• Frida Kahlo Halloween Art Tutorial – Includes Free Printable

    This Frida Kahlo Halloween art will add a dash of spooky elegance to your Halloween décor! Not an artist? Don’t fret … this artwork is printable and 100% traceable! You can bump it to the next level by creating Frida on sumptuous cotton rag paper. To add to the awesomeness of this post, paper artisan…

    Frida Kahlo Halloween Art - Includes Printable | The Postman's Knock

    It’s *this close* to being October, so I’ve been trying to make our house a little more festive with a few tasteful Halloween decorations. This Frida Kahlo Halloween art has helped to add some graceful spookiness to our décor, and I hope it will do the same for yours! If you’re thinking that you could never make something like this, think again. Skeleton Frida comes to you today as a free printable that you need but trace over!

    Why Frida Kahlo?

    Why not? I’ve been really into Frida Kahlo lately … she was such a striking beauty. In fact, the other day, I started creating a Mexican tile motif on the chalkboard wall in my office, and I couldn’t help but think I needed to incorporate Frida somehow.

    Frida Kahlo Halloween Art - Includes Printable | The Postman's Knock
    This chalkboard wall is a work in progress. I’ll be sure to post a photo when it’s finished!

    I so enjoyed drawing Frida that I decided to present her again — albeit in a different form — for today’s tutorial! I found inspiration in Frida Kahlo sugar skulls that I saw on Etsy and Pinterest. You can read the following instructions to create some striking Frida Kahlo Halloween art yourself!:

    1. Choose a Nice Black Cardstock or Paper

    I recently received some gorgeous cotton rag paper from Fabulous Fancy Pants. The paper was a gift from FFP proprietress and artisan Meredith to celebrate its launch (just in time for Halloween). This luxe black paper is what inspired today’s tutorial, but you can use plain black cardstock instead.

    Frida Kahlo Halloween Art - Includes Printable | The Postman's Knock
    Keep reading to find a giveaway for a set of Fabulous Fancy Pants artisan papers valued at $120! In the meantime, Meredith is offering cost-effective “Try Me” paper packs through her Etsy shop for TPK readers.

    2. Print the Frida Kahlo Halloween Art Graphic

    You can find the Frida Kahlo graphic by clicking here (it’s free). The image is designed to print off on an 8″x10″ (203 mm x  254 mm) piece of black paper, but it will also print beautifully on standard-sized papers.

    Frida Kahlo Halloween Art - Includes Printable | The Postman's Knock
    This Frida Kahlo outline prints well on 8″x10″ (203 mm x 254 mm) 150 gsm Fabulous Fancy Pants black paper! I had success printing the graphic on other black cardstocks as well, so take heart if Fabulous Fancy Pants is a little out of budget.

    3. Add Ink

    Feel free to use whatever white ink you prefer (or a white gel pen) for this step! If you’re using liquid ink, grab a size 2 or 3 paintbrush and use it to fill in the flower centers and the headband.

    Frida Kahlo Halloween Art - Includes Printable | The Postman's Knock
    Dr. Ph. Martin’s Bleed Proof White is my ink of choice. However, any white ink (or white gel pen) will work for this project!

    Next, use a dip pen to trace over the flower outlines.

    Frida Kahlo Halloween Art - Includes Printable | The Postman's Knock
    If you opt to use a dip pen versus a gel pen, make sure you’re using a not-so-pointy nib so you can avoid picking up fibers. I opted for the Brause EF66.

    Once you’ve drawn the flowers, start making several stacked half-circles to represent hair.

    Frida Kahlo Halloween Art - Includes Printable | The Postman's Knock
    It doesn’t matter whether you start with the inside semi-circle or the outside semi-circle. The important thing is that these curved lines are close together and run parallel to each other!
    Frida Kahlo Halloween Art - Includes Printable | The Postman's Knock
    The semi-circles should fill in the hair outlines completely.

    Next, fill in the famous eyebrows with short, dramatic downstrokes.

    Frida Kahlo Halloween Art - Includes Printable | The Postman's Knock
    Each eyebrow line should lean away from the center. This will give the piece some contour!

    Now, use a paintbrush to fill in the eyes and nose.

    Frida Kahlo Halloween Art - Includes Printable | The Postman's Knock
    You can either fill in the eyelashes completely (as I did) or just outline them.

    Use your paintbrush to fill in the earrings, then draw in the jaw and teeth with a dip pen.

    Frida Kahlo Halloween Art - Includes Printable | The Postman's Knock
    You can leave a small blank circle at the top of the earrings to mimic light shining off of its surface.

    Finish up by using a dip pen to trace over the chin, neck, and shoulders.

    Frida Kahlo Halloween Art - Includes Printable | The Postman's Knock
    You can stop right here with this project if you’d like! If you want to add a pop of color, however, move on to the next step.

    4. Paint the Flowers and Shoulders

    I like to add some color to give the piece visual interest and emphasize Frida’s signature florals. You can use acrylic paint or gouache in any color that you prefer! I chose a striking red.

    Frida Kahlo Halloween Art - Includes Printable | The Postman's Knock
    Make sure you stop short of painting the outlines. It’s okay if there’s some black space in between the paint and the white outlines!

    As you paint, be conscientious of the white outlines. Try to make sure the paint doesn’t touch any of them! Otherwise, you may accidentally paint over some of your artwork. Once the paint has dried, the piece is ready to display!

    Making a Card

    If you would prefer to use this tutorial to make a card instead, there’s a template for that! You can find it by clicking here. The steps are exactly the same, but the graphic is justified to the right and there are outside guidelines to cut so you can make a 5″x7″ (127 mm x 178 mm) card.

    Frida Kahlo Halloween Art - Includes Printable | The Postman's Knock
    You can also use the Frida Kahlo Halloween art to make an elegantly ghoulish greeting card!

    Giveaway

    There’s hardly a better paper to draw Halloween graphics and calligraphy on than sumptuous cotton rag paper with deckled edges. The paper feels like cloth … it’s a tactile treat! In honor of Halloween and the launch of her Matte Black Cotton Rag paper, Meredith of Fabulous Fancy Pants has graciously offered to conduct an international giveaway here on the TPK website.

    Frida Kahlo Halloween Art - Includes Printable | The Postman's Knock
    This artisan paper giveaway is international. No matter where you are in the world, you have a chance to win!

    The winner of the giveaway will receive 3/4 pounds of first quality, super luxe black cotton rag paper in a variety of sizes with a minimum of 75 pieces (a $120 value). You can enter by using the Rafflecopter widget below! (If you aren’t on social media, feel free to just use the “Answer a Question” option to enter.) The giveaway will end on Monday, October 10th, at 12:00 AM. On the afternoon of October 10th, the winner will receive an email, and his or her first name and last initial will be announced on the widget below.

    a Rafflecopter giveaway

    I’m wishing you the best of luck, and I’d like to say thanks to Meredith for making this giveaway possible and for creating the affordable “Try Me” packs! Have a great weekend, and thanks a million for reading TPK.

    Warmly,

    Lindsey's Signature | The Postman's Knock