Cat Makeup Tutorials

Posted 969 days ago by Graftobian

Before You Start:

Your make-up should be applied in a clean, well lit area. Give yourself plenty of room, and arrange your materials neatly in front of you. If you are doing the make-up on yourself, make sure you have an amply sized, well lit mirror. Wear old clothes— making up can get messy! Make-up should always be applied to clean skin, so wash your hands and face and you are ready to begin.

Time Needed: One full character face will require about 30-45 minutes to complete.
Pretty Kitty:

1: Using the provided Non-Latex Sponge Wedge and the White Crème Makeup, make your Highlights. Keep in mind that much of the focus will be around the eye area for this Pretty Kitty.

2: With the Warm Bronze Crème Makeup, contour the surrounding areas of the highlight. This will add dimension and make the highlights “pop.” The Highlights and Shadows are the base, your bottom coat, upon which you will build the character lines needed to create a realistic looking face.
3:Now it’s time to get pretty. Add a bit of White Crème Makeup underneath the eyes and line it with the Black Liner Pencil. Line the upper lids with the pencil as well, and draw out a cat eye: use a straight edge like your finger and line up the outer corner of the eye with the tail end of the eyebrow. Using the Black Crème Makeup, fill in the outer “V” you just created. Make the cat eye as subtle or as exaggerated as you’d like. Soften the black lines by smudging them with a cotton swab.

4: Using the Black Liner Pencil, use light strokes to create your eyebrow design. Remember to be careful around the eye area. Now, powder down the entire makeup (see #3 of the Jungle Cat).
5: Using the Warm Bronze and the Makeup Brush, apply color to the tip of the nose, right above the nostrils. Outline the shape with Black Liner Pencil. Add a bit more White to the sides of the nose to create dimension. Gently blend the makeup below the eyes as needed to achieve a smooth gradient and added contrast with the white. Next, using a brush, sponge, or fingertip, apply a small amount of Deep Tan Foundation to the lips. With the Black Liner Pencil, make small whiskers. Outline the lips just a little.
Optional: To quickly transform this Pretty Kitty into a total knockout, add Graftobian’s SuperSeal™ Intense Shine Lip Gloss to the lips, and a coat of mascara to the lashes (both items sold separately).

Costume & Accessory Tips: As cat faces are unique and varied, so too are their accessory pieces. Wear an all-black outfit to create contrast with the makeup. You can often find complete cat outfits at your local costume retailer. Other possible accessories might be a set of cat ears and tail, long fantasy nails, a toy mouse to play with, or even a touch of catnip.
Jungle Cat:

1: Using Non-Latex Sponge Wedge, map out the areas with Shadow using the Black Crème Foundation. (Note: If you are putting makeup on someone else, always approach the eye area gently and with warning. Have your subject close their eyes when coloring the upper lid and below the brows. Have them open their eyes and look up when you are coloring the areas just below the eye, including the lower eyelid.)

Note: You will want to clean your brush between colors using makeup remover, brush cleaner or soap and water.
2: With Yellow Creme Makeup, coat the upper portion of the face evenly but with as thin a coat as possible to get your desired opacity. This is your Foundation, your bottom coat, into which you will blend and add your character lines and colors. Leave the under eye area, underneath the nose, lower areas of the cheekbones, and the chin–this will allow the colors you add later to fill these spaces to be their brightest! Always think one step ahead, and note that you are covering almost all exposed skin. That includes the ears, neck and into the hairline–all skin that will be showing once the makeup is finished and the costuming added.
3: Now apply White Creme Makeup to the areas you wish to Highlight. This is done again with the fingertip, brush or sponge. To create of the cat’s fluffy features apply the White to the chin, underneath the nose, and under the eyes. Apply downward strokes to create fur with the Makeup Brush. This is more of a sketch, you will add the detail later.

Now it’s time to powder down the makeup. Load Powder onto your Powder Puff by sprinkling a small pile of powder onto the middle of the puff, then folding the puff and rubbing the puff’s sides together until the puff is substantially loaded. Powder the crème-based makeup with a gentle but rapid patting motion working deliberately across the face, one section at a time. Reload the puff frequently to avoid excessive “offsetting” of the makeup onto the puff. When the face is fully “set” you will be able to touch the makeup without it coming off.
4: Add another “layer” of fur by taking the White Crème Makeup with the brush, and applying single hairs to the outside areas of the chin. Outline the white fur along the jaw. Leave a bit of White on your brush and pick up some Black Crème Foundation to create a light grey color. With this color, flick your brush to create more single hairs on either side of the white mane. This lion has been out in the jungle—make him scruffy!

With the Black Liner Pencil, create wisps of fur above the eyebrow and around the perimeters of the face. Using the brush and White Crème Makeup, have your subject scrunch their forehead while you make gentle highlights in the creases. Add more of these highlights above the cheekbone area. Next, using a brush, sponge, or fingertip, add just a dab of the Deep Tan Crème Makeup to the lips. Finish by powdering the makeup again (see Figure 3 above).

About Cats: Cat faces are like snowflakes, no two are alike. From Broadway productions to backyard dress up, the faces created by the actors are always unique and usually are an extension and an expression of the actor herself. We are not trying to show you how to make THE cat face, only one possible cat face. With a complete Cat Kit from Graftobian Theatrical, you can create more than twenty cats. So, play, experiment, stretch your own imagination and create a cat that is uniquely you.

Removal: Our makeup can be easily removed with makeup remover or cold cream (not included in kit). Once all makeup is carefully removed, gently wash with soap and water.