Harpers Bazaar

Magazine: Harpers Bazaar

Harpers Bazaar June/July 2014 Cover featuring Kate Winslet

Harper's Bazaar was first published in America in 1867. The magazine primarily focuses on womens fashion and style and therefore tends to have a following of the upper/middle classes especially women.

Ever since the publication started it has featured work from various well known photographers, artists and writers such as; Richard Avedon, Andy Warhol and Carrie Donovan. The magazine was originally a weekly publication which displayed many different fashion pieces from Paris and Germany. In 1901 it was decided that the magazine should be published monthly rather than weekly.

The Cover above shows the intended target audience is women. Bags and shoes are advertised along with sexy hair styles and diet pills. They are all very cliche topics which would appeal to a female audience. The colours are also very feminine and bold which would make them stand out to women. Whilst researching the age range of the magazines readers I found that the magazine in popular with females between the ages of 18-34. The overall average age of its audience is around 41, which shows the magazine is more appealing to a more mature and sophisticated person. Its smart content supports this theory.

Target Audience Stats from the Harpers Bazaar Media Kt

Out of all the magazines I purchased for my research, This is one of the thickest ones. You get a lot of content for your money but as you can imagine a lot of this is advertisements. This shows that they make a lot of money through offering advertisements for other brands and companies. Surprisingly though, most of the advertisements aren't always products. Clothes and fashion is what a large proportion of the pages contain. The jewelry and clothing items are pretty much all high brand and expensive although in my cope of the magazine, there was one page advertising Next which is slightly more high-street in comparison to the others. I can imagine Harpers Bazaar is for a smart and maturer audience which knows a thing or two about fashion. 

References

Shaw, P. (1999). Internationalization of the women's magazine industry in Taiwan context, process and influence. Asian Journal of Communication, 9(2), pp.17-38.

Upload.wikimedia.org. (2016). [online] Available at: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/df/Kate_Winslet_June-July_2014_HB_Cover.jpg [Accessed 4 Mar. 2016].

Harpersbazaarmediakit.com. (2016). Harpers Bazaar Media Kit. [online] Available at: http://www.harpersbazaarmediakit.com/r5/showkiosk.asp?listing_id=5180841&category_id=78493 [Accessed 4 Mar. 2016].

i-D

Magazine: iD Magazine

i-D is a British publication that was founded in 1980 by Terry Jones, who was a previous art director for Vogue. It featured the street style of London during the punk era at this time and it became known for its style and fashion originality. Since then iD has it's own website which allows it's content to be available on a global level. As Terry Jones was an art director before founding the magazine, I think this heavily influenced the direction in which the magazine was headed. It as more of an artsy vibe than other magazines. iD has more of a simple layout than others and is all about simplicity.

The first ever issue was written by typewriter and was hand stapled. The physical appearance of the magazine went under improvement during the next few years but its content still revolved around style.

One interesting and unique thing about iD is that each cover has a tradition of the eye of each model either winking or being covered by an object or accessory. Many celebrities are featured on the cover winking or covering their eye and it is now a known trademark of the company. 

The magazine also tends to have a theme with titles like 'youthful' or 'Graceful'. This sets the theme for the content inside. I have also noticed that the covers are not as loaded with text as other magazines. It's almost as if readers already know that the content inside features fashion and quirky style, so that it is not necessary to advertise whats inside the magazine. I like how this magazine moved through the ages but kept its way of printing fresh new ideas for style. 

As iD was created to be an inspiration for fashion culture in the 80's, it seemed to have a youthful audience who wanted a new style, not one from past generations. It featured starts such as madonna and Kate Moss which are people who heavily influence the fashion industry and the younger generations. The magazine still continues to bring modern and upcoming fashion to its readers which suggests that its target audience hasn't hanged much over the years. 

As the magazine features people on the front cover from different areas of the industry, it appeals to a wider audience as models, fans and people interested in fashion and art would read the magazine. The target audience for the magazine is young adults with an age range of 18-30. Females tend to buy the magazine more than men. People who have an idea of fashion, art or music which isn't also always mainstream knowledge. It offers everything the youthful generations are interested in and gives them inspiration for new music and style.



References 

i-D. (2016). About | i-D. [online] Available at: https://i-d.vice.com/en_us/about [Accessed 4 Mar. 2016].

