The Fundamentals of Make-Up Design

The Brief and My Interpretation of it;

The New Elizabethans

The New Elizabethans is based on a character you have identified in a painting from the Elizabethan era with a focus to innovate and make it relevant to a contemporary audience. Please keep in mind that these portraits are almost like graphic novels, using images and emblems to tell a story. Since most portraits are based on the image rather than the truth of the person painted, give consideration to the visual allusions and symbolism used in the painting you have chosen to reference and aim to incorporate these within your final image. Although you are using Elizabethan influences, the design for make up and hair must be contemporaneous to the audience today. It is intended that this will create a point of entry for the viewer and enable them to see themselves reflected in the work. With this in mind you must reference the Elizabethan era in a modern way through the adaptation of make up and styling of costume.
Begin by researching Elizabethan portraiture and find an image that visually engages you. Research the background of this image. Who is the sitter, why are they sitting for the portrait? What are they symbolic references within the portrait? What does the clothing say about the sitter? Identify his/her physical characteristics, age, and social class, influences and personality type.
Write a short analysis of how you have interpreted the painting. Please ensure these notes are documented on your Sketch blog and placed next to the image.
To develop the project, you must find a contemporary version of the sitter. Begin by looking through current magazines and newspapers, visiting art galleries, reading books or journals. Gather visual evidence that references traditional Elizabethan makeup, and begin to consider how this can be adapted to work to a contemporary brief. Provide the same background notes for your contemporary sitter, e.g. who is the sitter, why are they sitting for the photograph? Are they symbolic references within the photograph? What does the clothing and make up say about the sitter?

How can you use the ideas from both historical and contemporary images to inform the makeup design for your contemporary Elizabethan character? 

You must suggest through image and text, at least 3 solutions of how you will achieve this and blog all of your findings and self-experimentation. The journey from historical research to contemporary should be concise and show a clear progression of how you have reached the final stage of your design.

Design a minimum of 4 face charts tailored to your own face. These face charts will manifest the development of your ideas, reflected in the body of research presented on your blog. You must create consultation notes for each look, including your skin type, skin sensitivities, current skin care regime and a full list of products or other materials used to create the look. Your notes must be concise, as the assessment will focus on your ability to clearly communicate the final look to your partner during the two-hour assessment.

To clarify, the final face chart you design will be given to your partner to create on your face, and you will be expected to translate your partner’s design onto their face.
Please note: The assessment will highlight your personal working methodology, technical skill and your ability to communicate your own design to your partner, as well as your ability to execute their design given to you. 

My Interpretation;

My initial thoughts of this brief are how eager I am to discover the different techniques and methods the Elizabethans used in order to create the infamous dramatic and captivating looks that are so distinctive and recognisable through the ages and right up to now. 

I want to create an image that portrays the classic beauty from the Elizabethan era but with a modern and dynamic twist. I want to explore other cultures and see if I can find a link between them all in the sense of make up and hair and explore in depth how the cultures could collide and create an explosion of time warp beautifulness.

I want to further my skill by practising old techniques with new equipment and seeing what different images and styles we all develop as individuals within a group.

I want to create a character visually worthy of being a New Elizabethan.

Colour Theory 

Primary colours are the earths natural colours, which you can't make yourself by mixing, these colours for the structure of the colour wheel.  Primary colours include red, yellow and blue. The next thing to remember is the colour wheel is split into 2 sides (cool and warm colours).

After primary colours, you then have secondary colours. These are the colours you would get if you mixed to primary colours together e.g. red and yellow = orange. If you mixed a primary colour, with a tertiary colour, you would then get your tertiary colours e.g. orange and yellow = yellow-orange. 

In this colour wheel it's clear to see tints, shades and tones. Tints are colours made lighter by adding white. Shades are colours made darker by adding black and tones are colours, with added grey, to change their tone. 

Colour Schemes:

Complimentary: These are colours opposite each other in the colour wheel that naturally bring out the best in each other. E.g. yellow and violet. 

Analogous: These are colours next to each other in the colour wheel and can also have tints or shades. People naturally like this colour scheme as it's often found in nature. Usually one colour dominates, the second supports it and the 3rd is used as an accent. E.g Green, yellow-green and yellow. 

Monochromatic: A monochromatic colour scheme is the same colour, with tints and shades. A lot of people use this for interior design and make-up. E.g. tints and shades of blue-green.

Neutral: These are common in make-up, especially as every single person (whatever their skin tone, hair/ eye colour or ethnicity) can where neutral colours. These include browns, beige, creams etc.

Triadic: These are colours evenly spaced around the colour wheel to form a triangle shape. They tend to be quite vibrant and usually one colour dominates and the other two compliment it. E.g purple, green and orange.

Split complimentary: This is when you choose your main colour e.g. green and then you use the 2 colours either side of it's complimentary colour. For example, violet, yellow-green and yellow-orange.  

Tetradic: This is when you use 2 sets of complimentary colours in one scheme, to form a rectangle on the colour wheel. For example, red, green, orange and blue.

Paper Self - Lash Deco -

PAPERSELF are the world's leading wearable paper-art brand for lashes. Based in London, our paper eyelashes, are a unique design, created using special paper and exquisite paper-cutting. Showcasing atLondon, Milan, Paris Fashion Week.

We had a workshop with the paperself lashes, and I was so impressed with the versatility they offered. I wanted to experiment with the brow, and despite not being overly happy with my final outcomes I am excited to have been introduced to such a brilliant brand. I am also excited to create some of my own paperself inspired lashes in the future.