How to Remove Halloween Makeup

Last Updated on July 8, 2021 by Ellen Christian

Dressing up for Halloween can be so much fun. I love pretending to be someone or something that I’m not. Dressing up, face paint. It’s all part of the Halloween fun for many people. I remember when the kids were younger what a challenge it was to remove the face paint before bed.

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How to remove Halloween makeup

How to Remove Halloween Makeup

While it’s fun to wear Halloween face makeup, it needs to be removed before bedtime. If you sleep with it on, not only will you destroy your sheets and pillowcase, the paint can clog your pores and cause acne breakouts. Once you know how to remove Halloween makeup, it’s just a matter of time and preparation.

The easiest type of Halloween makeup to remove is water based. To remove water based Halloween makeup, all you need is warm soapy water. Look on the package when you buy it to see what type of makeup you’re using. If you are using grease or cream based paints, the removal process is not as smooth. Keep in mind that some of the darker pigments may stain your skin even after you’ve removed the makeup.

You’ll want to have cotton balls, Q-tips, gauze pads, cold cream, facial cleanser, baby oil, and baby wipes at the minimum. Cream based Halloween makeup is best removed with cold cream. Good old Noxema like your mother used to use works wonderfully.  Just put some on your hands and massage it into your skin. Then wipe it away with a warm, wet washcloth.

If you stuck on fake eyebrows or a beard, any residue that’s left behind can be removed with olive oil or baby oil. Gently work the oil between your skin and the fake eyebrow or beard until the adhesive is loosened, and it can be pulled off.  Follow up with a facial cleanser to remove any residue or oil left on your skin.

You can try Noxema on your grease-based Halloween makeup as well, but I find that it’s easiest to remove grease based makeup with an oil based cleanser. Oil adheres to oil, so it removes quite well. You can follow up with makeup removing wipes or baby wipes to remove any leftover makeup.

Never forget, after you remove your Halloween makeup you need to moisturize your skin well to prevent breakouts.

How to remove Halloween makeup