Poll on Brands

I was just wondering what brand do most of y'all use?

I rarely see that anyone uses the Ben Nye Magicake (I'm sure many do, I just don't know about it) and see that DFX is quickly gaining huge poularity.

Any die hard Paradise fans out there or Snazaroo lovers?

I know most people have kits stocked with a mixture of brands, but I just wanted to see what what brand most people liked as a majority or the most

Also, what brand do you seem to like the least? In other words if you could only use one brand, what would it be and if you had to give up one brand completely, which would be the first to go? I thought this would be interesting and I look forward to reading your personal opinion!

Spectrum

This has actually been covered many times, but...

My working kit is predominantly Kryolan and Snazaroo. I also have Grimas, Wolfe, Funky Foxes (made by Kryolan), Fardel, and most recently some DFX in that kit.

I tried the Ben Nye Magicakes many years ago and they were useless. I have not tried it since although I use lots of Ben Nye in my theatrical kit as their make-up and sfx products are great.

I will not use Paradise under any circumstances due to the smell and other issues I've had. Again, I do use other Mehron products in my theatrical kit like Starblend pancake in foundation shades and their pro-pencils, etc.

If I could ONLY use ONE brand it would be Kryolan. Even though there are some Snaz colours I really would not want to be without (like yellow ochre, bright red and electric blue), overall, Kryolan would be the choice if I could only use one.

If I had to give up one brand completely at this point in time it would be DFX as I only just started using it (due to a purchase for a large job I have lots of "leftovers") and while I do like many of the colours, I find it less of an all-rounder as I don't like it as a base paint.

Thanks Shannon for the great response - I certainly do appreciate you taking the time to share your opinions. I know the topic has been covered many many times but since there are new folks joining everyday and with DFX hitting the scene, I was curious as to how things may or may not have changed up. I enjoyed reading your reply though, very much.

I started out painting with Snazaroo, and wouldn't use it again. I passed my old kit down to my kids to play with. It doesn't cover very well (not highly pigmented) and is horrible for line work in my opinion.

I found Wolfe and moved to that when I started my business. I was introduced to DFX and liked the price vs. size better than the Wolfe, so I moved on to that. The base is good and line work is awesome with DFX. I have added quite a bit of paradise because I love using them as a base and they blend easily. I also have starblends powders that I just love when everything else just sweats off.

If I had to give up everything else and only have one it would be DFX all the way. Their colors are highly pigmented and do beautiful line work. In my opinion they make the best splitcakes. Less bleading and the best blending, and they give nice bold rainbow effects.

I do not like the magicakes!! Although Ben Nye makes some wonderful colors in their other lines.

While we all have a variety of products, most of us wouldn't like to give up any..... it's the variety that gives us the best of the best.

I know that my opinion is different from some, but that is what makes all unique. I am thankful for so many different manufacturers that give us such wonderful variety.

Just my 2 cents...... Hugs Helen

Thanks for the response Helen, I appreciate you taking the time to offer your opinion! Enjoyed it.

And here you get teh opposite opinion

I use only snazaroo (with the exception of my Kryolan UV palette). I cannot use Wolfe/DFX/Tag/etc. as I am allergic to them. Not only would it cause me to have a reaction on my hands while I was painting, I will not put anything on anyone else that I will not put on my own skin (it's hypocritical in my opinion). I can't stand the smell of Paradise, don't care for the smell of Kryolan (and the metallic and UV Kryolan paints that I have are generally quite translucent and difficult to work with, so I'm not highly motivated to try much more from them anyway).

I like Snazaroo, I like the safety of it, I like that it smells like absolutely nothing and it works very well for me as I am well practiced with it.

Thing with all brands is that they each have their own optimal method of application, amount of water, etc.

Many artists have issues with Kryolan Interferenz or Metallics for example as they are trying to use them in the same manner they use regular Kryolan or Snaz.

Lots of people don't like Snaz, but I can make it work for me... even using the black for linework! Which is what I do as Kryolan black really is useless for linework (ask anyone!)

My only real issue with Snaz is the staying power. As it dries out the paint starts to powder off - falls off the skin in a fine powder, leaving the colours very faded looking. Not EVERY colour does this, the bright red, sparkles and electric colours don't, but the regular colours do.

That is why I use Kryolan pretty much interchangably with Snaz (I actually don't know which white I am using at the moment as I just refill the palette with whatever cakes I have on hand.)

