For Ginny Pisoni, senior, Show Choir was her introduction to the makeup world.

“I did regular makeup, the kind of makeup I do for show choir now,” Pisoni said. “But, that’s where my hatred for regular makeup started.”

Pisoni didn’t like the feeling of makeup on her skin but she found enjoyment in doing creative looks with special effects makeup. 

“I really like art,” Pisoni said. “Being able to create whatever I want is really cool to me. I like to have creative liberty.”

Yet Pisoni said it tends to be difficult to think of new ideas. 

“I take my inspiration from all over the place and usually look up the idea of what I am going to use as inspiration then make it into my own idea,” Pisoni said. “I am self-taught, but definitely used YouTube and Instagram to get me started.”

With each look Pisoni has gotten better at the hobby, giving her the freedom to do any look she’d like with a little help from the internet which helps her create looks such as a skeleton or a chopped-off finger with a click of a button. 

Gabriella Powitzky, senior, is also inspired by Instagram. In the sixth grade she was a vampire for Halloween and used special effects makeup to make her neck look as if it were bitten by a vampire.

From a young age, Powitzky cheered with older girls that did their makeup, so she began to do the same. Special effects became a hobby she picked up in her free time. 

With access to the internet, she has been able to complete numerous looks including her take on the Queen of Hearts with cards on her forehead. 

But now Powitzky doesn’t create with special effects as much.

“I still do makeup with my friends,” Powitzky said. “So like just random stuff like helping them out with their makeup, even if it’s a fairy or something like that.”

Abbey Gradle, art teacher, goes all out when it comes to fun makeup. At a recent cheer event, she dressed up as a glam Wicked Witch of the West. 

“It takes time, energy and effort to do something this costumey and to do it right,” Gradle said. “But in general,I think makeup is a good outlet and I love the artistry of creating the sense of depth and illusion that comes with face makeup.” 

As an art teacher, she loves finding new ways to express herself and have fun with makeup.

“When you do any type of makeup you are applying basic drawing techniques for creating shadows and highlights to basic forms,” Gradle said. “With people being three-dimensional forms, we are just using a live model instead of people on paper.”