Year: 2015

If you’ve been face painting for even a short amount of time, chances are you’ve been swallowed up by the crowd at at least one event.  You’ve literally felt the breath of onlookers on your neck, had your table bumped countless times, and have been asked “where’s the line?” by endless parents.

If you’re smart, you’ve used this as a learning opportunity to improve things for next time.  Maybe you’ve vowed not to do large gigs without bringing along additional painters.  Maybe you’ve decided that big crowds just aren’t your thing, and you don’t even bid on these types of gigs.  Or perhaps you’re still contemplating how to control the crowds and make it a better experience next time.  If so, this blog is for you…today I’m going to share some of the new tools that I have in my arsenal for controlling crowds!

Crowd control is all about providing order, and in turn, comfort for you and less confusion for the party guests.  Standing in a “blob” of people and trying to keep track of who’s next is just as frustrating for parents as being engulfed by said blob is for you.  Parents are having a hard enough time keeping track of their rambunctious kiddos, so if you can put out some visual cues that are as obvious to the kids as they are to the parents, it’s a win for everyone!

Here are some ways to mold that blob into a line, and even give yourself a little breathing room!

Define where the line should START:

“Where is the line?”  I’ve been asked this question too many times at this event, so I bought this great arrow sign online to use this year.  Yes, it was $63 bucks.  Yes, it looked ENORMOUS in my kitchen.  But when I put it outside it was really about the right size, it worked as a connection point for my chain, and finally…finally…not ONCE did anyone ask “where is the line?”  Worth every penny in my opinion!

 

This sign is a magnetic white board, so you can write whatever you want on it. I made a laminated sign with magnets on the back so I could pull it down and put up a “closed” sign at the end. The arrow is adjustable so you can angle it as you please.  The post breaks down into two pieces, and the base can be weighted down with sand or water. I had to go add some water to it as it initially fell over a couple times.  But with a little water, it held up great the rest of the night.

Define where the line should STOP:

If you don’t tell the line where to stop, it will stop practically in your lap.  I came across this fantastic idea in a Facebook group.  I actually designed my own mat on the computer (I have a design background). I gave it a couple coats of fabric waterproofing spray, and now I can simply hose it off to get it clean! You can purchase this mat HERE!

There are other methods you can use to mark a spot for kids to wait too:
– Put down a piece of duct tape on the ground.
– Keep a piece of sidewalk chalk in your kit to mark the ground when working on pavement.

However you mark your spot, it really helps to be able to tell the kids, “please wait behind the line!” or “Put your feet on the clown’s feet if you want to be next!” 

You’d never know from this picture that there is a line at least 20 kids deep just off screen!

The lineup you couldn’t see in the last pic!

After we started painting I actually moved the chain from the left to the right corner of the design menu, so the board was out of our walk way.

This was an event I painted at just this week.  It’s one of my busiest annual events, and we painted probably close to 150 kids or so in just 2 hours, but we never felt crowded.  Behind us are pillars (blocked by our chairs), and together with the street and curb, people don’t congregate behind us.  The chain not only defines the line, but also blocks off space for the kids and parents to get in the chair, get out, and leave to the left.  It also prevents people from forming two lines for two painters.  There is one spot to wait, on the mat, and whoever is available next paints that child.

Panoramic view of us along the sidewalk.

Define where to go when kids are DONE.

Once the kids are done being painted, they need a clear exit…preferably in the opposite direction of the original line to prevent more traffic congestion.

“Exit Only” tells people that the line does not form here. On the other side I had a “1 design per child” sign, so they knew when they left the chair that it would not be worth their time to get back in the line.

I found this little plastic tent sign at a thrift store, which once said “slow; children at play.”  I spray painted the blue part, glued on a circle of magnetic-receptive vinyl, and then made interchangeable magnetic signs that I can put in that circle.  So, this little sign performs several functions at any one event.

My sign with interchangeable graphics

The arrow can be turned in any direction as it attaches with velcro! The larger circle attaches to the sign with magnets.

Define the end of your shift.

Ending the line is one of the toughest parts of our job as face painter.  If we painted every parent who asked for “just one more,” we’d never get home to our own families.  We are not painting machines…we need to end at some point, and go put our own little honeys to bed.  I did a whole e-newsletter on tips for cutting off the line.  With this week’s event it’s easy because we lose all our sunlight by the end, and everyone naturally goes home!  But, it is still important to give some signal that the line is ending, or at least let those still in line know that continuing to wait is futile.