The whole "trick" is the amount of water and the consistency of the paint... every brand has their own sweet spot and many people don't bother to take the time to find it or know to try to change what they were doing with their other brand as it might not work with the new brand...

And also, it depends on WHAT you are doing with the paint - for face painting what I've said applies but for body painting I go a whole different route.

For body painting I use Fardel cremes, Tim Gratton for black, and some Wolfe as the staying power is there.

I've not tried all the brands, so I can't attest to them all or their different qualities.

For me:
I use a mix of wolfe/dfx which I think are very interchangeable & Paradise. I love paradise for bases & I'll use wolfe/dfx for bases & linework. I'm even comfortable w/ blending them which some say is an issue.
I have Starblend powders & the Ben Nye Lumiere pallet. I use these only when the humidity won't let me paint or on younger fidgety kids. I use Wolfe/dfx for linework over the powders.
I have one Kryolan. It's the only paint that's a true Jaguar Teal & I need it for our football teams colors. I hate the smell(it's way too perfumie). I love it's coverage.
I have a few small Snaz pallets & use them for free events & to give to volunteer painters at my church. I'm not very proficient w/ it as I don't practice w/ it.

If I was stranded on an island I was given only 1 paint to use it would be either wolfe or dfx.

I use Paradise predominantly - recently my man bought me some snaz to try, so far - it's only good for bases, but I'm using it - and I just got some DFX last week to try out and I love the metalics - much more then the paradise.
I also buy Tag for the neons as paradise don't do them.
If I had to give up anything it would be Snaz - and if I had to only use one thing it would be Paradise but I haven't tried any Kryolan or Ben NYE and I'm still yet to try out wolfe so all this may change yet!

Hey Perry Noia and Psalmbook thanks so much for the great responses - I have enjoyed reading every single one of them and you all make such great points.

I started with Snazaroo, I love it but like Shannon said , "As it dries out the paint starts to powder off - falls off the skin in a fine powder, leaving the colours very faded looking" very true. I still have some in my pallet I love Ocre Yellow , dark pink and some basic colors. I have a hard time working with their Metallics.
I hate Paradise, I hate the smell, I'm currently using my paradise black for base only, since they are horrible for line work. Metallics are horrible to work with. Maybe is me , not getting the right consistency..I still have Metallic green and Metallic Gold I only used them twice..So u might see them on the swap shop soon.
I love DFX , their colors are vibrant and they are excellent for line working. I also like Wolfe their colors are similar to DFX but for some reason Wolfe tends to bleed when applied on top of DFX.
I currently have in my pallet Kryolan Aqua Color black (Not so great for Line Work), blue, and green. Also Kryolan interferenz Copper and White. I love Interferenz shades but can't get the right consistency. I might have to play with them a liittle bit more.
If I had to give up a brand will be Paradise, and If I have to stick with one will be DFX!
My pallet is a mix of DFX, Snazaroo, Wolfe, Paradise,Kryolan and Starblend Powders.
Since we are talking about paints...I'm looking for the perfect orange for my tigers..Any sugestions?

Thanks for the response Tash! I use a lot of paradise myself...I WISH Snazaroo would look into possibly making some of their products a little more pigmented, that would be great. I don't like colors that go on sheer or translucent and I despise having to go over the same place several times to get the depth of color I'm looking for..that's wasting my time and product. I don't think any brand is perfect though. Each brand seems to have one color that you just have to have in your kit. As far as DFX, as beautiful as the colors are something just seems cheap or generic about it to me....even down to the packaging..which I know is NO BIG deal but I just can't bring myself to love it. I do own some and do use it, so I'm not totally dogging it out or anything...something just seems odd about it to me. I dunno. I've enjoyed reading every single response to this, so keep them coming. You all make great points!!!

Snazaroo is actually pretty solid...? The only ones that are too sheer are the gold and silver. The sparkles might be if applied too thinly (too much water)...

Have you experimented with a little more water, let it sit on the paint then work it a bit to get it creamier before you apply it?

Oh I agree Shannon, I just have issues with a few of their colors, not all of them...and of course how they seem to fade out like a few of you have mentioned. I think Snazaroo has their place in face painting for sure, they are huge.

I'm partial to Paradise because I get it at wholesale cost 50% off the retail, so I'd be foolish to make any other brand a main stay in my kit cost wise. The same for any mehron product/Snaz & Ben Nye. If I had a connection with Wolfe or DFX, I'm sure I would incorporate them into my kit as well. I honestly have had VERY little experience with any Ben Nye products and I really need to give them a shot.

