Flame brow: fire rising from one brow boneRed, orange, yellow. Flame tongues rise from one brow bone up the forehead, yellow at the base, red at the tips.
Baby dragon toasting a marshmallowGreen, white, brown, orange. A dragon on the cheek holds a stick with a marshmallow, a tiny flame from its mouth.
Forest dragon with leaf-shaped scalesGreen, brown, yellow. Body around one eye covered in leaf-shaped scales, a leaf for the tail tip on the cheekbone.
Dragon breathing a flame across the foreheadGreen, orange, yellow. Head above one brow facing inward, three flame tongues reaching across the upper forehead.
Dragon guarding a red gem on the cheekboneGreen, gold, red. Body around the eye from the brow; the tail wraps a red gem that sits on the cheekbone.
Dragon in black outline, bare skin insideBlack. The curled dragon in line only: two horns, one eye, bars across the belly, nothing filled in.
Dragon with back spikes along the outer curveDark green, orange. Body around one eye from brow to cheekbone, a row of orange triangle spikes on the outer edge.
Forest dragon with leaf-shaped scalesGreen, brown, yellow. Body around one eye covered in leaf-shaped scales, a leaf for the tail tip on the cheekbone.
Green dragon, head above the brow, tail on the cheekboneGreen, yellow, black. Head above one brow facing the middle, body around the temple, tail curling on the cheekbone.
Long dragon in an S from hairline to jawTeal, gold. Head at the hairline, body in one long S down the temple and cheek, tail tip at the jaw.
Rainbow dragon changing color along its bodyRed, orange, yellow, green, blue. Head above the brow in red, the body shading through each color to a blue tail.
Red dragon with its head on the cheek, tail over the browRed, gold, black. Head low on the cheek looking up, body climbing the temple, tail ending above the brow.
Sea dragon arching three times over the browBlue, teal, white. The body rises in three arches above one brow like waves, head at the temple, tail fin mid-forehead.
Sleeping dragon in a full ring around one eyePurple, lilac. A ring on the brow bone, temple and cheekbone; the snout rests on its own tail, eyes shut; lid bare.
Two dragons, one around each eyeRed, blue, black. A mirror pair, one red and one blue, heads high on the forehead, tails on the cheekbones.
Winged dragon with a wing spread up the foreheadTeal, purple, black. Body curled around the temple; one open wing reaches up over the forehead to the hairline.
Scales across the brow 13
Bands of scales with bare skin betweenGreen, gold. Three bands of scales cross the forehead from temple to temple, a strip of bare skin between each.
Brow scales with a spiked frill at each templeGreen, orange. One row of scales above the brows; at each temple a fan of four spikes with webbing toward the ear.
Curved horns from the temples to the hairlineTan, brown, green. A ridged horn curves up from each temple into the hairline, three rows of scales between them.
Earth dragon with pebble-shaped scalesBrown, green, gray. Uneven rounded scales like pebbles across the forehead and temples, green in the gaps.
Emerald scale mask, forehead left bareGreen, dark green, gold. Scales cover the brow bones and upper cheeks only, a gold tick on each; lids bare.
Red diamond scales edged in goldRed, gold, black. Diamond-shaped scales across the forehead and the tops of the cheeks, each outlined in gold.
Scale band over the nose from cheekbone to cheekboneRed, orange. A band of small scales crosses the nose below the eyes, from one cheekbone to the other.
Scale patches on the forehead, one cheek and the jawGreen, yellow. Three separate patches of scales, each a different size, with bare skin between them.
Scales shading from orange hairline to yellow browsOrange, yellow. Scales over the whole forehead, deep orange at the hairline and yellow just above the brows.
Slanted dragon brows built from scalesDark green, black, yellow. A thick scaled ridge over each brow bone, slanting down toward the nose; cheeks bare.
Three fin sails over the foreheadBlue, teal, white. A webbed fin rises above each brow and a taller one in the middle of the upper forehead.
Two horn nubs and a row of scales on each brow boneGreen, tan. Two short horn nubs high on the forehead, a single row of scales along each brow bone.
Water dragon: wave scales and a cheekbone finBlue, white, teal. Wave-shaped scales across the forehead, a small fin on each cheekbone, white foam dots.
Fire and smoke 12
Blue flame in three tongues on the cheekboneBlue, pale blue, white. Three flame tongues on the cheekbone, pale blue inside, a white core at the base.
Breath cloud with a flame inside itGray, orange, yellow. A puffy gray cloud on the cheek with a small two-color flame showing in its middle.
Dragon head in profile breathing fire toward the earGreen, red, yellow. A small head on the cheek, jaws open toward the ear, three flame tongues leaving its mouth.
Ember sparks scattered over one cheekboneOrange, yellow, red. Dots and tiny diamonds, thickest at the temple and thinning out toward the nose.
