Skeleton Face Paint Tutorial for Halloween 2019

Our quest to find the spookiest (not to mention, easiest) skeleton face paint tutorial was over when we came across a video by YouTuber Kait Nichole. In less than 10 minutes, she perfectly describes how to transform your face into a skeleton using just two materials: face paint and a brush set.

Here, we break down her oh-so-simple skeleton face paint tutorial for your Halloween costume. As an update on the classic skull, Kait Nichole has a mind-blowing hack for giving yourself a floating head (more on that later!). After mastering this Halloween makeup, all you’ll really need is a skeleton shirt, and you’ll be ready to hit the town on October 31!

Supplies:

Step 1: Paint your face white.

Kait NicholeYouTube

To get that ghostly look, take white face paint and a foundation brush, and put it all over your face. For the half-skull effect, paint along your eye sockets. And drag your brush to cover everything (yes, even your lips!) from the nose down. You’ll need to layer on as many times as you need to, especially on your lips.

Step 2: Use a detail brush to draw black accents for your nose and mouth.

Kait NicholeYouTube

Map out the nose-skull look, advises Kait Nichole. To achieve a result that’s somewhere in between cartoonish and realistic, she draws that negative space in her nose and lines that curve up from the outside of her mouth. Once you’ve done that, add more black pain to the center of your lips and follow up with black dips underneath your eyes.

Step 3: Make symmetrical black lines on the sides of your face.

Kait NicholeYouTube

Think of a raindrop shape when you draw these lines, says Kait Nichole, as well as where there would be a break or hole in the natural jawline, then color it in with your black paint. This should start to look like the teeth-filled mouth of a skeleton.

Step 4: Draw your teeth from cheek to cheek.

Kait NicholeYouTube

Now that you’ve established that jaw shape, use the smallest brush you have to create thin vertical lines where your teeth should go. As you go outward, make the lines a bit longer to mimic the appearance of your larger molars.

Step 5: Create triangles connecting your teeth to your lips.

Kait NicholeYouTube

These give a spookier, more realistic look to your skeleton face paint. To continue adding more dimension, “feather” your teeth marks by drawing light strokes. Continue to feather upwards into irregular lines to give the appearances of cracks in the skull. Smudge each tooth line for an even darker skeletal effect, and then include more shadows to round out your look.

Bonus: Make it a “floating head” with more black face paint.

Kait NicholeYouTube

The very last step, if you want to make it look like your head is floating, is to draw an outline on your jawline. From there, brush black face paint all the way down until the point where your costume starts.

And, drum roll, please …

Kait Nichole

Your final job is to check yourself out in the mirror and relish the fact that you fearlessly recreated this terrifying Halloween face paint idea. We’re proud of you and your floating head, Skeleton!