Face Fiesta Blog

Painting Bronco Helmet for Ken Clark on Fox31

2012-01-16T10:04:00.000-07:00

Love that the Broncos made it to the playoffs -- that always means some fun work for me!
Last Friday morning, I got to paint Ken Clark's Head for Colorado's Everyday Show on Fox31 -- it was fast and furious and tons of fun!

Here's a link to a video and Fox's slideshow:

Ken Clark's Helmet Head

Halloween Face Paintings!!

2011-11-15T17:02:00.000-07:00

This has been a BUSY season, and now looking towards the holidays, I realize that I need to post some Halloween pics. Here are some of my faves -- all painted by me throughout Halloween weekend. SO fun!!!!!

Summer Face Painting

2011-09-07T09:44:00.000-06:00

It has been a CRAZY busy summer!! Here are a few photos from a company party I did last month -- painted more adults than kids, and it was a freakin' BLAST! I had some hilarious requests -- rainbow cupcake, sassy mermaid, but the bloody flip-flop-clad foot in the shark's mouth was my idea (much-loved by the client)!

Blue Bunny Ice Cream Heads!

2011-06-24T07:43:00.000-06:00

I got up at 4am last Monday morning to paint 4 people to match their Blue Bunny Ice Cream carton heads. The head pieces for these guys were SO well done -- really cute and hilarious! It was a fun challenge to paint these guys! After getting painted, Blue Bunny gave away 5280 samples of ice cream in downtown Denver for the 1st official day of summer!

Turtle Henna Belly

2011-05-17T22:08:00.000-06:00

Last weekend, I had the opportunity to create this fun design -- the mama-to-be requested plumeria blossoms with ocean imagery and three sea turtles (one for herself, one for the dad, and one for the baby). :o)

Ninja Easter Bunny!

2011-05-09T17:24:00.000-06:00

I got to paint lots of fun stuff around Easter this season, but I think this one was my favorite. The Ninja Bunny was the boy's idea -- the carrot nunchucks were mine!!

Lotus Bossom Belly

2011-04-13T10:39:00.000-06:00

I'm finding that Koi and Lotus blossoms are such perfect symbols of strength and transformation for mamas-to-be. This mom wanted 3 fish - symbolizing herself, her husband, and her baby. It is such a pleasure to work with moms to incorporate symbols and images that are meaningful to them!

Henna Dragon

2011-03-18T12:43:00.000-06:00

Early this month, I got to teach at the Face Painting and Body Art Convention in Las Vegas, AND I did tons of henna while working at the Amerikan Body Art Booth and having a BLAST! Here's my friend Wiser's freshly shaven bald art -- sporting my henna design!

Butterfly Solumbra Mask

2011-03-07T13:21:00.000-07:00

So, painting on fabric has been a new experience for me recently -- and I love it!! This awesome lady who is a serious athlete and bicyclist was recently diagnosed with skin cancer on her face. She now has to wear a face mask any time she's outdoors for extended amounts of time. She commissioned me to paint something bright and colorful that would also echo the curve of her smile (hence, the antennae and wings!). This is the design I came up with, and she is now wearing it while touring on her bike all over New Zealand. :o)

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T12:24:00.000-07:00

In all of my years of painting faces (eight!!), I have NEVER been asked to paint a Cupid for Valentine's Day -- how can that be?!? UNTIL this past weekend when this awesome 13-year-old asked for it -- wootwoot! It's about time, right? Here's my attempt.
Hope everyone is having an awesome day!

Bridal Henna for a Butterfly Wedding

2011-02-01T14:56:00.003-07:00

This is some henna I recently created for a beautiful bride who was getting married at our local Butterfly Pavillion (SUCH a great venue for a winter wedding!!!). I love all the little matching swirlies on her fingertips and toe-tips!

Full Day Class at FPBA Las Vegas!

2011-01-22T14:09:00.003-07:00

I'm so psyched to be teaching a full day workshop at next month's Face Painting and Body Art Convention in Las Vegas! The class is "The Business of Henna and Temporary Tattoos."

This small, hands-on workshop will focus on the business and marketing of incorporating henna, glitter tattoos, mica tattoos, etc., into your body art business to maximize up-sell and profits in ALL working scenarios.The class will include elements of design that maximize the "WOW!" factor as well as designs that move lines quickly in festival / large party situations. I'll also talk about how to set up your kit to maximize efficiency.

Prepare to learn tools and techniques that will set you apart from your competition!

