So what was my costume? Well my dearies, I was a flapper girl. And it was the wrong year to be one because SO MANY girls were flappers. And they were probably just flappers because The Great Gatsby came out this past summer and they wanted to be like that. And there I was wanting to be a flapper because of what flappers actually stood for. And I looked up so many videos on historically accurate makeup and hair for flappers. I put so much effort into it, and then I was surrounded by a bunch of half-hearted flappers.
Sorry, okay, my rant is done now :)
So there's a goofy picture of me trying to pose like a flapper. I remember when we learned about them in my American History class in high school, a phrase used to describe them was, "they could always be found with a drink in one hand and a cigarette in the other." Well, I'm not old enough to drink, and since my college is smoke-free, I didn't want any embarrassing episodes if I bought a candy cigarette to use, so I have nothing but myself and a costume. But I have a large imagination, and I can pretend.
So while I did a lot of research on the makeup they wore, I created a look that wasn't completely accurate. I took it more as, now that I know what they wore, if I were a flapper, how would I do my makeup? I also took into account what my outfit looked like. So here's the look I settled on:
I tried to give you a couple of different faces to show different angles. The eye shadow is very dark and goes up very high, the lips are dark, and the blush can be as intense or subtle as you want. It's actually more intense here than I wanted it to be. But let's get to the break-down!
I forgot to mention that I started this look with my NYX HD Primer. At the end I used Essence I Love Extreme Crazy Volume mascara and then a pair of false lashes. I didn't use the false lashes in the recreation because I threw them away after using them on Halloween. I wasn't thinking ahead of time. Whoops. But the pair I used (in case you want to check them out) were Ardell Fashion Lashes in 110 Black.
For the rest of the face I used Rimmel Fix & Perfect Pro face primer, Revlon ColorStay Whipped foundation, CoverGirl&Olay eye concealer (for under eyes), Neutrogena concealer (the one with salycilic acid to zap zits!), Maybelline Mineral Power Finishing Veil, Sonia Kashuk Super Sheer Liquid Tint in Rose, and Tarte Amazonian Clay 12 hour Blush in Dollface. Oh my goodness. With all the long-wearing products I used, that blush was intense, and color did not die down!
Oh and the lips!
I don't know why I didn't include it in the picture, but I prepped my lips with Jordana Twist&Shine in Cranberry Crush, let that soften my lips, wiped it off and then powdered my lips with translucent powder. Then I lined it with my Jordana lip liner in Cabernet, used an angled brush to apply Wet 'n' Wild lipstick in Dark Wine (522A), and then dabbed Maybelline Color Whisper in Berry Ready in the center of my lips. To make it stay all night, I dabbed a little eye shadow of the same color scheme over my lips and boy did it stay! It ended up staying on my lips until the next morning. I have discovered the secret to truly long-wearing lip color.
Key features for the Flapper Look:
- Dark eyes: They wanted to look like dolls, so by bringing dark eye shadow far up and around the eye, their eyes looked bigger.
- Dark lips: For lips to show up in pictures, they had to use darker lip colors. Not necessarily as dark as I went (I just wanted to for my particular look), but not nude and light pink either!
- Pale skin: This was a time when being pale was a good thing. Also, powder was a big deal, so don't be afraid to cake it on!
- Rosy cheeks: To keep up with the doll-like, youthful look, they used blush in circular motions to amplify a round look (instead of the angular look we go for now).
- Eyebrows: I don't think you can see it very well in my pictures, but I did put foundation over my brows (not that it completely canceled them out, by any means) and I drew thin lines across the tops of my brows. I tried to keep the shape rounded, and also brought the line down farther than I normally draw my brows in.
So that about wraps up this post. Do keep in mind that it was just the look I came up with for me based off of many videos and websites I'd seen. Here are some of the links that I found most helpful so you can see them and make up your own flapper look. Enjoy!
I found this one to be the most informative as to why the girls did what they did with their makeup. Kinda helps you get in the right mindset: Historically Accurate: 1920's Makeup Tutorial
This was just one of the first ones I ever watched, and I liked the final look. Beware, it can get a little slow from time to time because there isn't much editing: Vintage Makeup Tutorial 1- 1920s inspired look
Here's the tutorial I used to help the most with my finger waves (unfortunately, I didn't get a very good picture of them, so you can't see the results of all my hard work ): ) : 1920s Authentic Finger Wave Hair Tutorial For finger waves, I find it helpful to watch several different videos because there are little things that people do differently to get the same look, and it helps to know them all so you can pick and choose what works best for you. I did watch many, but in the end, this was the one I referenced the most.
Whew, that was a long post. Here are some more pictures of me in the costume, just for fun. Have a great weekend!
~Stacie
That was me trying another flapperesque look, and still failing. This was after I'd just finished, so everything was nice and freshly done! And my hair was already messed up... sigh.
Why am I smiling?! Flappers don't smile, they pout.
This is my favorite picture. I took it at about 2 in the morning after going to see my first Rocky Horror Picture Show. It was great!
And since you can't really get a good look at the headpiece in any of the above pictures, here's a good shot of it. I think it turned out pretty well, so I like to show it off. :)
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