Tips for your own killer makeup, from the artist making zombies at Screampark // .@Bingemans

Bring Ghouls to Life this Halloween

 Tips for your own killer makeup, from the artist making zombies at Screampark

Legend has it that the veil between the worlds of the living and the dead is thinnest on All Hallows Eve.  

In days of yore, villagers would scamper across town singing songs or reciting verses while making offerings to the souls of the dead. But when doing so, they needed protection. Not wanting the demons and ghouls from the Otherworld to know who they were, they went in disguise.

“From the days when Halloween was a harvest festival that marked shorter days and longer nights, costumes have been an integral part of the day,” says Tabi Surette, owner and chief artist of DOA SpFx Makeup in Cambridge. “But your Halloween costume doesn’t have to cost you an arm and a leg. With a little makeup and some patience, you can completely become a completely different person — or entity — to ensure your protection against the souls prowling around on Halloween.”

Tabi’s Cambridge-based makeup company has done work in films, theatre, music videos and photo shoots, and will be transforming a cast of actors for this year’s Screampark at Bingemans. She offers the following tips for those who want to do their own makeup for their Halloween costume this year.

First and foremost, make sure you’re using actual makeup that is meant for your skin — and more specifically, your face.  Always test it on a small part of your skin to make sure you are not allergic. This usually becomes an issue with liquid latex and not knowing you’re allergic to latex. 

·         Some of the products that can be used, and can be found at any Halloween or costume store, include:

o    Liquid latex

o    Cream makeup (Ben nye, mehron)

o    Water activated face paints (Wolfe fx, snazaroo)

o    Nose and scar wax 

o    Fake blood 

o    Sponges

o    Tissue or toilet paper 

o    Spirit gum 

To make fake wounds with:

 

o    Liquid Latex (after first testing it on a small patch of skin – not on your face – to ensure you are not allergic) — Apply small amount of liquid latex with a sponge and apply one layer of tissue or toilet paper. Add another layer of liquid latex. Continue process until you have the desired size of wound. Rip open using scissors, be very careful to give the ripped flesh look. Add darker colour paint to the inside to create depth. Paint your wound however you feel you want it to look and add blood. 

o    Nose and Scar Wax — Apply spirit gum adhesive to area where wound will be. Add nose and scar wax (you will need a tool with a flat surface — Tabi prefers a small sculpting tool) to blend out the edges. Paint and add blood. 

Screampark is Canada’s most terrifying attraction, with more haunts than ever before. Make your way through the abandoned morgue of a long-forgotten village in Autopsy, trek down the dark, desolate path to find yourself surrounded by the aftermath of a ringmaster's revenge in Carnival of Souls, test your courage in the maze of Phobia and take a stroll through the Gore Gallery.

The hellish gates of Screampark will be open September 29^th-30^th, October 6^th-8^th, 13^th-15^th, and 19^th-29^th.

For a sneak peek of what’s to come, check out Screampark on YouTube or visit bingemans.com/screampark. Join the conversation on social media; follow Bingemans on Instagram and Twitter @Bingemans, Like it on Facebook and watch exclusive video on YouTube.