How Marketing Changed The Way We Look

Advertising and Marketing are at the forefront of the beauty industry. I strongly believe that with good adverts and marketing you could sell the most awful product in existence. For decades brands have kept up to date with the latest marketing trends to ensure maximum sales targets are reached.

It all started many years ago with a young lady called Helena Rubinstein as she stepped off a cruise ship in the winter of 1914 in New York City, a place that will become a poster place for all things fashion and beauty. She noted that woman in New York were pasty, with 'Purple noses and grey lips' and she said that she recognised that the United States could very well be her life's work. After her passing in 1965, Helena had left behind a $60 Million dollar beauty industry in which she helped and some will say built herself and eventually created a stepping stone for the beauty brands of today.
Helena mostly concentrated on skin care, claiming her products would reverse the signs of ageing completely, whilst we know today that wasn't entirely true, back then, her clever and manipulative marketing strategies gained her worldwide status and luxury status amongst many of the worlds rich and famous. Helena's excellent marketing technique and accentuate opinion on how a woman should never age built her success with flagship stores opening all over the world in some of today's most desirable places such as London's Mayfair, Paris, New York, Chicago, and San Francisco.

As make up was frowned upon back in the 20th Centuary due to people assuming a lady with a painted face was up to no good, or a prostitute in today's society. This didn't stop Helena's desire for complete beauty domination and she eventually ventured into make up starting with tinted face powders and lipsticks. Helena was about to come head to head with a brand we all know today, which will become her main competeor and ultimate enemy, Elizabeth Arden. Born Florence Nightingale Graham in 1881, Florence worked in many stores after leaving her hometown in Toronto and eventually started the company Elizabeth Arden, in which her name would soon be on the list alongside Helena on the earliest Global Beauty Brands. The brand Elizabeth Arden is a popular choice amongst more older females within today's society with its excellent anti ageing skincare and can be seen is so many department stores across the UK such as Selfridges, Debenhams, John Lewis and House Of Frazer. Florence's main skill within the brand concentrated around the packaging and promotion of her products, she had the ability to transform any product or salon into something spectacular, no matter how rubbish or poor it may have been. Florence started to run 20 minute cinema advertisement's in 1940 which was called Young and Beautiful. Both Florence and Helena were crucial people in today's ever growing youth obsessed beauty market.

By the 1950's make up was nearly accepted everywhere and with this came another rival that both Florence and Helena hated, the brand Revlon, created by Charles Revson. Originally starting out as a nail varnish based product company, Revlon eventually ventured out into cosmetics and the rest is history, the brand is still well known and loved today. Revlon was also the first brand to embrace TV commercials and dedicated much time to the advertisement of his products.

During the years of Helena, Florence and Charles, luxury was everything. High rolling members of society wanted ultimate luxury at any cost and the product itself was just not enough. The times here are just the start of marketing beauty and throughout the years you can see how drastically it has changed and evolved. From Hollywood, Maralyn Monroe to Today's instagram stars, marketing beauty is at the forefront of cosmetic sales, as opposed to the products themselves.


Today's marketing techniques are similar to those of the 20's,30's and 50's. Companies today have embraced social media and the digital era we are now living in which massively increases their target audience and number of potential customers. Brands such as MAC cosmetics, who use popular stars or characters to entice customers, Make Up For Ever who use YouTube stars to sell more products. Brands tell us how we want to look and how we should look. These brands then pass this style on make up artists who adopt the style which then means they receive free products, these MUA's then plaster these styles onto Film stars, celebrities or pop stars which attracts wide and popular demand of a product. The whole world of marketing beauty is brilliantly done, which is why I want to focus my career upon leaving university in marketing and the promotion of cosmetics. I have read this book twice now and I can not recommend reading it enough. [Branded Beauty, Tungate Mark]

Tungate, M. Branded Beauty. Kogan Page, UK AND USA. 2011.

Leni's Model Management, A Guest Lecture 2016

Leni's models are a London based boutique modelling agency with a portfolio spanning over hundreds of companies. They have a small team of people working for them, who scout for models, find them jobs and campaigns to work on and more importantly, build a huge relationship between themselves and their models and also a relationship between the clients they send models too.

The lecture opened up my eyes to the deeper world of imagery. The process that goes into model scouting is lengthy and seems exhausting but it also seems super fun. I learnt a great deal during the lecture about how they place certain models in certain areas of the industry. The workers also seem like they have fun, with travelling all over the world whilst scouting for models!
Leni's also have a blog and instagram which I now follow.