Wikipedia. (2016). 
I-D. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I-D [Accessed 4 Feb. 2016].

Madonnatribe.com. (2016). [online] Available at: http://www.madonnatribe.com/i_50/003.jpg [Accessed 4 Mar. 2016].

prezi.com. (2016). i-D Magazine Audience Research. [online] Available at: https://prezi.com/hjs3c9gykp0p/i-d-magazine-audience-research/ [Accessed 4 Mar. 2016].

Marie Claire

Magazine: Marie Claire

Marie Claire Feb 15 issue 

The first edition of Marie Claire was published in France in 1937 after being founded by Jean Prouvost and Marcelle Auclair. The monthly magazine is now published in many countries and its content can vary slightly with each. I purchased Marie Claire to research what topics the magazine discusses and what kind of products they advertise. I found out that the magazine focuses its attention on beauty, lifestyle and fashion. This tells me that the magazine is mainly targeted at women as the products and health advice is aimed towards them.

Target audience is as I have mentioned before, women. Although I think the age range of this category is fairly wide as in the particular copy of the magazine I purchased (The Fashion Issue March 2016 ) had an article which spoke about mental age and how older women think differently. This could be used to try and educate the younger audience.


The magazine advertises a diverse selection of products and items from fashion pieces to makeup. What I found interesting about the recommended items is that they were all of different price range. High end makeup and clothing was just as advertised as cheaper alternatives. This further engages a spectrum of readers as there is something to suit everyone. Most of the adverts in this particular edition were spread on a single page but there was occasionally a double sided or double spread page. I think singular pages are a clever idea as there is more space for even more adverts and articles. I found there was less adverts and more articles than Vogue which I wasn't surprised about because Vogue is mainly advertisement.

Marc Jacobs Advertisement
Marie Claire 2016

The image above is an advertisement for Marc Jacobs perfume 'Daisy'. As you can clearly see the ad is aimed at women as it has a very feminine energy. The product is very pretty and girl by using flowers to sell the scent of the perfume but in terms of advertisement they have made the colour of the page just as delicate with the use of pink which is a colour which is sterotypically favored by women.

Most of the adverts are full of colour which represents the fashion influence of the magazine and is used to attract the audience to the contents of the pages.Julianne Moore appears on the front cover which may suggest that the age range is not just for the younger female, as readers who are of a similar age of her will be likely to know her and pick up the magazine.

The articles focused on topics such as health and fitness even featuring celebrities such as Davina McCall giving advice and tips. There was also stories which talked about sex, pages on beauty secrets from Cheryl Cole and fashion photo shoot images with a breakdown of what the model is wearing from new released collections. It's safe to say this magazine is diverse in terms of stories and topics.

The design of the magazine is very visual and the bold colours are use of images are the tools which capture the audience. Text is added when necessary but most of the magazine is made up of various images which is probably due to the advertisement of items. Free samples of perfume are present on a few pages which accentuates that the audience is mainly women as aftershave or any mens products are not featured.

References

Magazine. (2016). Marie Claire, (331).

Bryanmorelpr.co.uk. (2016). [online] Available at: http://bryanmorelpr.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Marie-Claire-Cover-FEB1.jpg [Accessed 04 Mar. 2016].

Elle

Magazine: Elle Magazine

Elle Magazine Jan 16

Elle magazine was first published in 1945 in France and was founded by Helene Gordon-Lazareff and Pierre Lazareff who was a married couple. Elle was named as the worlds best selling fashion magazine."Elle" is french for "her" or "she". The next country to introduce the magazine was Japan in 1969. From then the US and UK followed until it became a popular and known magazine all over the world with more countries joining the bandwagon.

73% of Elles readers have a subscription to the magazine and they have 33 websites in different languages to make it more accessible to readers. The average age of its readers is 34 but 82% of its readers do range between 18 - 49, which is still a pretty wide margin. The editor in chief, Roberta Myers said "Our readers are young enough to think about life as an adventure and old enough to have the means to live it".