Fire and ice: a red flame and a blue flameRed, yellow, blue, white. The same flame shape on each cheek, red and yellow on one, blue and white on the other.
Fireball with a white-hot center on the cheekWhite, yellow, orange, red. Rings of color from a white center outward on one cheek, a ragged red outer edge.
Flame brow: fire rising from one brow boneRed, orange, yellow. Flame tongues rise from one brow bone up the forehead, yellow at the base, red at the tips.
Flame rolled into a spiral on the cheekOrange, red, yellow. A single flame on the cheek whose tip rolls over into a spiral, yellow on the inside.
Ring of fire on the brow bone and cheekboneOrange, yellow, red. Short flame tongues ring one eye on the brow bone, temple and cheekbone, tips outward; lid bare.
Scales turning into flame tips at one templeRed, orange, yellow. Three rows of scales at one temple; the top row stretches into flame tips toward the hairline.
Smoke wisp curling up the cheekGray, white. One thin wisp starts at the jaw and curls twice on its way up the cheek, fading at the cheekbone.
Three smoke rings drifting up to the templeGray, white. Three rings on the cheek, the smallest lowest, rising toward the temple; a white edge on each.
Baby dragons, cheek only 13
Baby dragon asleep on a pile of gold coinsPurple, gold. A curled dragon on the cheek on top of a heap of gold dots and ovals, one eye half open.
Baby dragon face with horn nubs and one fangTeal, yellow, white. A round teal face on the cheek, two yellow horn nubs, big eyes and one white fang.
Baby dragon holding a daisyBlue, white, yellow. A seated dragon on the cheek holding a daisy in both claws, its tail curled beside it.
Baby dragon hugging its own tailPink, purple. A curled dragon on the cheek with both arms around its tail tip, purple spikes down its back.
Baby dragon in a helmet too big for itGreen, gray. A dragon on the cheek under a gray helmet that covers its eyes, horn nubs poking through.
Baby dragon in flight on the cheekboneBlue, white. A small dragon flying toward the temple, wings up, legs tucked, three motion ticks behind.
Baby dragon sitting, wings too small to flyGreen, yellow, pink. A round body and big head on the cheek, two stubby wings, yellow belly, pink cheeks.
Baby dragon sneezing one sparkOrange, yellow, red. A small dragon on the cheek, head thrown forward, a single red spark and two puff lines.
Baby dragon toasting a marshmallowGreen, white, brown, orange. A dragon on the cheek holds a stick with a marshmallow, a tiny flame from its mouth.
Baby dragon wearing a piece of eggshell as a hatWhite, green, yellow. A standing dragon on the cheek with a jagged half shell on its head, wings spread.
Baby dragon with a butterfly on its noseGreen, yellow, blue. A dragon on the cheek looking cross-eyed at a small blue butterfly on its snout.
Dragon tail coming out from behind the earGreen, yellow. Only a tail with yellow back spikes, curling from in front of the ear onto the cheek.
Three dragon eggs in a nestRed, blue, green, brown. Three eggs in three colors, each with a few scale arcs, in a brown twig nest on the cheek.
How it works
These dragon face paint ideas are 51 designs sorted by how much of the face they cover: 13 baby dragons for one cheek, 12 of fire and smoke, 13 dragons curled around one eye and 13 with scales across the brow.
Read the full guide
Easy dragon face painting ideas
Start in Baby dragons, cheek only. Baby dragon face with horn nubs and one fang is a circle, two nubs and a tooth, and Dragon tail coming out from behind the ear is a tail and nothing else. Three smoke rings drifting up to the temple takes gray and white.
The dragon curled around one eye
The head sits above one brow, the body runs around the temple and the tail ends on the cheekbone, all on bone and never on the lid. Thirteen versions change the dragon: Sleeping dragon in a full ring around one eye, Dragon in black outline, bare skin inside, Winged dragon with a wing spread up the forehead.
Questions and answers
What colors do you need for a dragon face?
Two will do: Bands of scales with bare skin between is green and gold, and Scale band over the nose from cheekbone to cheekbone is red and orange. Red, orange and yellow cover most of the flames.
How do you paint dragon scales on a face?
As rows of small U shapes, each row sitting over the gaps of the one before. Red diamond scales edged in gold swaps the U for a diamond, and Earth dragon with pebble-shaped scales uses uneven rounded shapes.
Is there a dragon face paint that is not scary?
The 13 in Baby dragons, cheek only: Baby dragon sneezing one spark, Baby dragon holding a daisy, Baby dragon in a helmet too big for it. Sleeping dragon in a full ring around one eye is the calm choice among the larger designs.
How do you take dragon face paint off?
The US FDA says to remove makeup the way the label says and not to go to bed with it on. Scales across the brow cover the most skin, a baby dragon the least.