It’s no secret that I love cosplay: the costumes, the conventions, and the makeup. But getting cosplay ready can be costly and time consuming. Being a poor college student, I’ve had to find shortcuts both in cost and time to make my creations come to life. So, in my first ever YouTube tutorial, I’ll show you how to do cosplay/fantasy makeup with only eyeshadow and water. After you watch the video, read the full picture tutorial of how I created the Batman villain, Two Face. 

Picture Tutorial

Step 1: Outline 

For this makeup, I used this cosplayer’s makeup as reference.

Draw a line directly down the middle of your face using white eyeliner. On whichever side you choose to apply your makeup (I did mine on the right side of my face because I’m right-handed), start outlining the mouth, the brow lines, and any other facial lines. When you start coloring, these lines will still be visible until you outline them in black in a later step.

Step 2: Apply Base Color 

Taking a non-latex makeup sponge, dip the sponge in water and then firmly press it into the eyeshadow. Make sure to use a deep, non-metallic blue (if you choose blue). Cover the entire half of your face, except for where you’ve placed your mouth—keep that free of any makeup until you work on it. If your eyeshadow doesn’t have much pigmentation, keep adding layers of shadow and water until you’ve reached your desired color. But make sure that it’s even all over.

Step 3: Draw Teeth in the “Mouth” 

In your drawn mouth, draw in teeth using the white eyeliner. They don’t have to look like actual teeth; I drew mine very cartoony, as half-ovals, and made them larger the further back I went. Draw two sets of teeth, a top row and a bottom row.

Step 4: Apply Color to the “Mouth” 

Using a non-metallic yellow shadow, color in the teeth with a small eyeshadow brush dipped in water. Be sure to make the saturated eyeshadow paste-like so that it can be applied easier. For the gums, use a non-metallic red shadow, and follow the same process as you did with the teeth.

Step 5: Apply Details 

With a black liner pencil (or gel, whichever you prefer), add the dark outlines to your face. Use the guidelines you marked earlier with the white liner, and check the reference photo as needed to know where to place the black lines. Your heaviest area will be the mouth, because the “lips” will be completely black and will require thick lines. Also, don’t forget to line the teeth with black liner. This will make the teeth stand out more and give your makeup a more cartoony appearance.

Step 6: Add Shading 

This step will make everything pop on your makeup. Using a dry black shadow—no water at all—darken your eye line and eyelid, add shading to your cheekbone line, and to any other line you choose. I added shading to the brow lines and to my nose to make myself look sinister.

Final Result 

Here’s a different look from a different angle:

There you have it! A Two-Face makeup to make Harvey Dent proud! This was my first attempt at using eye shadow and water for a full face makeup, so some things may not look exactly perfect, but it’s fun and easy to accomplish. If you plan on wearing this look for a long time, I recommend sealing it with a professional makeup seal. When I did theatrical makeup in high school, we used Ben Nye Makeup Sealer to help prevent the smearing and wear of theatrical-grade makeup. There are other commercial brands that make sealer, but they are very expensive, so I recommend the Ben Nye sealer.

You can purchase a small bottle for under $10, as opposed to the $25 you would spend on the Urban Decay brand. Do not use hairspray, it clogs your pores severely. As someone who has sensitive skin, I’ve found that hairspray is much more damaging.

Also, I’ve found that my skin feels good after applying the eyeshadow and water makeup, because it’s gentler than theatrical makeup (no oils, parabens, and it won’t clog your pores). Because eye makeup is designed to go on the eye area, it is usually gentle on the skin, so I’ve found this to be a good alternative to oil-based makeup. Of course, if you’re attempting a more intense, specific look, then you may have to use theatrical-grade makeup. It all depends on the cosplay. But I hope the video—and the tutorial—helps with your cosplaying needs.

I would also like to give a special thanks to my mom, for helping me use iMovie, and to my friend Kaitlyn for allowing me to use her camera to record the video.

Image Credit:

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