Tom Ford Advertisement in ELLE Jan 16 Issue

As Elle is a fashion magazine it often advertises high end fashion pieces, products or brands. Looking through my copy of Elle and nearly everything advertised is expensive and high end which shows the target audience would likely be more upper class. All the pieces advertised seems to be aimed at women which stuff like bags, shoes and cosmetics being spread across its pages. The most expensive brands seem to have a two page or more spread for advertisement. It is clear the magazine makes a lot of money from offering advertisement as the magazine heavily offers it's pages for this purpose.
It seems that Elles readers are young and successful enough to follow the fashion trends and be able to afford the items advertised. They may also be in or interested in the fashion industry and use this magazine to keep up with the current trends and products on the market. The magazine also features fitness or diet tips which suggests that readers care about their appearance or look for an approach to a different lifestyle.

References

Anon, (2016). Elle.

Wikipedia. (2016). 
Elle (magazine). [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elle_(magazine) [Accessed 1 Apr. 2016].

Vogue

Magazine: Vogue

The first issue of Vogue was published in 1892 in America and was created by Arthur Baldwin Turnure. Vogue was aimed at men and women as it covered not just fashion but social affairs and sport updates.

Vogue was sold to Conde Montrose Nast in 1905 and by 1910 he made Vogue an overseas publication. When visiting Britain in 1916 he decided he wanted to start publishing there and later went on to grow the magazine by publishing in Spain, Italy and France. Whilst he was managing the magazine he raised its profit and awareness majorly. Vogue was essential for the sociable and wealthy and this was noticeable as they featured beauty icons and recognized figures from the Eras such as the Gibson Girl. The magazine did face declines in sales during difficult financial periods such as the great depression and world war but still managed to remain current and popular. Vogue seemed to go more into fashion and editorial material in the 1960's as their chief editor was changed to Diana Vreeland. The magazine seemed to cover sexuality a lot more openly by bringing in artist and models to feature and this greatly appealed to a younger audience.

The magazine went under more changes in 1973 when its Editor changed once again to Grace Mirabella. She decided that vogue needed to change with the stylistic changes of its readers. Although some people seemed to find that under her management Vogue became dull and boring. The years in which she was in her position were named as the "Beige Years".

Anna Wintour took over the position in 1988 and made the brand focus more on accessible fashion which in turn made the magazine more approachable and the features items more affordable. She has made many changes within the company and is still currently in her position.

British Vogue featuring Jourdan Dunn

Nowadays the target audience is more aimed at women as the text usually on the front of the magazine advertises products and tips which women would be interested in. The colours are also very bright and feminine and there is more often than not a woman on the front cover.

The different publications from each country vary in styles. Here are some examples of various vogue magazines from different countries and how their style differ.

American Vogue

British Vogue

Vogue Paris

Vogue India

American Vogue was the first branch of Vogue to be published but as the production moved overseas the magazines style has changed. Vogue India uses bold colours on the front cover and still keep the traditional feature of having a woman modelling on the front page. The text matches the colour theme which in this particular cover is orange. The background features the outdoors which makes the image seem more exotic. The text also mentions summer and animal print which further add to the exotic feel of this copy of the magazine. The target audience appears to still be aimed at women as it mentions "beauty essentials". The models hair is left loose and natural and her face isn't incredibly made up aside from the eyes.

Vogue Paris usually tends to be a lot more sleek and serious. As one of the major fashion capitals in the world their version of Vogue definitely reflects this. The model is in Chanel and heavily accessorized as well as wearing a serious expression as if she is walking the catwalk. The makeup on te model is similar to what I have seen in pictures of fashion and editorial shoots with bleached brows and a strong red lip. This particular cover has a theme of red, white and black and the models makeup fits in with this. Due to how serious and professional this shot is it seems as if their target audience is more based around people who are in the makeup and fashion industry or even those who are slightly more interested that the average reader. The other covers seem a bit more laid back so I think this cover can be a bit less approachable but still beautiful nevertheless.

British vogue features the famous British model Kate Moss on its front cover. The colour theme is very colourful and friendly as they are easy on the eye which in turn makes people more likely to pick it up. The text talks about the photographer for Burberry Christopher Bailey which tells me that this magazine is probably not targeted straight at the general public as many might not have heard of him if they are not clued up on the fashion industry.  This is one of my favorite covers as its so fresh and summery and just visually pleasing.

American Vogue has Beyonce on the front cover and has a simple yet stylistic theme of grey, black and white. The text on the cover seems to be a bit more powerful with the use of words such as "strong", "Sexy" and "Elegance". This is what women can aspire to be so these words will definitely capture female attention. 

