Beauty and the Brand: January 2016

Friday, 29 January 2016

Technical File - Reattempted Volume Blow-dry

Evaluation:

This attempt went significantly more successfully than that of my first attempt. I think that this was predominantly down to not working on a human head but rather that of a dolls which meant that I was not concerned or subconsciously paranoid about pulling on the hair but was able to focus on my technique. Due to the dolls hair being artificially placed into the scalp it made sectioning it off also much easier and having neat sections made working on the hair much simpler, once this had been done I followed the exact same instructions as in my previous technical post focusing on polishing my technical skills. An additional change that was made here was the introduction of the sectioning grips to hold the curl as it cooled, by doing so it kept the hair out of the way and also meant the hair set with more volume. Once the whole head had been completed I removed the grips working from the bottom up, as you can see from the row of images this created so much more volume in the hair and a more defined curl. Unfortunately as this was on a doll the quality of the hair is not excellent and therefore the tousled effect of the curls looks a bit more ratty here than it would on a model. Regardless of this I was pleased with the outcome of the blow-dry as the hair has a lot more volume and curl than my first attempt. Here I also experimented with brushing the shape out a little to create a more volumised but sleeker look, this was something that I thought looked much nicer and gave the cuticle of the hair a healthier sheen. I did not have any shine spray to hand for this look therefore the quality of the cuticle that you can see in the image is how the hair naturally turned out. Although there are some fly away hairs in comparison to my first attempt this is much better and I feel with more practice the look will improve. With the addition of shine spray/hairspray I would have been able to reduce the visibility of the fly away hairs, however overall I am pleased with the outcome.

Givenchy S/S 2016 - The Story Behind It All

Film Ref: ModEyes. (2015). Givenchy Creative Director Riccardo Tisci Interview English. Available: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcQkkUP-t1M. Last accessed 1st Feb 2016.

http://www.vogue.com/fashion-shows/
spring-2016-ready-to-wear/givenchy

Richardo Tisci, creative director of the Givenchy S/S 2016 collection regarded the show as a performance of symbolism. The idea was to create an iconic homage to the face of New York city through the collections story at fashion week. Tisci who has been working on shows for the past 12 years commented that people were very excited for this collection and when the show was released the reaction was almost suffocating. The collection was intended as a performance, an embodiment of art, music, beauty and theatre combined to exhibit the world that Tisci had been constructing at Givenchy for the past 10 years. The collection for the S/S 2016 show had a total of 89 looks, 20 of which were menswear, 15 haute couture gowns and the rest were womenswear. The collection was inspired by the theme of weddings with bridal wear being a front-running concept throughout each garment. The gowns in particular were constructed with the delicate and romantic embroidery, to harmonise with the use of beautiful lace and silk. The use of a bridal theme embodies this ideology of how love renders all equal, a key ideology behind Tisci's inspiration. Regardless of class, colour, gender or sexuality we are all equal in our ideas of love. The collection was a combination of this through its merging of elegance and the everyday. A second combination came from that of the womenswear collection that embodied the masculine tail coats with that of ornate lingerie. Lingerie was a focal point for the show along with the features of tuxedo suits that harmonised the couture gowns. This combination of lingerie and bridal attire brings forwards another contrast in that of sexuality and religion, two opposites that regardless sit beside one another and advocated within Givenchy's collection.
Tisci states that he took much of his inspiration from the concept of "street couture" across all areas of life. Forever keeping in mind the concept of sexuality and confidence within ones own gender. We see this throughout the collection with similar garments being worn by both male and female models, just with minor alterations to create a more flattering garment. A key example of this is within that of menswear which featured a number of kilts, an item that embodies both feminine elements but heavy masculine connotations due to its heritage and history within Scottish ancestry. New York was another symbol of inspiration for the shows construction, in particular its representation to many as a symbol of freedom and expression. The evolution of popular culture, history and the birth place of contemporary art. The whole city embodies change. This degree of history resonates personally with that of Tisci who strived to come to America as a child with an aspiration to be a part of the evolving cityscape. This sense of awe and embodiment of New Yorks symbolism to the masses was the building block for Givenchy's catwalk. The honesty of how this industrial landscape of wood and metal has combined both the wealthy and the poor was the mainframe for the shows design. This heavy focus on opposites within one place leads on to the question of how this concept is translated throughout the show. Of corse within the industrial design of the runway, with contrasts of wood and metal, the presence of New York industrialism in very apparent and a similar technique is seen within the garments. The main colour scheme throughout is that of black and white, the use of which embodies this idea of harmonising contrasts. Street and couture, masculine and feminine, religion and sexuality, light and dark are all key themes within the show that can be created through the story of the garments.

