When the leaves start turning orange and you suddenly find yourself craving pumpkin spice lattes instead of iced coffee, it can only mean one thing: Halloween is near. When brainstorming your Halloween makeup, chances are good zombie makeup will eventually come to mind. But knowing how to do zombie makeup (and do it well) often requires a bit of research. Fortunately, you don’t have to go it alone. Here, we’re sharing not one, but three zombie makeup tutorials to help you ace your costume. Keep reading to learn how to apply zombie makeup at home using products from NYX Professional Makeup.
How To Do Basic Zombie Makeup
Zombies are reanimated corpses—so to create a zombie makeup look, you want to look a bit lifeless. Here’s how to get the effect without spending hours on perfecting your undead makeup.
Step 1: Start with a mattifying primer
For your do-it-yourself zombie makeup look, you want your skin to be matte—not dewy, not natural, but matte. To start your look off on the right foot, we suggest priming your skin with our Shine Killer Primer, which controls shine for a long-lasting matte finish. If your skin is on the drier side, opt for a hydrating matte finish primer instead, like our Marshmellow Smoothing Primer.
Step 2: Apply a matte foundation
Next, reach for a matte foundation to help even out your complexion and give it a smooth finish. Try our Bare With Me Blur Tint Foundation for medium coverage with a matte, blurred finish. For a believable zombie effect, we suggest opting for a shade slightly lighter than your skin tone—it’ll give you a subtle ghostly glow that’s perfect for Halloween. Just be sure to blend it onto your neck and ears to avoid a harsh line where the paler foundation and your natural skin tone meet.
Step 3: Contour your cheekbones
Cool-toned contour creates the illusion of shadows and, when wielded properly, can give your face “sunken” definition that’ll really drive this look home. Start by sucking in your cheeks and identifying where the hollows of your cheekbones are. Once you find them, use a dark red blush, like the deepest shade in our Beetlejuice Afterlife Passport Cheek Palette, to define the hollows of your cheeks. Use the same shade to contour your forehead, nose, and jawline, and blend all of the contour well to eliminate any harsh or obvious lines.
Step 4: Darken your eye sockets
Next comes the eyes—and where your zombie makeup will really come to life (metaphorically, anyway). Start by applying the matte brown shade in our Beetlejuice Color for the Recently Deceased Pigment Palette to your entire lid, extending the color slightly past your natural crease. Sweep any leftover product on your brush onto your lower lash line to create the illusion of a shadow. Then, apply the palette’s gray shade to your brow bone, blending it well so there’s a natural transition between your brown lid shade and gray brow bone shade. Finally, use a matte black shadow to darken your crease, taking care to blend well for a seamless-looking finish.
Once your shadow is done, you can move onto eyeliner. For this look, you don’t need to do anything highly detailed. Instead, we recommend simply defining your upper and lower waterlines with a waterproof eyeliner, such as the Epic Wear Waterproof Eyeliner Stick in Burnt Sienna.
Step 5: Apply a matte lipstick
While we love a statement lip look, this isn’t the time for bright hues. Instead, color in your pout with a pale matte lipstick to create a convincing undead feel. Look for a shade that either closely matches or is slightly lighter and cooler than your natural skin tone. We recommend the Lip Lingerie XXL Matte Liquid Lipstick in Unhooked for those with fair and medium skin, or Going Desnuda for those with deep skin.
Step 6: Set your look
For a totally matte look, use a powder puff or makeup sponge to set all of your makeup with a translucent setting powder. This will help eliminate any unwanted shine and create the powdery, matte finish you’re after. Then, mist your face with a long-lasting matte setting spray, like our classic Makeup Setting Spray - Matte, for added staying power.
How To Do Realistic Zombie Makeup
Realistic zombie makeup follows the same basic steps as the basic zombie makeup look described above, but with more details to really drive the effect home. Here’s how to nail the fresh-from-the-grave look.
Step 1: Apply your face makeup
Start by applying your primer, foundation, and contour makeup as outlined above. If you have access to face paint, you can mix a tiny bit of black and white face paint into your foundation to help give it a greyish cast (and, in turn, make the “undead” effect appear more realistic).
Step 2: Create a sunken eye look
Next, reach for the Beetlejuice Color for the Recently Deceased Pigment Palette. Start by applying the taupe brown shade all over both your upper and lower eyelid. Then, darken your crease with a matte black eyeshadow, blending the pigment toward your brow bone for a soft, diffused effect.
Afterward, sweep a clean eyeshadow brush over the palette’s eggplant purple hue. Apply this shade right along your lower lash line from the inner corner to the center of your lower lid, buffing the color out slightly to avoid any harsh lines. Done properly, it should create the illusion of a dark, sunken-in under-eye area.
Complete your eye makeup by using a grey-brown eyeliner, like our Slim Eye Pencil in Taupe, to define your upper and lower water lines.
Step 3: Draw on “vein” details
Vein detailing isn’t necessary, but it can help make your zombie makeup look even more believable. While it may sound complicated, it’s actually fairly easy to execute. Using the gel end of the Beetlejuice Pinstripe Duo Liners in Purple/Blue Chrome, draw thin, squiggly lines on your face where your skin is thinnest—typically, this includes the under-eye area and the temples. Keep adding more veins, as desired, until you reach the desired fresh-from-the-grave effect.