I think the reason Snaz dries out and falls off in the powder is the fact that is was designed as a face paint for children - they use less of the emoillents and other cosmetic ingredients than, say, Kryolan which is a theatrical water activated make-up (as opposed to being created for face painting specifically) has. That is why Kryolan SMELLS like make-up.... because it is!

A couple of years ago I did a durability test with all the brands I had... since I work painted I used a different brand each time.

I was looking at colour brightness after wearing for up to 6 hours, smearing, comfort and other signs of wear and ease of cleaning.

Snazaroo - faded the most and left a fine powder on my clothing and if I had a hot flash it ran with the sweat. Felt "tight" as it dried on the skin, but loosened up as time passed (because it was falling off!! ) Only had problems with yellow and green for removal... but usually came off in the shower or with glycerin soap.

Kryolan - stayed reasonably bright, but if applied too thickly got a bit "chaulky" looking (particularly on line work.) But it held well when I got hot. I knew I had it on but it wasn't irritating. Some issues with yellows and green, but again, it does come off in the next shower or used glycerin soap.

Grimas - stayed bright and stayed where I put it. It did get a bit "dry" looking particularly in the creases. I knew I was wearing it. Stained a bit more than the Snaz and Kryolan - the yellow particularly, but did come off with the glycerin soap.

Wolfe... YUK. Horrible to wear as a full face base. Got oily looking, and kinda looked like an orange peel in the T-zone... body heat and the wax content don't go well together. And it ran the worst when I had a power surge. Very uncomfortable to wear all day really. Hard to wash - left a waxy film on my skin, the black is impossible to get out of my lash line so I ended up with black eyeliner for couple weeks. It doesn't stain per se, but lingers...

Fantasy Worldwide - lovely to wear. Completely forgot I was wearing it. Stayed a little tacky as it is a water based cream. Never really dried out completely which helps the colours stay bright. Because I forgot I was wearing it I tended to smudge it by touching my forehead... Washes off completely ... did not appear to have any "staining" but have to admit my "test design" wasn't yellow and green!

DFX - I find it very drying to wear as a full face base. It stays very bright but looks dry, which it is. Gets "tight" feeling across the face - Snaz does too, but not as bad - as it dries out. Held pretty well through sweating... better than the Wolfe which surprized me. The blues, greens and yellows did linger quite strongly which surprized me too. I have NOT tried the black (I don't have any.) Definitely less waxy than Wolfe.

Fardel is similar to Fantasy Worldwide - but it is a denser cream so is "thicker"... I use it for body painting, not face painting.

I don't use FWW or Fardel on face painting gigs as it is wet and doesn't work well with my health regs and method of working, but will use them at home or for projects.

Shannon Fennell wrote:


Kryolan - stayed reasonably bright, but if applied too thickly got a bit "chaulky" looking (particularly on line work.) But it held well when I got hot. I knew I had it on but it wasn't irritating. Some issues with yellows and green, but again, it does come off in the next shower or used glycerin soap.

Wolfe... YUK. Horrible to wear as a full face base. Got oily looking, and kinda looked like an orange peel in the T-zone... body heat and the wax content don't go well together. And it ran the worst when I had a power surge. Very uncomfortable to wear all day really. Hard to wash - left a waxy film on my skin, the black is impossible to get out of my lash line so I ended up with black eyeliner for couple weeks. It doesn't stain per se, but lingers...


DFX - I find it very drying to wear as a full face base. It stays very bright but looks dry, which it is. Gets "tight" feeling across the face - Snaz does too, but not as bad - as it dries out. Held pretty well through sweating... better than the Wolfe which surprized me. The blues, greens and yellows did linger quite strongly which surprized me too. I have NOT tried the black (I don't have any.) Definitely less waxy than Wolfe.

Shannon you made great points...!!
In my case everytime I try to use black Kryolan for outlining work , looks like chalk the color is not a vibrant as it looks on the container.
Wolfe White applied as a base on adults tends to look exactly like you said "orange peel" on the T-Zone..Is horrible you can see every single pore, is like the skin absorves the paint.
DFX Black is awesome for outlining work... The color is so vibrant. Try it you might like it.

I stick to Snaz black on gigs... although lately I've "perfected" using Fardel liquid black by squeezing out a drop onto a cleanable palette to do details... then cleaning between people. I have lots to use up and the method meets health regulations.

I prefer to use Snaz black as 1) I can make it work for line work 2) I KNOW it will wash off easily 3) it is safe to injest - when painting kids I prefer not to use hard to remove brands and I'm not that worried about perfect lines everytime.