Please feel free to email me with any questions at leah@facefiesta.com.

Or register HERE: http://www.fpbaconvention2011.eventbrite.com/

Creative Kids at a Face Painting Birthday Party

2011-01-16T19:28:00.003-07:00

I had so much fun at this birthday party today -- the party theme was "Tutus and Ties" (soooooooo cute, and yes! I wore my tutu!).
One of my favorite things to do is to combine different design ideas, and these kids were all about it. I had a few particularly interesting dolphin requests -- dolphin with a spider, dolphin with a flower ,and dolphin with a butterfly. Here are pics!
(Thanks to the parents for their permission to post these photos!)

San Francisco Face Painting FUN!

2011-01-13T20:43:00.004-07:00

Happy New Year! 2010 was a particularly exciting year for me -- I got to travel quite a bit for both teaching and working (although teaching IS working, too, right??), so it was perfect that I got to end the year travelling to San Francisco to paint faces for a seriously FUN company party. The theme was "Lady Gaga meets Alice in Wonderland." There were 3 people body painting and 10 people face painting at this all-adult event. This company REALLY knows how to throw a party -- Cyndi Lauper performed there! Here are some photos!

This is me (on the left) and the amazing Sandra Leathley having a shoulder pad battle. (I am winning!)

All of da boyz in the painting troupe.

Alison Kenyon body painting for 5 hours straight while wearing 7 inch platform boots. She is my hero!

Georgette Pressler and Sandra in their costumes -- both looking stunning!

Fun Summer Face Painting

2010-12-09T09:25:00.002-07:00

OK, I know this is December, but I'm realizing that I never posted photos from this AMAZING photo shoot I got to last summer with Sullivan Studios and the Dandy Social Club! This was such an wonderful opportunity to paint kids for the Dandy Social Club's kids' clothing website and brochure. The clothes are crazy-cute -- very fun and rock-n-roll! And the kids were GREAT. I'll be posting photos from this shoot periodically. Here's the first of my faves!

New Henna Belly!

2010-11-08T16:53:00.003-07:00

I had the pleasure of henna-ing my friend (and my son's 2nd grade teacher!) at her baby shower this past Saturday. I'm discovering that henna is very popular for moms-to-be of 2nd babies who don't necessarily want the traditional wacky games and gift-giving of showers. It's such a cool way to celebrate the new baby AND the mom!!! I love being part of this!!
Fish and lotus blossoms are such great imagery for new moms (good luck, new life, strength...). This mom wanted to make sure the fish's head was pointing downwards to remind her baby to stay head-down (the baby had been breach just a few days before).

Finally... 2010 Halloween Face Painting Photos!!

2010-11-03T14:07:00.005-06:00

Halloween was an absolute blast this year -- I painted at Google's company party on Oct. 29th (there are some crazy fun folks working at that place!!!) and then at UCAR's Super Science Saturday on the 30th. Then I got to paint some folks at my house before they traipsed off to their own parties... it kind of ended up being an impromtu party here at my house! Really fun. Great Halloween. Now I can rest! :o)

Halloween Face Painting!

2010-09-21T17:27:00.003-06:00

Is anybody else out there ready for Halloween? I'm taking appointments for private face painting sessions NOW!

I painted this a couple of days ago... I'm ready!!!!

Face Painting at Denver's Taste of Colorado

2010-09-09T12:06:00.007-06:00

Every year I paint faces for 4 days in a row at Denver's Taste of Colorado -- so crazy and SO fun! This year was a blast, as always! Great weather and great people! Here are a few photos.

(That's me with the Colorado State Capital shining in the background.)

This is Kay, my amazing helper! Kay finished chemotherapy in February but stil shaves her head and paints it every day. I LOVE this!!! I had the privilege of painting her head at the festival!

Painting "Body Graffiti" was one of my favorite things this year!!

Face Painting at Whole Foods Belmar!

2010-08-30T09:17:00.006-06:00

I love Whole Foods Belmar!!!! Great parking, spacious store, fabulous team members, and a darn good party! This was my 3rd year to paint faces for the Local Artisans' Road Tour, and I'm so happy to be part of this event. Great folks AND great food. AND some pretty fun face painting, too. :o)
Here are a few pics...

This is me & the Oogave girl... and yes, I'm painting a kid who is sitting in a grocery cart while eating a popsicle.

