Go Retro for the Holidays!

For those of us who feel like we belong in a different era (or just wish we did), there’s an easy way to at least look the part. There are the retro style dresses, of course, but you’ve gotta get the hair and makeup right as well.

For a Roarin’ Twenties look, style your hair in soft finger waves. Pluck your eyebrows and draw in skinny, dark lines over them to create an almost worried appearance (see below). Keep the lipstick dark and very pronounced. You want heavy top lids and lashes, and unlined but shadowed bottom lids. Keep the rest of your face pale, opting for a very small amount of blush, if any.

In the ’30s, women kept the curls but were more likely to use curlers. They also wore lighter eye make-up and started using rouge. The eyebrows stayed thin but weren’t as severe.

’40s and ’50s makeup trends were pretty similar to one another, and there were two big style icons of the time: Audrey Hepburn, whose look was more simple and elegant, and Marilyn Monroe, who opted for all-out glamour. To get Audrey’s look, create a cat-eye effect with black eyeliner and be liberal with the mascara. Keep your lips nude, or a very pale pink. Pull your hair into a chic updo. For Marilyn’s look, skip the eyeliner, except for maybe a very thin line right at the base of the lashes, but use a lot of mascara, and pick the brightest red lipstick you can find. Get your hair blown-out and put in big curls.

Tune in next week for the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s!