Yuh ass Dark

A Trini idiom that I grew up hearing a lot, which means that you'rein trouble- Yuh Ass Dark.
In the literal sense, it also means that you're in some trouble! Any one of us, despite race or age, will suffer from Black Bottom Syndrome once we have a certain level of Melanin. For some reason that I cannot figure out, a person's whole body could be one even-toned colour, but then right under the butt cheeks,at the crease by the upper thigh, is a region that is darker than the rest! This can vary from a slight difference to some serious business.

Bitches with even toned bottoms

To those of you who live in temperate climates and who do not don pum-pum shorts, you may not see why this is a problem. To us in the tropics, particularly the Caribbean, who have Carnival once a year, this issue is an annual struggle. As costume belts get tinier, and the bedazzled panty is the new short pants, we need to do something. Though there may not be any prevention method, there are coping mechanisms.

1. Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs
This is an at-home applied spray tan you can say. It's essentially body makeup with staying power. It's labelled at being water resistant. You spray into your hands and then apply to the area and let dry. Once you're not too sweaty and not rubbing up on too many people, it stays put. You get a beautifully even bum.

I bought mine at SuperPharm.

2. Carnival Stockings
Let's face it. Most of us will be rubbing up our derrieres on people. Machel said to. I can't imagine the horror of having my ass makeup rub off on someone's pants crotch. The Horror! While the verdict is still undecided on wearing Carnival tights at fetes, I won't condemn those who do. I do think they mostly belong on the road Monday and Tuesday, but if you wanna make a look out of it and wear them to a fete with something cool, go for it. They suck you in and make your legs look shapely and even toned. It is of utmost importance to get a shade that matches your skin as closely as possible. Can't find it? Go darker if you must. Never lighter.

3. Confidence
Often I resort to this. I can't see my  butt. so out of sight, of of mind. Once it's tight and toned and looking round and fab, who cares about if it's black? (right?)

Not My Butt

How to Design your Makeup Look for the Road

As the month of March comes closer, more and more ladies are frantically fingering their keyboards as they scroll and click on every YouTube tutorial they can get their hands on to inspire their makeup for Mas!

I designed my first Carnival costume this year, for the new band Passion. Of course I will be playing in my designed section! I, however, was facing the same quandary- What to do to match my face to my costume?!!

I could style the shit out of everyone else, but when it comes to myself I'm always indecisive. I decided to call up Mario Francis; AH-mazing Makeup artist with an eye for the uber glamorous, and ask him to create a face inspired by costume. Of course, in true Stephanie Fashion, it came with a long list of must-haves.

In a Facebook message I said to him:

" The costume is not for pretty Girls.

 It is for Sexy Women who know who they are and are unapologetic about it"

I wanted her to be Glamorous and ooze sex appeal. I wanted people to look at her not because of what was on her but because of her confidence. It had to be beautiful yet edgy. Effortless, yet masquerader. Here's what turned up!

Photography: Eustace Dyer
Makeup: Mario Francis
Model: Kerisse Sammy
Design and Styling: (Me) Stephanie Ramlogan
Costume Section: Zeal
Band: Passion

So to my Zealots who have registered in this section, here's some inspiration for you!

And to all you other ladies out there looking to find a face for the costumes, here's my advice: Try not to match the makeup to the look of the costume, but to the feel of it. Is it bold or quiet? Is it ethereal and mystical, or glamorous and diva? While it's fun to bedazzle our whole faces, think of something practical that sweat won't destroy. Your makeup look should make you look beautiful while still making it's own statement. Don't let it wear you. Your natural beauty should still be the centre focus, but play up your best assets with sparkle and colour. Play yuh mas!! See you on the road!

The Fashion Week we never knew we had

Call me late if you will, but it wasn't until I watched the Haute Caribe video that I noticed the link between Carnival and Fashion.



Anya Ayoung Chee insists on maintaining the connection between her designs and Carnival. I had not really committed to the idea until she said something about the world having their eyes on Trinidad for Carnival these next couple weeks, and now they would get to see us for fashion too.Brilliant concept actually.

​

There we go battling FWTT to give us a chance, when we already had our audience! International celebrities come flocking to the streets for the fetes, J'ouvert and mas. How could I have been so ignorant to the immense opportunity?! 



