Best brand for making one-stroke cakes?

I'm getting ready to make a batch of one-stroke cakes, and I've been doing research online before ordering the larger containers of colors to start with.

From what I've found, it seems the wisdom is to use a softer glycerine-based brand if you are making split cakes for sponge work, but to use the harder wax-based brands for one-stroke brush work, as the colors stay a little more distinct.

Does that wisdom correlate with what you've found?

I'm going to be using these as one-stroke cakes for brush work. Are there specific brands you would recommend to use or to stay away from for making these cakes?


Thanks for any advice!

Dear scottnicholson:
I use many different brands to make my own one stroke base blenders, and one stroke rainbows.

Face paints are usually glycerin or wax based.
I try to use glycerin based on the outside of the rainbow, and wax based on the inner colours.

Try attending some of the local jams, and see if you could swatch some of the colours yourself.
There is a Halton Group, and also, Winky the Clown (Rose Winkworth has a jam once a month in the north side of Toronto.

That's a great idea - I hadn't thought about mixing them. I ended up going with Diamond FX for many of my brush-based one-stroke cakes, and I'm happy with all except the rainbow. I'll dip into my FAB stores and try making one with DFX on the edges and FAB in the middle.

I'm also going to play with number of colors; I tried to get all 6 in there, and it got muddled in a one-inch cake. But with a Red and Purple wax-based on the edge, I'll explore a Yellow and Blue glycerin-base in the middle to see if it will give orange and green in the blend.

Thanks for the suggestion on jams; I'm more over the KW / London area - Toronto is a big scary place - but I will look around there (or even start my own!)

The 6 blend rainbow cakes blend into BLARFY BLERG (I made those words up) unless you are meticulous about loading. I prefer 4 or 3 blends.
I face paint at the The CNE and I have done everything wrong you could possibly do... please make new mistakes!
xoxo
fessy!

I love your posts, I love your humor...I guess I just love you, fessy!
XOXO
Pat

Dearest Dear Affordable Face Magic:
I miss this Forum.
There certainly are a LOT of drama llamas on FB.
I love you, too, Pat!
xoxo

Scott,
 Have you looked into "Doming" your one-strokes?
On Youtube, look up Doming one strokes part 1 & then part 2 by
Juicy Body Art. There are other tutorials, but I prefer hers. I bought the tool on Amazon for about $5. It's already paid for itself several times over.

Dear AFM:
When I was in NYC for my daughter’s wedding in January 2017.... I met up with a face painter named Marci who showed me “Doming”. I LOVE THIS! There is a lot less wasted paint at the bottom. I am slowly switching my domed one strokes for Global’s pans that come in 6 or 12 palettes. They are smaller. I use them up faster. They always look so clean.

Our team goes through a LOT of paint in the summer, so I bought a Face Paint Press through FaceBook.
I want everyone’s kit to look neat and tidy.

Doming has saved money, time, and less Paint is thrown away.
xoxo

What's a face paint press?

It is a wooden press that squished and shapes your paint blobs into perfect shapes to create a 3 or 4 or 5 stripe rainbow cake. I also bought the insert for creating the perfect squares for a 32 slot jewellery tray. I make so many one strokes and base blenders in the summer. This is a time-consuming job. It takes a long time to make a 4 colour Base blender cake. It does not take twice as long to make two base blenders. I am making 6-8 at a time. I try to do this in May/June/July to get ready for the 18 day CNE (Canadian National Exhibition). I have a team of 4 of us, including me, everyday for 18 days in a row for 8 hours a day.
We go through 2.5 lbs of glitter. I HIGHLY recommend the facepaintforumshop.com glitter pump. We all used the glitter pump. We went through less than 3/4 of a lb.
I go through 9x90g of wax-based white, 6x90g of wax-based black.
I try to buy everything in advance, and make all the one strokes in advance. I believe the face paint press will make my cakes more compact and neat.
Google Face Paint Press on YouTube. The 27 minute video is worthwhile. Go in with another face painter to split the costs.
xoxo

I am in awe of you being able to handle the CNE. It's just a massive event; I've watched the face painting there, and just can't imagine doing that for so many days in a row.

By the way, I found many ways pf making lovely Blarfy Blargs. Thankfully, FB is malleable to being cut apart and tried again in different combinations. I finally found a non-Blarfy Blarg combo of a little Red, a wider yellow and wider light blue, and then a little Purple.

Dear Scott Nicholson:
BWAHAHAHAHA!!!
You are speaking MY made-up language!
I completely understood what you are saying!!!

I have been the face painter in Kid’s World every year since 2012. Have you been there since 2012?

I LOVE when other face painters come by!
xoxo
fessy

HA! I knew you did the CNE but the most I've done are 2 day festivals...one is 3 FP'ers & 1 Glitter Tattoo'er-def non-stop, the other just me, not as busy, DOUBLE HA: I don't know a thing about tired in comparison...and the PREP! Wow!!! Swing by if you can, scottnocholson, just to see her & co. in action.

And...
I cannot possibly do this job without surrounding myself with awesome face painters. They began as my apprentices, and now they surpass me!
Nobody ever told me how proud I am of them now they are better than me!

I wake up every morning at 5am wanting to know... can I go to work NOW??? How about NOW?
I eat brekkie, pack a lunch, pack up the freshly laundered and dried sponges, towels, aprons, tablecloths, and freshly repaired rainbow cakes. I can walk to work at the CNE. I arrive around 8:00-8:30. I sweep and mop and prepare for my day.
At the end of the day, we all clean and sort the buckets of sponges and lollipop smoothies, recyclables and garbage. I walk home and start the wash. Eat dinner my husband has made for me. I repair rainbow cakes and do artwork for our display if any have been destroyed. I prepare the ‘artist incentives’ for the next day (prizes for a tiny little contests we run for our selves). I shower and lay out my clothes for the next day, and fall into bed at around 10pm. My husband makes sure the laundry is completely finished. He folds and lays everything out for the next day. It is like this for 18 days in a row. I love it!
I adore the people I work with!
My family tries to make my life easier for 18 days in a row. My home is a mess. Nobody complains.
We are making people happy all day long.
It is a wonderfulful experience!

I will now name the new Scott Nicholson combo as “Scott Nicholson’s Non-Blarfy-Blarg!
xoxo

When were you at the CNE Face Painting last, Scott?

I missed last year due to too much life, but I checked it out the year before. I am on the other end of the FP scale as a dabbling hobby and break from my professor job. As such, most of my gigs are volunteer events for the University with students or helping them out with their fundraisers. They are always amused to see their professor out painting faces.

Did you come up into our gazebo near the Dufferin Gate?
This year, we have been moved right up close to the Dufferin Gate near the QEW.

fesspenter wrote:The 6 blend rainbow cakes blend into BLARFY BLERG (I made those words up) unless you are meticulous  about loading.  I prefer 4 or 3 blends.
I face paint at the The CNE and I have done everything wrong you could possibly do... please make new mistakes!
xoxo
fessy!

My instructor at the class I took this week called it "mud" but I must admit I like "blarfy blerg" a bit more.

I have more words that I make up that annoy the snot out of my family.
xoxo