The all important model & photographer

Throughout the design process I have been thinking about the perfect model for the look, and I want to use the same model for both of the looks as I think it will help to bond the looks together and make it more obvious that they come as a full collection. The final makeup and hair designs can then be finalised and fully designed when knowing the model's hair type too.

Model Nyane:

This model is perfect! I am so excited to have booked her and cannot wait to get on with the shoot now. I have spoken to Nyane and her hair is all extensions, so I think that the most effective style to do on her hair is the wavy one, using thick wavers and spray it into place. This will look really effective with her silver blonde hair and the contrast with her skin tone.

When it came to choosing a photographer, I looked through many people before I came to my decision. The photographer, Caroline, is really good with lighting and knows a lot about how to create different effects, and I am hoping will be the best at showcasing the bright makeup I will be applying. From what I have seen of it, Caroline's work looks pretty amazing, and I can't wait to work with her either!

Styling ideas

I do not want to spend a lot of time thinking about the styling, though I know that it is important in considering for the entire mis-en-scene of the image, though ultimately the images are being submitted for a makeup and hair look, with no marking towards the styling. I would love the idea of using something structured and stiff in my styling, and have the idea of something made of paper. This is fairly far fetched as I am not entirely sure of how I would go about making something of paper in the short time that I have and also the fact that I do not know anyone who designs paper clothing I think may be a limitation. Examples of these are below:

^ Though I do love the idea of this, I think that this may also detract from the idea of the makeup and hair, and because this is fairly 'out there' already, the image may become too much. I also have noticed that the styling choices in previous Illamasqua collections is not the centre of attention, because they are advertising the makeup essentially, so this needs to be the main focus. ^

^ Another idea I have had for the styling is to have my model wearing a black strapless bandeau and really highlighting and shading her collar bones. This is very simple but I think it will give a really nice effect and come up really nicely on camera with the right lighting. ^

New collection alert!

Illamasqua's new collection has just arrived: Paranormal.

"Illamasqua is opening a doorway to a new dimension. Do you dare to come in? Give in as beauty takes control. After all, why be normal, when you can be Paranormal?" - Illamasqua for Paranormal collection Summer 2013.

These images have a surreal, dusty effect. The colours are blended within these images and give off a smoky, unfocussed effect. 

The use of hands in their images, including a stand alone image of hands by themselves, emphasise the importance of all of their products and to showcase them wherever possible. This gives me a reminder to use hands in possible shots that could be used for my final images.

The bleached eyebrows here that are a totally contrasting colour to the hair is a fresh take on eyebrows and very interesting to the eye.

I notice the use of styling here, and how I must think of this when moving on in my design process.

I love this image!! The use of the hands pushing through the plastic-like material is so interesting and really gives a 'paranormal' atmosphere. 

The following image also emphasises the paranormal feel and the colour blending here is absolutely gorgeous! 

Looking at new collections gives me  fresh ideas and insights into Illamasqua's philosophy and style, and urges me on to complete my own look! 

Hair Hair Hair

I wanted to plan some hair ideas, though I am yet to find a model, so need to have different variations of ideas to cater for different hairstyles. 

^ I love the hair style above. The blue and yellow application within this image does help in the visualisation, however the creation of the faux-hawk curling down to the forehead looks amazing. The hair on the sides could be gelled down to enhance the idea of a slicked look, though this may look too much and too over the top. This hairstyle could work with various lengths of hair and I could use hair extensions if the front section was not thick/long enough. Though I would not use blue or yellow hair, I could bring the makeup into the hairline and fade this into the natural hair colour too. ^

^ Though this hairstyle seems a bit of an obvious option, I do really like it and it does show the 'slick' word off very well. I also think that doing this hairstyle will completely depend on the hair type my model has, because this will work best with sleek, straight hair. This will be unlikely if I have a mixed race model, and may not look right with their hair type. ^

^ Using a waver to create this look if my model has very long hair will be really interesting in my opinion. I think that it will really contrast with the makeup designs and, depending on the colour, will really show up nicely on camera. I'd love to find a model with mixed race skin and white blonde hair, but the chances of me finding that are pretty small I think!! I can and will try though. ^

Facechart designs!

Designing facecharts for the beauty and fantasy looks was not difficult because I had many sources of inspiration and knew the sort of thing I wanted to create. The only problem I found was that I really need to think out of the box, Illamasqua style, and remember that their idea of beauty is not necessarily mascara on the eyes, lipstick on the lips, and the 'standard' idea of makeup. 
I need to think about the fact that the beauty look is not exactly tame or toned down and that the fantasy look needed to be very avant-garde and even more so than the beauty one. This doesn't mean I need to go on an overload of makeup, but that I need to get inside the brain of Alex Box, Illamasqua's creative director, and think/predict what she may produce in the future in the words of 'futuristic, slick, cobalt & yellow'. 

