Daytime Retro Hair and Makeup Demonstration

Final Result

This is my first real attempt at making a hair and makeup video. It's not really a tutorial, but more of a demonstration. I realized that I didn't like the sound of my own voice and it was a bit nerve-wracking to try and talk the whole time, so I just recorded my every day makeup process and a page boy hair style. I took the sound off and sped it up, even though it's still 15 minutes long. If you want to skip the makeup, the hair starts at minute six.

Tip: Make sure your hair is completely dry before removing the hair clips.

Products Used:
Urban Decay Face Primer
Makeup For Ever HD Foundation
Makeup For Ever Concealer Palette
MAC Eyeshadow in Blanc Type
MAC Eyeshadow in Omega
MAC Blush in Buff
Anastasia Brow Wiz eyebrow pencil
Anastasia Eyeliner
Better than sex Mascara
Makeup For Ever Lip Liner
Bare Minerals Pretty Amazing Lipstick in Bravado
Makeup For Ever HD Loose Powder

Hair:
Layrite Grooming Spray
Sportnet Teasing Brush
Two-prong Hair Clips
Big Sexy Hair spray in Get Layered
Mason Pearson Bristle Brush
Kenra Volume Hair Spray

Tools:
Beauty Blender Sponge
Real Technique Makeup Brushes
MAC Brushes

Vintage Hair Styling Class

Photo by Greyline Creative, Hair and Makeup by Bouffants & Beehives

I've been asked by several people to teach a class and share my love of vintage hair styles. So I am finally going to do it! Here are the specifics:

Date: Saturday, February 7, 2015
Time: 10 am - 1 pm
Location: Greyline Creative Studio, Fayetteville Square on the corner of Block and Center Street (below David Adams Jewelry) Fayetteville, Arkansas
Cost: $85 (includes gift bag with vintage styling essentials)

Space: Space is limited to a maximum enrollment of 10 people. The registration deadline is Wednesday, February 4, 2015.

Refund Policy: Refunds will only be given if notified by Wednesday, February 4, 2015, after that date, you can apply a credit toward another class in the future.

What to bring: Please bring a curling utensil of your choice, whether it's a curling iron, hot rollers, etc., a brush of your choice and any special styling products that you would like to use. Hairspray will be provided. Also bring any special hair accessories, i.e. flowers, scarves, etc. that you would like to practice with. Finally, please feel free to bring any photos of hairstyles for inspiration.

If you have any question, please feel free to email or call me at aliwilliams28@gmail.com or 479-387-6284.

Fill out my online form.

Vintage Pageboy Hairstyle using Pin Curls

pageboy hairstyle

A pageboy hairstyle is a haircut which is designed for medium to short length hair. In the fifties the pageboy generally stopped at shoulder-length but later renditions saw the hair cut to just below the ear, where it curls under; in a reverse pageboy, the hair is curled outwards.

Here is how to do it using pin curls.

Sculpture Pin Curler

I started with pin curls that I made using the sculpture pin curler tool. You don't need to use this tool, but it keeps the curls uniform and makes the process faster. I alternated rows between rolling up and under curls.

This is what the pin curls look like when finished. I used bobby pins to secure. They are flatter and easier to sleep on than clips. My hair was slightly damp and I used some LottaBody setting lotion that I bought at my local beauty supply store.

I put a sheer scarf over to protect the curls while I slept. Using a sheer scarf is important to allow the curls to dry completely.

This is what my curls looked like after I took all the bobby pins out. Shirley Temple.

This is what my hair looked like after I ran my fingers through it. You need to break up the curls. I like this look.

Then the real magic happens when you start to brush. I used my boar bristle Mason Pearson brush and I just brushed in sections against my hand and rolled the hair under. I used clips to hold the hair in place when I got it to look just like I wanted. Don't worry about losing your curls by brushing too much. Just keep brushing until you tame the fro.

This is the final look. A sculptured pageboy. Because the curls are so strong, I should be able to turn this curl set into another look tomorrow.

Pink Bow City

Greyline Creative and I are featured in the August issue of Pink Bow City. The magazines are in the mail and I was able to get a screenshot of our page. I can't wait to see it in person.

1960's Tutorial in Pink Bow City

Do It Yourself Faux Bun

This tutorial was inspired by a vintage bun cover I found a local store. I went back and forth about whether to buy it. It was very unique and I had never seen one, but on the other hand, I had just cut my hair and didn't have enough to even make a bun. So, I decided to make one. The tools you need are:

• A bun form (I got mine off of Amazon.com. Make sure it's the kind with snaps on the end, not the circle kind.
• Fake hair (I got some cheap ($20) human hair that was very close to my color at my local Sally's beauty. I bought the kind that's just on a track.
• Thread
• Needle
• Scissors
• Bobby pins

Items needed

Step 1: Lay out your form and your hair.
Make sure to fold the hair so that it equals the length of the form.

