I love that EVOLUTION REVOLUTION reaches the PC's, laptops and mobile devices around the world. A super Stylish reader in Paris, France reached out recently with her new book:
"Decades of Style" (By Lexi DeRock). A Step-by-Step hair and makeup guide to days gone by.
Just as I at
Evolution Vintage style fashions past current, Lexi is bringing back the Chic 60's and 70's for the modern woman.
She enjoys being an educator and sharing her knowledge. In her words;
"Do a girls hair and she'll look good for the night. Teach a girl to do her own hair, and she'll look great for a lifetime."
Her new book was a GREAT read! besides the makeup, hair tips and tricks I loved her use of iconic images and quotations (I'm obsessed with quotations). You can browse her book and tap into your alter-ego; Are you The Studio 54 Sweetheart? The Boho Baby? The Cabaret Singer? Luckily you don't have to pick just one - You can utilize Lexi's guide through 2 decades of hair and makeup and use it over and over again. Information on each look as well as each decade are provided in a FAB and reader friendly way.
I had the chance to chat with Lexi about her book and her style.
LISA: What inspired the book?
LEXI: A very talented painter friend of mine, Marcus McAllister, was working on an art book with my friend and editor Alicia LeBlanc, and a little green monster reared it's head and said "I want a book too! Me, meee!" because it sounded like a fun project. So, I pitched her the idea because I have just always loved vintage styles and wanted to share them with other people in a way that was easy to follow and fun.
LISA: What is your favourite decade for fashion/hair/makeup? and why?
LEXI: I'm not sure that I have a favorite. I do love the 20s, 30s and 50s, but I think the 60s are really one of my faves. The hair is dramatic and fun, and so is the makeup...and the attitude is so liberated and full of spirit. It's so elegant and wild at the same time.
LISA: Why the 60's & 70's?
LEXI: I intend to write books covering all of the decades I love, but started with the 60s and 70s because, while all the looks have their timelessness, these eras seem to be especially relevant again. You see the 60s popping up all over the place like in Mad Men or The Kennedys series, and the 70s styles are all up and down the runways in this season's fall/winter collections. Maybe it is the spirit of revolution in the air all over the world that is making people want to dress and style like the revolutionaries of the 60s and 70s, but something seems to have sparked our interest in the chunk of time and I couldn't be more for it!
LISA: Who are your personal style icons?
LEXI: I've always loved glamour and performance and people whose style is over-the-top and playful. One of my faves is Katherine Hepburn: glamorous, but also casual and strong. Brigitte Bardot inspires a style in the book and she is definitely one of my favorites for hair styles. So sexy and so French. But I also love people with a bit of a harder rock & roll style mixed in, and I love body art, so Kat Von Dee is one of my favorite style icons too.
LISA: How did you get your start in hair & makeup?
LEXI: I started doing hair and makeup as a teenager in theater and have always loved it. I was always that girl cutting and coloring all my girlfriends' hair in high school. When I decided to make my career of it, I attended the Aveda Institute in Minneapolis MN which was a fantastic school. From there I continued to work in the US until 2007, when I decided to move to Paris and work more on the fashion side of things. After four years in Paris, I decided it was time for a change so I am currently in the process of relocating to Melbourne, Australia, this December. I'm really looking forward to seeing where that takes me.
LISA: What are your favourite makeup and hair products?
LEXI: I love hair and makeup so when I go into a beauty supplier or a store like Sephora, I am just like a kid in a candy shop (someday I'll get organized enough to figure out how to write it all off as a business expense!). I am not a brand loyalist and there are lots of things I like from a number of companies, but I do have a few favorites. I love L'Oreal Double Extend mascara and have used it for maybe 10 years at this point. There are others I like too, but my go-to is always Double Extend. I love the liquid and creme blushes that have come out in the last few years, and my favorite one is by Benefit. They have three shades now, a red (benetint), pink (posietint) and their newest one and my favorite which is a tangerine/mango sort of color called Cha-Cha tint. As for hair products, I do love Freeze hairspray by Schwartzkopf because it doesn't flake and it's not too heavy...Goldilocks would have said "It's just right," and I would be inclined to agree.
LISA: Describe your personal style aesthetic. What are you wearing this fall/winter?
LEXI: I guess I have a mixture of those styles in my wardrobe. I love vintage for clothes and for my hair and makeup, and I also love the dark, layered looks the French wear with all the scarves and hats and things, very chic...but I like my style to have a bit more of a rock & roll edge to it. I'm a fan of skulls and studs and leather and things like that, but softened up by a sweet retro hairdo and a cute vintage scarf which keeps it from being too harsh.
Lexy the Author
(center), editor Alicia LeBlanc and the Photographer Steve Wells
A perfect coffee table book at a salon, gift for the Vintage Diva or for your own Super Stylish library. BUY IT HERE Visit Lexi ON LINE
*Her model in the "Super Model" look reminded me of a 70's Jerry Hall ...
"The most beautiful makeup of a woman is passion. But cosmetics are easier to buy." Yves Saint-Laurent
