Trend Following: The RETRO BrideTake a look in any fashion magazine and you’ll probably encounter at least one reference to the “Retro” style that has been rapidly gaining popularity. Whether it be red hot lips, knee-high A-line skirts, heavily lined-eyes, or perfectly curled hair, we are seeing influences from the 40’s and 50’s all over, including celebrities like Christina Aguilera, Megan Fox, and Amy Winehouse. It’s only natural that brides have started to bring the Retro feel to their weddings.
So exactly what hair and make-up details can change an ordinary 21st century bridal look into a retro bridal look. One of the growing vintage trends in bridal hair is the pill box veil, a smaller than traditional netting usually attached to a hat or another small headpiece. While barely concealing the bride’s face, it adds a 1940’s whim and with many different sizes and styles the pill box veil has variety for today’s retro bride.
If your deciding not to go with a veil at all a simple vintage hairpiece will add retro flare. Try one with oversized feathers like style icon Sarah Jessica Parker in her Sex and the City wedding. Go with all white feathers in darker hair colors and brighter colors like teal for bride‘s with lighter hair so the hairpiece will pop. The feathers have a vintage flapper feel to them. Then choose a style, any style, that best suits you, whether it’s an up-do or flowing curls because it’s the vintage veil or hairpiece that is going to kick up the retro look without compromising your personal style.
The retro bridal look doesn’t end there. As a matter of fact all of these details need to coexist to complete the look. If you just have a vintage hairpiece, but natural, modern make-up your look won’t quite translate to retro. If you want to follow this growing trend its time for RED, RED, RED. Lips that is, which is probably one of the most symbolic trends of the retro style. It’s a sophisticated and super feminine symbol, but can be tricky to execute the perfect red lip. First, making sure your lips are fully moisturized, use a natural lip colored liner to line the lips in short feathered strokes, then blend with your finger. Lining the lips is extremely important in the prevention of the lip color bleeding into the skin surrounding your lips, especially with a bold color like red. Then it’s time to layer. Paint the lip color using a lip brush, blot any excess onto a tissue. Now take a single tier of a tissue and cover the lips, using a powder brush dab some loose face powder onto the lips with the tissue still in between, this is part of the setting process. Now time to layer again and as many times needed to achieve the red your looking for. Finish with a little red tinted lip stain to add shine and long lasting wear ability. It’s also a smart idea to give the lip color or stain and compact mirror to a bridesmaid to hold onto for possible touch-ups.
With many faces and many interpretations of the retro look red lips and heavily lined eyes are a constant. To achieve defined and heavily lined eyes a gel liner is best, but requires a tad bit of practice. Complete any shadow application first as we wouldn’t want to dull the line with any loose shadow. Stick with lighter shadows like creams, pinks, and lavenders so the liner will pop. Then with a steady hand and small angled brush dip into your pot of gel liner and begin to draw. Build your liner in small even strokes starting on the outside and working your way in. Having your liner slightly thicker on the outside opens the eyes right up. On the very outer edge of your eyes you can add a slight kick in your liner turning up and out to channel your inner Audrey Hepburn.
So let’s see an amazing hair style with vintage accents: CHECK! Red Lips: CHECK! And Heavily lined eyes: CHECK! You’ve got the basic details for your retro look, now it’s time to explore retro details for the rest of your wedding! Good Luck!
Kayla Manchester
Make-Up Artist
Wedding Tresses RI
hair and makeup by Jacki Norrie, Boston Wedding Tresses
Photography by Person+Killian, Boston
