The Usable Clown

Today we are going to look into common mistakes new and old clowns make with their makeup.

1. Nose is to Big: We have all seen these clowns, heck for a couple of years I was guilty of this. While a big red nose is the trademark of a clown a smaller nose will make you seem less foreign to children as well as make it easier for you to see, which is important to the jugglers, magicians and stiltwalking clowns out their.
2. To Much Outlining: Nothing darkens up a clown face like to many black lines on it. When you are designing your face make sure that you only outline the colors where it is necessary. This will allow you to have a lighter look to you face as well as help you appear more human to your audience.
3. Mascara- That is correct gentleman you need to wear mascara. This will get rid of the white eyelashes that most of us get while putting on the white parts of your makeup as well as make your eyes more expressive.
4. Shoes: A lot of clowns feel that they need to have those big crazy shoes. While those big crazy shoes are cool, they really only look nice when they are professionally made and match the rest of your costume.
5. Color Coordination: Being a clown dosen’t mean you don’t have to match. Some of the best looking clowns you will ever see have costumes that match from top hat to big shoes. When a clown first starts out the usual idea is to buy the zaniest brightest outfit you can find, because that is what clowns wear. Most clowns where oversized or colorful normal clothes, giving them that clown look without overwhelming their audiences senses.
6. Untrimmed Wigs: When you buy a wig you might think that it is fine as it is. That unfortunately not true. You need to go get it trimmed to fit your character so that you don’t look like every other clown that wears that same wig. There is nothing worse then one hundred different faces with the same haircut.
7. Wig color: Traditionally clown wigs where “normal” colors such as red, yellow and orange. As dyes got fancier greens, blues, pinks, purples and ,any other colors arrived on the scene. The thing to remember is that the color of you wig should match your character and compliment you costume.
8. Powder: Powdering is the most important part of your clown makeup. Without makeup you will become a melted faced mess. Powder often and you will have a clown face that can withstand the greatest heat as well as getting hit with a pie, jumping in a pool and eating.
9. Makeup: Use actual clown makeup. Women’s face makeup isn’t made to withstand the stress of clowning nor is face paint. There are many manufacturers of clown makeup and their products will stand the test of time.
10. Stay in Shape: Clowning is a physical art form. You want to make sure that you can do whatever it is that you do as a clown without running out of breath. It is ok to act like you are out of breath, but you need to be able to go and go and go. You don’t necessarily need to lose weight or change you appearance, but you do need to exercise to stay in shape.
11. Practice: When you are first starting out practice your makeup, performing in costume, anything that has to do with your appearance so that you know what it looks like and what you need to work on. Even so of the older clowns could probably use some practice on their makeup since you have possibly getting sloppy.
12. Ask for Help: Ask your friends and family what they think of your look. They hopefully will be honest and you will be able to improve your look. If you have no one to show your clown to email pictures to theusableclown [at] gmail [dot] com and I will be happy to critique your look.
13. Be Honest With Yourself: If you think something doesn’t look right with your costume, it probably dosen’t. The hardest part of being a clown is knowing what looks good on you and what doesn’t. If it feels to tight, it probably is.

There you have it, 13 ways to make you a better looking clown. Good luck and keep on being funny.