All of the magazines from each country usually advertise high end fashion brands or items and products from well known companies such as: Dior, Chanel and Rolex. Most of the magazine is advertisements for campaigns or products which are simple but bold enough to capture the attention they require. As each magazine features expensive brand advertisements their target audience would be more mature or sophisticated. Their content is fashion based so I imagine many within that industry would be subscribers to the publication. 

References

Condenast.ru, (2016). Vogue - History. [online] Available at: https://www.condenast.ru/en/portfolio/magazines/vogue/history/ [Accessed 31 Jan. 2016].

Wikipedia, (2016). Vogue (magazine). [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vogue_(magazine) [Accessed 1 Feb. 2016].

Thestylewatcher.files.wordpress.com, (2016). [online] Available at: https://thestylewatcher.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/american-vogue-march-2013-cover1.jpg [Accessed 1 Feb. 2016].

Lelalondon.com, (2016). [online] Available at: http://www.lelalondon.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Kate-Moss-Vogue-UK.jpg [Accessed 1 Feb. 2016].

Askmissa.com, (2016). [online] Available at: http://askmissa.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/french-vogue.jpg [Accessed 1 Feb. 2016].

I1.wp.com, (2016). [online] Available at: http://i1.wp.com/feminisminindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Vogue-India-Cover.jpg?resize=228%2C300 [Accessed 1 Feb. 2016].

Hair Pieces

Hair: Hair Pieces

Our lesson this week featured different hair pieces and switches. We had a demo by our Lecturer Emma on how to apply these to the hair and hide them. We then got asked to pick one and fit it in the hair then make a style from it, whether it be a high pony tail, plait or bun.

I decided to go with a long hair switch as my model had should length hair and I wanted to give it some more length. I started off by putting her hair in a tight ponytail. I then put the switch underneath the pony tail and separated the hair in 3 sections and started to plait them. This made the model hair blend with the hair piece. I then pinned it underneath into the base of the ponytail with a hair grip to secure it in place. Any stray hairs were slicked back with hair spray.

Here is how it turned out:

Hair By: Chelsey Pavey
Model: Brittany

Evaluation

What Went Well: I found this look a lot more challenging than it looked in the demo and had a couple of failed attempt before it looked right. Therefore I'm glad I got a successful style out of it even though I know it should look a lot better. It was well secured so that was one of the positives of this look. I will have to practice this in order to get it looking more presentable though.


What I Could Improve On: My model has a different shade of hair than the switch so I feel like it was harder to blend into the hair. I also feel like for a style so easy it wasn't as neat as I would have liked. As I had a few failed attempts I ran out of time to keep practicing this style to get it to look more presentable but i'm still glad I've had the experience of working with hair pieces as I will definitely be using them for further projects in the future.

Black and White Makeup

Makeup: Black and White Makeup

Our lesson today was focused on makeup for black and white photography. Many shades can disappear when photos are taken in black and white as only dark shades will show and others appear washed out.

We had a demo for the start of the lesson on how to do a natural look with very dewy skin and another heavier look which was a black smokey eye with white winged liner. They both showed up very well and it was enlightening to see how the looks appeared on a black and white filter as they can look completely different.

To start the look the face was cleansed, toned and moisturized. This removes any dirt, makeup and oils from the skin and prepares it for makeup application. MAC Strobe Highlighting Cream was then applied to go under the base. This can also be mixed with foundation to give the same dewy effect.
Concealer was then applied to the under eye area and on any blemishes to add more coverage and neutralize out any discoloration. The T-Zone was then powdered to soak up any excess oil and to set the foundation. The cheeks however were not as this is where the dewy/natural shine should come through.
For the more natural side of this makeup, Vaseline was dabbed onto the cheek bone to further highlight it. 'Omega' Eye Shadow by MAC was then applied to the eye lid and blended through the crease. Vaseline was dabbed on to of this to give it a sexy wet look which will show up on camera. Mascara was then swept through the lashes and the brows were kept natural and just brushed through with MAC Brow Gel.

