Eye Designs Face Painting Tutorial with Paty De Leon Webinar

Stunning Eye Designs That Clients of All Ages Will Love

Eye designs are one of the most versatile tools in any face painter's kit. They work beautifully on adults and children alike, they're relatively quick to execute, and they never fail to make someone feel special. In this webinar, professional face painter Paty De Leon demonstrates five gorgeous eye designs live — painting entirely freehand on her own face — covering everything from floral vines to ladybugs, butterflies, and an ocean scene.

About Paty De Leon

Paty De Leon is a professional face painter based in Houston, Texas, known for her incredible freehand technique. What makes Paty truly unique is that she paints without anchoring her hand on the face — she works entirely with fluid, confident strokes. A burn survivor with scars on her arms, Paty demonstrates all her designs on her own face, proving that face painting is for everyone. She creates her own custom one-stroke cakes and is a beloved regular on the FacePaint.com webinar series. Houston keeps her busy year-round, and her energy and passion for the craft are contagious.

Products Featured in This Webinar

• GTX Rodeo Red — Perfect red for the ladybug bodies
• Kraze Petal Brush — Small detail brush for line work and leaf strokes
• 3/8 Angle Brush — Workhorse brush for one-stroke petals and butterfly wings
• Filbert Brush — Used for shaping the ladybug bodies
• Paty's Custom One-Stroke Cakes — Rainbow split cakes for flowers and ocean designs
• Marcela Flora Brush #6 — Recommended alternative for larger floral coverage
• Microfiber Towels — Paty's secret for fast paint removal between designs

Design 1: Floral Vine Eye Design

The first design is a beautiful floral vine that frames the eye with lush greenery and colorful flowers. Paty starts by using a small floral brush (a Craze brush) loaded with dark green Fusion paint to create a flowing vine around the eye area. The key is to wiggle the brush as you draw the line, giving the vine a natural, organic look rather than a stiff straight line.

Once the dark green base vine is laid down, Paty layers a lighter green on top to add depth and dimension. She then switches to black on the tip of the same brush to create small leaves, pressing and lifting to form quick leaf shapes in the empty spaces along the vine. The trick here is not to overthink placement — just fill in gaps randomly and it will look natural.

For the flowers, Paty switches to a 3/8 angle brush loaded with a one-stroke cake. She places roses and flower shapes in the spaces she intentionally left open along the vine. These don't need to be perfect roses — the goal is to suggest a flower shape and add pops of color. If you can do better roses, practice them, but don't stress about perfection.

To finish, Paty uses a liner brush with white paint to add extra detail lines, tiny dots, and small star-like accents throughout the design. These finishing touches make the design pop and fill in any remaining empty spaces. If you have time, chunky glitter placed on the bare skin areas (away from the roses and leaves) adds a gorgeous final touch.

Design 2: Ladybug Eye Design

The second design features adorable ladybugs crawling along a rainbow vine around the eye. Paty begins with a rainbow one-stroke loaded on an angle brush, creating a flowing stroke that follows the curve of the eye from one side down to the other. She builds up the opacity with multiple passes, making sure to reload the brush as needed.

For the ladybugs themselves, Paty uses a filbert brush loaded with GTX Rodeo Red. She tips the edge of the brush in a little black paint so each stroke has a built-in shadow effect — a clever workaround when you don't have a pre-made red and black one-stroke cake handy. She places two to three small oval shapes along the rainbow vine, spacing them out to leave room for the heads and antennae.

Using a small round brush with black, Paty adds the ladybug heads, closes the wing lines, and paints quick flick strokes for the antennae. Small black dots inside each ladybug body complete the look. An important tip from Paty: she doesn't use photo menus because every face is different. The same design that looks perfect on one person's forehead might not fit another's, so she adapts each design to the space available.

To finish, Paty adds a flower using a flora brush loaded with white, magenta, and a touch of black. She places it at one end of the rainbow stroke and adds connecting dots and detail work to tie everything together. Chunky glitter around the design makes it sparkle without hiding the ladybugs or flowers underneath.

Design 3: Floral Eye Design on the Eyelid

The third design sits directly on and around the eyelid, creating a compact but stunning floral arrangement. Paty frames the area first with green vine work using the same wiggling technique from Design 1, layering dark and light greens for depth. She keeps the design contained close to the eye for a more delicate, pleasing look.

Using the flora brush loaded with white, pink, and magenta, Paty adds flower petals to fill the spaces between the leaves. These flora brushes are beloved by face painters for good reason — they hide imperfections, add beauty quickly, and come in so many sizes and shapes that there's always one perfect for the space you need to fill.

