I have tried to put into words the instruction I use in a classroom. Please feel free to download the parts you want. Please respect copyright laws. You have permission to use this Face Painting Demo to aid in teaching faces; you may copy the photos and base coating instructions, one per student only.

This is the palette I used to paint this sample. You may use colors of your choice. Choose a dark value and mix with white for the iris of the eye base coat. If you change colors please try to match values; like Light Buttermilk for Warm White.

These are the brushes I used. They are by no means what you should use, but this will answer those questions ahead of time.
Langnickel	5005 #8, #6, # 2
Raphael	liner 8829 #0
Eagle	angle, 710-3/8 flat 515-5-6 small round 555-5/0

Line Drawing
Pattern for Base Coats	Base Coats

Trouble with face painting begins with pattern transfer, while we can fudge on most areas of a painting, when we are less than perfectly accurate transferring a very carefully traced pattern we have started the problems. Try to use a very transparent tracing paper and a very fine line marker to trace your pattern. After you have traced check your pattern (proof) to make sure the eyes are the same size and on the same “line”.  Then make sure the nose and mouth are parallel to the line of the eyes. Fold the tracing in half or use a graph ruler to make sure the features are the same on both sides of the face.  Transfer your pattern outlines, the face, neck, hair, and ruffle. Now discipline yourself to base coat these areas with great care to keep the pattern lines true.

Conte Crayon Info	Pattern Transferred

I use a Conte crayon rubbed on the back of my tracing to transfer the features. I use this because it is very close to my dark value outline paint color and is water-soluble so it just disappears into the painting. No trying to see white lines or paint over dark ones.  Thin Cayenne with water to an inky consistency and outline the features, this outlining should be fine and light in value, it will be darkened where needed but it is very hard to lighten these outlines if they are too heavy or wrong. Turn your painting upside down and check for accuracy. Are the eyes the same size? Did everything stay in line? Use your graph ruler if you need to. If the answer is yes you have avoided major headaches.

Color Highlights	Black and White Highlights

I like to use retarder to paint faces, it allows me to blend edges and wipe off offensive areas easier. I use the Langnickel 5005 kind of round tapered brush to pitty-pat, little circle blending of the edges of color. Using retarder is great if used correctly, just painting it on gives you an uneven surface that will cause you to swear off of it forever. Take the time to brush the retarder into the surface, first in one direction then the other. Tip your surface to the light and make sure it is an even dampish sheen with no puddles or dry areas showing. When your paint won’t move as easy take the time to dry your surface with a hair dryer then re-apply retarder and continue. Of course if you are an experienced painter and you love to float don’t let me talk you into what may not work for you. If you are a fast painter you may want to just dampen with water and blend.

Highlight the face with Warm White on the nose, little bitty bit on the nostrils, cheeks, forehead, chin, and a trace above the upper lip. Refer to the pictures for placement and intensity. The black and white sketch is better as the color picture is subtler, when I taught on an easel in a large room I demo-ed this on a large zerox of the face with a bright green so all could see where to highlight. When your highlights are good, dry with the hair dryer and apply retarder and shade with Cayenne, the sides of the face, sides of the nose, under the tip of the nose, eye sockets, and the neck. Keep an area of the base coat visible between shading and highlight, as this is you mid-value. I rarely paint all of the highlights and shadows in one step, as I like to fiddle and build these areas slowly.

Color Shading	Black and White Shading

Base Coats	Shade and Highlight	Lashes and Lining
EYE STUDY

Base coat the iris if the eye a mix if Prussian Blue plus Warm White, make this a very light value. Trying to paint light over dark is much harder in acrylics, it is so much easier to darken gradually. Base the pupil Soft Black. Base the white of the eye Warm White. Again check for the eyes being the same size, and still on the same line. Outline and shade the iris with Prussian Blue, don’t forget the radius lines. Shade the white of the eye with Prussian Blue but just a tint, very light. Highlight the iris with Warm White lines. Highlight the pupil with a life dot and a tiny line with Warm White. Outline the upper eyelid with Soft Black, this is a solid line and creates a shadow on the eye. The outline of the bottom lid is more of an indication of lashes and sketchy dot kind of line. The angels do not use eyeliner on their lower lids, ever. EYELASHES are the pits, curl them too much, glue on too many, clumpy mascara, and caterpillars to name a few. No Vegas showgirls please. I only allow students five lashes on each eye, so space them carefully and pay attention to direction, curve, and length. OK this looks good, you may have three more on each eye, then three more, use little filler lashes near the base and start these lines below the outline. It may help to print the example and paint right on top of it to practice.

Eyes Painted, Blush, and Lips

Now we get to the fun part. Using retarder on the face, side load a dry angle brush with Brown
Madder, starting at the sides of the face apply the blush even with the eyes and the bottom of the nose, blend in a triangular shape toward the bottom of the nose. Tint the lips with the angle brush starting at the outer corners and working in with Brown Madder.  Tint the eyelid with a tiny bit of Prussian Blue if you like. Dry the face and re-apply retarder, make corrections, deepen shading if needed, strengthen highlights, correct blush, and add a little soft black to the nostril holes. Paint the eyebrows with retarder on the face as it keeps them softer, use Brown Earth thinned with water. Line the center line of the lips with Brown Earth, and the outline of the face.

Hair Lined

Line the hair sections with Brown Earth. Using only your liner brush place lines in clumps as highlights with watered Warm White, then thin Brown Earth and shade with clumps of lines for the shading. We are not trying to paint each hair just using lines to create shadows with the texture of a Pantene ad. When the lines look great float over the darkest areas with Brown Earth to soften.

Highlight the ruffle with Warm White. Shade and line with Soft black.

Finished Face

You could add roses around the bottom of the neck, add a halo, and finish her any number of ways if you want to use this pattern.

Hope this helps you with painting faces,
Nancy