Harlequin Makeup Tutorial: Create a Classic Clown Look

Do you love to try out new get-ups and attract attention? Well, then, you must try out the Harlequin makeup some time. You can try out any type of Harlequin makeup – tragic, comical or romantic – depending upon your mood or theme of the party. It is mostly preferred for costume parties.

This post talks about how you can apply harlequin makeup. Read on to know more!

What Is A Harlequin Clown?

The harlequin clown, although started as a jolly trickster, nowadays has some shades of sadness to its character. It is no longer the full-of-smiles, cheery circus clowns who are ready to do anything for making the audience laugh. Depending upon the type of harlequin you want to portray, you should choose the look for your makeup and for this, you must get complete information about the different harlequin looks.

Harlequin Clown Makeup Hallmarks

The main components of harlequin makeup include:

• Heart details
• White face
• Red, Cupid’s bow lips
• Triangular details, often under the eyes and upside-down

The outfits of the harlequin clown are colorful, spectacular and whimsy and are usually defined by triangular or bright diamond patterns.

Applying Harlequin Makeup

The regular cosmetics are light, and hence, they do not last long enough to produce the impact required for the great harlequin makeup look. You need cosmetics with a thick base and should choose stage makeup for creating the funny face.

The Traditional Makeup

Traditionally, the harlequin face makeup mostly constitutes the use of black and red colors. It does not contain the now-so-popular white background. Earlier, the clowns used harlequin masks to get the result. However, nowadays artists believe in recreating the look to make more impact. Moreover, it is quite easy to create the original, traditional appearance.

1. Make a light outline on the face using a pencil matching your skin tone. The line should be around 1-inch inside from the outer edges of your face. Try to create a circular shape using the pencil.
2. Using the same pencil, draw a line from the center down the face.
3. Color one side of the face using red stage paint. Exclude the upside-down triangle shape just below the eye.
4. Similarly, use black stage paint to color the other side of the face, leaving the triangle space below the eye.
5. Now, use black color in the triangle on the side of the face painted red and similarly color the triangle with red color on the side of the face painted black.
6. Match this harlequin clown makeup with a black and red traditional clown outfit.

More Variations Of Harlequin Makeup

Today’s harlequin makeup has more of a white color. You can be more creative by mixing it with red and black to create a complex face.

Simple Harlequin Makeup

1. Use white stage paint to color the face completely. Apply the layer of the paint evenly. Make sure that the skin does not show through the paint. However, try to avoid using a heavy coat.
2. Use a pencil to draw rounded arches just above the eyebrows.
3. Under the outer corner of one of the eyes, draw a tear shape using black color and highlight it by dabbing white. This will also give more depth to the makeup.
4. Draw two circles on the center of both the cheeks and fill them with red color. Use pencil to draw the circles so that the circles are perfectly round.
5. Draw a Cupid’s bow shape at the center of the lips. Do not let the pencil extend to the outer corners of the mouth. You will not be using any other paint on your entire mouth.
6. Use red paint or lipstick to color the bow shape.

In this way, you can try to be more creative with the harlequin makeup. Make sure that you complete the look with the right costume.

Tell us how this post has helped you. Do comment in the box provided below!