My ICONIC Series: Bettie Page

For the past few years, I have been working on a series called Recreating Icons…My Iconic Series. In the series, I recreate makeup looks of iconic women who have left a lasting impression on me over the years. Bettie Page was one of these women. Her sense of style was timeless. If not for her trademark bangs and her striking blue eyes, she also made it on my list for her daring ways and for the role she played in immortalizing the traditional pin-up look.  I posted these images on the facebook fan page last year, but for some reason I never posted in on the blog. So, meet Carsa as Bettie Page.

Photography by Ed Frazier; Modeled by Carsa; Makeup by Tiwa Lawrence

Carsa as Bettie Page

Carsa as Bettie Page

Carsa as Bettie Page

Thots,

Tiwa

My ICONIC Series: Diahann Carroll

To continue with Recreating Icons…My Iconic Series; I have a few more images from the photoshoot in January 2010 to share with you. Who remembers Ms. Diahann Carroll in the movie Claudine? Me, me, me!! I loved her in that movie. And then in the TV Series Dynasty. Wasn’t she the best?

Apart from her obvious beauty and talent as an actor…back then she brought an innocent quality to every role she touched. This is our interpretation of the young Diahann Carroll. She turned 75 years old this year, but I think she is forever young!!!   

 

 

Shari as a Young Diahann Carroll

 

Shari as Diahann Carroll

 

 

Shari as herself. Beautiful!!! Antwan did a great job with her hair.

Hair: Antwan Marcel; Makeup: Tiwa Lawrence; Photography: Nick Oza; Model: Shari

 Below are the two images used as inspiration:

 

 

 

Thots, 

Tiwa  

My 2010 VMA’s Beauty Review!

I watched the MTV Video Music Awards last night and it was …. ok. Nothing really special, but I did have a few thoughts about the award show: 

• I loved the performance by Drake, Mary J Blige and Swiss Beatz. “Fancy” is one of my favorite songs of the moment (“Nail done, hair done, every thing done”…What better anthem for a beauty lover, lol). They had great chemistry. 
• Lady Gaga is too much!!!
• Taylor… really? The song was cute though.

These are the ladies whose makeup looks I loved:      

 

 

Ciara... I love her look... from head to toe!

 

 

 

Eva Marcille...Her face looks FLAWLESS!!!

 

 

 

Evan Rachel Wood of True Blood Fame... I just love how her skin glows in this image

Did you watch the show last night? What did you think of the show?  Who was your “stand out” person of the night?

Images from Here

Thots,

Tiwa

 

My ICONIC Series: Diana Ross

To continue with my series called Recreating Icons…My Iconic Series; I would like to share some images from a photoshoot I was part of in January 2010. When I talk about a True Icon…I mean someone who has made an impact for generations…be it, in fashion, makeup, hair statements, music etc. Diana Ross is definitely a Beauty Icon in her own right. I am inspired by many things about her sense of style, especially when she was a young woman. She chose to enhance her features, rather than minimize them. I also love how graceful she always looked. These particular images were inspired by the “young” Diana Ross.  

Toyin as a Young Diana Ross

Toyin as Diana

Toyin as Diana, Circa 1970's...Think Mahogany

Makeup by Tiwa Lawrence

Hair by Antwan Marcel

Photography by Nick Oza

 

Below are some of the images I used as inspiration:

  

  

 

 

 Inspirational images from HERE

 

Thots,

Tiwa

My ICONIC Series: Fela’s Wives

As I said in my introduction blog entry “I’m inspired by everyday things, everyday colors. I love recreating looks while adding my own personal twists”, hence the creation of my Celebrity Inspirations series and now, my new series called Recreating Icons….My Iconic Series.

About 2 years ago, I watched the documentary “Konkombe: The Nigerian Pop Music Scene.” The 1988 documentary, depicted how Nigeria’s distinctive juju, Afro-beat, Afro-pop and Lagos street music styles in the 1970′s used traditional melodies and rhythm to influence modern music in Nigeria. One of the Artist featured in the documentary was Fela Kuti. Growing up, Fela’s music always struck a chord with me (even if I really didn’t understand the gravity of what he was singing about at the time). As I grew older I started to realize just how much he did to stand up to the social and political injustices in Nigeria through his music.

