Fake Blood Overview | SFX Review

I imagine there's a lot of you wonder about my blog name, particularly those of you who don't follow Insta @bloodstained_lipgloss (Shameless plug, what can I say). I love beauty, I could play with makeup for hours and never get bored. My dream though, is to a professional SFX Artist. I might be wimp who hides during the stabbings and head squishing in Game Of Thrones but I'll always look up after how the effects were done. I recently did a course in prosthetic sculpting but everything else I learned on my own. Youtube is a goldmine but there is a lot of trial and error involved, maybe someday I'll tell you those stories. Today were talking about fake blood. There's a lot out, some great, some shit. Quick note, I don't have two of them as I used them up and threw out the bottles. I've tried a lot and here's what I think of them.

Penneys Fright Club Fake Blood

Let's get this out of the way. They bring this out every Halloween for less than a fiver and honestly, save your money. It's terrible, it's bright red, verging on pink if you try to smudge it. Don't get me started on the staining, I still remember going in to work with a big pink face thanks to this. I've tried to make it work, mixing in red, brown and black paints but nothing helped. If you're strapped for cash, make your own with food colouring and glycerin. It's just as cheap and will look way better.

Penneys Fright Club

Revolution Pro SFX Fake Blood

Another affordable option, this one is okay. I don't hate it but it's not ideal. It's not as pink as Penneys but still doesn't look that realistic if smudged. However, it's a gel-like texture and when it's applied in a large amount it's decent. I did use the Revolution offerings when I first started learning and when I had nothing else it works in a pinch. Compared to the ones I use now though, I wouldn't go back to it.

Revolution Pro SFX Fake Blood

Ben Nye Fresh Scab Blood

I feel like even people who don't do Effects Makeup know of Scab Blood. It's iconic and for good reason. My boyfriend got me this for my 20th birthday and it changed my work completely. Before Scab Blood, I'd only had cheap liquidy blood that ran everywhere. Scab Blood is exactly what it sounds like, a thick, clotted looking blood that doesn't move. When in it's natural scabby state it's a dark red but anywhere it touches, it leaves a slightly lighter red. Gives it a nice dimensional look. It's safe for mouth use but I find it really dries out my lips. I use this for scabs, clotting and adding texture to looks.

Kryolan HD Blood in Dark Venous 

This stuff is described as "the perfect imitation of human blood for the high definition camera". I really do agree, I love this blood. Liquidy but not too runny, the perfect dark shade of blood, doesn't stain. I do find it picks up great in photos, it might be my favourite in that regard. The colour has an almost orangey undertone, it looks so good. Don't put this one near your mouth though, I don't know what would happen but I doubt it'd be good. I use this for most wounds.

Kryolan FX Blood in Dark

Another liquid blood but this one is more rigid than the HD Blood. Once applied it does more or less stay in place, still a bit runny in my opinion. If you touch it or something rubs off it, it will move though. This comes in a light and a dark shade, I got the dark because I think it looks better in pictures. It's lighter and more red/pink toned than the previous Kryolan blood, so I like it for fresher wounds. Again, don't put this in your mouth. I put all over my lips once though and other than chapped lips from hell, I was okay. I found staining wasn't an issue with this blood either.

Here's my swatches of the three bloods I still own:

And here are some photos of all of these bloods used together and mixed together. I feel like using two bloods together can look amazing. So here we go!

Ben Nye Scab Blood and Revolution Fake Blood

Ben Nye Scab Blood

Ben Nye Scab Blood and Revolution Fake Blood

Kryolan FX Blood

Kryolan HD Blood

Kryolan HD Blood and Ben Nye Scab Blood

And there you have it. These are my thoughts on the fake bloods I've used. Let me know, have you used these bloods? And if not, what are you're favourites? I hope you enjoyed this SFX post, it's been really fun to put this together. Talk to ye soon!

Revolution Pro SFX Fake Blood is available here on Superdrug for £2 (€2.31)
Ben Nye Fresh Scab Blood is available here from Camera Ready Cosmetics £7.50 to £38 (€8.68 to €43.96)
Kryolan FX Blood is available here from The Makeup Store for €13.20
Kryolan HD Blood is available here from The Makeup Store for €14.50