Step 4: Do an ombré lip
Zombies, by most accounts, eat brains. While we’re not recommending you do that, you can create a bloody-mouth effect with a well-executed ombré lip.
Start by coating your pout with the same foundation you used for your face. Then, reach for a deep oxblood-toned lipstick like the Smooth Whip Matte Lip Cream in Chocolate Mousse and apply it to the very center of your pout. Lightly press your lips together to help blend the lipstick with your foundation for a bloody-looking ombré lip. If you find that there’s still a stark transition between the foundation and lipstick, use your finger to lightly blend the two hues together.
Step 5: Add blood detailing
To take your look to the next level, use a red liquid eyeliner, like the Vivid Brights Colored Liquid Liner in On Red, to draw small blood droplets at the corner of your mouth. Once you’re done, you can set your look as outlined above (and prepare to slay the Halloween costume competition).
How To Do Zombie Cheerleader Makeup
Zombie cheerleader makeup is a fun take on the classic Halloween look and utilizes bright, vibrant hues—typically, pinks and purples—for added flair. Keep scrolling to learn how to recreate the look for yourself.
Step 1: Apply your face makeup
Begin your zombie cheerleader makeup by applying a matte primer, foundation, and contour as described in the basic zombie makeup tutorial.
Step 2: Add blush
After applying your primer, foundation, and contour makeup, use the purpley-pink shade in our Beetlejuice Afterlife Passport Cheek Palette to liven up your complexion. We recommend sweeping the soft shade onto your cheekbones, just above your contour makeup, for a seamless-looking flush. Blend the color toward your temples to help visually “lift” your features and give your look a pop of color.
Step 3: Create a purple smokey eye
For zombie cheerleader makeup, you’ll want to lean into color a little bit. Start by sweeping the lilac shade from our Beetlejuice Color for the Recently Deceased Pigment Palette onto your lids, blending the color upward and outward to create a soft cat eye shape. Then, pat the palette’s eggplant shade onto your outer corner, blending outward to define your shadow wing further.
Afterward, use a small shadow brush to sweep the eggplant shade along your lower lash line, keeping the pigment as close to your lashes as possible. Complete the smokey eye look by using the Beetlejuice Pinstripe Duo Liner to create an exaggerated wing along your upper lash line. Don’t forget to add mascara (and plenty of it) for a flirty, feminine feel.
Step 4: Add lipstick and gloss
There’s nothing like a bold lip to ensure your makeup look stands out. And for this one, we’re not shying away from color—or shine.
To start, overline your lips with a pinky-plum lip liner, such as the Line Loud Vegan Longwear Lip Liner in Ten out of Ten. Then, fill in your lips entirely with a long-lasting lipstick in a similar hue (we’re fans of the Lip Lingerie XXL Matte Liquid Lipstick in Bust Ed). Allow the formula to dry, then layer on the Beetlejuice Sandworm Swirls Butter Gloss in Purple + Red for a non-sticky, high-shine finish to your girly undead look. Be sure to set your makeup to ensure it stays in place throughout your Halloween festivities.
Create Even More Undead Makeup Looks with NYX Professional Makeup
There are countless ways to use the products in our limited-edition Beetlejuice collection—before, during, and after Halloween. Here, we explained how to create zombie makeup with the products, but you can also use the range for your everyday makeup looks. Try swapping your go-to liner for the Beetlejuice Pinstripe Duo Liner on your next night out, or level up your favorite lip look with a high-shine finish courtesy of the Beetlejuice Sandworm Swirls Butter Gloss. And if you’re someone who loves a bold blush look, the three vibrant shades in our Beetlejuice Afterlife Passport Cheek Palette will keep you looking fabulously flushed well past spooky season.
Next Up: 11 Fun Eyeliner Looks That Go Beyond Your Classic Wing
If you’ve tried one of these zombie makeup tutorials, we’d love to see the results. Share a pic on social and tag us @nyxcosmetics.
PRODUCTS USED
BEETLEJUICE PINSTRIPE DUO LINERS
Limited-edition dual-ended black and chrome eyeliners available in three shades
BEETLEJUICE COLOR FOR THE RECENTLY DECEASED 8-PAN COLOR PALETTE
Limited-edition matte and metallic 8-pan color palette in eye popping shades
Lip Lingerie XXL Matte Liquid Lipstick
16H Full-Bodied Matte Liquid Lipstick
Line Loud Vegan Longwear Lip Liner
Infused With Jojoba Oil + Vitamin E
Vivid Brights Colored Liquid Eyeliner
Transfer and fade-resistant colorful liquid eyeliner
BEETLEJUICE AFTERLIFE PASSPORT CHEEK PALETTE
Limited-edition mini blush cheek palette featuring 3 vibrant blush shades
BEETLEJUICE SANDWORM SWIRL BUTTER LIP GLOSS
Fan-fave lip gloss available in four limited-edition shades in OG Butter Gloss formula
Smooth Whip Matte Lip Cream
Ultra-Smooth Vegan Lip Cream
