Creating a 50's look

I've always loved pin-ups and fifties influenced beauty so when my Sister-in-Law said that us bridesmaids would be wearing 50's style dresses at her wedding, complete with petticoats (it's this one from Lindy Bop), I wanted to try and perfect my 50's style make up.

I've worn black eyeliner, with a flick, for longer than I can remember and absolutely love lippie too, but I wanted to look different for the wedding and really take on the 50's theme. The wedding is this Saturday so I've been searching for the perfect red lipstick and practicing my make up look and on the day, I'll be having victory rolls in my hair too, which I'm very excited about.

I get to play pin-up for the day!

I've watched many a YouTube tutorial (I love Vintagious) and read several blogs about achieving the fifties look and when it comes to make up, the key points I've picked up on, and products I'm going to be using, are as follows:

* Blemish-free, luminous skin - think a blank canvas, with some clever contouring but a flawless, quite pale, base.

To start, I've tried the NYX HD Photogenic Primer (1) to even out my skin.

I've been loving Bourjois's 123 Perfect CC Cream (2) as an easy to blend base for a natural look, then using No7's Stay Perfect Compact Foundation in Calico (3) (as pale as it comes!) for more coverage. A touch of Touche Eclat under my eyes and a dusting of face power will finish things off, then I'm using the warm power from Bare Minerals (4) to try and contour my face, from the top of my forehead, sides of my nose, cheekbones and jawline.

To set my make up, I've found the NYX Matte Setting Spray (5) works well and has good reviews from fellow beauty bloggers. Hopefully this will help my make up last all day.

* Pop of colour - you just need a pop of colour on the apples of your cheeks for this look. I really like Bourjois Cream Blush in 02 Healthy Glow (6) for a natural flush. It lasts a lot longer than any other cream blush I've tried, particularly if you brush some powdered blush over the top.

* Bold brows - Defined, arched brows are an absolute must and I'll be trusting in Benefit's Browzings (7) to get my brows ship-shape.

* Simple shadow - Benefit's Lemon Aid (8) is something I use every day as a eye primer but also to counteract my red lids. I picked up the pink toned Smoky Eyes Palette from Bourjois (9) and I'm in love. It's subtle and has great staying power, so is perfect for creating a neutral base that'll let the rest of my make up do the talking.

* Lovely liner with a flick - this is essential for 50's style glam and my signature look, but having tried so many eyeliners over the years, I needed one that would be blacker than black and would last and last.

I like felt pen style liners for ease and every day wear but they don't stay dark for long in my experience, and whilst I like the look that gel liner creates, I find that it can transfer onto my lids at first - not something I want to worry about during the wedding.

I finally found, and love, L'Oreal's Super Liner Black Laquer (waterproof) (10). It gives solid black colour, the brush is an easy to use applicator and most importantly, I can create precise flicks (with practice!) and the line stays true all day long.

I'll also be lining my lash line with white eye pencil, to help open up my eyes even more.

* Flirty lashes - you need fluttery lashes for this look so I'm faking mine with some false lashes (11)(these looked particularly fluttery) and lots of black mascara (12).

* Luscious lips - as important as black eye liner for a 50's look, a big, full pout is a must, preferably in red. I love red lipstick and have various shades, brands and formats, from orangey tones through to rich reds and then rosy hues too.

I've been looking for the perfect fifties red and one with staying power too (13). Having put in quite a lot of research into this, I think I'll share my findings with you in another post, so you can see which products I have tried and what my thoughts were in terms of colour, application, longevity and overall appeal.

A lip lock liner pencil is essential to help stop colour bleed and I love this Bourjois Contour Lip Pencil (14).

And here is my final fifties inspired look, which I hope to emulate on Saturday:

And to give you a laugh, and to show just how amazing make up can be, here's my face half and half - half with make up as pictured above and half with it removed. Pics like this seem to be quite popular of late so I thought it would be fun to share - I mean, where do my eyebrows and eye lashes go?!

I'll be sure so share some photos from the day itself soon and hope that with the dress, hair and some bright red nails, I'll fit the fifties theme.

I love this look so much and would love to look like this every day - who doesn't want to feel glam all the time?