DC Makeup Artist KiKi L'Italien

Unless you've been living in a cave for the past few years, you have been influenced by the presence of the hit show, Mad Men, on AMC. The show features old school ad men swigging scotch in their offices and buxom beauties from the secretary pool holding court over the more administrative tasks while looking for suitable husbands. The show is a throwback to the Rat Pack era of manly men and womanly women and the effects can be seen in fashion and beauty across the world.

For women, the well-coifed, structured hair and the dominant red lips pervade. Liquid liner on the top of the eyes accompanies a feminine sashay into any room, usually liner accompanying false lashes and a well-tailored dress. It's sexy to the nth degree. It's mysterious. It's the air of someone who is all-too- aware of her gender and knows how to use everything she's got to her benefit.

So how do you rock this look without looking like you're going to a costume party?

Although I am going to spend most of my time here explaining the makeup, the hair and dress are also important. Calvin Klein makes inexpensive feminine dresses with structure that lend themselves to this look and hot rollers and some glossy hairspray can give you an easy modern take.

For the obvious makeup start, aim for a matte red lipstick. Depending on your skin tone, the red could have blue or orange undertones...you could even use a deep pink in many cases that would read red on film or in a photograph.

Matte is the overarching hero in this look, so powder blushes and eyeshadows will work better for you. Using a neutral pallet, you can apply an all over ivory/beige eyeshadow to your lid and then using a rounded shadow brush, you could apply a slightly deeper tone to the outer corners of your lid. 

Next, if you are 25 years old or younger you can use a liquid eyeliner to line your eyes starting with a thin line and building out to your comfort level. If you are over 25 years old, using a gel/cream eyeliner with an angled eyeliner brush is your best bet for that deep, intense, sexy eyeliner. The liquid liner will bleed into cracks, but the cream/gel liner is smooth and will glide with your brush and stay put once applied as you desire.

The false lashes are next and for most people Ardell's #53s are a safe bet for an inexpensive full set. You can also choose partials for just the outer edges of your eyes and you can use the cosmetic brush tips or pencils by the eraser ends, to help hold down one side of the lash as you hold down the other side. You apply the adhesive in a thin line to the lash itself making sure the linger end is the end facing the outer corner of your eye.

Not much liner goes on the bottom of the eye for most people, but you may wish to use a small smudge brush to place a hint of dark along the bottom of the eye to widen the eye, if that is an issue for the balance of your face.

Once the adhesive on the lashes are dry, you should apply mascara to your lashes and the fake ones to help them blend into one another. 

Blush should be very light...a dusting of slight rose or apricot is enough and then you apply a deeper shade to your lips, blotting once when it is applied.

This is a look that is also appealing for brides with a desire for a more classic or vintage look. Below is the picture of a beautiful bride, Julie DeTomo, who allowed me to use this look on her for her wedding.