20 Quick & Easy Face Painting Ideas That Anyone Can Do

With step-by-step visual instructions for every face paint design

Co-authored by Sophie Burkholder, BA

Last Updated: December 11, 2025 Fact Checked

Face painting is a super fun activity for carnivals, parties, holidays, and any occasion where you want to add a little fun and flair! Whether you’re getting the face painting yourself or painting it onto other people, this list has tons of simple designs and ideas that are perfect for kids and adults—and for any beginner face painter. In no time, you’ll be able to paint the town (or the face) red!

Cool Face Paint Ideas

An illustration showing multiple examples of face paintings on people’s faces, including a butterfly, a tiger, and a superhero.

Some cool and easy face painting ideas include butterflies, tigers, and superheroes (like Spiderman). Other fun ideas include carnival masks, clowns, princesses, and unicorns. Instead of masks or full faces, you can also draw objects around the face, like bubbles, flowers, cupcakes, or soccer balls.

1

Angry Birds

To face paint some Angry Birds characters, start by painting a white circle around each eye. Connect the two circles in the center by painting an “X” shape over the nose. Then, use red face paint to draw a larger oval around the forehead, the sides of the face, below the eyes, and onto the nose. Still with the red paint, fill in this oval (without covering up any of your white circles. Add two rounded rectangles to the top of the red shape—these are your bird’s head feathers. Paint a yellow triangle over the nose to create the beak.
- Lastly, apply black to a medium paintbrush and outline the entire design. Add two black slanted lines above the eyebrows to put the “angry” in “angry birds.”

2

Blooming Flowers

Apply pink paint to a clean sponge and draw a wave-like swirl from above one eyebrow to the bottom of the opposite cheek. Then, apply yellow paint to a new sponge and draw a parallel “wave” under the pink one. Apply black paint to a brush and paint simple black flowers along the yellow-pink line. To create a simple flower, just paint five black petals encircling an imaginary center circle. Lastly, apply white paint to a thin brush and add decorative dots to the design.

3

Bubbles

Use white face paint on a thin brush to outline 10 white circles (of varying sizes) along the forehead and the side of the face. Use a clean sponge to fill in the circles with light blue paint. Let the light blue paint dry slightly, then blend dark blue paint along the inside of each circle to create a 3D look. Once the blue paint is dry, paint a white crescent shape along one edge of the inside of each circle. Decorate the look with small white dots and circles.^{[1]
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4

Butterfly

Apply pink paint to a brush and draw the outline of the butterfly above and below the eyes. To do this, draw four triangles to create a butterfly shape—two of the triangles should be above either eye, while the other two should be below either eye. Then, apply purple paint with a sponge to the center of each triangle, and apply sparkly blue paint to the inside corner of each triangle. Use the sponge to carefully blend the three paint colors together.^{[2]
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- Apply white paint to a brush and draw five dots from the eyebrow gap to the nose. These circles should all be touching, but they should decrease in size as they move down the nose.
- Then, apply black paint to a thin brush and outline the entire butterfly shape. Add the two butterfly “antennae” above the white dots, and outline those same dots in black.

5

Carnival Mask

Use a sponge dipped in pink paint to draw one semi-circle below the left eye and another over the eyebrow of the right eye. Connect these two semicircles over the nose with the same pink paint. Let this dry slightly, then use a new sponge and yellow paint to draw one semi-circle over the top-left eyebrow and another semi-circle under the bottom-right eye. With another new sponge, dab light blue paint onto the top of the left cheek and the bridge of the nose.
- Apply black paint to a thin paintbrush and draw two swooping lines, one above each eyebrow. These lines should follow the natural curve of the eyebrow.
- Then, with the black paint, draw three small teardrop shapes above the crest of each swooping line. If desired, draw some extra swirls around the corners of the eyes and on the tops of the cheeks.
- Apply white paint to a thin paintbrush and draw one wavy line above the black eyebrow lines—this white line should roughly follow their shape to create the top of the “mask.”
- Draw another white line over the cheeks and nose to create the bottom of the “mask.”
- You can decorate further with small white stars on the cheeks and nose.

6

Clown

To begin your clown face paint, apply white paint to a large brush and draw a large, thick, imperfect, hollow circle around each eye and the mouth. Then, apply red paint to a brush and draw a small, irregular, filled-in circle on the nose and each cheek. Apply black paint to a thin brush and outline each white circle. Finally, draw black vertical lines above and below each eye.

