Black and white photography appropriate make up

 Hello everyone,

keeping in mind that I had a black and white Shooting not to long ago I figured I tell you something about specifics for black and white photo make up...

I don´t look perfect on those photos because it was after part 1 of the shooting and I originally only took the photos afterwards so I would be able to re-create the make up when we´d continue some days later... It did not occour to me that I could actually use them for something else than for reference and my eyes only.... But hey, keeping in mind how many "retros" are visiting my blog I figured a few might be interested in specifics...

Things to keep in mind when taking black and white photos: You will only see a contrast of dark and light, so I would not recommend to use light colours unless it is for highlighting your eyes. Things such as a light pink blush, a light red or nude colours just won´t do the trick. 

Eye Shadow: As you can see in the colour version I chose a very dark grey/black eye shadow. Natural shades would not display in the photo. (If you wanna go for something "natural" like just some shading in the eye socket you would have to do some heavy layering or at least darker eye shadow than the one you´t use for an "every day natural look". Or just put a bit of vaseline for a "shiny" natural look (not uncommon in publicity photos from the 20s/30s)

Blush: In my colour photographs I usually put the blush ON my cheek bones to give it some freshness, but in black and white I rather put it BELOW the cheek bones to make them more "3D". You can see I used a red blush with blue-ish undertones. A light pink or light red would just be "swallowed" by light and would be too weak to show at all in the end. You see how subtle the effect is in the black and white version. If you wouldn´t know the color version you probably would not even realise it´s there...

Lips: Dark red. Just like with blush a light pink or light red wouldn´t do the trick. Unless you wanna go for a natural or 60s look :-)

Eye Brows: I used a black powder for my eye brows, but this is really up to you, your personal taste and how visible your eye brows are. :-)

I hope this was helpfull for you :-)

Playing with my hair.... 1 pin curl set - 4 looks

Hello everyone,

during fall break I managed to get my hair cut and last Saturday I started a new attempt to bleach a streak into my hair. It worked wayyyyyy better than last time! Today beeing a day off I got to play with it....

I used this basic pin curl pattern for every look: http://retromodelsari.blogspot.com/2011/07/tutorial-time-saving-and-curl_31.html

And here are the results...

No. 1: Front rolls with open hair in the back...

 No. 2: This is not sooooo much different from look 1. In this version I curled the hair in the back a bit under and pinned them together

 No.3: When Iam lazy I like to go with 60s look. Some teasing of the crown and Ian ready to go!

No.4: And often I´ll just make a 60s updo when the hair is loosing curl and I just wanna opt for something easy :-)

 How do you like my streak?

I have the lovely book in my hands!!!

Hello everyone!

the past days were tough! yes, there was whit Monday so I had a day off, but yesterday and the day before I had to stay at work for 10 hours plus went to an short notice filming for the Dsigns store in my neighborhood (technically I ran home, because off course my train was late, smashed some make up in my face and tried to get some curl into my hair and ran off again. :-D) It was fun and we got it done quickly. I think we needed about 30 - 45 minutes to do my scene in it and it will be shown in a fashion show in Hamburg in July. I definately will get a hold of that video and share it on youtube <3

Anyway, today I had the first day getting home at my usual time and got to go to the Hairstyling salon André Cut Corner to pick up my copy of "Rock ´n` Hair"! Yay!!! It is very beautifully done and I heard it was already a big hit on Walldorf and the Petit Four Burlesque Show in Neuss. Next stop for the Rock ´n` Hair Team will be Custom Culture in Bottrop this weekend. If you can´t make it there you can still buy it on www.rocknhair.de It does not only feature 50s styles, but also 40s and 60s. Dont let the title fool you ;-)

Tearsheet Time!!!



AND: There are also 3 stylings for MEN in it. :-) Iam very very happy with the result and there are many beautifull and easy hairstyles in it.

The dresses worn in this book are by Dixifried, available at http://www.buy-unlike.com/ and Vivien of Holloway available on http://www.vivienofholloway.com/

Latex Project

Hi everyone,

this weekend I experimented with glueing Latex and Iam quiet happy how it turned out. I made a skirt and a little hair-acessoire. The hems of the skirt are sorta wobbly, but that is something I can still go and figure out. Iam still happy with the way it looks, bacause I thought it would be way harder! Now I just have to shine it and find out how to remove the glue leftovers. Any ideas how to do that the most effective way? Let me know.

I consider to make a top to go with it.

No Virginia, I can´t tell you wether there is a pin up girl

Hi everyone,

once in a while I get mails from girls that ask me wether "they have what it takes to be a pin up girl". If you are a female beeing (or a transvetite that looks a damn lot like a woman) you have what you need. The way you look can change. Drastically. The way you think can change (and I hope it constantly does. That you form new ideas in your head constantly and learn new things all the time).
