Magnetic signs to the rescue…I simply moved my little yellow sign to where the line forms, with a “sorry, we’re closed” sign, and swap out the “line forms here” sign with another closed sign.

I also have a “Open until” sign that attaches with magnets, where I can write in my end time.  This lets everyone know when we are closed for business.

My design menu is all attached with magnets as well.  So, if needed I can remove my design menu in mere seconds, and slap up a “closed” sign in it’s place.  It helps close the line when kids can’t see all the design options!

There are many ways to end the line. I have a sash that I can have the last kid wear that says “sorry, I’m the last person to be painted today!” I also have Tyvek wristbands I can give to the last however many kids in line.  Some people hand out tickets, poker chips, or stickers to the last kids in line.  If you don’t have a ticket, you don’t get painted.  

When you are approaching the end of your shift, hand out as many tickets as you think you can paint in the time remaining, then put out your “closed” sign behind the line.

I’ve been in the face and body painting business for 20 years now.  I still have so much to learn!  I’m determined NOT to settle on thinking that I’m the best at anything…I always have something to improve upon and learn, and hope to keep it that way as long as I’m around!

17 years into it I felt that I had pretty well mastered cheek art, so I thought I’d finally branch out into the world of full face designs. (Yeah, I know…took me long enough, right?!) The art of face painting has really grown drastically over the years and I didn’t want to be left behind!

A full face made of cheek art?! I did a little experimenting with what defines a full face vs half face vs cheek art…

I still remain a huge advocate of the benefits of offering cheek art, strive to help others learn how to do cheek art just as amazing AND fast, and even run a cheek art face painting group on Facebook.  Cheek art still remains the #1 request at my county fair.  However, I am always trying new techniques and tips, and had to give full faces a try.

In 2011 I began offering full faces in my pay-per-face county fair booth, along with my cheek art! Now that I look back on the photos I had put on my design menu, I can really say I’ve come a long way!  I have a LONG ways to go and have learned so much from my peers.  Heck, before Facebook came along I really had no idea how far face painting had come and could go!!

Here are some pics of my journey from then until now.  You can see my awkward attempts to transfer my cheek art versions into full face versions at first…

Butterflies and tigers are still my nemesis! I used to try to cover the whole face with butterflies that just looked awkward.  I have since lightened them up a bit, and I think they look better. I still am not happy with my butterflies’ bodies and antennae, but hey, we all have stuff to keep improving, right?!

I actually put that one on the left on my banner.  MY BANNER!! Ugh, bless the heart of this little girl who loved her tiger, but oh my, I’m so much better now! Tigers are SO tough for me and I’m still working on them to this day! This one on the right I just did a few weeks ago on my little boy…also still new to Starblends which I used for the base!

My first full face spidey on the left..today’s Spidey on the right with a little extra “pop” of graffiti eyes stencils!

I still have a LOT to learn and improve upon with my full faces and will probably never look at a picture of my work without critiquing myself!!  But I think the desire to keep improving is what makes artists great.

Besides improving my full faces, in my attempt to branch out beyond full faces has also taught me:

– Ways to improve my speed on ALL designs by adding more brush sizes and shapes to my tools
– the value and wow factor that stencils can bring
– one stroke techniques
– double-dip techniques
– teardrops!!
– the pro’s and con’s of using Starblends
– How awesome bling, google eyes, and feathers can be 
– that I prefer large brushes & lollipop blenders to sponges

My drive to learn and improve has pushed me to learn and now offer balloon twisting and henna body art as well, and those have been some incredibly fun learning experiences!!

Are you stuck in a full face rut and frustrated with cheek art? Practice it!! Are you stuck in a cheek art rut and frustrated with full faces? Practice them!!  Maybe you’ll find they’re not you’re thing, but the journey of trying and stretching yourself will teach you so much that can only improve your work!

Stretching yourself can be tough because it means admitting that you are not the best; that you have room to grow.  My hope is that I never settle on my talents as they are…that I will continue to make myself learn and grow. Sure, along the way I may find that the latest technique is not for me, but at least I can say I’ve tried it and can speak from actual experience. That’s all people really want to hear about anyway, right?

Last week I tucked my 18th county fair under my belt…this being my 3rd year at Carver County Fair!  2015 was a great year and I thoroughly enjoyed painting so many adorable faces!!! If you’re coming to this post via my Pinterest pin on cheek art, scroll down for a bunch more! If you’re interested in learning to do simple, quick cheek art yourself, be sure to check out my book, “Classic Carnival Cheek Art! We also have package deals for those new to face painting that include everything you need to get started, and an awesome page of FREE learning resources!