7

Cupcake

On one side of the face, paint a large pink trapezoid onto the bottom of the cheek. The trapezoid should be upside down so that the longer edge is on top, while the shorter edge is closer to the jaw. Then, apply white paint to a clean brush and draw a cloud-like cupcake-frosting shape on top of the trapezoid. With some red paint, draw a circle on the very top of the cupcake’s frosting (that’s the cherry on top!).
- Paint tiny pink, yellow, and blue dots onto the white “frosting” to create the look of sprinkles.
- Finally, apply black paint to a thin paintbrush and outline the entire cupcake. Draw decorative dots and stripes on the wrapper part of the cupcake, and give the cherry a curved stem.

8

Dalmatian Dog

Use a sponge to cover the entire face in white paint. Apply black paint to a medium-sized brush and draw four blob-shaped “spots” or “patches” to the face. We recommend placing one “spot” on the forehead, one around one eye, one on the chin, and one on the bottom of the nose.^{[3]
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- Next, apply red paint to a small brush and draw a U-shaped tongue extending from the bottom of one side of the mouth.
- Take some more black paint and paint the final details: three whiskers extending from either side of the nose, three dots next to each set of whiskers, and a center line running down the middle of the tongue.

9

Dragon

Apply red paint to a medium-to-large paintbrush. Draw a large “U” shape over almost the entire face, from the top of the forehead to the top of the mouth. However, on the sides of the “U”, draw scalloped lines instead of curving ones (this will create the shape of the dragon’s wings). Then, fill in the entire “U” shape with a sponge and red paint. Outline the red shape with light blue paint, then draw three horns in the center of the forehead with white paint.
- With more white paint, draw a curved triangle underneath each side of the mouth—these are the dragon’s fangs. If you want, you can also use the white paint to add detailing and highlights to your existing elements.
- Finally, apply some black paint to a brush and outline the blue paint, the fangs, and the horns.

10

Hello Kitty

Apply white face paint to a clean sponge and dab the paint all over the center of the face in a mask-like shape. Cover the nose, the eyebrows, the eyes, and the tops of the cheeks. Then, use that same sponge and white face paint to create a triangular ear above each eyebrow. Apply pink face paint to a new sponge and dab a small circle of “blush” onto each cheek. Then, apply pink face paint to a brush and draw a bow over one of the ears. To paint the bow, draw one circle with a large triangle on either side.^{[4]
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- Paint a yellow dot onto the nose.^{[5]
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- Finally, outline every part of your design with black face paint and a thin brush.^{[6]
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11

Ice Princess

Use a sponge to cover the entire forehead with sparkly blue face paint. Apply silver paint to the same sponge and extend the painted area down to the tops of the cheeks and the bridge of the nose. Use white paint and a paintbrush to create a crown shape on the forehead. If you’d like, you can add some decorative swirls or dots. Then, apply black paint to a very thin paintbrush and outline the crown and any other elements you’d like to add detail to. Finally, draw a black snowflake in the center of the crown and some white snowflakes on the cheeks.

12

Mermaid

Use a sponge and sparkly purple face paint to create an upside-down triangle over the center of the forehead. The bottom point of the triangle should rest on the bridge of the nose. Apply sparkly blue face paint to a new sponge and cover both sides of the face—from the tops of the temples to the tops of the cheeks, but not going inwards past the eyes. Take a round brush and apply some light green paint to it. Draw a seashell shape in the gap between the eyebrows.^{[7]
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- Then, with the same light green paint, draw four swirls (two on each side) that start at the tops of the eyebrows and extend toward the hairline.
- With some white paint, add more swirls around the eyebrows and the sides of the eyes to create a mask-like pattern (with the seashell at the center).
- With some silver paint and a small brush, draw lines of U-shaped scales on the forehead and cheeks.
- With black paint and a very thin brush, add detailing to all of your elements—including the scales, swirls, and seashells.

13

Ninja Turtle

Apply orange, red, purple, or blue paint to a sponge. Use that sponge to draw a mask-like shape over the eyes. Fill in your mask so that it covers the nose, the eyebrows, and the tops of the cheeks. Around this mask, use a new sponge with green paint to create the turtle’s face. The green should cover the bottom of the nose, the bottoms of the cheeks, and the entire forehead. Make sure not ot overlap any of the green with your original mask.
- Return to the face paint that you used for your mask, then draw a filled-in circle on one side of your mask. Draw two swooping shapes coming out of the bottom of it. This is the “knot” where your mask is tied.
- Finally, outline and detail your entire design with black face paint and a thin brush.