I use Wolfe white for details though... I'm not quite as keen on the DFX white. I think it is because I have the OLD Wolfe which seems to be more opaque. The DFX I have doesn't seem as opaque and I've had some bleed through...

This has been a very helpful thread!

Currently I've only used DFX, simply because that's what my employer gave me to start out with and I was pretty satisfied. After reading about it's reputation for good line work on the board, and because of the great price, I decided to stick with it when reordering. My employer has let me try out some of her new Paradise, which she bought in some colors that DFX doesn't have, and I liked it well enough. It would be the next brand I go to if I needed a different color.
I liked Kryolan when I used a palette of it on one gig for line work and cheek art. Haven't tried it out again due to the price, but specialty items like some shades of UV are on my wish list. Tried a purple Interferenz lately, and I liked it but it was soooo sheer, so I could only use it for really specific bases, so it's a no go for me.

Thanks twobluestripes & thanks to everyone who responded, there were some really GREAT responses put up. I love to check and see what's up once in a while and see who prefers what - it's always mixed though, so you never seem to have a one brand winner - I don't think that will ever happen! My goal is try some Ben Nye products, I never hear much about them and when I do, it's either love or hate. I'm gonna buy some magicakes at some point as well as some other of their products and give them a whirl. If I don't like them, I'll just give them away as some contest of something here on the forum. We shall see soon.

I practice (aka, still learning lol) on my daughter, so I gravitated toward paradise after snazz didn't really do it for me. When I got it in and tried it, I LOVED it. It covers almost as well as dfx did, but I could use a baby wipe and get almost all of it off without really trying very hard. I like that, and I think in the future when I'm good enough to do gigs the parents will appreciate not having to scrub their faces off to get off the darker paints and lines. lol. I think the black is awesome for line work and the white isn't as bad as snazz for line work, so I think I'm going to stick with paradise.

Hey vampkat, I'd have to say that I agree with you 100% - I always feel guilty using products that I know are going to be a small horror to remove and we all know which ones they are. Then when the parent asks how to remove it and you simply tell them soap and water, that is not always the case at all. Plus the poor kid has to sit there and be scrubbed to death...it ends up making what's supposed to be an enjoyable experience miserable for the child and parent and you better believe it's gonna come and bite you in the end. They are going to remember it the next time they see you painting and chance are they are going to just keep on walking. I know many painters do not take the time to tell them, well if this doesnt work, apply a lotion let it sit and then rewash...or do this and then do that....I assure you the parent or the kid doesnt want to do or have all that done to them. Better to just use easily removable products, that truly do remove with just soap and water from the start.

Also, The place I will most likely be doing my "try out" gig for face painting is at the pagan festivals I henna at. I know for a FACT when the next day they can't get the kid's face clean they will be coming to me with the questions and such. I know I would. So yeah, that's why I dig paradise the most. I have two snazz pallets and I'm going to make split cakes with them. When I get better I am putting all my money into all the full sized paradise colors.

Spectrum wrote:Thanks twobluestripes & thanks to everyone who responded, there were some really GREAT responses put up. I love to check and see what's up once in a while and see who prefers what - it's always mixed though, so you never seem to have a one brand winner - I don't think that will ever happen! My goal is try some Ben Nye products, I never hear much about them and when I do, it's either love or hate. I'm gonna buy some magicakes at some point as well as some other of their products and give them a whirl. If I don't like them, I'll just give them away as some contest of something here on the forum. We shall see soon.

Spectrum there is a store in Chippendale - or no wait maybe camperdown - damn my bad memory - oe I have to go and check my facts - grrrrrr - ANYWAY there is a store that's part of a make-up collage called - Three arts - I'm pretty sure. They sell all the BEN NYE products - just in case you are looking to buy some with out the shipping charges.
That's where I'm headed when I'm all cashed up again.
I have link somewhere ....... hang on I'll have a look .... far out I'm lazy today!
Ahha! I found it - my bookmarks are out of control..... here's the address you can't buy online as far as I know.

http://www.makeupeffectscollege.com/shop01.html

I personally don't use any of the canine brand of paint but I do use a lot of DFX. I do tell parents that everyone's skin i different and that sometimes the pigment will get trapped in the pores (kinda like they do when they eat one of those blue popsicles). Many parents understand this and if the art you produce is excellent, many feel it's a small price to pay. Also, on the back of my business cards I have explicit removal instructions that also address what to do in the instance of skin staining.