Setting up the booth…
The fair starts on Wednesday, and this year I loaded up my booth and boys and we set up Tuesday morning.

All packed in and heading to the fair!

The boys are just excited to play games on my iPod and iPad while I set up. You can tell they never play video games in our house, only on trips and in waiting rooms, ha! But they were thoroughly entertained! I keep telling them someday they’ll be taller than me and will have big muscles to help Mommy load and unload my booth!

The booth all set up and running! This was taken on the last day when my hubby and boys came to visit me!  I always want my booth looking as sharp on the last day as it does the first.  I do a lot of cleaning every night and when I have time between paintings!

This is the view when walking into the building of where I work.

New this year…
I had a totally new setup this year with my chairs. I now do most of my parties standing up with kids in this tall director’s chair! However, my back and feet wouldn’t be able to take multiple 12 hour days standing up.  So, I decided to bring along my hydraulic stool that I use when I do belly paintings. It worked great! The kids got to sit up high and feel like royalty, and I had the option to sit or stand depending on how I felt and how tall the kids were.

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 Photo prop boards were a new and fun addition this year! My new photo props fit nicely on the little fabric shelf under the director’s chair, and I’d pull them out whenever someone had a face that fit with the board…

Say cheese!!

Me trying out the county fair board!

A popular ice princess design!! A few booths down they had cardboard cutouts of Anna, Elsa and Olaf to take photos by too which was fun for the kids!

Just chillin’ with Tippy the cow…

(If you’re interested in adding fun photo prop boards to your own gigs, I have the files for purchase to print your own set!)

Also new this year was this small safety information sheet I had out on the table, educating parents on what to watch out for when allowing their children to be painted.  It’s really shocking how many events offer free face painting that is not face paint at all, but tempera, acrylic, and other unsafe craft paints & glitter.   Click here for my in-depth article on why “non-toxic” paint is NOT safe for skin. I had so many parents thank me for this information!

There was another person painting at the fair this year with questionable paints in jars,  and more than once I was asked by the parent to wipe it off and paint something else before they even saw this flyer.  Unfortunately whatever it was stained badly. Safe face paints can stain too, depending on your body chemistry and the colors of the paint.  Some brands’ blues and greens stain more, etc. You can see my analysis of what professional brands stain the most/least here.  If you ever have this happen, at least if it is face paint, try applying a little lotion to the skin. Wait 20-30 minutes and then try washing again.  Usually this helps to release the paint. Do NOT ever clean face paint off with baby wipes! They have been known to cause awful reactions on kids’ faces no matter what type of paint is used.  I tell people to remove with a gentle soap and water.  The best way is to lather it up with liquid soap (BEFORE getting it wet), loosen up the paint, and then rinse with water.  This is the best way to prevent staining during removal.

Anyway, back to the fair…

Also new this year was basically my entire paint kit.  My kit changes frequently but this year it grew so much, I’ve outgrown my countertop! Time to make a few modifications for next year!

My boys sent little stuffed dogs with me each day at the fair to keep me company in my booth. 🙂

Designs…
A few of the designs I did this year… Cheek art still remains one of the most requested forms of painting for me.  And, being one of the very few artists in the Twin Cities who is faster at cheeks than full faces, I still am able to do them and offer them for less than full faces.  However, in general, most painters prefer doing full faces as cheek art requires a lot of precision in a small space with little to no room for error, which takes longer.  For now, I’ll keep offering it as people love it and I’m convinced it can be just as awesome!! It also works well at the fair when kids faces are often carrying the remnants of all that good, greasy, sticky fair food!! 😉  I paint a LOT of arms, too.  Sometimes kids ask for their hands.  Usually I then suggest just above their wrist…that way they can still wash hands after petting the animals and eating cotton candy without losing their artwork.  But, I’ve been doing a lot of full face, half face, and eye designs these past few years and they are very popular!

These two friends wanted to split a design, literally!

Gotta love it when someone dares their friends to get painted, and they actually go through with it!

My mom painted at the booth on Thursday so I could visit with my boys!

Thursday  night we had a storm roll through and were told we could close up early! These are the days I love being in a building, versus a tent outside!

My little man Sam wanted me to paint Mercy Watson the pig on his arm! 🙂

My Arm Designs…
Every year I paint elaborate things on my own arm.  I love doing this in between customers, or when there is a lull in business during the day.  However, being that this was my busiest fair in my history of doing fairs, with 4 out of 5 of the days being record breakers, I didn’t have as much time to paint myself.  Here are a few things I did though, some quick and some not so quick…

Quick roses, done with Global Hobart.  Love that cake!

