A Modern Day Pinup's Dilemma

            As I flipped through the February issue of Allure an article immediately caught my eye. Makeup artist Jillian Dempsey wrote a feature called 3 Boring Makeup Ruts--- and How to Get Out of Them. It was truly ironic that I was reading this; I’m currently swearing off matte lipstick because my lips are so over that trend. So the light bulb went on in my head:

            Can pinups get caught in a makeup rut?

            A big part of a pinup is her makeup. The standards of a pinup’s makeup are winged black liner, dramatic, filled in brows and red lipstick. So can a pinup change her makeup look and still be considered a pinup?

            I decided to test this theory out, engage in some fun and save time on my makeup routine. Since there are so many different liners out there, I created cat eyes with very vivid colors. I experimented with brown liquid liner too. I lightly filled in my brows (if at all) and chose creamy lipsticks and glosses. I also put the lip liner back in my makeup bag. And I used only powder foundation instead of liquid and powder foundation.

            So I learned how to get myself out a makeup rut and still be a pinup. I learned that less is more; people complemented me on the vivid color eyeliner more than anyone did when I used only black.

            It’s true that you get noticed when you go against the grain. I could always be a Classic Pinup at photo shoots and be a Modern Day Pinup in my spare time. It’s perfectly normal to misbehave. After all the pinup/burlesque dancer Dita Von Teese said, ‘“People who follow all the rules and chase every trend tend to get forgotten- they look great, but they’re not as memorable.”’

Finding My Inner Sweater Girl

  I've been writing for decades now, everyday since I learned to write my own name. I even thought of pursuing my MFA in Creative Writing. At one university I was asked, "What genre of fiction do you write, Sara?"

  Throughout my career as an English major I encountered several authors. James Baldwin was known for examining differences between race, class and sex. Flannery O'Connor and William Faulkner were known for writing Southern Gothic shorty stories; F. Scott Fitzgerald is known for writing The Great American Novel.

  But as a writer I didn't know where I fit in. I would usually write from first or third person point of view. I even dabbled with the omniscient perspective to challenge myself. I realized that I loved to write but I wasn't at home being a writer. I wasn't completely Sara. Still, there has been one place where I had everything figured out and I knew exactly who I was.

  Ever since I had my first photo shoot I felt at ease. I had studied poses, other famous pinups and everything clicked. The first photographer I ever worked with said I was so photogenic, she didn't want to stop taking pictures of me. The second photographer said I made his job easy, it was a pleasure to work with me.

 I love writing and reading literature, a big part of me always will. I love sharing my voice through my own eyes. It works out best when I'm in front of the camera, letting a photographer capture my story. I love the glitz, the glam, the girdles, the makeup and the pin curls that are in my hair right now! Writing is what I love, but a pinup is who I am.

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The Modern Day Pinup and The Art of Discretion

One thing that has definitely changed from the 1940s and 50s is communication. Right now there's not only the telephone, there's texting and social media. But my question is how would a pinup girl handle all this and still be discreet?

Back in the day women left a lot more to the imagination. Look at Rita Hayworth in the film noir Gilda. All she did was remove one glove and men swooned. In today's society some women aren't removing one glove. At times nothing is left to the imagination; you know where certain people are at any given moment.

So, what's a Modern Day Pinup to do?

I decided to reveal what I wanted to, nothing more and nothing less. There's no law that says I have to post my whereabouts everyday. That's under my creative control! Since The Golden Age women have gained more control over their lives and their choices. If I want to reveal that I have a photo shoot, great. If I decide not to post the pictures from that photo shoot, that's wonderful too.

Everything isn't for everyone to see. There are certain things that I would only let a few people see, not 800 of my closest friends. And since we're in this age of oversharing that might make me part of the minority (yet again), but it's perfectly natural to be yourself.

That's my favorite part of being a pinup. There's a certain way a pinup carries herself, a certain style of clothing she wears. There's art in her makeup and a come hither look in her eyes. A pinup has a look of innocence and is very wily all at the same. Just don't expect her to tell you what she has in store for you.