Halloween on a Budget
3:48 pm
First of all, I have to say Halloween is not a very popular and widespread celebration in my country (we usually celebrate Mardi Gras in February or March), but there’s a handful of enthusiasts trying to make it a thing, including myself. This is the main reason why we don’t put as much work into our Halloween costumes as into our Mardi Gras get-ups, but we do make efforts at marking the occasion. These mostly revolve around organizing costumed parties and gatherings at local bars and clubs but, I regrettably must admit, there are still too many people attending these without a mask.
Anyway, anyone who knows me personally can tell that I’m crazy about costumed parties, and that I tend to spend much more money on my costumes than on several of my daily outfits combined (illustrating how I care much more about what I am wearing on Halloween and Mardi Gras than on any other occasion). They also know that I despise ready-made, purchasable costumes, and that I always - without exception - hand-make my own. However, last year I was absolutely broken at the time around Halloween, and it was just impossible for me to set aside a considerable amount of money for my costume. And since missing out on Halloween was not an option, I had to come up with a DIY costume that totalled less than €5.00. And you know what? I did it!
While browsing the Internet for inspiration, I stumbled upon an image of a face overgrown in branches, or burst out in veins (not sure actually, but it doesn’t even matter) on Pinterest. As soon as I saw it, I figured it was going to make an awesome, discernable and, above all, cheap solution to the question of what to wear that year. However, considering the mask was being made last-minute and on a budget, it was not half as simple as the photos may make out. On the contrary, it proved to be quite challenging and included a lot of improvisation.
But don’t be discouraged right away: the purpose of this post is to serve as a guideline for everyone who would like to try to create something similar on their own!
You'll need:
paper tissues
clear school glue
clear fake eyelashes glue (or liquid latex)
liquid foundation
pressed powder
matte eyeshadows (red, purple, yellow, brown)
As the original mask was made of liquid latex, the first problem I encountered was the general impossibility of finding it in stores in Croatia, and it was already too late to buy it online. So I had to improvise. I took some paper tissues, cut them into different length thin lines (no longer than 3-4 cm), rolled them, formed them into branchy-shapes and glued them all around with some school glue. The glue made the paper more rigid and easily shaped, and also prevented its disintegration when in contact with liquid (i.e. the foundation that I later applied). Note: I did this the night before Halloween to make sure the glue dried.
The second problem was how to attach them to my skin (please note that it has to be absolutely clean and dry!). Again, lacking liquid latex, I decided to try with some false eyelashes glue. This turned out to be the perfect solution: as it is designed to be applied to the skin, there’s only an insignificant probability of allergic reactions and other side-effects, and it really holds very well. But removing it takes a lot of rubbing, so bear this in mind before deciding on this solution!
After the glue had dried, I applied the liquid foundation in the colour similar to my skin tone all over my face, neck and the attached veins (using a brush). Then I applied some pressed powder all over my "creation” to cover up the shine and to even out the lines between the foundation and my skin. In the mentioned Pinterest image this was the end of the transformation: the veins had the same colour as the surrounding skin. However, I thought it would be more efficient to paint bruises all around my “skin mutation”. I achieved the effect with dark purple, brown, yellow and red eye shadows. And that was it!
The best thing of all: I only spent €2.50 on two small tubes of false eyelashes glue and €2.00 on the liquid glue I used to make the veins more rigid. Of course, I already had all the makeup I needed, and all that I still had to do was to tease my hair and to wear something black. I must say I am very proud of how it turned out: maybe even better than some of my way too expensive costumes!
Of course, you can cover different parts of your skin with these veins / branches and add more details to make it creepier. For the purpose of the Croatian Halloween, this was more than plenty. I am already planning my costume for this year and buying the things I'll need to make it. So I hope this post is just in time to inspire you and allow you to timely get whatever you may need for your awesome DIY costume!
P.S. sorry for the photo quality: these were taken by my cell-phone and not intended to be published at the time :)
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