Brows

before and after

Step by step

• Clean the eye area ensuring it is free of make up and dirt. 
• Use the 3 point trick to map out the correct brow shapes
• Brush through the brows with an eyebrow wand
• using the correct colour and an eyebrow brush, start by lightly filling in areas of the brow that are limited with hair.
• brush through after every step to ensure it looks natural. 

Evaluation 

Brows have always been my strong application point. I believe I changed and altered the brows of my model in a natural way which enhanced her facial features. Brows are for me the second most important part of a make up application, to weak and it wont match the enhanced features of the rest of the look and too strong will leave a model looking quite strange and blocky.


Catwalk Brows:

Catwalk Brows- I found a picture on Fanella's slides of a look with a strong defined line on the lower part of the eyebrow, I decided to try it out. 

Reflective Diary March 2016

Location Update:

Sourcing a location for one of my photo shoots is proving very difficult. The style of location I want, comes with a hefty price tag, it seems. The many locations I have emailed have disregarded my request, which is understandable, yet frustrating, some locations have even tried to charge me over one thousand pound to use their venue, discounted to £15 per hour for sole educational purposes only, meaning I couldn't use them for my portfolio to gain jobs. The whole search is becoming exhausting, I am spending far to much time emailing and talking to venue owners which is making my work suffer. I have just tried a last attempt at finding a venue by posting onto the BA Hons Make up page, in which I found a few more venues and persons to talk to, referred to me by other students which I am really appreciative of, I love how, particularly my personal group, work together as a team when others are struggling. The location I am looking at now is The Mayflower Theatre in Southampton, hopefully I can use their seating area for my first image idea and my last image idea. I am planning on sourcing a garden for my second image so only time will tell if I have been successful.



Idea Update:
I am still standing by my ideas for my catwalk and advertisement ideas, I believe they both ooze SS16 and Charlotte Tilbury and the images from my catwalk photo shoot are great, I am really pleased with the outcome and I am glad I went to great lengths for my model to be wearing something in a style of Rachel Zoe. My idea for the editorial shoot, I feel when I explain to people what I am going to do, I say its a cinderella inspired photo shoot, which it is. However, I need to clarify to myself and understand how and what this idea is, so I know it makes sense to my peers and teachers, and myself.

My idea originally came from lipstick always being a statement amongst the catwalk models, nudes, purples and reds are always plastered all over the runway. With lipstick being my main focus for my advertisement images, I wanted to make a defined line between the difference of my advert and editorial. My first idea was to create a story, about a lipstick and a woman. This woman was at rock bottom and once she gained this lipstick, she was on top of the world. This idea got me excited and I started finding images and quotes that mirrored my idea such as the one I have included in many blog posts 'Give a girl the right lipstick, and she can conquer the world' this was my inspiration point to carry on with the idea. After analysing my idea, I brainstormed how I could make my idea better, I had just watched Cinderella, the latest movie, and this is where my new idea materialised. Cinderella is such a huge icon worldwide, she was given a chance at love and happiness all because of a glass slipper and a fairy god mother. "From Rags to Riches" I then tried to work out how I could possibly use Cinderella as a reference and source of inspiration for my editorial shoot and how I could showcase my brands style and DNA.

Charlotte Tilbury is magical, the way she can transform a woman's appearance is a true gift, my idea progressed to having Charlotte Tilbury herself, as fairy god mother, who gives my modern day Cinderella a gift of lipstick, which transforms her life and makes her a powerful, happy woman. Now obviously, I probably wouldn't be able to rope Charlotte herself into appearing in my images but as a concept, I believe it makes sense. I could work around images in which my model/Cinderella is being given the lipstick. After researching my brand a lot I made a connection to my Cinderella and Fairy God mother theme with CT's Christmas Adverts and marketing. Charlotte created a 'Gift of Magical Make Up' for her customers last year.
My image ideas: After speaking with Kat, I am happy to hear that I can include more images in my submission if I wish to, which helps me with my final image ideas.

