Please be sure of this, if you want to start face painting in public or start your own business, professional paint is definitely worth the money. Even for home use and birthday parties or Halloween, a seemingly larger investment will go a long way. And the reason?
With some professional brands you actually forget that you’re wearing them because since they are light and breathe. The easiest way to check this out is to buy a single color of a good brand of face paints and test the difference yourself.
Cheap face-paint sets come normally with five or six colors. Around Halloween many shops stock cheap acrylic paints that look very tempting. To the novice they seem fine, (since paint is paint, or is it??), but even though they seem like a bargain, acrylic paints should never be used on human skin. Many acrylic paints are non-toxic. However, non-toxic is not the same as FDA-approved. Acrylic paints may contain polymers that are potential carcinogens (substances that can cause cancer). These cheap paints very often cause skin rashes and allergies on normal and sensitive skin.
Another reason to avoid acrylic is the problem of staining. Although face paints, particularly grease-based ones, may still stain, there is a higher probability that they will come out of a child's clothing or a parent's piece of expensive fabric on furniture. Acrylics adhere well to fiber, making them a bad choice for face painting.
Kids feel irritated by cheap paint that feels heavy and dry. They’ll scratch, smudge or wash it off much sooner and it won’t be a fun experience for them. Like with most purchases, one gets what you pay for. (A "cheap" acrylic product is just not worth it)
Many beginner face artists start of with cheap regular brands like, Palmer, but then often move on to the Professional Brands that have superior qualities and safety.
No manufacturer of even the most expensive makeups or face paints can guarantee no allergic reactions. However the research and development of products costs money, that the cheap brands just don't bother to spend. In recent years some of the cheapest brands that have been recalled have had extremely high reaction rates some even as high as 30%. They are normally the cheap mass produced brands often from China.
Top brands with the highest safety ratings (like Snazaroo) however have a one in 1 in 10,000,000 ratio, and even in these cases it is hard to prove that it was in fact the product and not some external factor like a soap or wet wipe, that was the real cause.
The Brand "Snazaroo" for example has spent tens of thousands of dollars in safety testing their products. All of these tests have been done by FDA approved, independent labs both in the USA and in Europe. In routine inspections by the FDA and other international agencies, like CE, they have proven time and time again to comply with FDA and child safety guidelines. This includes all packaging. SNAZAROO is the only face paint that also holds a "child toy safety rating" which is a more stringent guideline.The Face Paint Brand developed by Gary Cole "Ruby Red" continues this tradition and takes it further to include a Vegan option.
Look for products that say "FDA approved", "FDA Compliant", "Cosmetic Good" "CE Certified" or the like. Avoid materials that have other designations such as "for hair and special effects". Look for products that say that they are safe for use on the face. Avoid all other products.
Common sense will tell you that cheap brands, have a much higher risk of allergic reaction. When you find a brand that sells an eight color palette (for under $3.00). Then let the "buyer beware" of such a purchase.
A cheap paint will normally have poor coverage, dull colors, and very high chance of allergic reactions. They are also normally toxic on skin, stain and don't easily wash off. There is also normally no safety testing or EU & FDA compliance.
If all you need a safe Party kit,
Here is a quality Mehron kit at a reasonable Price.
- Click Here to Buy
- Water based, safe and comfortable
Wolfe face paints have dense pigmentation providing brilliant color, opaque coverage, and easy application. Uniquely in the face paint world, Wolfe FX Hydrocolor makeup has a wax base so they flex with movement instead of cracking so your face paint designs stay beautiful for longer. Once applied, Wolfe face paint will not smear under normal circumstances, remain bright and colorful, and is comfortable to wear.
Wolfe 12 Face Paint Palette Essentials includes 12 Wolfe paints (5 grams each), two face paint brushes and a sturdy travel case.
- Click Here to buy
- Water washable, safe and comfortable
On FaceBook I recently asked a random selection of my Pro face art friends, the following question below. The results as you can see show the major brands, (which is no surprise)... I am sure if a different selection of artists were selected, (possibly from the non English speaking, parts of the world) the results may be quite different. Part of the results are also about easy access to product and price.
Click on this screen shot of the FaceBook question to go and view the results or vote yourself...
- Click Here to Buy
- Kryvaline metallic and neon face paint palettes
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