Beauty ideas: 

I have used blue and yellow as my only prominent colours within all of the face designs. I aim to use a model that has mixed race or a very tanned skin tone with dark hair and think that using only the bright blue and bright yellow will really pop and show up well on the camera. The blue and yellow designs on the face also will have a slick look to them, as they will not be overly matte, more glossy. I think that using less products on the face will be very interesting and help to focus only on the colours placed on the face, also this should look really effective. The eyebrows are designed in these facecharts to look very defined, structured and bold, and I think that this will revert back to the 'beauty' requirement of this image. This reminds me that members of the public will also see these images, not just makeup artists, and will want to be able to see the makeup advertised in a way that they can translate to their own face.

Fantasy ideas:

The fantasy looks give more of a creative reign. I love the idea of using the dip dyed eyebrow effect as we have not seen this in previous illamasqua campaigns and this may promote new products to be used in the brows to colour them in different ways to the normal dark blonde to brown colours. Saying that, Illamasqua promote the fact that all of their products can be used anywhere, and adding their sealing gel to any powdered eyeshadow can create a waterproof gel. I could use this to paint on the eyebrows and use a black and yellow or even the blue and yellows to achieve this.

Initial moodboards of ideas!

Pulling together a moodboard seems a good idea to create some organised mess with my ideas for the project. 

The first moodboard shows influences I may use within the design process, and things that make me think of the four words I have compiled, and the second is a collection of makeup and hair looks that inspire me to design and create my very own looks. 

After the two moodboards, I will create a sentence that depicts my look going forwards and this will help me to move onto the next step, the designing. 

Influences + ideas moodboard(click to enlarge!)

Makeup and hair influences (click to enlarge!) - 

The two moodboards give an outline of the sort of look I wish to create. 

"The futuristic and slick explosion of cobalt blue and zesty yellow, a push of design placed onto the face"

FUTURISTIC SLICK

Inspirations:

The use of vivid colours and mosaics from artist Gaudi, inspires me by the brightness and clarity in the blues, yellows and greens.

Gaudi's work again, with the interesting shape and sculpt of the building, giving a futuristic, avant-garde vibe, though the building is not new. 

Some more futuristic, geometric architecture: 

Patterns, textures and prints including colours for inspiration:

I love the fade here from blue to yellow, this could connote a slick change between colours and I would love to be able to use this reference within my designs!

The vividness of the Cobalt here looks almost as though it is not real. I love the shading and droplets of water on the bottles, adding texture and depth to the photo.

The stippling and paint brushed effect here is not necessarily 'slick', though the bright neons and contrasts here really inspire me to create bright, eye-catching imagery for this project.

Synonyms for FUTURISTIC:

advanced, cutting edge, innovative, modern, pioneering, revolutionary, visionary.

Synonyms for SLICK:

glossy, greasy, icy, lubricious, oily, shiny, sleek, slippery, slithery, soapy. 

Where to start

To begin researching and starting to think about culminating a look, the idea of using four words (2 words and 2 colours) to bed my look upon is an interesting idea.

WORDS: Futuristic & Slick
COLOURS: Bright yellow & Cobalt blue

And so the research begins, not just looking at previous makeup looks, but at architectural and artistic influences, creating a sentence or two that explains my look, and looking at various hairstyles and techniques I may use in my looks. 

I plan to begin by pinning onto the virtual boards of Pinterest, and then moving on to moodboards, experiments, face charts, model searching, and lots more! 

The beginning!

After being given the brief for a new project, I couldn't wait to get started. The brief is very open and allows us to have the reigns on our own ideas, with hardly any limitations of what we can produce in four images. The final four images need to be influenced by Beauty and Fantasy, each of these influenced and reflected upon a new campaign for makeup brand Illamasqua. 

Looking at their previous campaigns and images seems to be the best place to start my research, as I already have a great understanding for their looks and their philosophy/strap line: 'WE ARE COLOUR. YOU ARE BEAUTY.' formerly 'Make-up for your alter ego'.

Illamasqua's previous and current collections: 

I'MPERFECTION:

"Stand up and show the world what makes you perfectly, imperfect. We want you to highlight features that other brands encourage you to cover up. Because life isn't about finding yourself, life is about celebrating who you really are." - Illamasqua for I'MPERFECTION campaign for Spring 2013.

The collection is all about showing off your freckles, scars, birthmark and other features that you may not have previously showcased to be imperfectly perfect. Products in this collection included:

The new 'BLUSH UP' Brush:

Intense lipgloss in SHOOT - a 'leaf green':

and Speckled nail varnish in FRAGILE - a 'speckled blue':

Previous collections to this include 'Generation Q':

"Generation Q is a clear message to everybody, everywhere that beauty is not young, old, black, white, male or female, but anything, everything and everyone." - Illamasqua for Generation Q campaign Autumn 2012.

The collection celebrates age, race and gender and shows that these do not matter, that everything is beautiful. 

More images from other campaigns and collections are shown below:

Naked Strangers - Spring 2012

Human Fundamentalism - Autumn 2011

The variation of these images show me that I really can produce anything, though the look should have a story/quote to go along with it. This may also help me in my design process and in finding my inspiration. 

When thinking about beauty and fantasy looks, it is important for me to realise that a beauty shot for Illamasqua is not necessarily the standard beauty shot. For example, a beauty shot for Chanel and for Illamasqua are two completely different things. This is where understanding the brand and it's philosophy will come in very useful and I must create looks that underpin their style and follow on from previous collections we have seen.