This was my most detailed arm design for this year…Inside Out! Love that movie!!

Closeup of “Sadness” and “Anger”

Closeup of Disgust and Joy…

I did this little design to go along with the henna I had already done on my hand!

 Big thanks to all of you who stopped by my booth this year and made it my best year ever! See you in 2016!!

Me and Toby taking a lunch break

My new tip jar!

I almost never use tip jars.  Well, there was one Christmas gig where we agreed with the client to put out tip jars just because they refused to hire enough artists for the crowd and we worked our hineys off.  Other than that, I only tried using a tip jar once this past week at my county fair.  I do pay per face at the fair and never have had a jar out.  I always get good tips anyway, with no tip jar and no hints of tipping visible.  But, this year I experimented and tried it just for one day.  I had one of those cute plush “Teddy Tank” fish bowls burning a hole in my closet that I had gotten for $5 at Walgreens and had to at least try it!  I don’t know if I’ll use it again or not, as I feel I charge enough already.   But, I get SO swamped at the fair, and being located right by the building entrance, I figured it would be awfully easy for someone to grab the jar off my table and run.  I actually know one painter who was mugged after a face painting job, and have heard multiple stories of others who’s tip jars were stolen, which makes me extra leery.  So, I set out to find a way to secure my jar so that it wouldn’t be an easy target. 

I took photos along the way and thought those of you who have these same fish bowl jars (they seem super popular lately) might find it useful!  This can likely be adapted to any plastic tip jar but here’s what I did with my fish bowl! (you can skip all the rivet/eyelet stuff if you just have a plastic jar!)

Remove the plush piece from the plastic bowl. Cut a small hole in the center of the bottom of the fabric piece of your plush animal.

Slip a rivet through the hole, with the finished side on the right side (outside, furry side) of the fabric.

View of the rivet poking through the inside of the fabric.  Point to it with your henna’d finger…ha!

Use your hammer and rivet tool to secure the rivet in place.   You can buy these large eyelets/rivets at craft stores and they come with the little tool to hammer.

Finished rivet. This now enables you to run a bolt through your fabric, without causing it to run, frey, etc.

Finished rivet

Now drill a small hole in the center of the bottom of your plastic bowl.  I am using my dremmel tool here but you can use a drill bit as well.

Now you need a little hardware.  Get a washer, bolt and nut.  You also need something to secure the jar to.  I happened to find a great bent metal piece that came from a towel rack that hooks over a door.  You could find a metal bar or a piece of wood and drill a hole in it as well.

Reassemble the fish bowl by placing the plush back over the bowl, aligning the eyelet with the hole in the bowl.  Thread the screw through your securing bar/wood/whatever, then through the rivet/eyelet in your fabric and hole in your fish bowl.

Inside view of the fish bowl, with a washer and then bolt threaded on.

Now you have a bar that is securely screwed to the base of your tip jar.  Like I said, this can be a metal bar, a wood piece, or whatever you have on hand.  The point here is to have something that you can then clamp or screw right to your tabletop.

Now I got lucky to find this piece of metal that was already bent like a hook, which fit just right over the back edge of my table!  I then took a large clamp and clamped this bar to the underside of the table, which you can’t even see here as it’s behind my tablecloth.  Even a flat piece though could be clamped down to the table with a simple C-clamp.  Or, screwed into the table if you are okay with drilling a hole in your table.

I like how this looked in the end.  It doesn’t look like my jar is bolted down…it’s just sitting there nicely, but if someone were to try to grab it and run, I would definitely notice and it would not be easy for them to remove it.

I did notice that with this particular tip jar people had no idea how to put tips in.  I just put sticker letters that say “thank you,” as opposed to what some do, “feed me.”  I’m thinking if I ever use it again, I may put a cardboard tube or something in the monkey’s mouth to spread his mouth open just a bit, so that people notice that the money goes in his mouth.  Most of the time people just handed me tips and I stuffed them through the hole in the back.  (Which also made me think I’d like to make some sort of flap to cover the hole in the back for security as well)

I hope this is helpful for some of you, or at the very least gives you some ideas to secure your own tip jar!  Thanks for stopping by, and happy painting! 🙂

We have a few new additions to the shop this week!