Step 2: Sew the tracks together if you have a hard time keeping them straight.
Then sew the hair to the form.

Step 3: Roll the hair around the form and then snap the ends together.

Step 4: Spread the hair out to create an even bun.

Step 5: Carefully flip the it over and bobby pin small sections to the
bottom of the form until all the hair is attached.

This should be the final result.

Attach the bun to your head by creating a small pony tail and bobby pin it to your head.
You can put it low like above.

Or you can put it high like this.

And here is the vintage bun cover that inspired it all.

Spring Concept Shoot

This is the last of a series of four based on the seasons, Spring! Our lovely model Michelle Tate made this look effortless with her flaming red hair and porcelain skin. Casey of Greyline Photography used some new techniques that she learned at the After Dark conference. Here you can see the series together:

Top left: Winter, Top right: Spring, Bottom left: Fall, Bottom right: Summer

I started by airbrushing Michelle's skin with my Belletto airbrush system. I then defined her brows with Anastasia Brow Wiz pencil. I used several different shades of green eyeshadow to get this look. I used a couple from my Sleek Palettes until I got the right look. I added Makeup Forever diamond powder on top for shimmer. In order to make her eyes look bigger, I added lashes on top and bottom. But the bottom lashes I placed lower than her actual eye and filled the gap with white cream from my Makeup Forever Flash palette and set it with white eyeshadow. I used Illamasque cream blush and the lip was achieved by using the coral color from the flash palette.

Michelle's fresh face on the left, a close up of the shadow and lashes on the right.

Sleek makeup palettes

Work in progress

Here a close up of the final result:

A close up of the final result of Spring

And the full shot:

As you might be able to tell, this was inspired by Shakespeare's Ophelia

Some other things to note, the flower hair piece was made by Jules Designs event florals. The dress is by BonnerBell, a local designer. Support your local artists!

Here is a shot from the same shoot with different hair, dress and a darker lip:

The Big Swirl

1. Start by sectioning off a square section on the top of the head. Clip it out of the way.

2. Pull the rest of the hair back into a tight ponytail. I slicked the sides back with gel.
3. take a section of the top and curl toward the direction of the swirl.

4. Continue curling, then tease each section. The more you tease, the more solid your swirl will be.

5. Take the whole section and curl it together.
6. Brush the hair to smooth it. Gather it together like the photo. Pinch it and then start the swirl.

7. Once you have the base secured with a bobby pin, pin curl the tip and roll in. This process
can take some time. Keep practicing. Spray with hairspray as you go. With all of the
teasing, it shouldn't take more than a couple of bobby pins to secure.

Old Hollywood Waves

1. Start with a deep side part. I like to line mine up with the arch of my eyebrow.
2. Take a small section of hair and spray with a heat protectant. Curl the hair and twist while
wrapping. I use a medium size curling wand. Curl in the same direction and try to keep the
size uniform.

4. Slide the hair off of the wand, but catch the hair so it doesn't stretch out. Spray with hairspray.
5. Pin to head like a stand up pin curl. This is so the hair can cool. It will make the curls
stronger and last longer.

6. Curl the entire head and let cool completely.

7. Carefully take out the curls and brush through with your fingers.
8. Brush through with a soft bristle brush and pull the hair down. This will help show the
natural places it wants to wave.

9. Working in sections, tug and push and put clips where the waves take shape. Spray with
hairspray.
10. I used a combination of large clips, small metal clips and finger wave clips where I wanted
to create a ridge. Spray, spray spray.

The final result. Be patient, it takes time to get it right. Work in sections and if something
looks good, pin it.

An alternative look is an updo. I separated the hair from the ears back and created a pony.
I then split the pony into sections and pin curled. I pinned the sides up and added a curl to each side.

Pink Bow City Magazine Pinup Contest

I'm in a pinup contest. The winner gets her photo in an issue of the Pink Bow City magazine. To vote, please click on this link: VOTE! or the photo below and like or share.

Concept Shoot: Winter

The winter/ice/snow queen.

One down and one more to go. So far Greyline Creative and I have completed Summer, Fall and now Winter. We were inspired by the seasons for these fun photo shoots. Sometimes we like to stretch our creative muscles and do some photos that are more creative, unique and more editorial. This shoot was no exception. For winter we tried to capture the ethereal feeling of a winter snow queen. We decided that pink would be a good accent color because we saw so much blue used for similar shots and we wanted to do something different. I made the pink collar out of coffee filters that I dyed pink. I created a cage and then filled it with the flower-like paper much like a parade float. The twig head piece was made by a local floral designer, Jules Design. The hair was a combination of white spray and a substance called angel hair. I had never used this before and it was wonderful. It was like a mix between spider webs and hair. It created really lovely puffs that mimicked snow.