Some very cute animals and a couple of awesome Team Members! :o)

Illusion & Friends Step-by-Step Guide to Face Painting, Book 2

2010-08-23T08:19:00.004-06:00

This excellent book just came out of the UK, and the Illusion folks really know how to put together a great publication. I'm thrilled to have a design in it! TWO publications in one month means that I am an extraordinarily happy artist!

The best place to buy this book (for folks in the USA) is http://www.sillyfarm.com/.

American Face Painter Magazine

2010-08-16T08:34:00.004-06:00

The new issue of American Face Painter magazine just came out -- and I have a design in it! This whole issue focuses just on boy designs. Such a cool idea!! There are some REALLY great designs here! My design is a Phoenix -- something I actually get LOTS of requests for. My son was my model, and he didn't want to wash his face all day. Love that. :o)

Here's a link to order the magazine: http://www.americanfacepainter.com/

MORE Face Painting with Body Masterpiece

2010-08-11T08:29:00.004-06:00

On July 1st, our Body Masterpiece gang kicked off Reno's Artown in STYLE!! We painted hundreds of kids for the big parade -- so fun!!! Here are a few photos -- one of our gang and a few of the faces I painted that day.

Boulder Henna Belly

2010-08-03T15:41:00.004-06:00

I love this photo so much! Maureen Sullivan (http://www.sullivanstudios.com/) took this photo during one of our henna/photo sessions together. This mama-to-be was SO glowing and beautiful! She had her sweet baby very soon after we did this session together.

Face Painting with Body Masterpiece

2010-07-12T10:08:00.005-06:00

In mid-June, I was invited by Alison Kenyon of Body Masterpiece to participate for the 2nd year in a row in kicking off Ann Arbor's Summer Festival. For the first two evenings, the theme was "Circus Punk" and the last evening's theme was "Star Trek." We had a blast coming up with our costumes! All three nights, we were there to do Fine Art Face Painting -- tell us your favorite color and something you're really into, and we'll create a piece of original art on your face! A lot of kids really got into the spirit of things, saying, 'Just do something cool!!" :o) This is one of my favorite jobs of the year -- extremely creative and extremely FUN!
Here are photos of us in our costumes and a few smaples of faces painted by me.

Boulder Pregnant Belly Henna... butterflies and flowers!

2010-06-09T22:03:00.003-06:00

I really want to post more convention photos BUT I had to post a photo of the belly I henna-ed yesterday. What a treat! This lady wanted butterflies and flowers, but I really wanted to try them in a different style than I've done before on a belly. She was game, and this is what we came up with. I was really happy with the feeling of movement with the butterflies! Very summery! Very celebratory!

The flowers are totally inspired by my dear friend and fellow henna artist (and mentor!), Deborah Brommer (http://www.ddhenna.ohiobodyart.com/).

Face and Body Art International Convention!

2010-06-02T08:18:00.004-06:00

I just returned from the BEST convention in the world -- FABAIC! I was working at the Amerikan Body Art Booth, but also teaching some classes, taking some classes, and having a wonderful time. I always come home from this feeling SO inspired and excited to paint! I want to post tons of photos!! I'll start by posting a couple of photos from the class I taught on using Mica Shimmer Powders and Liquid Bling glitter gel ("Bling Your Face Painting!"). Also, here's a photo of me with the rest of the ABA crew -- these ladies are the BEST!!!

Grateful Dead Henna Belly!

2010-05-20T08:45:00.003-06:00

One of my favorite things about doing henna for pregnant ladies is finding out what images or symbols are meaningful to them and incorporating those images into their designs. This lady was very clear about 3 things she absolutely had to have on her belly design: sunflowers, butterflies, and the Grateful Dead's Steal Your Face in the center. :o) Here's the design we settled on:

Walnut Brewery 20th Anniversary

2010-05-03T09:01:00.005-06:00

I had so much fun at this event last Saturday at the Walnut Brewery in Boulder! Great people, great food, and (thank goodness!) great weather! Here are a few of the faces I got to paint that afternoon.

Earth Day Face Painting at Whole Foods Belmar

2010-04-26T08:36:00.003-06:00

Last Saturday was a special Earth Day (Earth WEEK!!) celebration at the Belmar Whole Foods Market. This is the best Whole Foods EVER, and not just because I get to paint there! ;o) There's a great sense of fun and comradery among the Team Members -- it's really cool. These 4 pics are all of Team Members -- definitely some kind of butterfly theme happening!

Pregnant belly henna -- mandala style!

