Serenity's Style Corner

Why hello and welcome to my Style Corner! I'm Serenity Knolls, the ever popular, up-and-coming female impersonator.

For those of you who have faithfully watched me perform in Spectrum's Drag Shows for three consecutive semesters and wonder how I look better now than I did three semesters ago, this page is for you...  I'd like to give you some tips about make-up, style, pizzazz, fashion, and getting that look!  

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some Basic Necessities-

  • Base. This is your face's undercoat. Base goes down second. Always put on sunscreen first, before you put on your make-up. Some make-up provides protection, but probably not the crap you're going to be buying at Walgreens.

  • Translucent powder and the like. Powder sets your base. Typically base is oil-based so it smoothes on evenly and requires something to set it so it doesn't wipe off. 

  • Lip Stuff. Lipstick is a must, as is lip liner, but you don't have to use traditional lipstick or liner, you just have to plan for it. Reshaping your mouth can be very pretty or disturbing, depending on execution. The secret to perfect glitter lips isn't glitter lipstick, which always sucks.  Put on you lipstick first then touch ultra-fine glitter to it.  Coats much more intensely.

  • Mascara. Some people use it. Some people don't. If you're wearing fake eyelashes you might still want some to darken you eyelashes which may be coated with translucent powder after your first sloppy attempt at drag.

  • Eyeliner. For out of the box perfect lines there's nothing like liquid eyeliner, and it comes in cool colors. Other make-up can perform the same task, but not as easily.

  • Color powders & pots. You don't have to buy blush to use as blush. You can use any eye shadow or lipstick, so long as it's a color or texture you like. There are zillions of eye shadows, blushes, and theatrical make-ups you can use to add color.

  • Fake eyelashes. ALWAYS good, one should never feel fully dressed without these buggers. They really finish a look, but are hard to apply. Tips on how to put them on are listed below.

  • Glitter and jewels. Why just apply make-up when you can glue stuff to your face as well. Rhinestones, sequins, macaroni, Scrabble tiles. Why limit yourself?

  • Tools. Again, you don't need all these tools, but you will need some. 

  • Sealed make-up box or bag. Make-up always explodes at some point in your career unless you're a totally anal freak. The other kind of freak who irons their socks and folds their underwear and remembers peoples birthdays and doesn't like chocolate. No, make-up always explodes. Lids to loose powder jiggle open. It happens. Trust me. Get a bag or box that seals tight.

  • Powder puff and brushes help you put on and remove excess loose powder after you finish your base. 

  • Paint brushes are needed to apply dry and liquid colors.

  • Make-up Pencils are great for sharp lines, but require an accompanying sharpener. (Note that pencils are really hard to sharpen in 110°F deserts because they soften and don't keep a point.  Store them in your ice cooler in a Ziploc bag if you're planning a trip to the desert.)

  • Sponges for applying make-up are optional.  Others prefer sponges.

  • Decent mirror. Don't think your pal's gonna let you muscle in on their mirror. Always have your own. 

  • Make-up removal stuff. On the road Baby Wipes, cold cream and paper towels are your best friends. You don't need water if you have these supplies. But make sure you get non-scented Baby Wipes otherwise you'll end up smelling like your grandmother before the incontinence set in.

  • Baby oil.  Removes spirit gum; don't buy "spirit gum remover".  It's a rip off and is just repackaged baby oil.  If you glued down your eyebrows and forget baby oil you're screwed.  But it is a good look on it's own: morning-after drag remnants.

EYEBROWS

Let's begin with eyebrows! They are a crucial part of making the face appear more feminine-- How many girls do you know who have caterpillars above their eyes?!  You really have two options when it comes to eyebrows...

1.) You can simply pluck or wax to thin them out a bit and add some shape

 2.) You can cover them up entirely and draw on some new ones!

The latter of the two will give a more "Drag Queen" look, and is easier if you don't want to sacrifice your own eyebrows for one performance. First, you need a glue stick and an eyebrow brush and comb. It's actually a quite simple process. All you do is comb against the natural way the hair lays and apply some Elmer's glue (stick form!! NOT PASTE!). This ensures that the glue goes in between the hairs. Once you've got the initial layer on, you then brush the eyebrows back to their natural position and glue over them again. The idea is to create and entirely flat surface-- a blank canvas, if you will. You may need to apply a few more coats of glue to get the hair completely covered. Once the glue has dried, you need to POWDER completely over the eyebrow. I mean really CAKE that stuff in!!! This will lighten them quite a bit and will prepare them for the base.