What do you say? Would the girl on the pics above make a good pinup girl? You will find out at the end of the text....

It is not all about the looks cause, as I said before, looks is something you can work on and improve. Nobody was born with a bullet bra on with perfectly coiffed curls and a big grin on the face. We all are the same more of less faulty material to start with. We just learn to conceal it better.

If you had bet with me wether the blonde lady at the left would turn into worlds most recognised pin up Dita von Teese, I couldn´t have told for sure as the blonde lady is cute, but it is hard to tell wether someone has all the additional skills needed plus, as it demonstrates, a different styling can make you look a totally different person.

Nobody but you can find out wether you have what it takes. Have your photos taken and see wether you enjoy it.

Than try to promote yourself the best possible way. Do you have the smarts and the social skills to do the right decisions at the right time? (Cause in order to be sucessfull you have to be smart and you have to have at least a basic knowledge of social skills). Can you go and shamelessly do self-promotion? (They cannot find you if they do not know you) And will you do this in an reasonable amount? (Too much can be quiet annoying, too little won´t get you anywhere either). Are you aware that beeing a pin up girl has an effect on your entire life? And that´s even the case if you just do it as a hobby as 99 % of us do. Can you transfer feelings in your photos? There is nothing worse than a blank stare cause this means that you don´t "communicate" with the viewer through a photo - which might be ok if you pose for a high fashion editorial, but will kill you as a pin up girl as that´s an etirely different thing.

So no Virginia, I cannot tell you wether there is a pin up girl hidden in you. Neither can your little friends. YOU are the only one that can tell ME.


And if you wonder who was the girl on the pictures above (the ones before Ditas before and after off course ;-)... It was me. About 6-7 years ago. Thinner, yes. Younger, yes. With decidedly less make up. And absolutely not retro-looking.

What makes a model a good one?

Hi everyone,

you may answer the question above with "that she is skinny, tall and underage". This may go for mainstream standard, but what is with the rest of us? The fat, old dwarfs like me? (by model-standards).

Answer: Research, Preparation, Dedication.

Research: I have tons of magazines, books on various topics. Mostly about topics such as history, fashion, make up, art, culture and even books on behaviour. Whenever I plan something I usually do a good amount of research with my books and the internet.

Not only of fashion and make up, but also on poses that might fit the topic, interpretations, symbolism, etc. etc. Often you can´t tell bout all the stuff that actually goes into a photo, but believe me, sometimes I spend hours googling on a subject just to give it my interpretation.

Preparation: You can´t go to a shooting smelling like a toilet exploded next to you with unshaved legs, tired eyes etc. etc. It actually works best if you have a special preparation ritual. Mine includes a hot bath, a facial, manicure and pedicure before I go to bed the evening before the shoot.

You have to get the clothes and props together that you need. This is very important cause if something is missing chances are that you are screwed! You also have to communicate what sort of pictures are actually planned. I´m a hunter of props and acessoires. Both for shootings that are planned and for future shoots. I often browse ebay and sometimes when I´m out and about shopping something catches my eye that would make a good costume or prop. If it isn´t way out of my price range I will take it along just in case. Often I make things myself based on ideas I have for photos and than get to use it when the photographer and me agree that this could be a fabulous topic.

Sometimes I try a make up or hairstyling weeks before I actually shoot it, just to make sure that it suits me and that I can apply it in the way it is meant to be. Believe me it is an advantage when you can do your own hair and make up.

Dedication: I don´t need to explain that hanging on to those things on a daily base needs a lot of dedication and enthusiasm, it also does to take the energy to look out for cool new shootings. There is allways someone taller, thinner, prettier than you. But you have it in your hands what you make with what you´ve got and to use your individual knowledge and your skills to score. Cause let´s face it: The fewest of us are agency-material, we have to be our managers, our webdesigners, our promoters, our make up artist, our stylist and our designer and all of this at once.

This applies to all sort of models that don´t fit the sheme of what is considered model-material. And in many cases even the ones that DO fit. And when I say so you can actually trust in it as I´m a fat old modelling dwarf since amost 6 years ;-)

Let´s bump it - with bumpits

There are days where I´m just lazy and can´t be bothered wih setting my hair. However I have the straightest and most boring hair one can imagine. And if I atempt to do a sleek 60s style and tease and tease and tease my hair and spray and spray and spray it with hairspray it will just sink down again within the next 2 hours. This SUCKS. So I was curious when I heard about bumpits. They are not available in Germany, but I got them on ebay for just a few bucks. What do those thingies look like and how do you use them anyway? To find the answer to this question check out this video by Super Kawaii Mama:




And here comes my review. (excuse the bad photo, but I was just about to leave for shopping, so I just snapped a self in the bathrom mirror). They are indeed easy to use. I just teased my hair, attached the bumpit under it and smoothed the hair over the bumpit. What I didn´t see however was that my hair was a bit too short for the huuuuge bumpit I took, hence I realised that one could see it a bit if you saw my back. By that time I was in town though and didn´t give a damn.