I always thought of Carnival in terms of the music and energy. Fashion never crossed my mind because the costumes are a far cry from any contemporary fashion direction. It would be like drawing inspiration from a tacky Vegas Showgirl. Our designers don't even design clothing with remotely that amount of bead-work and embellishment. Yet how could I not have made the clear connection between the colours and the vibrancy? The photography, the movement? The life, the love, the passion?!



Carnival is our Life. Fashion is Life. Carnival is Fashion



see the video that woke me up at www.hautecaribe.com

Carnival has always opened up doors for fashion 

For the second year in a row, internationally recognized Trinidadian designer, Anya Ayoung Chee has presented her section for Tribe. This year she creates Acara Acraea for the Band's Butterflies and Beasts theme.Anya has been very instrumental in defining the undeniable link between fashion and Carnival. The launch for her section also included clothing which went with the theme of the section.

Monday Mas options have made another revolution. From going casual over the past few years, fashionable masqueraders are now resorting to custom made Monday costumes. One successful emerging Monday Mas creator is Ela Design Company, led by Maria Elena Jute and Nina Alcantara. This team goes all out with designs that could have belonged to their own section! This one is definitely for the hard- core costume lovers who will never settle for tube tops and hot shorts.

Where we are now is a good way off of the days when our mothers would smear lipstick on our faces and send us to kiddies Carnival. Trinidad's Makeup Artist community has really come out in the recent years, and many of them have undeniable talent when it comes to artistic and conceptual face designs.

Fashion Photography booms during Carnival!
Laura Ferreira is light-years ahead of her time. Her vision and realization of fashion photography in Trinidad has already propelled the image of the industry by having onlookers recognise it's potential.
In these pictures which feature The Lionfish section of Bliss Carnival 2013, it is blatant that Carnival and Fashion are the members of a unique marriage in a niche market owned by Trinidad.
Model: Nissa Hanooman
MUA: Christopher Rama
Hair: Ashvin Bally
Costume Design: Valmiki Maharaj

Fab at the Fetes!

You heard it in the HauteCaribe documentary (www.hautecaribe.com) Trinidad fashion can not exclude the annual magic that is Carnival. Carnival encompasses many of the factors that contribute to the Caribbean aesthetic. The heat, the colour, the volume, the cultures, the sex, the beat-- it's all there.

As the interest in fashion and style has grown over the years, what we wear to the fetes and the shows have come a long way from the sneakers and denim cut-offs of the nineties past. I see women in stilettos and professionally done up-dos standing in the muddy grass at fetes! It is our time of the year! We want to show off our tight bods after hours in spin class and Zumba! Every weekend- and often weekday- we have a party where we rehearse our best wine for the road. Now with all these online media house photographers snapping pics of us at every event, and posting it to Facebook the next day- we have to look fab at every fete!

In the next few blogposts I'll provide you with some Carnival Style tips! The fetes have already begun, so listen up!

So you did not have plans for the weekend, but it's 9 pm Friday night, and your friend calls you with a comp for a fete tonight! Only problem now is, all the shops are closed and you have nothing new to wear!
Okay. Relax. The easiest way to put together an outfit is to combine staples and Accessorise!
Your greatest accessory this season is your makeup! Carnival makeup makes a statement. It's the one time of year you can go overboard with your creativity and re-create those out-there looks on your Pinterest boards. These are some looks that you should definitely consider!

Sparkle

It's kind of a must. Add sparkle to one (max two) parts of your face. You can apply gems or paint glitter makeup to your eyelids, eyebrows, lips or temples.

MAC and NYX have great products for face glitter. Still be careful to protect sensitive areas from receiving specks which will hurt and irritate your eyes!

Got this at www.favim.com

"Diamond eyes" by Jaumark Pierre http://www.facebook.com/makeup.by.JaumarkPierre

Colour

LOVE the coloured eyebrow look. Would keep the
tone of the hue similar to your natural eyebrow colour though
http://blog.mycosmeticbag.com/photo-looks/fotd-a-sugarpill-red-white-blue

from www.eyeshadowlipstick.com

http://www.facebook.com/facebyblaise

Eyelashes 

- A BIG accessory to Carinival Makeup. The options are endless. Just make sure the bring attention to the eyes, not overwhelm them. Also, get rid of them if they make you uncomfortable or bother you from blinking.

Bold lips

Whilst all that glitters might more suited for night events, or Mas itself, opt for a glowing complexion with bold accents for the day. Glitter does not stand up well to the heat anyway.