BASE/PANCAKE/CONCEALER

The best item you can buy to cover your entire face is--

 
Pan-Stik Ultra-Creamy Makeup

The goal? A flawless complexion. The means? Full coverage with a soft, dewy finish. Pan-Stik Ultra Creamy Makeup uses a high-tech formula to cleverly conceal pigmentations and skin imperfections while giving you maximum coverage. The results? A beautifully radiant complexion with no caking.

You want to cover your entire face with the Pan Stik, even part of you neck (which you WILL blend in!)

Make sure you get a good color -- you make have to blend one or more colors to get a good color for you, one that disappears when you put it on your face, Make sure it is not too orange (a common problem).

**Note: PLEASE shave before applying concealer!!!!!!! You will definitely look a hot mess with a five o'clock shadow, blush, and some fake eyelashes!

Contouring & Highlighting

Your skin should look as flawless as possible to begin with. This is not a natural look, so you want to achieve a matte or nearly matte canvas using concealer, foundation and powder. Using a light-toned contour powder (a pink-brown blush works, the tone depends on your skin tone) and a medium sized brush, blend the powder into the hollows of your cheeks – just below your cheekbones where your cheeks hollow slightly. Start with very little and add only if you need to – this should look as natural as possible, not like streaks of colour on the face. Blend the colour slightly up to your temples. Now use the same colour and a smaller brush to contour your eyes – blend it under your eyes and into your crease. If you wish, you can also contour your nose to make it look smaller by blending the same contour colour alongside the bridge of the nose. Again, use almost no product to do this and blend, blend, blend. It has to be subtle to be effective!

Now you contrast the contouring you’ve done with highlighter. You can use a cream highlighter, but to keep the look consistent, it's better to use a powder highlighter. With a small brush, apply it to the tops of your cheekbones and blend it down into the hollows slightly. Also apply it to your browbone, the very inside of your eyes and across the eyelid. With the contour colour in your creases and the bright highlighter on your lids, this will give the effect of having naturally hooded, sensual eyes.

Remember the key rule of contour: light comes forward, dark recedes, You can use this to help do some Sculpting on the face, I use "ethnic" foundation for contouring under cheekbones, sides and under the tip of the nose. and under the jawline, places that would be dark if they weren't full of fat, I use the same type of foundation that I will use later for contour.

If it's a big night in a dark place, I will also highlight, using white makeup (usually lust water based clown white) under the eyebrows, under the eyes, all the way out to the ear, down the center of the nose, and maybe even on the jaw line, It's amazing how a little light makeup right under the eyebrow will lift it up, useful for many of us.

Again, the premise of highlight/contour is to make your bone structure more pronounced, with light makeup on the places where the light would shine, and dark where there is shadow, Contour is very powerful - it was the topic of two articles in the April Allure, one on aging women, and one on drag queens, but also tricky. Play with it when you want to go out at night, and use a very gentle hand for daytime shading,

Remember the key rule of makeup: Blend, blend, blend! Hard edges on your face are not attractive, unless you are quite an artist, Natural colors fade and blend.

ENTICING EYES IN 7 STEPS

Step 1: Prime the eye with a little concealer to give a great base and then take your  Eye Shadow and apply over the entire lid.

Step 2: Apply your second darkest color to the lower part of the lid blending from the inside to the outside.

Step 3: Apply your third darkest color to the crease of the eye, working with your brow bone as a guide.

Step 4: Using a little of your darkest color apply on the lower lid and in the crease focusing on the outside of the eye and blending towards the middle. Use a little and build up colour to get a well blended result.

Step 5: Using your lightest color, apply a dab to the inside corner of the eye to lighten and brighten the entire eye.

Step 6: Using your Eyeliner, line the upper lash line. The best way to do this is by applying a little pencil to the back of your hand, then using an angled brush, pick up the colour off your hand and dab across the upper lash line closest to the lashes. Line the bottom lashes using the same pencil, this time applying directly to the eye and smudging with the handy sponge applicator.

Tip: Line both the upper and lower lash line directly with pencil and then smudge back using the applicator before using an angled brush with your darkest color to line the eye again with eye shadow.

Step 7: Apply some FABULOUS Mascara to your lashes. To get the most volume, try and get your brush down right to the root before flicking up to coat the lashes.

                     BEFORE                                                                   AFTER

Although NONE of you will EVER be as GLAMOROUS as Miss Serenity Knolls, I hope this site gives you hope!

 

"I usually choose fingernail polish and lipstick to match the outfit I've planned...if I'm performing. You can't, of course, always do that...so....
Just stick to the colors that go with your wardrobe"

"In style, you'll find that your eyes are drawn to the things you like."