Annual Halloween Wrap-Up

Halloween season this year was a long one, not that I’m complaining!  Well… maybe a little because my back and feet are killing me.

My Halloween bookings started on October 19th with four appointments, then I did a couple of full zombies for a film shoot the next day.  The 25th I had bookings in the evening, then on Saturday the 26th I did my usual gig painting up the staff and haunters for the local park’s Haunted House, then back home for appointments well into the evening, then had evening bookings during the week, worked at the museum the evening of the 30th for four hours at an event, appointments all day on Oct 31st, from 2 pm on on Nov 1st, and finally, four more appointments the evening of Nov 2nd.  That was a LONG stretch of bookings.  And, I had eight (yes, EIGHT) customers who came for make-up TWICE… and one of them actually came THREE TIMES!!

It was a very nice financial boost to the household.  I’ve always thought it would be great to be able to do this full-time, I love make-up application and creating characters… but physically, well, I’m getting too old for this … I was in severe pain at the end of the long days and had to take a couple of Aleve AND a couple of Tylenol just to be able to stop the pain enough to sleep.  I can face the short busy periods of standing and leaning to do make-up but I wouldn’t survive a regular day to day routine of it.   Oh to be young again, eh?

I love Halloween – I’ve got some excellent customers who book every year.  Most of my business is repeat customers… and I think 2014 is already booked solid.  I already have confirmed in writing appointments for next year.

So, here are photos of some of what I created this year – as always, customers send me, or come with, photos they found of what they want me to create so, thank you to the original artists of the designs interpreted here (if I know who the inspiration photos were created by I will note them – most were unknown to me…)

This first one is based on the cover photo of Becstar Anthony’s book.  My customer loved it (she saw it on my blog!)  This is based on that design, with changes!

This is the customer’s photo – after she was in costume with her hair done:

This next couple also wanted sugar skulls… they had photos but I didn’t really follow the designs.  They had a variety of photos so I chose bits from one, something from another, etc.  They promised to send a photo in costume… I’ll post it when I get it.

This next one is my interpretation of the Cheshire Cat – she wanted the big mouth full of teeth and to look fierce… she was going out with a group all dressed as Alice In Wonderland characters.

This next one, I have to admit was one of my favourites – he had a couple of photos and wanted the overall look of one with the mouth of the other… I think it works amazingly well with the costume!  And those eyes!!

This customer had photos of the large mouth… the first one was the first time he came and wanted it like the photos he had provided, the second is based on a mouth design I found that I liked better and he chose that for the second time around.

And this is another compilation of a few photos – mouth from one, top part from another design, own idea for other parts…

The three above guys then went to the Mall on Halloween Day and terrorized the little kids… just by being there!

This next one is a repeat customer – she works at a Haunted House/Event each year and comes to me for the make-up.  This year was a Zombie Crossing Guard – She sent me the photo in costume “on set” which is pretty cool!  I deliberately used the black as she was going to be working outside and it would be dark for most of the event and we wanted it to show up.

The next is my version of Two-Face from whichever Batman movie had Aaron Eckhart in it.  I think it turned out pretty well.  This customer came back the next weekend to get it done again for another party.

This next is another repeat customer – he is the Skull Warrior above too.  This was the make-up from the first visit this year – he had some photos he liked so I did my version of it (choosing colours to make he eyes pop!)

This Zombie was working as a guide at an event:

Here is a Zombie Bride – she was one of the customers who came twice this year.  The second time we did a skull and rib cage design and she made the front page of the paper as part of the Thriller dance mob.

You can see her in the centre of the photo:

This is a little five year old Zombie Bride all ready to go trick or treating… she insisted on “scars with stiches”… 

Next, two green aliens… They bought their own bald caps, ears and horns… cheap ones…  I pre-painted the ears and bald caps in advance.  Due to the, er, lack of acreage of the bald caps I only glued them down on the foreheads, cut around the ears so they would lie flat and since they were wearing hoods the loose backs wouldn’t matter.  The horns were glued onto the bald caps once I had them secured.  They ended up not wearing the ears (they were not able to be attached – the kind you just fit over your own ear and wouldn’t stay.)  I wish I had noticed the undone hood on the taller guy before taking the photo though.

And last, but certainly NOT least… Comic-Con Man!!!  Vinny came two times (hence the two different designs) and I painted his chest as well as his face – so the Superman and Batman emblems I painted freehand – I had to get Vinny to bring up the Superman “s” on his smartphone, but Batman was freehand from memory (there are so many versions of that!)  His costume was a Spidey suit on backwards, Captain America’s shield on Batman’s utility belt, Wonder Woman’s boots and bracelets, Catwoman’s ears and tail.  The design on the left was my idea – he arrived in his costume and I quickly sketched out my idea, the design on the right was to his specifications.

So that is just SOME of what I did this season.

Oh, almost forgot… the film that I did the zombie make-up that I posted about previously is out!  Here is the link Bar One/Walking Dead Commercial Have a look – it is pretty cool!