Special Effects Notes

Burns

Before beginning a burn, ask yourself: What caused the burn? Fire, chemicals, steam, or sun? Where was the object that caused the burn in relation to the person that has been burned? How long has it been since the burn? Was it a 1st, 2nd, or 3rd degree burn?

First degree burns are the least severe, usually appearing as just redness and shine. This can be achieved by stippling different shades of red onto the area and topping it with vaseline.

Second degree burns start off as first degree burns, with the addition of blisters. Blisters are created using either latex or scar wax.

Third degree burns are the most severe, with a total destruction of the skin marked by charring and surrounded by first and second degree burns.

Apply the Coral color to area. Blending it in. This will give the effect of a bad sunburn or 1st degree burn.

Apply a little powder to a puff and powder the makeup to set it.

For a 2nd Degree burn do the above step, then taking a foam sponge square apply the red makeup in spots, dabbing over the first makeup. Do not smooth out as you want a blotchy look.

Apply a little powder to a puff and powder the makeup to set it.

Using a cue tip apply small dabs of castor oil over the makeup. You will be applying latex over these later and the castor oil will make it easy to lift it off of those areas. It will simulate broken blisters.

Pour a little liquid latex onto a foam sponge and stipple (dab) over all the area where there is makeup, castor oil. The latex will dry clear but leave a shine. Skin that is burnt looks shiny.

Let latex dry.

Using a steel spatula, or break a tongue depressor in half, gently pick apart the latex that is dried over the castor oil. Do not remove, just make a small hole in the latex.

Scoop a little dark purple color, from your single creme makeup color.

Using a brush apply it inside the rim of the hole in the latex where the castor oil was. This will simulate broken skin.

On a mixing palette, take a little of the red and add a small amount of castor oil to make a makeup wash. Apply around blisters. This will help them stand out.

You may powder the makeup to help set it, if you wish.

Cuts/Wounds

Roll each of the wax piles into balls. If the wax is sticky, coat your fingers and palms in Vaseline so that the wax is easier to manipulate. You then want to roll them out into two equal length sausages that are as long as you want your wound to be. The sausages should be quite thick so that you can build up the sides of your cut. Lay the first length of wax down where you want it on your skin and start smoothing down the outside edge into your skin with your finger or your spatula/knife. If you are using your finger, add Vaseline.

Build up the inside edge by shaping the edge how you want it. If you want a clean wound, you may want a straight edge but a more rough wound, you’ll want more rugged edges. If your wax is flesh coloured, you could use a bit of bronzer instead to add irritation but if your wax is clear, you may want to use a pigmented powder or a light layer of foundation to match the wax to your skin colour.

Then start with painting the exposed skin inside the cut red. You may also want to bring this red up the sides of the wound and outside of it to make it look like blood has leaked.

Then, add brown to the red. Using more water with the paint, go over the red to add depth but use a more opaque brown to line the edges of the cut to add dimension and shadow to the wound.

Using black, do the same as with the brown to make the wound look deeper. How your wound looks is entirely up to you but this is the very basics of painting wounds. Then add blood!

Bruises

Bruises are caused when blunt trauma breaks the capillaries just beneath the skin, flooding the dermis with blood. As the hemoglobin in the blood breaks down and disperses, bruises change color and fade.

• What caused the bruise?
  • Bruises will initially form around the area of impact. Think about the shape of the object that caused the bruise. For example, if your character was struck by the end of a baseball bat, the bruise will be large and shaped somewhat like the end of a baseball bat.
• When was the incident that caused the bruise?
  • If you are depicting someone who has just been in a fight, their bruises will be mainly red and blue tones. As the bruise heals, the shape, size, and color of the bruise changes, so be sure to take the time frame into consideration.
• How hard was the impact?
  • Bruises from being struck by a vehicle look very different from bruises caused by a fistfight. Also, if the impact was especially hard and on a delicate area directly over a bone, like on the cheekbone or the browbone, skin will often split open from the force of impact. Use references for the specific look you’re going for—just go to Google Images and search “bruises from car crash” (or whatever specific incident you’re trying to recreate) to help keep that air of authenticity.

Also take into consideration the person's skin tone, age, and health, which all impact the way they will bruise.

Recent Bruise

For a recently-acquired bruise, begin with by stippling all over the area with some prime red on your texturized sponge. I then added deeper red tones, and finally, some very light blue and purple tones. To blend the colors together, I used a clean texturizing sponge spritzed with alcohol to lightly stipple all over the area. I then powdered with a light layer of RCMA powder to make the bruise to appear to be beneath the skin and not just sitting on top of it.

Day-Old Bruise

Bruise Beginning to Heal

Healing Bruise

Bullet Wounds

How to do it:

1. Tear the tissue into thin, small pieces
2. Apply a little circle of eyelash glue to skin
3. Layer on the tissue to create a raised edge. It doesn’t have to be perfect, because you’ll be covering it later anyway.
4. Buff red lipstick over the circle and surrounding around of skin so it looks angry
5. Use the black gel liner to give depth to the wound by lightly colouring in the center of the wound.
6. Add the blood, I like to do this using a cotton bud so I have a bit more control and can create a “dribble” effect.
7. Sprinkle the coffee over the center of the wound for a gritty effect.

Bite Wounds

STEP 1:

Roll two balls of Scar Wax and press them flat. Place onto your skin and start to blend out with your fingers, using Vaseline where needed to smooth it out evenly. When you have done this, apply face powder to the area to remove any shine.