Cute Valentine's Day Face Painting Designs with Linnéa Önnerby Novak

Valentine's Day is the perfect time to spread love and joy through face painting, and Swedish artist Linnéa Önnerby Novak joined us to share five adorable designs that work for everyone. From classic heart tigers to dreaming cats and kawaii-style hearts with roses, these designs offer something special for girls, boys, and adults alike.

Linnéa Önnerby Novak is a renowned face painting artist from Sweden known for her cheerful personality and accessible teaching style. She's a frequent guest at Facepaint.com webinars, sharing her expertise in one-stroke techniques, animal designs, and creative character work. Her designs balance professional quality with on-the-job speed, making them perfect for busy face painters. Linnéa's warm approach and willingness to share practical tips have made her a favorite in the face painting community, and she regularly demonstrates how to create stunning designs using efficient techniques and readily available products.

Essential Products for Valentine's Day Face Painting

Here are the key products Linnéa used throughout the webinar:

• Kraze FX Neon Pink - Creates vibrant pink accents perfect for Valentine's designs
• Superstar Pink - Ideal for soft, romantic eye shadow effects
• Kraze FX Flower Bouquet Palette - Features romantic lily, rose garden, and spring leaf colors
• Diamond FX and Superstar One-Stroke Cakes - Essential for quick, beautiful flowers and patterns
• Filbert Brushes (Size 8) - Perfect for painting rounded shapes and creating hearts
• Three-Quarter Inch One-Stroke Brushes - Used for flowers, leaves, and larger design elements
• Long Liner Brushes - Essential for whiskers, swirls, and fine details
• Heart Stencils- Quick embellishments for adding romantic touches

Valentine Heart Tiger: A Classic with a Twist

The heart tiger combines the beloved tiger design with Valentine's Day charm. Starting with a petal-shaped sponge, Linnéa created white accents around the eyes and muzzle, then loaded a custom rainbow cake featuring Superstar paints and Kraze FX Neon Pink for vibrant color gradients.

The key to this design is the heart-shaped stripe on the forehead, which transforms a traditional tiger into a Valentine's favorite. Girls love the pink version with pink lips, while boys prefer traditional tiger colors with the heart stripe and black lips. Using a number four round brush with line black paint, Linnéa demonstrated thin-to-thick line work and strategic dot placement on the muzzle instead of teardrops. The design takes about four to five minutes on the job, making it perfect for busy Valentine's events.

For added sparkle, Linnéa used a star stencil with a finger dauber to create highlights that blend naturally outside the tiger's frame. White whiskers applied with a long liner brush complete the realistic look.

Dreaming Cat: Perfect for Cat Lovers

This charming design features a gray cat dreaming of another cat, complete with cartoon thought bubbles and floating hearts. Linnéa started with a filbert brush to paint an orange sleeping cat with a round head, fat body, and curled tail, then added a smaller gray cat in a thought bubble above.

The sleeping cat's closed eyes make it surprisingly easy to paint, and the striped pattern creates visual interest without complicated details. Adding snoring lines and dream bubbles clarifies the storytelling element. The real magic happens with the quick heart technique: pressing a loaded brush twice creates perfect hearts without lifting between presses.

This design resonates with children who love cats and offers a creative alternative to traditional Valentine's imagery. The combination of two cats, hearts, and whimsical details creates a narrative that kids find enchanting.

Valentine's Day Teddy Bear: Fluffy and Adorable

Using a three-quarter inch one-stroke brush loaded with brown and beige, Linnéa created a cuddly teddy bear with remarkable efficiency. The technique involves making a large round head followed by two half-circle ears, keeping the dark color on the twist side for dimensional shading.

Instead of outlining the bear with solid lines, Linnéa demonstrated creating a fluffy fur texture using small, short brush strokes. This approach gives the teddy bear a soft, cuddly appearance that perfectly captures the Valentine's Day spirit. Adding Superstar Princess Pink for eye shadow and heart stencils enhances the romantic theme.

The bear works beautifully for younger children and can be customized with heart freckles, decorative teardrops, or additional embellishments. The fluffy outline technique can be applied to other animal designs for a softer, more huggable look.

Snake's Bear in Love: Valentine's for Boys

Finding Valentine's designs that appeal to boys can be challenging, but Linnéa's snake in love design solves that problem. Using a transform palette's reptile colors, she created a snake with heart-shaped eyes that's both cool and romantic.

