Several months ago I started seeing more and more about painters creating ‘face bling’.
This is clusters of sequins, gems, feathers etc, arranged into shapes like intricate bindis and usually stuck together on a base of pet-grade silicone. This cluster can be dried and added to face paints with cosmetic adhesive.
Back when I first started painting (2004? or earlier) I added dyed craft feathers, sequins etc to my work with spirit gum. I soon learnt that many of those either have layers that detach (leaving a clear plastic disc behind whilst the brighter metallic sequin layer falls off) or the dye leaked out onto the skin from the damp object. I stopped using them and haven’t been impressed with the pre-sticky gems available since (although Kryolan launched a nice range recently) – many either don’t adhere to skin or paint well, or won’t peel off the paper backing they come on.
I’d been sent a few samples of flat-backed acrylic gems when I ordered some cabuchons for bodypaint projects last year (in cream, pearl and black AB – I use them SO MUCH!) and had meant to look into it. I paid for some more samples to be sent from China and picked my favourites to order in bulk.
(I haven’t as yet got a good cabuchon supplier but will add them when I do – I use them for bubbles, rivets, buttons, jewellery, eyeballs….)
Due to language problems (they spoke English well enough to take my money but now have none to reply when I ask why I only got 100 not 1000 of a range of gems I paid for!!) I’ve had to change suppliers, but I finally have a good selection in stock on this shop page.
I don’t have time (new baby, kid, moving house etc) to sit and make bling clusters myself, so I chose gems which are much more striking than the usual ones available in the UK, and can be used alone OR added to clusters.
I will get time to paint & photo them in use soon, most of my recent bookings have been massive speed-painting events in Malls & I don’t get a chance to get my camera out. I only have these 2 from a street party event last week and my camera was not behaving 😦
Green snowflake heart (camera acting up so not great shot sorry)
As a centrepiece to crowns, an accent at the outer corner of an eye, etc, they are fabulous. I tend to do most of my paint, add a blob of the cosmetic adhesive (which I sell here on my freehand glitter tattoo page) and then finish off adding white or whatever final details whilst the blob dries. the finale is adding the gem and a poof of aurora glitter (from Funtime Faces). it always gets a huge wow and the lovely best bit is, the kids then have something to ‘keep’ (aside from any photos) of their facepaint.
Faceted heart
The range I sell in my shop on here are all lightweight flat-back acrylic gems.
They include (click teal coloured words for video link):
Snowflakes with irridescent shades overlaid with silver metallic patterns – helloooo all you Christmas/ Frozen type designs
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snowflake hearts in 5 colours
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snowflake circles in 3colours
Shells – finely detailed in unusual AB mixed colours for all sorts of mermaid, flower and abstract designs
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round
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teardtop
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double pointed
Hearts – princesses, abstracts, butterfly etc designs
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small faceted AB hearts (in glitter or plain AB in mixed shades)
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slightly larger aurora hearts with pyramid/dot textured AB surface
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‘Sugar’ glittery hearts in mixed colours
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large ‘crystal’ hearts with the same textured AB surface as the smaller aurora hearts but in mixed colours
Teardrops
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Small clear faceted teardops in mixed colours
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Medium bling drops in the same surface pattern/ AB as the crystal hearts, mixed colours
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Large bling drops in the same surface pattern/ AB as the crystal hearts, mixed colours
Body Painting by Cat 