Face Painting vs. Masks for Halloween
One of our recent projects was painting Kaleidoscope’s little buddy Jay into Yoda for a Starwars-themed wedding. (You’ll also recognize Jay as Batman from our waterproof face paint video. His family comes to a ton of our public events!)
His mom sent us the above photo which got us thinking: what are the advantages or disadvantages of face painting vs masks for kids at Halloween? So while families are planning your Halloween party ideas, we did a little digging. Here’s how they weighted out:
Safety
Safety at Halloween is more than just stranger-danger. It’s also being thoughtful of cars on dark streets, security at large events, and making sure no one has an allergic reaction. Can face paint or masks be any more safe than the other?
Well, it turns out yes. There’s been an extensive amount of research about mask visibility. Even professional-grade scuba masks can greatly limit visibility. (You can see a graph to the right). Masks with small eye-holes are even worse! If you want to make sure your trickotreaters can see curbs, steps, or cars at night, face painting is an easy win.
For security reasons, more and more schools are no longer allowing masks or face paint. That said, if you’re going to a large event, face paint still wins over masks for visibility, but being able to take off a mask to identify yourself may be a better bet.
Finally, peanuts aren’t the only allergen lurking around Halloween. Many masks contain latex, a growing allergy. Our face paint is latex- and allergen-free, so to make sure your children (and their friends) don’t have a reaction, face paint wins again.
Wearability
Masks and helmets can overheat, plus eating or drinking in them is usually a no-go. Instead of tossing your costume aside half-way through the party, face paint is matanence-free all night long.
And, for adults that anticipate being out all day with their paint, remember: we also offer waterproof body painting.
Looks
In the case of anything you would want to move with your face (animals, monsters, and of course Yoda) face painting is an obvious win. And, don’t forget we can also add prosthetic ears, muzzles, eye lashes, contacts… you name it! Masks tend to look bulky and cheap. But, a full-helmet is awesome for robots or anything mechanical, so go big or go home!
Cost
Most costume face painting costs $30-50, depending on how much you want. For something small (say, sexy-cheetah-eye-makeup) it may be a little less. But for full masks, that’s pretty average. It’s a tie!
So who wins?
The score is 3-to-1 with two ties. Winner: face painting. But, at the end of the day, think about what your priorities for your costume are and makes the most sense for you.