The darker more experimental side was contrasting with the natural look. Brow Gel was also swept through the brow to keep the hairs neat and in place. MAC 'Carbon' Eye Shadow was then blended into the lid with a fluffy brush to create a quick smokey eye. 'Brule' Eye Shadow was used to blend out any harsh edges and to make it appear more seamless. Charlotte Tilbury Sculpting Powder was dusted under the cheek bones to contour the face. 'Silver Dusk' Iridescent Powder by MAC is used to highlight the cheekbones and cupids bow. Kryolan Cream Liner in 'Snow' is then applied to the upper lash line and winged out. Mascara finishes the eye look.The lips just had vaseline on them as the skin and eye were the main focus.

Here is how the looks turned out:

MUA: Holly
Model: Aimee

MUA:Holly
Model:Aimee

Products

MAC Strobe Cream

Vaseline 

Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation

Translucent Powder

Mascara

MAC 'Carbon' Eye Shadow

MAC Concealer Palette in Medium

Kryolan Cream Liner in 'Snow'

MAC Brow Gel

MAC Eye Shadow in 'Brule' 

MAC Eye Shadow in 'Omega'

Charlotte Tilbury Sculpting Powder

MAC Iridescent Loose Powder in 'Silver Dusk'

Now it was my turn to create a look which demonstrated different textures and shades that would show up on black and white filters. I started by giving the skin a cleanse, tone and moisturize. I then applied MAC Strobe Cream to the face. Using Full Coverage Foundation by MAC as a base I then moved on to the eyes. Concealing wasn't necessary as the foundation covered up any problem areas. I then put 'Omega' by MAC on the lid up to the crease and blended it out with a fluffy brush. I then added 'Brun' by MAC to the top and lower lash line and blended thoroughly to give more definition to the lashes. Mascara was then combed through the lashes. I filled in the brows slightly with 'Brun' and brushed them through with Brow Gel. I used my Kryolan Supra Colour Palette to mix up a contour shade and buffed this into the jawline and cheekbones. With the help of some Kryolan Translucent Powder I set the foundation of the T-Zone. The lips were the last step of the makeup. I used 'Hang up' on the lips with a lip brush. It didnt quite give me the colour I wanted as it appeared a bit more sheer on the lips than what I thought so I went in with a MAC Black Pencil and lined the lips and filled them in slightly. I went it with the same lip brush and blended this to make the whole lip darker and then applied 'Cyber' by MAC over the top for a darker colour. The makeup was then complete.

This is the final image:

MUA: Chelsey Pavey
Model: Lucy

Products

MAC Strobe Cream

MAC Brow Gel

Vaseline

MAC Full Coverage Foundation

Mascara

MAC Black Pencil Liner

Kryolan Translucent Powder

MAC Lipsticks in:

'Cyber'

'Hang up' 

Kryolan Supra Colour Palette

MAC Eye Shadow in:

'Brun'

'Omega'  

Evaluation

What Went Well:

I am really happy with how my image turned out in black and white as the lip and contour stood out which is what I wanted the focus to be on. I was also happy that I did something a little bit different as most of the class did the same as in the demo although I do think I could have challenged myself more.

What I Could Improve On:

I definitely think I could have picked a harder look to do but I just waned to do a stronger lip instead of eye to be different. I could've done a complete black lip which would've saved me from the problems I seemed to have with the lip colours not being dark enough so they needed adjusting. Although I think its good that I had to problem solve and figure out what to do. I also think I should have perhaps put more of a highlight on the cheeks just so it shows more on camera. I didn't go too cray as I wanted to mix up the textures of my look and as the lips and eyes were glossy I didn't want the whole thing to have too much shine but a little would've complimented the contour. Overall it was good to start figuring out which shades will show in black and white and to consider different ways in which you wanted the image to come E.g matte or dewy, dark or light.

Contrasting Colours

Makeup: Contrasting Colours


For our first term 2 fashion makeup lesson we were told to get creative with contrasting colour. These are the colours opposite each other on the colour wheel. For our demo Branka used yellow and purple.

She started off by using strobe cream on the face instead of a moisturizer. This will give the skin more of a dewy glow once the base is applied. The eyes were the main feature for this look so to make sure the colours pop a white base was applied to intensify the colour when it was applied over the top. Kryolan white Grease paint was used for the base. If a long lasting look is required then MAC Paint Pots are a better option and grease paint can tend to crease over time. A yellow eye shadow was pressed into the white base on the lid. To give the crease some definition the light contour shade from the Sleek Contour Kit was swept through it with a fluffy brush.White greasepaint was used to line the waterline. A purple eye shadow was then applied to the lower lash line. Any fall out from the eye makeup was then removed with cleansing water on a cotton pad.

