that I could be your artsy, crafty person when the light bulb in my head goes off. I've dabbled in making polymer clay charms, and favors, I've put together a scrapbook for my daughter's first year, I knit, I've made my own jewelry, and I've even tried making personalized shirts with beading (yes, beading...).
I was also a quick study. I can watch something being made and recreate the process, with a few changes here and there (depending on my taste).
I came across two very educational sites sharing simple tutorial videos on youtube. The first site was by Anna a.k.a. Clash the Clown, and the second one was by Heather from Sillyfarm. The tutorials were easy to follow, the manner by which they were presented was not overwhelming. After several videos, I finally attempted by first face. It sucked.
I couldn't figure out what went wrong until I came across Shannon Fennell's blog. I read, and re-read her entries. I also read and re-read entries from established face painters I met at facepaintchat.com. I watched and re-watched the tutorial videos.
Sure I had the face paints, but I settled for the wrong kinds of brushes, they were mostly brushes I got from those generic school watercolor sets...it was my "duh?!" moment.
Off to Michael's I went, and surprise, surprise...SALE!
I was standing beside an older gentleman who was also looking at brushes, and well, I just had to ask..."ARE YOU AN ARTIST?" When he answered in the affirmative, I asked him again "CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT TO LOOK FOR WHEN BUYING PAINT BRUSHES FOR WATER-BASED PAINT?" I half expected him to tell me to come to his studio, give me a quote and tell me he'll give me lessons, but to my surprise he said, "WELL, FIRST YOU HAVE TO SEE IF THE BRUSHES SPRINGS EASILY AND IF THEY KEEP THEIR SHAPE WHEN YOU SWIRL IT AROUND YOUR PALM....AND THEN..." He was such a nice man, and a stranger at that. By the end of my trip to Michael's I had in my bag 3 brushes, a number 4 round, a 1/2 flat brush, and a fan brush. I also picked up a pack of sponges from the same aisle. And then of course I realized that in between "THANK YOU!" and "HAVE A NICE DAY!" I forgot to ask for his name...I wanted to kick myself...
What a difference a nice brush makes...
I've been able to invest in some other ones, 3/4 flat, a 1 inch flat, two sizes of filberts, another fan brush that I've chopped up myself to make my own butterfly brush (I refuse to buy a butterfly brush for $8)and an angle brush. My sponges have multiplied too. Anna a.k.a. Clash sent me wedge sponges with my order of diamond fx paints, along with a dotter sponge!
I don't get mad at stray lines on my outline work anymore, there are no more canals on my rainbow cake strokes(the older brushes kind of divided itself when I did strokes on the skin)and my dots look like dots...not like exploding comets.
It pays to get the right tools for the trade I guess....
But I still don't buy things unless they are really on sale.
Shannon Fennell...at the very slim chance of you reading this post, I would like to say thanks for saying your thoughts about the dotter wand...after reading your post about it I decided not to order one for myself. Instead, I just practiced 100 perfect dots along with my 100 perfect teardrops. My husband was shocked at the sight of my legs when he came home that day but your post actually saved me $7...I admire your work...
I have to say however, that I could be your artsy, crafty person when the light bulb in my head goes off. I've dabbled in making polymer clay charms, and favors, I've put together a scrapbook for my daughter's first year, I knit, I've made my own jewelry, and I've even tried making personalized shirts with beading (yes, beading...).
I was also a quick study. I can watch something being made and recreate the process, with a few changes here and there (depending on my taste).
I came across two very educational sites sharing simple tutorial videos on youtube. The first site was by Anna a.k.a. Clash the Clown, and the second one was by Heather from Sillyfarm. The tutorials were easy to follow, the manner by which they were presented was not overwhelming. After several videos, I finally attempted by first face. It sucked.
I couldn't figure out what went wrong until I came across Shannon Fennell's blog. I read, and re-read her entries. I also read and re-read entries from established face painters I met at facepaintchat.com. I watched and re-watched the tutorial videos.
Sure I had the face paints, but I settled for the wrong kinds of brushes, they were mostly brushes I got from those generic school watercolor sets...it was my "duh?!" moment.
Off to Michael's I went, and surprise, surprise...SALE!
I was standing beside an older gentleman who was also looking at brushes, and well, I just had to ask..."ARE YOU AN ARTIST?" When he answered in the affirmative, I asked him again "CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT TO LOOK FOR WHEN BUYING PAINT BRUSHES FOR WATER-BASED PAINT?" I half expected him to tell me to come to his studio, give me a quote and tell me he'll give me lessons, but to my surprise he said, "WELL, FIRST YOU HAVE TO SEE IF THE BRUSHES SPRINGS EASILY AND IF THEY KEEP THEIR SHAPE WHEN YOU SWIRL IT AROUND YOUR PALM....AND THEN..." He was such a nice man, and a stranger at that. By the end of my trip to Michael's I had in my bag 3 brushes, a number 4 round, a 1/2 flat brush, and a fan brush. I also picked up a pack of sponges from the same aisle. And then of course I realized that in between "THANK YOU!" and "HAVE A NICE DAY!" I forgot to ask for his name...I wanted to kick myself...