Thursday, 28 January 2016

Technical File - Creating Volume with Blow-drying (Curled & Straight)

Health and Safety:

Place apron around the neck to protect clothing.

Always ensure to run a client consultation to check for any infections, allergies or contraindications.

Wash/Disinfect hands thoroughly before touching the clients hair/skin.

Creating the Curled Blow-dry:

Tools Used:

- Non Sticky Mousse

- Heat Protectant Spray

- Conditioning Serum

- Sectioning Grips

- Wide Tooth Comb

- Large Roller Brush

- Tail Comb

- Shine Spray

Process of Creation:

1. Wash the hair thoroughly to remove any previous dirt, oil or product build up and towel dry to remove as much moisture as possible.

2. Comb the hair through from root to tip with a wide tooth comb, do not brush as this causes the hair to snap.

3. Apply heat protection spray throughout the hair focusing on the ends.

4. Using a pump of mousse work this through the hair using the finger tips, focusing on the mid lengths and ends.

5. Taking a serum apply this to the same area as the mousse and comb through again.

6. Section the hair along the natural parting of the client.

7. Part the hair into two front sections, two mid placed sections and one large triangular section at the back of the head. Secure with sectioning grips.

8. Beginning at the back of the head section the hair to the very bottom of the neck.

9. Ensuring that the section is not to thick and is not wider than that of the roller brush, take a wide tooth comb and work out any remaining knots/tangles.

10. Place the roller brush at the root of the hair and pull slightly upwards.

11. Apply heat to the root of the hair ensuring that it remains lifted at all times, apply heat both above and below the section.

12. Start working down the hair from the root using the roller brush, repositioning with the nose of the dryer onto the brush if necessary. Do this in a continuous rolling motion.

13. Repeat all the way down the section until dry, make sure that the hair flow is down the shaft of the hair to create a sleek finish.

14. Taking the end of the section (ensuring it is dry) roll the hair back up the roller like that of a set curl.

15. Apply heat the hair for a few seconds and then allow to cool on the brush for a similar amount of time.

16. Gently unwind the brush and pin the curl in place to allow to cool if necessary.

17. Repeat this step for each section across the whole head until fully dried and cooled.

18. Finish with a light amount of shine spray and/or hairspray.

Evaluation

This was my first attempt at blowdrying hair and for this reason I chose to attempt the more challenging of the two blowdries which I felt would be the curled finish. My reasoning for this was that if I was able to complete the more complex version then I would feel less threatened by the straight blow-dry. At first I was very unsure of myself completing this and found that I was far to gentle on the hair making the curls lacking and flat. This can be seen in the first image on the right whereby the hair looks unevenly shaped. This was mostly down to a lack of confidence in myself and I found that as I went on my technique became more steady and I was able to produce a couple more defined curls within the blow dry. My ability to create these curls was due to holding the brush stronger and being more confident with the use of the roller brush. In all honesty I don't think that this first attempt at blowdrying hair went all that well as the hair is still lacking in volume and curl despite the ends being tucked underneath. Although the hair looks shiny and I can see I have not caused any extreme roughing of the hair follicle the overall look could be heavily improved, this is a matter of practice however and I will be aiming to attempt this technique again to improve my ability. My key areas of improvement for this technical skill is defiantly my confidence in working with the brush, I need to become more comfortable with the ability of hair and understanding what won't hurt a client. By giving more tension on the blow-dry it would create better volume and curl which would then achieve the desired outcome for this practical, due to my delicate handiwork the result was more flat and sleek.