The flawless base was then created with Kryolan Hydro Foundation. A cream highlighter from Topshop was then applied onto the nose, cheekbones, cupids bow, chin and brow bone. The face was then lightly set with powder. The cheekbones were contoured with the cream Media Pro Palette. To make the eyes appear even bolder, a Black Cake Liner was used on the upper lash line to create a winged liner. MAC Brow Gel was combed through the brows and they were lightly filled in with a powder eye shadow in the shade closest to their natural colour. The lips were a kept fairly neutral with a slight peachy tone to them and MAC Lip-glass was dabbed on top to give them shine.

This is the outcome of the demo:

MUA: Branka Vorkapic
Model: Chloe

Products 

Kryolan White Greasepaint

MAC Strobe Cream

Kryolan Hydro Foundation

Media Pro Palette

Sleek Contour Kit in Light

Black Cake Liner

Kryolan Variety Brights Eye shadow Palette

Topshop Cream Highlighter

MAC Brow gel

MAC Lipglass

Translucent Powder

MAC Pink Lip Palette 

For my own interpretation of this lesson I decided to do a look with neon pink and green. I decided I wanted to do a cut crease with my chosen colours and a winged liner. I used Urban Decay Primer Potion on my eyes to give the eye shadow a base to stick to and prolong it. I used tape for this look as I wanted a very crisp angle to the edges. I placed the tape on the outer corner of my eyes with a small gap in between the lower lash line so I can connect the line later on.  I then used the neon pink from the Sleek acid palette in my crease and giving it a winged out effect at the outer corner. This was blended and 'Virgin' from the Naked Urban Decay Palette was then used in the inner corner and brow bone. I then took the Nyx Eye Shadow Base in White and applied this on my lid, making sure to further accentuate the cut crease shape.I then used the neon green from the same Sleek palette as before and pressed this on top of the White base, which really helped the product to stand out. Once I was happy with the contrasting colours I then moved on to the gel liner. Using a small angled brush I painted a line of about medium thickness on my upper lash line and winged it out at the end. I then peeled off the tape to reveal the sharp edge. For the lower lash line I pressed little dots of gel liner very close to the lashes and blended them with a brush. Kryolan White eye pencil was then used on the waterline and inner corner of the eye to open the eye up and make it appear bigger. Mascara was then combed through the lashes on the top and bottom lash lines.

The brows were filled in with MAC Eye shadows in 'Brun' and 'Omega' using and angled brush to sweep the product through any gaps. For the base on the skin I applied MAC Face and Body Foundation with a stippling brush and buffed it in. Sleek concealer in light was the added under my eyes to cover any remaining dark tones and also onto any blemishes on the skin which were still visible. Super cover Translucent Powder was then used to set the base and MAC 'Shadester' was added to lightly contour the cheekbones. To add a tiny bit of colour to the cheeks I chose MAC 'Tenderling' Blush as this is a pale pink and shouldn't over power the existing makeup. I also wanted nude/pale pink lips so I lined my lips with the MAC 'Naked' Lip Liner and the applied the MAC 'Pretty Please' Lipstick on top.

Products

Urban Decay Primer Potion

Nyx Eye shadow Base in White

Sleek Acid Palette

Urban Decay Naked Palette

Maybelline Gel Liner

MAC Eye shadow in 'Brun'

MAC Eye shadow in 'Omega'

MAC Face and Body Foundation

Sleek Light Concealer Palette

Supercover Translucent Powder

MAC 'Shadester' Bronzer

Mascara

MAC Blush in 'Tenderling'

Kryolan White Eye Pencil

MAC 'Naked' Lip Pencil

MAC 'Pretty Please' Lipstick

MUA: Chelsey Pavey
Pink and Green Contrasting Eyes

Evaluation

What Went Well: I really enjoyed creating this look and looking at which colour combination I wanted to do. I chose pink and green as I like these colours together and felt this was the perfect opportunity to use them. The white pencil liner on the waterline seemed to really compliment the colours on the eyes and gave the look a fresh wide-eyed look which I really liked. I chose to give it a sharp winged look by using tape as I felt this would make it even more edgy and unique. I'm also happy with the cut crease idea as I love how it turned out.