White line work and small dots complete the design with added dimension and detail. Paty emphasizes that if the center of any flower loses definition during the process, a gentle touch with a small brush and white paint will recover it. The design stays close to the eye area for maximum elegance, and chunky glitter around the edges is the perfect finishing touch.

Design 4: Butterfly Eye Design

The fourth design is a sweet butterfly created with just a few confident strokes. Paty uses an angle brush loaded with a custom rainbow one-stroke cake to lay down the butterfly wing shapes on the eyelid. She places one wing on each side, keeping the shapes simple — they don't need to be symmetrical or complex to read as a butterfly.

With black paint on the same angle brush, Paty outlines the wings and adds the body line and antennae using quick flick strokes. She then adds random decorative lines extending from the wings to make the design feel more complete and dynamic. White dots and highlights scattered throughout the butterfly and surrounding area add sparkle and definition.

A helpful tip about glitter: Paty avoids using glitter when she's demonstrating on her own face because it's difficult to remove between designs. But for clients, she recommends applying glitter right after completing the design while the paint is still wet — it sticks perfectly and adds a magical quality that clients love.

Design 5: Ocean Life Eye Design

The final design is a playful ocean scene featuring a palm tree, dolphins, and ocean waves. Paty starts with her angle brush and a blue one-stroke cake to create sweeping wave strokes around the eye. She builds up the color with multiple layers, keeping the strokes fluid and following the natural curve of the eye area.

A palm tree goes on one side using black paint with quick, confident strokes for the trunk and leaf fronds. Paty adds two bird silhouettes with simple flick strokes, and then places two dolphins — because dolphins always travel together as a family. She uses quick curved strokes to suggest the dolphin shapes, keeping them small and proportional to the space available.

White paint brings the whole scene to life with ocean spray, wave highlights, bubbles, and small details like seashells and starfish scattered throughout. Paty notes that you can add whatever ocean elements make you happy — the point is to have fun with it and make the design feel alive and playful. A few highlights on the palm tree leaves and dolphin bodies complete this fast, charming design.

Tips for Painting Eye Designs on Adults

Throughout the webinar, Paty shares valuable insights about painting adults, especially moms at events. Many adult clients feel nervous or unsure about getting face painted, often saying things like "I don't know what to get" or apologizing for their wrinkles. Paty's advice is simple: always say yes, reassure them, and make them feel special. Tell them you'll create something beautiful and they'll love it.

The experience matters more than the perfection of the design. When adults feel welcomed and special in your chair, they become repeat clients who book you again and again. And yes, they sometimes tip generously for a beautiful eye design. It's always worth the extra minute to make an adult feel like they belong in the face painting chair.

For painting on older skin, the community shared a helpful technique: press into the skin rather than dragging the brush across wrinkles, and use sponges as your friends for smooth base application. Paty herself doesn't change her approach for different ages — she paints with the same speed and confidence on everyone.

Essential Brush Tips

Paty relies on just a few key brushes for all five designs. A small floral brush (like the Craze floral) handles all vine work, leaves, and fine details. A 3/8 angle brush is her go-to for one-stroke flowers, butterfly wings, and broad strokes. A filbert brush shapes the ladybug bodies perfectly. And a simple liner brush handles all the finishing detail work, dots, and white highlights.

One of Paty's most practical tips involves her mini fan. She keeps a small fan nearby and uses it between layers to speed up drying time. If a layer is still slightly wet when she needs to go over it, she turns the fan on the client's face for a few seconds — it makes a huge difference in workflow speed at busy events.

For paint removal between designs on herself, Paty swears by microfiber towels. The community is always amazed at how quickly she removes full designs — the microfiber fabric lifts paint efficiently without irritating the skin, making it perfect for practice sessions on your own face.

Making Eye Designs Work at Events

Eye designs are ideal for events because they appeal to every age group. A child getting face painted for the first time can start with a simple eye design that feels less intimidating than a full face. A mom who's never had her face painted can get something beautiful and delicate that makes her feel included in the fun. And experienced clients love the artistry and detail that eye designs showcase.

Paty recommends keeping eye designs contained close to the eye area rather than extending too far across the face. This creates a more polished, delicate look that feels elegant rather than overwhelming. The designs appear more pleasing to the eye and more wearable for clients who might be self-conscious about face paint.

Whether you're a beginner building your design menu or an experienced painter looking for fresh inspiration, these five eye designs from Paty De Leon offer something for every skill level and every client. Take them as a starting point, add your own favorite elements, and make them your own. As Paty says — the whole point is to get the idea, practice, and use whatever brushes and paints make you happy.