Our rainbow of Cameleon makeup feels much more complete now, with the addition of Orange Juice, Clover Green and Purdy Purple!  We’ve gotten a nice stash of Pure White back in stock as well.

The assortment of filberts in the shop grew by three! We now carry Cameleon’s small, medium, and large filbert brushes.  These brushes have thick, soft bristles and a short, wood handle. You also may be happy to hear that we now have more of Cameleon’s popular petal brushes in stock again as well.

For our balloon twisting friends, I’ve added an assortment of 646q’s! Sometimes all it takes is an extra HUGE balloon to turn your standard designs into something spectacular!

Still on the way to us is some of Mehron’s white liquid makeup, which I tested out last week and mentioned in my recent post comparing the different white’s available. Stay tuned and happy painting!

I had a really fun day today, hosting a 7 hour jam at my house!! I don’t care how long you’ve been in this business, you can ALWAYS learn something from your fellow artists, no matter how new or veteran they are.  I host a lot of jams and always learn something new!  This time I took advantage of the fact that we had 9 painters in the house with diverse kits, by sampling everyone’s brands of white…

 I painted a quick rainbow strip with my Tag Rainbow Four cake, and then did a line of Wolfe black along the side.  After allowing my base colors to thoroughly dry, I loaded up my brush with various brands of white and painted a stroke of white across everything.

The “1st Coat” picture shows my first pass at the white…these I actually swiped across one way, then back again to get consistent ends.

In the “2nd Coat” picture, I went back over the white with another coat after it had dried.  (Note that after making the graphic, I realized I did NOT actually second-coat the Mehron liquid in the photo.)

I was surprised how most of them became more transparent as soon as they dried.

These sample strokes may not match up to your own work, so keep in mind that there are many factors that affect white’s opacity.  There really is a big difference between taking your first load of white on a new or dry cake, vs a cake that is already moist and has been worked up during a gig.  Also, how dry the paint underneath is plays a huge role.  (or if there’s any paint underneath at all, of course!)  How long it STAYS nice and bright depends on how concentrated the paint was when you put it on, as well as the person wearing it and how much or little they are moving around and stretching their skin.  So, while this is not meant to point to one surefire winner, hopefully it will help to get an idea of where to start in your own search.

I had tried Tag before and wasn’t all that impressed with it, but it seemed to do pretty well here over the other colors.  Global and Cameleon are both pretty good whites as well.  We all know how great Wolfe is…if you can find it anywhere.  I’ve been waiting probably more than 6 months to get more Wolfe white in stock, with no sign of getting any more any time soon. So, we’re all really looking for alternatives! I’d recommend Cameleon, Global or Tag, depending how you work, for linework in white.  (base coats I prefer a glycerine based makeup like Paradise or Kryolan) On another note, if you’re looking for an alternative to Wolfe black, I highly recommend Global‘s strong black!!

One artist had found that she got the best opaque white coverage by adding Mehron’s liquid white makeup to any other brand of white.  (no water, just the liquid makeup mixed with your other whites) This you can see as the final stripe on the bottom of each photo, where I mixed it with Wolfe.  I do like the idea of someone being able to purchase a favorite base white, and then have the option of turning it into an opaque linework white by adding the liquid…

Thanks for stopping by, and happy painting!! 🙂

Our shop is continuing to expand! Check out these latest additions:

Photo Prop Boards!

The moment I shared my new photo prop boards on Facebook, I was inundated with requests to sell them.  I now sell the digital files, which you can then have printed by VistaPrint.com. You get two boards per file, and they are built to be printed on Vistaprint’s LARGE lawn sign material. (corrugated plastic)  You then cut the two boards apart, and cut out the face hole. Right now they have 40% off all signs and banners! While I’m working on more designs, right now I have three pairs of designs available for purchase at $14.99 per pair:

“Adventure” set: super hero and pirate

“Fantasy” set: fairy and mermaid

“Spring” set: bunny & flower (great for butterflies, ladybugs & flowers!)

Here’s how it works.  First, you order on them here. (I will refund you for any shipping costs that you are charged, if you are only ordering digital files, just like I do for my word menus and balloon menus.)  You will then receive an invite to a website called “SendItOnTheNet.com”  This is the online file sharing service that I will use to get the high quality print files to you. Once you sign in/sign up with them,  I can then upload your files and send you a personalized link to download them, and you can have them printed at your leisure! Feel free to email me with any questions!

More Cameleon Products!

