Hi, Dean
I've been doing this for nearly 30 years and my makeup is always changing,
at least little by little over the years.
Your best guide for makeup is your own face. Don't make your clown mouth
get too wide - stay within the vertical lines you would have at the outside corners
of your eyes.
Remember the purpose for makeup is not to be a mask to hide behind, but a method
to convey your expressions to an audience. Study your face in a mirror and make
faces - smile, laugh, frown, cry -- practice all the emotions. Pay attention to the
"laugh lines" or wrinkles that move with your expressions. For example, in the
forehead there are wrinkles that move with your expressions. If you make your clown
eyebrows higher on your forehead than those wrinkles, they won't move with your
expressions - so use those lines as the limits.
Too much red is typically scary for kids. Over the years the red mouth for
clowns has gotten smaller and smaller. For a white-face clown, these days they
typically only put red on the bottom lip, and leave the top lip white. Otherwise,
the effect from a distance is a huge red area with a black hole in it when you
open your mouth.
The "pips" or red circles would go just to the edge of the creases in your face that
move when you smile or frown - no need to go any wider.
If you are going to be on stage, you might consider outlining your designs with
black pencil or thin black line from a brush.
On the other hand, if you are going to be close-up to the audience, especially
kids (which is what I think you're saying you will do) you might want a softer
look without the outlining.
I'm a tramp clown, so the tips I've given you are only what I've picked up from some
of the classes we give to new clowns.
As a tramp clown, I blend my makeup so there aren't any hard lines to my face
other than my eyebrows.
If you're doing a white-face clown, be sure to pat the white out to make it even
and then do cut-outs with a cotton-tipped swab where your color areas are
going to be. Then powder after the white, and after each color if they are
close to each other.
I don't care for yellows or greens on a face, and prefer the reds, blues and
blacks. However, I've seen an Auguste clown who uses some yellow in the muzzle
area outlining the red area. She blended the colors together and feathered the
look and it was a good-looking effect.
Hope this long-winded post helps some!
www.laughingj.com