2010-04-23T13:31:00.006-06:00

I had the great opportunity to collaborate again with photographer Maureen of http://www.sullivanstudios.com/! The mom we were working with wanted more traditional henna motifs in a mandala-style design. AND she brought gorgeous things like this purple and green jacket to make for a stunning photo shoot. I love this photo! :o)

Henna Belly with Leaves

2010-04-11T15:18:00.004-06:00

Here is another pregnant belly henna design I did in the past month. The mom here wanted only a small, leafy design encircling her belly button -- very original, I love that! But, I've now learned that sometimes keeping a design small can be just as challenging as creating a large design! :o) Maureen Sullivan of http://www.sullivanstudios.com/ took tons of beautiful photos.

Boulder Henna Belly

2010-03-29T21:24:00.002-06:00

This is been a great month for henna-ing beautifully pregnant bellies! Believe it or not, I've never had a request for butterflies on a belly. This lady desired not only butterflies, but fairly realistic ones at that! It was a delight to get to try something new.

Face paint and henna jam with my friends!

2010-03-27T11:26:00.006-06:00

I had SO much fun hanging out with Eydie and Jen yesterday, doing a little face painting and henna on our willing children. This is when I love the off-season! :o) Here are a few things I worked on...
This is Roxy, and yes, she asked me to henna a pineapple on her arms (Jen's kids are NOT lacking in creativity!!).

Roxy's sister, Peyton, was slightly more conservative -- she just wanted my to make sure I incorporated a spider in there somewhere.

A little face painting happened, too. Here's Roxy as a Dinosaur Butterfly and my son, the Zombie.

Birthday Party Face Painting!

2010-03-14T11:47:00.012-06:00

Ok, can I just say how thankful I am for birthday parties at this time of year?? It is still my SLOW season, and even one little party is a boost for off-season morale. These are a few pics from a birthday party last week -- every kid got something different, even the cats! I love that. I am so lucky to get to be part of these celebrations!!

I've been Blogged!!!

2010-02-14T22:10:00.002-07:00

Bloggin' the blogger! My friend Karen blogged about me! Check it out on her blog at http://zoesbagboutique.blogspot.com/
She totally rocks. I love her bags so much -- she is also an artist! The things that woman can do with a piece of funky fabric... I love it. Her special Kipster bag just accompanied me to Las Vegas and made MANY public appearances amongst my fellow face painters! (expect to see photos soon!!)

2010-02-04T10:00:00.004-07:00

I'm packing my bags for the Face Painting and Body Art Convention in Las Vegas! I'm teaching a full day workshop on GLITTER next Monday, as well as a couple of other workshops throughout the convention. I'm excited to TEACH and TAKE classes, too!! Posting a photo here from the last convention in May. This is me with my friends Deborah Brommer and Yolanda Bartram at the final night, "Art Gone Wild" party -- so much fun! Face painting conventions are anything but boring! ;o)

Valentine Eyes Video!

2010-02-01T11:33:00.005-07:00

I just finished this video for Amerikan Body Art -- my daughter (my model!) is such a trooper! :o) I used one of my all-time favorite products here, Glamour Eye Liner Sealer. This stuff rocks!

In the NEWS!

2010-01-29T09:18:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday I had the distinct pleasure of henna-ing journalist Aimee Heckel's bounteous pregnant belly. She is the perfect model -- beautiful AND photogenic!
Maureen Sullivan, my collaborator with henna of www.sullivanstudios.com took gorgeous photos. I will post more photos here soon! In the meantime, check out the article HERE!

Zoe's Bag Boutique

2010-01-11T21:11:00.000-07:00

Do you KNOW that Zoe's Bag Boutique is having this crazy anniversary give-a-way?? Do you KNOW that Zoe's Bags rock my socks off?!? Do you KNOW I am addicted to buying flaps for my Morphin' Zeldina bag and that I don't think I can live without that new fabric with the hedgehogs and mushrooms???
Alas.
Check it out at your own risk.
www.zoesbagboutique.blogspot.com

Oatmeal Fest 2010

2010-01-10T14:39:00.001-07:00

I thought I'd kick off this blog by posting a few photos from my first big event of the year -- the Lafayette Oatmeal Festival! (That's right, it's actually a festival celebrating oatmeal. I love this town!) I've worked at this event for the past 6 years, and it's truly one of my favorites. It's about 5 blocks from where I live, and I get to see and/or paint almost everyone in my neighborhood and community. I love it! Nobody else has a festival in January -- much less one that's all about oatmeal!