Morticia Addams Tutorial: Happy Halloween

My favorite holiday is upon us. It's a little late, but in case you are looking for some inspiration or help, here is a tutorial on how to transform yourself into Morticia Addams.

I started by using my airbrush machine and the color Arctica to create the deathly white complexion that Morticia is famous for. You don't have to use an air brush. You can use a very light foundation or even mix a white face paint in with your regular foundation.

Arctica and Airbrush

You can see the before and after here. I thought I was white already, but I was wrong. I also noticed that the whiter my skin got the pinker my eyeballs got.

Before and after airbrushing

Next I did some contouring, light and dark. For the light I mixed white cream from my Makeup Forever Flash palette and my concealer.

Here is where I put the lights and the darks. The contoured cheek bones are are very important for this look.

After blending the contouring I started on the eyes. Morticia's eyes have a signature smokey look. I started by using a brown to sketch out the shape. I created a v-shape on the outer corners and pulled it all the way up to the inside of the brow. Then I used the gray and the black from this palette and went over the outer v-shape blending as I went. Do it in small increments and blend. I also used the white on my brow bone and the inner corner of my eyes.

You can see here that I kept darkening the shadow in the outer corner.

I also added a shimmery white to the inner corners. If you black gets to smudgy you can also use a brush with concealer to clean it up.

I then added black eyeliner to the top lid. I used a basic cat eye shape and used a cream liner lightly under the eye. I don't like the way my eyes look with black on the water line so I put it under the lashes and filled the water line with white eyeliner.

Next I drew on the eyebrows. Morticia's eyebrows are black and rounded.

The false eyelashes, mascara and red lips are the final touch. Set it with powder and put on your wig.

Here is the final look.

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.

Cat Eye Eyeliner

The cat eye is an essential part of the pin up look. If you aren't familiar with this term, it's when your eyeliner extends past your eye and gets thicker with a pointy flick on the end. It's called this because it makes your eyes look more feline, like a cat. There isn't one way to do this or one type of eyeliner. In fact, I'm still searching for the perfect eyeliner for this look. There are pros and cons to the many different types. Here are some of the types:

• Liquid: Good for this look because it goes on smooth, even with clean edges.
• Felt Tip: Easier to use, but can sometimes bleed or not be dark enough.
• Hard Tip: Can be harder to use because there is no give, but tends to be darker. Especially if waterproof. But it can get stuck in your eyelashes and cause clumping when trying to apply mascara. But stays on well.
• Pencil: Not very good for a cat eye as you can't get the small flick on the end very well. It is easier to apply because it's not as messy. Better for a smokey eye because it can be smudged and blended.
• Cream: This is what I use because I prefer to use a small brush. It gives me more control and goes on even and dark. Can transfer to the lid if you have oily eyelids.
• Small brush
• Angled brush

Update: I have since found an eyeliner that I absolutely love and had to share. The brand is Jessie's Girl. It's cheap and it's wonderful. Goes on smooth, doesn't bleed, doesn't transfer to the lids, doesn't dry out or crack. Is a very dark color and is easy to apply. (added August 18th)

You can see the different shades and staying power of the eyeliners above. The bottom photo is after wiping my hand with a towel. The one that stayed is the waterproof liquid with the hard tip. I still prefer the cream because, while the liquid one stays, it gets stuck in my eyelashes.

Here are the eyeliner brushes that I have. The first one is my preferred brush. It's very small and allows for more control. The angles brush is good for the flick on the end.

Here is a video of how I apply my eyeliner with cream liner and a small brush.

If you need a little extra help there is a trick you can use to make the flick even and straight, scotch tape. Place a small piece of tape as shown in the photo.

Here is a demo of how you apply the flick with scotch tape. Pull the tape off slowly to protect your skin.


And to get both sides even, just flip your tape over and use the eyeliner residue from the last application as a guide for where to stop.

Here is the final result. It doesn't have to be perfect and it takes some practice. Don't be afraid to just wipe it off and start again. It's just makeup and it's supposed to be fun. Get crazy with it too. Play with how far you can take the wing and how thick you can make it. There is no wrong way to do it.

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.