Retro Makeup: Book Review and Giveaway!

Oh happy day! I have a copy of the book Retro Makeup: Techniques for Applying the Vintage Look by Lauren Rennells to give away. You may know Lauren's name from the book Vintage Hairstyling, which I wrote about here.

I was sent a review copy of the book and spent two happy bubble baths reading it from cover to cover. It's a very comprehensive look at makeup styles from the 20s to the 60s, with lots of practical info on how to achieve the looks. The photography and step-by-steps are very user-friendly.

Of course, my favorite chapters are on the 40s and 50s. I especially enjoyed the WWII history from a cosmetics point of view. Did you know that companies marketed lipsticks and cosmetics kits for service women? There was actually a rule that one's lipstick had to match the uniform, so colors like Auxiliary Red and Montezuma Red were developed to match the red accents on military uniforms.

I've been trying out the tips this past week: shaping my eyebrows into a "winged" shape, darkening my beauty marks with eye pencil, and applying eyeliner. (My favorite tip: when doing winged eyeliner, make a tiny dot to the side of each eye where you want the wing to end. Check that your dots are even and level. Then apply the eyeliner, ending your line exactly at your dots. Works every time!)

Here's some of my handiwork:

To enter the giveaway, just leave a comment on this post. Make sure that there's a way for me to get in touch with you, whether you leave your email or your username links to your website/blog. Open to all countries. I'll draw a winner at the end of the day Monday, March 17th.

Good luck! And thanks to HRST for providing a review copy and a giveaway copy.