There was a scene in the documentary, in which a few of his 27 wives (He married them in one ceremony to make a political statement) were sitting around him. They seemed to really adore him. They all looked so regal and beautiful. Their sense of style was inspiring to me. I realized the amount of makeup they had on might have been considered offensive back then.  But my take on their look, is that they were ahead of their time.  These women did not follow trends, they made them! They really didn’t care what society thought of them. I also began to wonder about the dynamics between the wives. Did they like each other? Did they fight? Were they happy? All these thoughts led me to the concept of a photoshoot I did recently.

As I started to process the information, I realized I wanted to create a story (well, a story that made sense to me). Enter…four amazing models and one very talented photographer. Ed Frazier is a professional photographer based in Charlotte. He was able to capture my vision perfectly. I would like to share some of the images from the photoshoot.

Photography by Ed Frazier; Concept, Makeup, Head Ties and Styling by Tiwa Lawrence;  Models–Bianca, Justice, Katrina and Pep. 

  

Interpretation of some of Fela's Wives interacting...

Bianca as one of Fela's Wives

 

Justice as one of Fela's Wives

Katrina as one of Fela's Wives

Pep as one of Fela's Wives

 

Another Look...

Thots,

Tiwa

Celebrity Inspirations: Solange Knowles

And another one…

So, I was watching the 2009 Video Music Awards (VMA’s) last month (I know I am late, lol) and apart from all the drama which took place that night, a few people really caught my eye. Case in point: Solange Knowles, I had to take a second look at her. I totally loved her new look, it was refreshing. Her makeup was on point and it fit perfectly with her new hair cut. Below is a picture of Solange at the VMA’s:

Solange at the 2009 VMA's

Below is a picture of a similar look created on a model (Ayanna). Photography by Anthony Cole

Face:

I used my Graftobian foundation Palette to find her perfect match.  Feel free to use whatever concealer, foundation and powder that works best on your skin type.

Eyebrows:

Smashbox Brow Tech- in Brunette

Eyes:

NYX White (inner lids)

NYX Deep Charcoal (middle of lids)

MAC in Carbon (outer lids)

White Pearl Pigment (to highlight the brow bone)

MAC Eye Kohl in Fascinating (to line the waterline)

Urban Decay Liquid Liner- Perversion

Lashes:

Marykay Ultimate Mascara in Black

False Lashes - Flash in F15 Black

Lips:

Lancome Lip Colouring Stick in Fraichelle

NYX Lip Liner in Pinky

Light pink lipstick from my lip palette

Cheeks:

Ben Nye Blush in Desert Coral

Finish the look off with a bronzer of your choice. I used Max Factor Color Genius Bronzer in Sun Kissed

My next entry will be about Eyebrows and Glasses!!

Thots,

Tiwa

Celebrity Inspirations: Katy Perry

I love Katy Perry’s style. The modern vintage pin-up look is really her thing. Her eye makeup really pops in this picture…which gave me  an idea, why not recreate some of my favorite celebrity looks but add my own twist to it.

I recreated the look at a 50’s pin-up photoshoot recently…but I decided to go with red lips instead. The model, Morgan was a pleasure to work with. Photography by Ed Frazier.

For this look I used glitter (which can be very messy). Make sure you pack on the glitter with a disposable applicator, rather than using an eye shadow brush. Also, spray a liquid set on the applicator. MAC has one it is called Fix +.

Disclamier: Please be aware, not all glitter is safe for the eye area. The glitter particles can scratch the cornea. So please be careful when dealing with glitter around your eyes.

Face:

Use whatever concealer, foundation and powder that works best on your skin type. Make sure the products match your skin tone perfectly and blend, blend, blend.

Eyebrows:

Smashbox Brow Tech- in Brunette

Eyes:

NYX Eye Pencil in Silver (inner lids)

NYX Eye Pencil in Black Bean (outer lids)

MAC Reflects Pearl Glitter (inner lids)

MAC in Carbon (outer lids)

MAC PRO Glitter in Reflects Pearl

White Pearl Pigment (to highlight the brow bone)

MAC Eye Kohl in Fascinating (to line the waterline)

Urban Decay Liquid Liner- Perversion

Lashes:

Cover Girl Lashblast mascara waterproof in very black (I curled her lashes before I applied the mascara)

False Lashes- Ardell Lashes #116

Lips:

Rimmel Lip liner in Ravish

MAC in MAC Red (I wanted a matte look, therefore I did not apply any lipgloss)

Cheeks:

MAC Intenso Mineralized Blush

I used Pro MUA Hightlighter (in Light) above her cheekbones

Enjoy!

Thots,

Tiwa