14

Pumpkin

Apply orange face paint to a damp brush, then draw two large, connecting circles around the eyes (sort of like an eye mask). Make sure to connect these two circles in the middle and cover the nose entirely. Apply black face paint to a small brush, then outline the orange shape in its entirety, except for the space above the center of the eyebrows (we’ll come back to that!). Still with the black paint, draw three curved lines on the bottom of each side of the “pumpkin.” Draw a triangle on the bottom tip of the nose.^{[8]
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- Above the center of the eyebrows, use green paint on a small brush to draw a curved pumpkin stalk.

15

Skeleton

For your skeleton face paint design, start by using a sponge to cover the entire face in white paint. Then, paint two thick, irregular black rings around the eyes. Then, cover the bottom of the nose in black paint and draw two tapering lines that go up the nose and end on its bridge. Finally, paint several thin lines around the mouth in black.^{[9]
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16

Soccer Fan

Apply white paint to a medium-sized brush and paint three white circles on one side of the face. We recommend painting one above the eyebrow, one on the chin, and one on the cheek. Apply black paint to a thin brush and draw a soccer ball design onto each white circle. To do this, you can draw one irregular hexagon in the center of the white circle, then draw five half-hexagons around the edges of the circle. Connect these black hexagons with black lines, then outline the entire white circle in black. Repeat these steps for all three white circles.
- With more black paint, draw black three black lines below each “soccer ball” to create the illusion that they’re moving through the air.
- As a final step, add small white decorative dots around the design.

17

Spiderman

Apply white paint to a sponge or large paintbrush and draw two large teardrop shapes around the eyes. The “point” of each teardrop should extend toward either temple. Fill in both teardrops with white face paint, then outline them in black. Next, apply red paint to a brush and cover the forehead, the sides of the face, the nose, and the tops of the cheeks with the red paint. This should create a mask-like shape. Fill in this shape completely, then outline it with black paint.
- As the final step, you just need to add Spider-Man’s signature web design! To accomplish this, draw black lines that start at the bridge of the nose and radiate out toward the edges of the mask.
- Then, draw rows of U-shaped lines between each of the lines you just drew.

18

Superhero

Apply bright blue paint to a brush and draw a C-shape around the outside of each eye. The “C” should extend from above each eyebrow to the midpoint of the cheek (below the eye). Paint a larger “C” around each side of the face that follows the shape of the inner “C.” Connect these lines to create a block-letter “C” around the outside of each eye. Then, draw a small blue star at the bottom of each “C.”
- Next, apply gold paint to a brush and paint a downwards-pointing triangle on the forehead (between the two “C” shapes).
- Add two more gold triangles on either side of the nose. Let the gold paint dry.
- Once the gold paint is dry, use a thin brush with red paint to add details, like stars, stripes, and other superhero-inspired symbols.

19

Tiger

Mix together some yellow and orange face paint and apply it all over the face with a clean sponge. Apply white paint to a clean sponge and dab it down the nose and on either side of the nose. Then, apply black paint to a brush and draw three whiskers on each cheek. Paint the bottom of the nose black, as well, then draw a small black line that extends from the bottom of the nose toward the top lip. Apply more black paint to a thicker brush, then draw two wavy lines from either side of the nose to the center of the forehead.^{[10]
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- Paint three smaller wavy lines in the center of the line, in between the two larger lines that you just drew.
- Still working with black paint, draw a line above each eyebrow and a line under the inside corner of each eye.
- Lastly, add a black stripe across each cheek and on either side of the chin.

20

Unicorn

Apply white paint to a small paintbrush. On one cheek, draw the outline of a unicorn’s side profile—include the unicorn’s head, neck, and horn. Fill in the outline with white paint. Use pink paint to draw swirling hair around the unicorn’s head. Then, use blue paint to draw a small dot where the unicorn’s eye would be. Next, draw a rainbow swirl that comes out of the back of the unicorn’s head and extends toward the top of the forehead. Paint the swirl with stripes of silver, purple, blue, green, and yellow paint.
- Apply black paint to a thin brush and outline the unicorn’s head and hair. Outline the eye and add some eyelashes, then draw some decorative black swirls around the rainbow stripe.
- Finally, take some white paint and add some small dots and stars around the design.

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Warnings

Only use paints that are specifically designed for face painting. Other craft paints, such as acrylic paint, can cause skin reactions like burns, irritation, and allergic reactions.^{[11]
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