The design starts with a front-facing snake head that resembles an alien shape, making it easier for painters who struggle with open-mouthed snake profiles. The body features a wiggling tail with strategic dot patterns on the darker areas of the one-stroke for texture and interest.

Heart-shaped eyes created with a filbert brush and a split-tongue detail give the snake personality. Background stars and hearts scattered around the design reinforce the Valentine's theme without making it too sweet. This design proves that Valentine's face painting can be exciting and adventurous, not just pretty and pink.

Kawaii Heart and Roses: Elegant Design for Older Children and Adults

The final design features a large one-stroke heart with kawaii-style features surrounded by beautiful roses and leaves. Using the Kraze FX Flower Bouquet palette, Linnéa demonstrated creating romantic lily hearts, rose garden flowers, and spring leaf greenery.

The kawaii heart features oversized eyes positioned high on the face with a tiny smile, creating an adorable expression. One-stroke roses frame the design with five initial petals forming the center, followed by 'n' and 'u' shaped strokes for outer petals. White highlights and strategic dots between flowers fill visual gaps.

Optional angel wings created with graduated teardrops add an ethereal quality. Light blue accents on white wings make them pop without overwhelming the design. This sophisticated approach works perfectly for tweens, teens, and adults who want something special for Valentine's Day celebrations.

Pro Tips from Linnéa

Throughout the webinar, Linnéa shared valuable techniques that can elevate your Valentine's Day face painting:

• Create quick hearts by pressing a loaded round brush twice without lifting between presses
• Use small, short strokes instead of solid outlines to create fluffy, furry textures
• Erase small areas with a wet wipe to make colors pop without adding extra layers
• Add sound effects while painting to entertain children and make the experience more fun
• Keep designs adaptable by offering color variations for different preferences
• Use teardrops in graduated sizes for elegant framing elements
• Layer white highlights over colors to add dimension and professional polish

Making Valentine's Day Face Painting Work On the Job

One of Linnéa's greatest strengths is creating designs that look impressive while remaining practical for working face painters. Each design in this webinar balances artistic impact with time efficiency, taking between four and eight minutes depending on complexity and embellishments.

The heart tiger offers the fastest option at about four minutes, while the kawaii heart with roses provides a premium design for clients willing to wait a bit longer. Having a range of options allows you to accommodate different event types, from high-volume parties to more intimate gatherings where you can take additional time.

Linnéa's approach emphasizes working with the child's preferences and the event's pace. Quick additions like stenciled hearts, glitter, or rhinestones can elevate simpler designs when time allows, while stripped-down versions of elaborate designs keep lines moving at busy events.

Adapting Designs for Your Style

These Valentine's designs serve as excellent foundations for personalization. The heart tiger can incorporate different color schemes or additional heart placements. The dreaming cat concept works with any animal the child loves. The teddy bear accepts various accessories like bows, flowers, or balloons.

The snake design demonstrates that Valentine's Day doesn't require traditional imagery. Any character or animal can be adapted with heart-shaped elements, pink and red color schemes, or romantic accessories. This flexibility helps face painters offer fresh, exciting options year after year.

For painters developing their own style, Linnéa's techniques provide building blocks rather than rigid formulas. Her one-stroke flower method, fuzzy outline technique, and quick heart creation can be applied across countless designs beyond Valentine's Day.

Building Your Valentine's Day Repertoire

Having a solid collection of Valentine's face painting designs helps you serve diverse clients. Include quick options like the heart tiger for high-volume events, narrative designs like the dreaming cat for children who love stories, and sophisticated choices like the kawaii heart for older clients.

Consider creating design boards or portfolios showing your Valentine's options. Visual references help children and parents make faster decisions, keeping your line moving smoothly. Include both traditional Valentine's imagery and creative alternatives like the snake to appeal to different personalities.

Practice these designs before Valentine's season begins. Familiarity with the techniques and color combinations allows you to work confidently and efficiently when events start. Take photos of your practice work to build your portfolio and social media presence.

Valentine's Day offers wonderful opportunities for face painters to spread joy and creativity. With these five designs from Linnéa Önnerby Novak, you'll be prepared to delight clients of all ages with adorable, professional face painting that captures the spirit of love and friendship. Whether you're painting heart tigers at a school party or kawaii hearts at a family restaurant, these techniques will help you create memorable experiences that children and families will treasure.