What a difference a nice brush makes...
I've been able to invest in some other ones, 3/4 flat, a 1 inch flat, two sizes of filberts, another fan brush that I've chopped up myself to make my own butterfly brush (I refuse to buy a butterfly brush for $8)and an angle brush. My sponges have multiplied too. Anna a.k.a. Clash sent me wedge sponges with my order of diamond fx paints, along with a dotter sponge!
I don't get mad at stray lines on my outline work anymore, there are no more canals on my rainbow cake strokes(the older brushes kind of divided itself when I did strokes on the skin)and my dots look like dots...not like exploding comets.
It pays to get the right tools for the trade I guess....
But I still don't buy things unless they are really on sale.
Shannon Fennell...at the very slim chance of you reading this post, I would like to say thanks for saying your thoughts about the dotter wand...after reading your post about it I decided not to order one for myself. Instead, I just practiced 100 perfect dots along with my 100 perfect teardrops. My husband was shocked at the sight of my legs when he came home that day but your post actually saved me $7...I admire your work...
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Links to Facebook photos....
I am biting the bullet and posting this link to some pictures of my work which are on my Facebook page. Most of these designs are designs I practiced with and designs that I have seen done on youtube...
Looking at the pictures, I'm sure you can tell which faces I did when I was barely starting out...my lines were bad....my teardrops were unrecognizable...but hey, I tried. I would like to believe I have gotten so much better now...
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=110778&id=645541550&l=50852629f6
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=126400&id=645541550&l=313700fae3
Looking at the pictures, I'm sure you can tell which faces I did when I was barely starting out...my lines were bad....my teardrops were unrecognizable...but hey, I tried. I would like to believe I have gotten so much better now...
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=110778&id=645541550&l=50852629f6
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=126400&id=645541550&l=313700fae3
Monday, October 26, 2009
SERVICES, RATES, AND CONTACT INFORMATION
FACE PAINTING SERVICES $50/hour; minimum booking of 2 hours
full face and cheek designs will be made available
available option for themed designs (please discuss specifics at least 2 weeks in advance)
Pay-per-Face/Design option available for fairs and other events
PERSONALIZED INVITATIONS/THANK YOU CARDS; priced depending on the complexity of the desired design and the number of pieces per order.
PERSONALIZED PARTY FAVORS ; polymer clay charms, polymer clay magnets, the possibilities are endless!!!; priced depending on the complexity and the number of pieces per order.
CONTACT ME USING EITHER OF THESE NUMBERS:
(831) 442-3134
(831) 210-6744
SEND ME AN EMAIL: annitoralba@gmail.com
full face and cheek designs will be made available
available option for themed designs (please discuss specifics at least 2 weeks in advance)
Pay-per-Face/Design option available for fairs and other events
PERSONALIZED INVITATIONS/THANK YOU CARDS; priced depending on the complexity of the desired design and the number of pieces per order.
PERSONALIZED PARTY FAVORS ; polymer clay charms, polymer clay magnets, the possibilities are endless!!!; priced depending on the complexity and the number of pieces per order.
CONTACT ME USING EITHER OF THESE NUMBERS:
(831) 442-3134
(831) 210-6744
SEND ME AN EMAIL: annitoralba@gmail.com
Once upon a butterfly...
It all started with a single attempt to copy a butterfly.
Julianna loves getting her face painted. It has become her treat each time we go to the zoo or an amusement park. She is always happy when her face is finally done, and she is always careful not to smear it. Much to my dismay of course, she often refuses to wash it off.
I had a lot of down time during the summer, and because I was already anticipating that I will no longer be working as an employee in the public school district, I thought of looking for something I can do part time. I have always dabbled in anything related to party services. I tried doing balloon twisting and became quite good at making simple forms out of a twisty balloon. I have made personalized invitations for Julianna's birthday parties, and have been asked to make invitations for parties thrown by friends. I also make polymer clay figures. I thought I could try my hand at face painting because it seemed to complete the services I can offer an interested client. Well, I guess I was more inclined to dabble into face painting because the designs were simply too cute.
I started out with 3 basic starter palettes from Snazaroo, and three books from Marcela Murad a.k.a. Mama Clown. I asked a friend of mine if she would let me do face painting for her daughter's first birthday party as "practice". That was in August.
By beginning of September, I finally had enough confidence to want to try face painting for a bigger event. I then offered my services to my daughter's school's Family Fun Festival. Upon getting the organizers to agree that we will split the cost of the materials if I work the entire festival for free, I was able to order a more substantial amount of face paint products. I surfed the net for the site offering the most reasonable rate for the paints I wanted. I made sure these paints were FDA approved and were used by professionals. I also joined a forum for face painters to get their insights on products, techniques and everything related to face painting. Of course I had my very own living canvasses. Both my daughter and my husband moonlight as my (sometimes reluctant) models.
And so here I am. I am now a mother first, a wife second, and a part time party service provider. I paint faces!
Hello!
This blog is dedicated to my lovely daughter, Julianna Ysabelle.
She is my strength, my rock.
She is my bliss, my infinite joy.
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