We had a beautiful model, Morgan, who was very kind to allow us to do whatever we wanted. I covered her well moisturized face in white makeup from the Makeup Forever flash palette and contoured her face with ice blue eyeshadow. I added glitter to her eyelids and used Ben Nye white mascara on her eyelashes. I have her some rosy cheeks with pink powder blush and berry kissed lips with a combination of clear lip gloss and a dap of hot pink eyeshadow in the middle of her upper and lower lips.

Top left: dying the coffee filters, Top right: Morgan before
Bottom: Close up of Morgan becoming the snow queen.

The other seasons in the series.
Left: Fall  Right: Summer

Bangs or No Bangs, That is the Question

Women struggle with this all the time. We want to change our look and sometimes cutting bangs seems like a good option. But sometimes we immediately regret it. Some people are just bang people and some are not. I could go both ways, but I prefer to not have bangs. Cowlicks can be an issue as well as texture and thickness of hair.

But you really don't have to choose. If you only want bangs sometime or you just aren't sure if you can pull them off, get some fake ones. They sell clip in bangs now. I'm not going to put a link because there are so many places to get them. Buy the real human hair type so that you can use heat tools if needed. Also, to make them look more natural, get them in blonde and have your hair stylist color and cut them to match your hair. You can buy a few pairs and have all types of different lengths and styles without the commitment.

The bangs I have are not the right color and I cut them myself with clippers. Here is a good tutorial from Cherry Dollface on how to cut Betty bangs yourself with clippers.

Christmas Present Ideas for the Pin Up in Your Life

Do you have a pin up girl in your life? Not sure what to get her for Christmas. Here are some ideas.

You can't go wrong with a Sephora gift card: http://www.sephora.com/

She will love anything from Pinup Girl Clothing:
http://www.pinupgirlclothing.com/

Every true pin up girl needs proper undergarments:
http://www.whatkatiedid.com/en_us/

For the extra special girl, go big with the Whirling Turban:
http://whirlingturban.com/

She will love this vintage hair styling book:
http://www.hrstbooks.com/vintage-hairstyling

You could also buy her a subscription to this pin up magazine to give her inspiration:
http://www.pinkbowcity.com/

Behind the Scenes of a Concept Shoot

Greyline Creative and I are at it again. This time we are doing some portfolio work. It is a series inspired by the seasons. This particular shoot was all about Summer.

I bought some new Sleek palettes and they were perfect for this shoot. The particular palette that I used is the acid color palette. The colors are very saturated and blend easily. I used a MAC 217 to do the blending. Before I applied the makeup to the model, I practiced on myself. I knew that I wanted to use a pink/orange/yellow color scheme to mimic the feel of summer.

Acid Sleek palette (top) My practice session (bottom)

I started by applying an eyeshadow primer (Urban Decay). I then put down a base of white eye shadow to make the color brighter. I put a thick coat of orange (4th color on top row) all over my eye lid and blended it up into the crease. I then blended light hot pink (3rd color on bottom row) in the outer corner of the eye. I also added the orange and pink under the eye. I then blended the darker pink (1st on top row) even further out in the corner. I also added the bright yellow to the inner corner of the eye and underneath the eye inside. Finally, I added a bit of black in a v-shape to the outer corner of the eye to add dimension. It ended up looking purple instead of black which was nice.

My makeup arsenal

Glitter lip tattoos provide a strong beautiful glitter lip. Feels a bit weird and are not easy to apply.
I used gold on just the bottom lip for the shoot.

You can see the gold bottom lip here and the same eyeshadow treatment as above.

I curled the hair as I usually do, with a wand and stand up pin curls to give it body and wave.

The Shoot

Casey, the photographer, had the idea that she wanted to weave the models hair into a fence to create a romantic, whimsical composition. We knew we wanted flower to be a large part of the image and decided on orange and pink snapdragons, hydrangea and eucalyptus. We got a great deal on flowers from Casey's friend Julie from Jule's Design, an amazing flower designer.

The corset was one that I created for my Seven Deadly Sins fashion show. I'm glad that I was able to use it again.

The set up against a fence with flowers weaved around the model.

Another view of the shoot.

The Final Shot

Here is the final shot after all of that work. I think it turned out wonderfully. It always helps to have a beautiful model.

You can see the gold bottom lip here.

A close up of the makeup, without the gold lip. You can really see the eyeshadow gradient.

The full shot with the beautiful flowers.