Cameleon UV makeup, $11.00 for 32 grams

I’m beginning to expand our assortment of Cameleon colors, and have just added their UV line, as well as an array of their baseline colors, both in 32 gram cakes!  Soon I will be filling in a few more missing colors, such as orange, purple and another blue…

Cameleon Baseline colors, $8.25 for 32 grams

 We have also added Cameleon’s brush and body soap to our assortment of brush cleaning tools:

Cameleon 100gr Brush Soap, $12.00

 I’m really excited to be able to offer Cameleon’s petal brush that everyone is raving about.  Unfortunately I only received a few, so if you click the link and see it unavailable, they are already sold out. However, I will be stocking up just as soon as they become available again by the manufacturer!

Cameleon large petal brush, $10.00

New Word Menu Options!

I’m always looking for more suggestions to add to my selection of word menu designs, and recently added seven new designs! For just $1 per design, I will build a custom word menu for you and email you the file so you can print it however you wish. Check out the full selection here!

Thanks for stopping by and be sure to keep watching our blog and Facebook page, as we have more brand new items coming in very soon!

I admit it. I have a problem.  I love garage sales and thrift stores, and I love re-vamping my face painting kit. The two together can be a deadly combination as I keep finding the PERFECT case for CHEAP! However, I have decided to embrace my obsesssion with re-designing and improving my kit and stop fighting it or feeling bad about it.  With my passion for and education/work background in product design, I am just never going to stop trying to improve my tools and work station! So, the next best thing I can do is share my projects with my fellow kit addicts! 😉

But before I share, I just can’t stress enough that when it comes to kits, one size most certainly does NOT fit all.  My setup may not work for you, and vice versa. The important thing when looking at others’ kits is to simply find ideas for storage, and then filter those ideas through your own work style.  When deciding what to put where, think about things like:

• Where will I be standing and facing while working out of this kit?
• Where will my customer be standing/sitting or facing while being painted?
• What items do I use the most, and want closest to me?
• What items do I want with me, but can be hidden away when not in use?
• What items am I worried about kids getting their fingers into, and how can I avoid this with their position in my kit?
• Do I sit or stand when I paint?
• Where am I most messy when I paint, and will my kit be clean-able?
• How will everything shift when this is packed up and turned on it’s side? Will anything get damaged? If so, how can I protect it?
• What sort of venues to I work in and what is my transportation to these venues? Is the size and weight practical in these situations?
• Where is the best place to put personal valuables?
• What areas of my kit do I want customers to interact with (ie buisness cards, mirror, design menu, etc) and what areas do I want them to stay away from (paints, brushes)? How can I make the boundaries clear to my customers?
• How permanent do I want everything? Will I move anything from one kit to another, or re-arrange things depending on the type of event?
• Will my kit need to be able to endure weather such as wind or rain?
• etc, etc…

If you’d like to look back at some of my other kits, you can see my wood “suitcase” style box kit here, or  my smaller aluminum case kit here!

Last year I found a guitar case for about $20 bucks at Goodwill.  After seeing so many cool guitar case kits on Facebook, I couldn’t turn it down.  In the same shopping trip I found a perfect mirror for it, a practice head, AND an ice tube mold (aka brush holder)! Score!

The first thing that had to be done was gutting the case…taking out all the white fur, foam, etc.

Peeling out the fur and foam padding

Fur removed…as much as I could do with my hands

Removing all of the fur was probably the most time consuming part of this.  Sometimes liners pull right out, and sometimes they are more stubborn.  This step took several days. I had a lot of staples to pull out, and there was a lot of chunky, crusty glue left all over the box. 

Using my dremmel to remove old glue, fur, etc

My dremmel tool (which I purchased just for this project…shhhh, don’t tell…I needed one anyway, right?) worked great for quickly removing old glue with the sanding wheel.

The next issue to fix on this beaten up guitar case was the corners.  The corners of your kit will take a lot of abuse, so it is important to make sure they are reinforced.  On my kit, some of the corner molding was missing or cracked.  So, I actually broke off any remaining pieces and realized the corner molding was the only thing really holding this kit together:

Corner molding removed

After taking off the broken molding, however, I still had metal nail heads/rivets all around.  These had to come off to prepare the surface for new molding.

Pulling out old hardware bits

I started with my needlenose pliers, just pulling out whatever I could. Some of these popped out…others needed more help…

Cutting off nail heads with a Dremmel

 The Dremmel tool again? Twice in one project? Yeah, I’d consider it paid for itself now! 😉  I used the cutting wheel to cut off the rivets that wouldn’t pull out. Watch out for sparks!