My first image, will be of my model, hopefully in a period location setting, in ragged clothing and sweeping up like the Cinderella she is. She's sad, she slaves all day for her evil step mother and wishes for nothing more than an escape route. The first image and my models appearance is something I am struggling with, I want her to be a more high fashion/editorial ragged as opposed to a theatrical ragged. My model will have all the attributes ready for her transformation, she has beautiful hair, which will be tied back, in a similar style to D&G/Chanel SS16 hair styles, her skin will be flawless and defined slightly, to showcase her hidden beauty, which is something Charlotte Tilbury as a brand and as a make up artist loves. Her clothing, will be a beautiful gown, which us slightly torn and dirty but in a classy way.

My second image,  which will be in a perfectly manicured garden, hopefully, and will show the start of the process of my models transformation. She will be situated on a bench or water fountain, perched on the floor when this hand appears, with a gift, a gift of lipstick. This rose gold object startles my model, but she knows who is stood before her and she has waited for this gift all her life and with a quick swoosh, my model is transformed. My models appearance will he the same as image one, the difference will be location and showing the journey she is on.

My third/final image, is where this perfect, grand and period staircase comes into play. My model is draped over the banister or standing powerfully on the stairs in a beautiful evening gown to reference some of the couture collections of SS16. Her hair will be Hollywood Glam, big loose curls or Hollywood waves (depending on my skill with hollywood waves) and her make up will mirror this. Flawless skin, sculpted face, rose blush. defined eyes and a statement RED Charlotte Tilbury lip. The lip will be the focal point for the image.



Advertisement:
My advertisement shoot has taken a back seat as I am comfortable with my ideas and shooting times etc.

Photography Inpsiration

Camilla Akrans. 

Camillas work is my ultimate Editorial image crush. I love nothing more than flicking through magazines and much like the writer of the article in which I found these images, staring with my heart beating so fast because I am in complete awe of the work, the images, the location, styling make up and hair. Magazine images are where perfection starts and ends for me, nothing looks as good as a beautiful magazine image. Camillas work, specifically these images have a strong theme of nature with vines and flowers draped all over the model and Edwardian style fireplaces and architecture. As one of my ideas are princess and fantasy based, these style images make my head explode with ideas on how and what I could shoot my model with. Although Charlotte Tilbury is a very modern looking brand, I always feel some sort of old, vintage glamour when I picture anything from the brand, 

Images one and two: Top 10 fashion editorial photographers. IX.  http://www.ixdaily.com/drop-your-skirt/ef2e27369cc06dcd3de826486b8e23468be173a3

Shaun Alexander.

Another photographer I have came across during my research is Shaun. This is my favourite image of his work which I found on his website, again, the image has some sort of vintage/retro feel to it which is along the lines of how I want my editorial images to look. 

Erik Alamas.

There is something quite uncanny and unnerving about the first image of Erik' work. I can't quite put my finger on what it is, but its there. Erik' work is very subtle but in your face. The models I feel always take a back seat in the images and the nature and surroundings within the image are the focal points. As my editorial shoot will hopefully be done outside, some of his work is truly inspiring.
Photography Office. Erik Almas. Blog. 2011. http://www.photographyoffice.com/blog/2011/02/gorgeous-creative-photography-by-erik-almas

Review of Timed Assessment

Working with my model was a breeze. Timed Assessments are always relatively easy in regards to models because we tend to work with our classmates. I would happily work with anyone in my group as we are all quite close and we all appreciate each others skills. My model was Georgina and I adore her look, her hair is perfect and thick, although difficult to work on when your skills in hair are limited. The most difficult part about working with Georgina has to be her love of snapchat and taking pictures, it can be quite difficult to manoeuvre around and get to a point where you can apply make up correctly, I do get some good pictures and mini films after though! Georgina has a fantastic face, her features are near perfect and her eyes are great for my skills in eye make up.

The modelling part of Georgina is also a big plus, she has modelled for many people before so she has great knowledge and skill in that department. I always love how my images come out when Georgina has modelled for me. As Georgina was my partner, I had the pleasure of being done up for her timed assessment which required me having a boat in my hair which was super fun. Georgina has an amazing personality and can make anyone smile, laugh and feel relaxed. She is also really professional and has some great advice with problems within hair/styling as that is where her skills are top notch.

Overall, I think myself and my partner Georgina work really well together. We have similar personalities and she brings out the crazy, hard worker in me. I don't think my particular look would have worked as well on anyone else which is a good thing considering I got the partner I wanted! I will always enjoy working as a team within my group because we are all more than peers, we're friends.

Sourcing Locations.

