Special effects (SFX or FX) makeup is a special niche within the larger category of makeup. Although some SFX makeup artists do traditional beauty and glam makeup for certain occasions, most of the influencers in this category are dedicated to creating something more fanciful and even a bit more gory than a classic pretty face. Meet some of the top established and up-and-coming influencers in this space to learn more about the world of FX makeup.
Top FX makeup influencers
Promise Phan — dope2111
Promise is a transformative makeup artist and beauty guru who uses makeup to transform herself into famous celebrities or characters. She started as a hobby years ago and now has over 5.7 million YouTube subscribers who watch her tutorials on how to transform into anything from famous celebrities to surreal characters.
Mykie
Known primarily for her 3.91 million subscriber YouTube channel, Glam&Gore, Mykie is a former entertainment industry professional who now creates SFX looks as an independent creator. Mykie has a sense of humor about her work, often creating cartoonish or silly looks while also leaning heavily on both the glamorous and gory aspects of her channel name. Mykie also shares her work with her 1.8 million Instagram followers.
Charlie Short
Charlie is a makeup artist from England who does special effects and theatrical makeup tutorials based on requests from his 2.54 million Youtube subscribers. He first began studying hairdressing and cosmetic makeup when he was 17 years old.
amazing_jiro
Jiro studied special effects makeup at Tokyo’s University of the Arts. He specializes in face and body paint and shares his work with over 144K Instagram followers. His work can also be found on his website, jiyuro.net.
Alexys Fleming — MadeYewLook
Alexys is a self-taught body painter and artist who shares her work on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. Her greatest reach is on TikTok with over 1.9M followers. Her love for makeup stems from her desire to make others feel beautiful, as she stands for anti-bullying and creativity.
@madeyewlooklex I am so in love with how the angel turned out, I had to do one more! Ugh, I see wing looks in my future. #makeup #sfx #bodypaint #foryoupage #fyp ♬ Devil in disguise but its HARD - LLusion
Dain Yoon
Often referred to as an illusion artist rather than an FX makeup artist, Dain creates trippy illusions using paint, makeup and her own body. For example, with careful makeup application and an eye for detail, she can create the appearance of a distorted photo, making herself look as if she herself is a painting. Dain boasts over 559K Instagram followers.
Paulie David
Paulie is a special effects makeup artist from South Carolina. Using his skills, Paulie is able to distort his face to look surreal in different ways. He shares his work with his 95.7K Instagram followers and 1.7M TikTok followers.
@pauliesfx Getting ready for my date! What would you do if I came as a rooster? Try the #SexyBeastsChallenge and watch #SexyBeasts now streaming on @net ♬ AIN'T GONNA STOP
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