But beware of cutting metal with your Dremmel as it gets hot….

Accidental carpet “bling!”

Don’t do this with little kids in the room …above is a hot nail head that flew off and melted it’s way down into my FLOR carpet square! I now have a few of these little buggers in my studio carpet! 😉

Now I had to basically re-assemble the thing with new corner guards.  Naturally, my retail fixture design background told me to my faithful friend and supplier of all things hardware: McMaster-Carr.  I ordered some black plastic corner guards with peel-n-stick adhesive backing that matched the remaining corner guards on the case.  This was thin enough that I was able to cut it to length with a pair of scissors, and was able to slip the ends right back under the existing metal corner guards.

New molding!

Okay, now that I have it all gutted and structurally sound, it’s time for the best part: making the inside look cool!

I decided to line the inside with adhesive backed black vinyl.  Black because it hides dirt/paint, and vinyl because it is easy to wipe off and can be purchased in huge rolls.  (less seams in your surface means less places for dirt and glitter to collect)

Starting with the corners

I started with the vertical corners. That way I could be sure they were covered, and then when applying the larger sheets I didn’t have to worry about there being any gaps in the corners.

cutting around the strap

Then I did the sides of the case, leaving enough to cover the bottom corners too.  Here I am cutting it to fit around the nylon strap before peeling off the backing.

Inside of the lid all covered

Above you can see the completed lid.  Now, this case is already a year old, and I now have my paints transferred to trays and magnets on the back of all my split cakes.  If I were making this kit again, I would put a thin sheet of steel in first (I prefer to peel the face off of a thrift store whiteboard), and then apply my vinyl. This would give me a magnet surface to attach things to.

I don’t have a photo of this, but I took out some of those wood dividers. I left the two closest to you in the photo, and took out everything to the left.  That left me with a section just the right size to snugly hold my laptop case, and the narrow section is where I put my stack of screw-together paint jars.  If it doesn’t work for your kit, take it out! But if it fits your supplies perfectly, why not use it, right?

Left side: underneath is my TAG laptop case. On top I have more paints, spray bottles and supplies. CENTER: My stack of screw-together paint jars and re-potted Starblends, wrapped in a padded fabric piece I made to cushion them.  RIGHT: Larger, open area to hold supplies and function as my work surface for water, glitter, etc to sit on.

Vinyl logo

 I utilized the lid of my case to create a huge sign.  All of the letters and paint blobs were hand cut out of colored adhesive-backed vinyl sheets.

Inside my lid I mounted that mirror you saw in the first photo from the thrift store. I decorated the edges with my graffiti patterned duct tape.

Inside the case when packed up

At the time of making this kit, I worked sitting down. So, I needed something that would hold up my kit but at a height that worked for my chairs. I found these great little folding camping stools, which held a lot of weight and were very sturdy. One under each end worked great and they fit inside the kit when not in use (see the greenish-gray pouches on the right side of the case in the above pic)

Stools in use

Of course, the funny thing is, I’ve only used this kit at one gig and I put it on my folding table. But, these are good stools if I ever don’t want to haul my table, or for their original purpose, camping! 😉 I later found a great keyboard stand for $2 at a garage sale that holds the whole kit up higher, which works great for my new director’s chair setup.

In the center of the lid I attached a piece of steel from a thrift store, covering the sharp edges with red duct tape, to create a magnetic design menu board…

Magnetic design menu board

 I have a lot of my designs mounted to magnets, so I can attach them here for a menu.  I then attached a piece of clear vinyl with duct tape along the top, and put a magnetic strip along the bottom. This works as a lens to protect my design menu from splashing water, and help hold them in place.

 To the right of my menu I made a custom panel that attaches to the kit with velcro.  It’s basically a cardboard rectangle covered in fabric, and then I sewed on elastic strips and velcro strips right through the cardboard.  This is the same thing I did in my smaller aluminum kit, so now I can swap containers and paints from one kit to another using the same velcro.  Check out my aluminum kit post to see more details on how I sewed these custom panels.

I know this box was a lot larger than my previous kits, but I still wanted to keep my ongoing requirement of being able to carry everything I need in one trip from the car.  At this point I already have my tools, table, design board and stands all in one case.  The last piece is my chairs.