Next time I will use the one that is one size smaller or take a bigger hair-section. Besides that I find it fab. My hair stayed up and up and up eventhough I was changing in the dressingroom and pulled the sweater over my head. In my oppinion it is a good investment for lazy hair days!!! And also if you wanna go for a 60s look or an updo.

The next thing I wanna test is Benefits Dr. Feelgood vs. Shills Miss Perfect. They are supposed to do the same, let´s see who´ll be the winner.

Shooting Preparation

you wouldn´t believe how much work goes into organizing a shooting.

First of all there is a main idea that comes to my mind. It can happen on any occassion. While I flip through a book, when I go shopping and see a cool prop, when I take a walk, when I drive to work. Anytime.

Step 2 is to find a photographer that finds the idea interesting and that I think to be right for the project. We brainstorm, he adds his ideas to mine and the real work begins.

I go through all my stuff and see what I actually have and test-wear it to see wether it still fits and has not gotten too big or small meanwhile. Than I start to think about all the things that I´ll need to give it that little extra-touch. The props, acessoires, additional clothes, will I need jewelry? It results in hours of browsing ebay and stores to find the best bargains and maybe even more inspirations. Some things I´ll even make myself if needed.

When I do something unusual for me I´ll also have to do a test-make up to see wether it will actually look good and to see how I manage and some playing with the hair. Sometimes I even research the internet to collect inspiration for hair make up and poses.

You see there is a lot to do. I don´t just go to a shooting and smile into the camera ;-) And right now I´m in the middle of organizing another fun and partially unusual shooting. You´ll be very surprised... I can´t tell you how long you´ll have to wait though as we still have to fix a date. But you still have the housewife-photos to look forward to at the moment...

PReparing for a shooting

since I´m in the middle of preparing for my shooting this weekend I thought I might as well post a how to on preparation ;-)

- check your shooting outfits! When I choose them I allways also put them on. You never know if you might lost or gained a few pounds. Both can be very unflattering. You don´t want to panic in the studio or on location because you realise your stuff doesn´t fit anymore. Also bring a wide choice of clothes - you and the photographer might get some spontanious ideas and it´s better to have a little bit more than.

- stocking check: Put on your stocking-gloves (In case you don´t have any try: http://www.ars-vivendi.de/shop/info.asp?product_group=901209&product_code=leaf_11129&search_mode=&search_group=&fct=&search_str=&sid=&retpage=/shop/catalog.asp&page=4&from= ) and check your stockings for any damages and off course if you have the matching stockings all together ;-)

- references: It doesn´t hurt to take your favourite pin up book with you as an inspiration for poses, expressions, etc. it also makes things easier to understand what your photographer wants and what you want if you can show a picture. Also if you are fortunate to have a Make up and Hair Stylist cause not everyone has practise in emulating pin up styles like that you save tons of time explaning and just can flip through it together and find out what works an what doesn´t.

- shave the day before the shooting so your skin has time to relax. Addionally I also put a big fat layer Bodybutter by Bodyshop on my legs and they´ll be cellulite-free the next day. I also apply facial masks the day before. Check your nail-polish and file your finger and toe-nails.

- if you are doing hair and make up yourself you have to try the hair-styling at least once before you use it for a shooting. It is way more likely that it works out if you know what to do. You can also get a bit after pressure when you got to hurry up with getting ready... If you do your make up for a shootingfor the first time: Don´t do it like your daily make up. You need tons and tons of colour. LEt´s say you apply blush. In your daily use you´d take a tiny tiny bit so it looks natural. For photos this would be practically invisible so you do an almost clownesque version of it. Same goes for eye-shadow. The lightning "swallows" a lot of the colour. If you feel like a dragqueen and wouldn´t dare to go out like that the make up is just right.

-even if you know that there´s a make up artist bring some basic stuff for the case of cases so you can do your own styling if needed.

- exchange phone-numbers with the photographer so you can reach him if something unforeseen happens. My trains are regulary late. Mostly just a few minutes, but if it´s for a longer time I let my photographer know that he doesn´t need to hurry with picking me up or can drink a cup of coffee while waiting. Or if you go by car and get caught in a traffic yam. Better let him know. Be a responsible person cause they might worry if you come after all or if something bad happened to you. I mostly send them a SMS when I´m on my way.

If you follow that advice I´m quiet sure there won´t be any unpleasant surprises for you when shooting.