What I Could Improve On: Even though I was happy with my outcome, I can still recognize certain elements I could improve on. I used tape for the sharp edged eye shadow look but I think next time I should try and free hand this look. I could've applied the eye shadow and created the angle by wiping off product in a straight line. I just think the tape method is quicker and neater. I also think I should have applied the NYX Eye shadow base on the crease before I started off with the pink. This would have made the pink as vibrant as the green and they would have contrasted a lot more.

Plaiting and Braiding

Hair: Plaiting and Braiding

For our first week back in Term 2 our fashion hair lesson covered the topic of plaits. We learnt different styles of plaits from a demo by our lecturer Emma. The types we covered were french braid, fish tail and we could try and practice dutch braid if we were confident. A french braid and dutch braid are created using a similar method but the effects are very different. The dutch braid is a style which tends to have the braid coming outwards whereas the french has a more inward plait.

French Braid

When it was our turn to have a go at plaiting the hair, I chose to do a french braid as I'm not very confident with these. Starting with a section at the front of the hair I split it in three smaller sections. I took the section on the right and crossed it over the middle section. I then did the same with the left. As I repeat this process working my way down the head I include pieces of hair from each side of the head whenever I cross a section over the middle. When plaiting the hair, it is important to be firm or the plait can be too loose.

Here is my outcome:

Hair by; Chelsey Pavey
French Braid

Evaluation 

What Went Well: I am actually really pleased with my french braid as I usually find it quite hard to do this style. I am happy with how neat it seemed to look when it was finally done as I expected it to be a bit more messy for my first attempt.


What I Could Improve On: Although I am happy with how this plait turned out, I did still find it quite challenging. Plaits can be quite fiddly so getting used to the flow can be a little difficult at the start but I think it got easier once I did it  couple of times. I found that tension was really important and I didn't seem to hand enough when getting to the bottom of the head so the hair seemed too loose. This is something I definitely need to consider when practicing this look in the future.

Fish Tail Plait

I also tried out a fishtail plait. To create this I took a section at the front of the hair and split it into two. I then took one piece from the right section and put it in the left. I did the same for the left side and then followed the same procedure adding in pieces on loose hair on each side as I went down the head.

Here is my outcome for this look:

Hair by: Chelsey Pavey
Fish Tail Plait

Evaluation 

What Went Well: Having done a fish tail plait before I was quite excited to be able to practice a plait with which I might have more skill with. Although I have done the plait, I had never done a scalp fish tail plait so this was a fairly new skill to me. I think overall it is much harder than the others as it can be a bit harder to get tension in the hair and to get it neat.


What I Could Improve On: I struggled more with this style than I thought I would. I knew this could be quite a hard plait to master but plaiting it from the front of the head has proved much for challenging than I originally thought. I still struggled to keep tension in the hair and I think that might be because I was too gentle and need to be a bit more firm.

French Pleats

French Pleats are a relatively simple up do style once it is mastered. As it is a popular and quick style we were taught how to do it. I started off by taking a section of hair at the front of the head to about the middle and clipping it up out the way I moved on to the sides. I back combed the hair and smoothed the right side back firmly. I then slipped in hair grips by over lapping them in a criss cross motion to secure the hair. I then smoothed over the left side and rolled up the remaining hair and tucked it neatly in the hair whilst clipping it in place. I then unclipped the front section and backcombed it. I pinned the same section back in the shape of the pleat. Hairspray was used to smooth down any stray hairs and to keep the style in place.

Here is my final style:

Hair by: Chelsey Pavey
French Pleat

Evaluation

What Went Well: Considering this look is challenging I am glad I managed to get the final look to resemble a french pleat. I thought my first attempt would go a lot worse than it did so I was quite impressed with myself. I feel like with a bit of practice I could really improve and make this a lot neater.


What I Could Improve On: I found that this particular style looks a lot easier than it actually is. I've definitely got to have more practice to master this look as I felt the final outcome was too bulky and not tucked in enough. I should have put more pins in to secure the hair as this probably would have made the pleat look less big too.