Here I have tried to cover some of the basic elements in CATS-style face painting. These are by no means comprehensive or unalterable. The art of theatrical makeup is always up for interpretation and personalization. The designs I have shown here are only general design ideas mimicking some of the more well-known CATS productions.

Please do not remove any of these pictures for use on your own website. They were hand-drawn by myself specifically for this website. If you have any questions about borrowing my information or pictures, please don’t hesitate to email me with your inquiry.

Bases

Besides providing a layer of paint and color on which to place details, the base colors should be used to change the shape of your face to become more feline. Use a lighter color around the eyes, above the cheekbones, and on the nose and middle forehead if you wish. Also use the lighter color around your mouth to create a muzzle.

Use a darker or contrasting color to fill in the area beneath your cheekbones down to your jaw and on the left and right sides of your forehead. The key in applying contrasting base colors is to transform the shape of your face into a dehumanized, feline suggestion. The color border near your cheekbone should slant upward as it moves toward the outer side of your face, making your cheekbones seem more prominent and your face more feline.

The color change on the cheeks and forehead can be made with stark change or gradient shading from the darker color to the light. The muzzle is more consistently formed with a hard line between the two colors, making it very well defined.

The base colors can continue down the neck, and should do so if you are wearing a costume along with the makeup. Having human skin showing between a feline paint job and a feline body will ruin the illusion.

Type 1 base is a generic CATS style base, with the T-zone covered in the lighter color and the cheeks and sides of the forehead covered in the darker color.

Type 2 base mimics a more American style, with the sides of the nose colored with the darker base color.

Type 3 base mimics the UK Mungojerrie and Rumpelteazer style, with the entire lower half of the face covered in the darker base color, rather than with a defined muzzle. Faces with this base should define the muzzle area using whisker placement.

Eyes and Eyebrows

CATS eyebrows can follow the curve of the brow line or create a new curve of their own. It is often the most helpful to begin your feline brows at the inside ends of your brows. The drawn brows can then be continued on top of your natural brows, above them, or even just partially covering your brows.

You should take the time to practice using fluid, bold strokes to line the eyes. The main purpose of the intricate eye lining is to draw the eyes into an upward slant, creating the recognizable “cat eye” shape. Do not be afraid to use thick lines that will read from further away.

Type 1 shows a very simple brow design, lacking any feathered strokes. It begins with a thick, bold stroke that tapers gently as the brow extends to the outer edge of the face. The eye lining may be seen as slightly more feminine, mimicking exaggerated lashes. With thinner strokes, this lining pattern can apply to kittens as well, male or female. The design boldens the eye and opens it up to be read from great distances.

Type 2 shows a much bushier brow. This brow also begins with a thick, bold stroke that slowly tapers, and is defined by numerous feathered strokes that taper from the brow outward and upward. Ideally, each feathered stroke should be highlighted with white. The eye lining is simple and thin, and the bottom lining extends all the way to the inner corner of the eye.

Type 3 shows a thin, enlongated brow with a few lengthened feathered strokes (ideally highlighted with white). The eye lining is bold, emphasizing the outer corner of the eye with a black wing extending upward. The lining on the lower lid extends only halfway towards the inner corner of the eye, finishing with a fluid stroke to continue the line in a downward, inward slant.

In all eye designs, notice that the upper lid is continuously lined. For any eye design, the upper lining can continue past the inner corner of the eye in a thin or bold stroke to further enhance the feline illusion.

Noses

Though the noses are show in black, pink and brown is also commonly used. If the nose color is very light, you may want to outline it in a darker color.

Type 1 most closely mimics the stereotypical feline nose. The entire underside of the nose is painted, along the nostril rims and in the center. Take care to look at your painted nose head-on as well as from beneath to make sure that it is not too small or too large. Take care also to avoid lining the entire length of the nostril rims. Having the entire nose connected will create a much more canine impression.

Type 2 mimics a more American style. It only covers the center of the underside of the nose, not the nostril rims. This nose can be broadened at the top and bottom to give it an hourglass shape.

Whiskers and Lips

Type 1 illustrates generic v-shaped whisker markings with classic female lip lining. The lips are fully colored in, as they would be with lipstick, and are lined on both the top and the bottom. The top lining continues past the edge of the lips in an outward, upward stroke to create a feline grin.

Type 2 shows longer whiskers (best positioned along the edge of the muzzle area) coupled with the traditional v-shaped whiskers. The lip lining is traditionally seen as more masculine, avoiding any color on the lips but the base. The black line that extends down from the nose opens up into a small triangle as it reaches the top of the lip. This triangle should continue outward, gradually decreasing, until it reaches the outer corners of the lips, at which point it continues past in an outward, upward stroke. You may wish to accent the lower lip with a corresponding triangle, square, or “kitty tongue” (as seen in type 3). Type 3 illustrates the “kitten tongue,” a small square of pink or red in the middle of the lower lip, often outlined with a darker detail color. This can be applied to either the male or female lip design.

Optional Lining

For a very well defined nose and an elongated face, thin lines may be drawn from the inner corners of the eyebrows in a straight, fluid motion down to the top of the nose. These lines take a fair bit of skill to accomplish symmetrically, and are not necessary to complete the feline illusion.

Hatching

Furry hatching can be added to the sides of the face and neck to further dehumanize and draw the face into a wig if you are wearing one. Use appropriate colors to extend stripes from a wig onto your face maybe halfway across your cheeks. Shorter or longer hatching may be used according to personal preference. Furry hatching is best accomplished with swift strokes beginning on the outside of your face and moving inward.

If there are any other elements or styles of elements you would like me to cover here, please don’t hesitate to email me.