After completing one of my three photo shoots required for this unit, I am keen to complete my next ones. My editorial idea requires a location outside of the university and studios. I have been looking at a number of possible locations including, South Western House, which is an imperial apartment block with a communal lobby area, the design of the interior of this location is historical and perfect for my photos. Unfortunately, the residents, which account to nearly 70, would make it difficult to obtain permission to use the premises for my shoot. Below, I made a mood board of the style of location I would like to use.

The next location I was looking at is Russell Cotes Art Gallery in Bournemouth, the gallery charge £1500 for evening use of the location and £15 an hour for student use of the gardens, the gardens were the most important part of my request to use the location due to the exquisite water fountain and huge outdoor staircase. Unfortunately, I may need to negotiate the terms of use for this location, it prohibits me from using the images created for a commercial use, meaning I can not use the images for my own business portfolio and I can only use them for educational purposes unless I obtain permission. This is frustrating for me as the location would be perfect.

Russell Cotes Art Gallery Gardens. Trip Advisor. https://www.tripadvisor.com/LocationPhotoDirectLink-g186262-d286490-i126085080-Russell_Cotes_Art_Gallery_Museum-Bournemouth_Dorset_England.html

Russell Cotes Art Gallery. Trip Advisor. https://www.tripadvisor.com/LocationPhotoDirectLink-g186262-d286490-i139347879-Russell_Cotes_Art_Gallery_Museum-Bournemouth_Dorset_England.html

While I negotiate the terms of use for Russell Cotes, I started to look at other possible locations such as Hinton Ampner, a National Trust owned house and garden in Hampshire. The grounds and house are similar to the style of Russell Cotes however I think I prefer this location to the Gallery. The house is a beautifully made Georgian country house with huge windows. The grounds, which in the pictures below, you can see how well maintained the grounds are and how fairytale they look. 

Hinton Ampner. National Trust. Hampshire. http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/hinton-ampner/features/the-house-at-hinton-ampner

Beach Hair

Natural beach hair looks a little messy and not so much Victorias Secret. 

I enjoyed doing this in my hair lessons and it helped me create my design and look for my catwalk and timed assessment looks. 

Catwalk Lips

Minimal, Bold and Creative. I did three different looks using three different shades of lipstick during my make up master class. The last images, of the smudged lips are my favourite from the class. Lips on the catwalk are not always sharp and precise, many artists use their fingers to press in the products over the lips (image one) to create a softer look much like Topshop Unique SS16. The smudged look has been a favourite on the catwalk for years with designers like Vivienne Westwood and Dolce & Gabbana using the style.

Historic Catwalk Fun

I took a look back at catwalk make up and decided to create something a little fun and unusual, which is unlike me. I am normally a plain, simple and beautiful make up kind of artist. The images I got my inspiration from were from Vivienne Westwood's Spring Summer 2014.

Catwalk Eyes Inspired by Chanel

Inspired by Chanel SS16, I tried to do my own spin on one of the most iconic looks from this seasons trends. I attempted to make the blue ombre starting with a lighter colour at the lash line and faded out into a darker blue and I also added a liner.

Catwalk Photoshoot.

A Selection of images from my Catwalk Shoot.

Final Images with editing still yet to complete. 

Timed Assessment Outcomes

Behind the scene Images:

Assessment Hand In Images:

Advertisement Face Charts and Hair Designs

My first look consists of flawless matte skin, structured contour and highlight, subtle peachy cheeks, tight line eyeliner and lashes and the focal point, a nude lip. The hair will be curled and then placed in an updo bun, the curls will add depth and texture as well as giving the look a more luxury appearance. 

                                        

The second look, which is my night look, will be exactly the same as the above description. The face will be flawless and perfected and the change will be the deep red lip. The hair will be old Hollywood Waves to reference Charlotte Tilbury's current online images. 

Editorial Face Charts and Hair Designs

    

My first look for my editorial story. My model will have minimal make up, just enough to cover any imperfections on the face and enough eye make up to slightly define the eyes. 

The last image of my editorial story will ooze Charlotte Tilbury Glamour once my model has been transformed into this beautiful strong woman. The make up includes a heavy, flawless matte skin with contour and highlight. The eyes will be defined with dark brown placed in the socket and along the crease and a subtle winged eyeliner. The brows will be perfected and defined according to my models natural brows and the lips will be red. The hair will be either Hollywood Waves or Hollywood style loose curls to add to the glamour of my model.