Finally something about MAKEUP!
I have always looked at Japanese-style makeup and thought it definitely wasn’t for me. Until recently at least. My favourite is the infamous ‘Gyaru’ (ギャル). For those who don’t know, gyaru translates roughly to ‘gal’ in English. This makeup style can be quite controversial among some Asian populations as some see it as being essentially racist. You see, two of the main features of ギャル is that 1. the girls often colour their hair to be ash brown or blonde and 2. enlargement of the eyes through the use of contact lenses, double eyelid creators and specialized makeup techniques. To a lesser degree, there is also shading of the sides of the nose bridge so that it looks less flat and plastic surgery to create smaller noses is prominent. Many people view the style as a way to eliminate Asian features and look more Caucasian.
However, there are many different styles of ギャル. Some even include extreme darkening of the skin through tanning as well as creation of tan tattoos on the body.
Source: cherrypopfiction.blogspot.com
Notice the features I mentioned? Anyways, on a side note I just looked through a bit of the blog and I really like it!
Anyways, back to the post. I think that gyaru is very interesting, but I have come to learn a bit more about Mode-kei now and I would like to incorporate that into my style for 2012. But wait, what is Mode-kei?
Think high-fashion, more glamourous (I think classy) looking clothing. Clothing and makeup tends to be darker and with less focus on accessories (like bracelets and such) and more focus on your silhouette.
source: cheeserland.com
Picture taken from Cheeserland. This is actually one of my favourite blogs and I am really impressed by the authors recent style. Cheesie is on the left and Lie is on the right. After seeing an episode of NHK Tokyo Kawaii with Lie in it, I have been so envious of her style ever since.
source: xiaxue.blogspot.com
Again, another picture of Lie. I really hope to be able to replicate her amazing eye makeup, and I really enjoy her clothing style as well. I’ve been searching for a style for a long time, I’m so tired of being told that I look like I am in high school or something. Unfortunately, it takes a long time to build up a wardrobe… sigh.
Who are your makeup and style inspirations? And I really hope to not have to deal with people telling me that it is wrong for me to take inspiration from an Asian woman because I am not Asian, half-Jamaican, etc. It’s not about race here at all, I just really enjoy this style.
What do you think of Lie’s style… yay or nay?