Like I said, at this time I was working sitting down. (I now use a director’s chair and I stand)  My own chair that I sit in is in a bag with a strap so I throw that over my shoulder. But, the chair I put the kids in is a folding chair from Ikea. Since it has a bent metal bar rather than 4 separate legs, I had a nice bar to connect to. I decided to get a couple little wall hooks at the hardware store and mounted them to one side of the lid, as shown:

Now, I can simply set my chair in those hooks, and use one bungee cord to hold it around the top:

….but then I still needed a way to transport the whole works.  On the other end of the lid I attached a long, metal cabinet handle:

…and on the bottom I attached two (NON swiveling) casters:

 Now I can simply pick it up with one hand and wheel it behind me wherever I go, with my other chair over my shoulder, all in one trip.  Quite a nice setup!

I don’t use this kit for birthday parties because I feel like it takes up a lot of real estate for someone’s potentially tight living room.  However, I think it’s great for larger or longer gigs, and bigger events like festivals where guests are paying per face and you want to wow them with your full smorgasbord of colors. I have taken this to a couple of community baby showers to paint bellies and it was great.  I liked having a surface to work from and a LOT of supplies, all in one handy place.

My belly setup, with the kit sitting on a cloth-covered keyboard stand.

Of course my “regular” kit has already evolved quite a bit since I built this guitar case kit.  I currently still use my smaller aluminum kit to hold all my extras, and a separate box with all my paints in jewelry trays.  It all fits inside a little folding cart. I’m experimenting with some roll-top aluminum camping tables and have switched to a director’s chair.  One of these days I’ll post my current setup…although, it may be different tomorrow! 😉

Working on your own custom kit? Be sure to check out our custom kit design section in our shop! We have all sorts of great stuff, including unbreakable plastic mirror sheets, funky duct tape, magnetic tape, Gorilla glue and Velcro!

We have a variety of new, fun items across several categories that I’d like to show you today, now available in the shop!

For Face Painters:

Global FunStroke Palettes:
Can’t decide which one stroke cakes to start with? Why not start with 6 at once?! For just $33 you can now purchase one of Global’s two brand new FunStrokes palettes! These are the first ever one stroke palettes on the market, and we’ve got them right here in the shop!

Empty poofer bottles:
These are the same 1/2 oz bottles that our glitter comes in, but now you can purchase them empty to fill with whatever you wish!

For Balloon Twisters:

We were out of a few balloons for a little while, but by next week we’ll have them all back in stock, and then some! These balloons are on their way to me right now, and I expect to have them ready to ship early next week! Here is a sneak peek:

Batman balloons:
We’ve finally completed our assortment of super heroes by adding Batman to the selection! (You can also still find the Avengers assortment and Spiderman in the shop)

Qualatex Smiley face mustache balloons:
Wouldn’t they make super quick and fun wands, hats or “hitchhikers?”

Qualatex 160Q’s in green and red:
I love having these in my assortment for twisting elegant, long stemmed roses! So, I thought I’d add them to the shop! Go any other individual colors in 160 size that you just can’t live without? Let us know! I love to take suggestions for products to add, and am constantly adding more! 

 

For Henna Artists:

Rotary Cutter:
This cutting wheel makes cutting your own cellophane triangles a breeze!

Be sure to check back often as we’re always adding new items! Happy painting, twisting, and henna-ing! 🙂

I am SO excited to announce that my latest book is now in my possession and ready to ship! (Click HERE to go directly to it in the shop.)

I have risked my boys never letting me paint them again to bring you this latest book: “Painting Boys!”  I really had absolutely NO intentions of starting another book after my Realism book came out, but oh how soon that changed when the wheels started turning! After noticing a need for more boy design books out there, I decided to set out and create this book to offer something beyond the usual gore, skulls and tribals for boys.

Looking to add more fun boy designs, but you’re not all that into gore and scary stuff?  This is the book for you!  Packed with full color step-by-step photography of 24 fun, fresh, cute and cool boy designs, this book is sure to add some more fun to your boy design selection. In addition to the 24 designs, you’ll also get some tips for painting boys, as well as ideas and suggestions about how to sneak some glitter into your boy designs without getting too girly.

As I’ve mentioned, my two boys (age 5 and 7) were painted a LOT for this book.  Since they inspired so many of these designs, I thought it only fair to let them be my models throughout the book! After sketching up countless boy design ideas, I let my boys choose the ones they really wanted painted on themselves. Only those that were chosen by boys AND elicited the most exciting “mirror moments” were chosen for the book!  So, you can be assured that all twenty four designs in this book are boy approved!

For the price of $14.99 you get 24 designs…that’s just $0.62 cents per design! Check out this fun new reference today, currently available ONLY at Paintertainment.comPaintertainment.com!