December is proving to be far more busy and fun than I thought it would be this year. It’s always a busy time, what with the shopping, the school plays, the extra juggle of children on holidays and what not. But this December, although it has only just started, is shaping up to be the most fun and fancy time I’ve had in a while.

This month I’m helping Matchbox and Kitchen Aid with a really cool new contest they are running, in which you can win allkinds of cool prize including your favourite retro coloured Kitchen Aids! All you have to do is dress up in your retro best and take a photo with a Kitchen Aid to enter. I’m having real trouble picking my favourite with the glossy cherry red and hot pink vying for the lead.

Knowing that not everyone is as vintage obsessed with me, they’ve enlisted my help to teach the secrets to getting a vintage look and help you with your entries.  I spent last Sunday down at Chadstone to launch the contest, and will be appearing again in store at Westfield Doncaster between 11-2pm to do another demonstration and answer your questions.  If you have a free afternoon or would like to come down and play Kitchen Aid pretty up with me, make sure to head on down early as it gets very busy! You can find out more about the Kitchen Aid contest details here. (If you happen to be in Queensland, Mistress Chrissy of The Lindy Charm School for Girls will be at Westfield Chermside from 11-2pm this Sunday for you too!)

Listening closely!

The lovely Charlotte from Matchbox in KitchenAid pink!

With everyone’s thoughts suddenly turning to what to buy for Christmas, Some Fancy Ladies™ have been flat out doing store appearances for our 2012 pinup art calendar.  It’s proving to be a hit with young and old, both men and women.  Some of the delightful old dears we’ve run into have told us all kinds of stories from their youth, their wardrobes and even some secret saucy moments. I’m always honoured when we get to meet people and write personal messages on their calendars for them. We’ve had messages of birthday love, Sweet 16′s, Christmas stocking surprises and even something to give grandpa an extra “get well”! Friday night Bonnie Rose and I were in at Flowers of Canterbury on Mailing Road in amongst some of the most gorgeous flowers to meet and greet. Aren’t they just stunning?!

I can be a bit of a ham..

Our swanky calendars and cards

I just adore the colours in here!

If you haven’t ordered your copy of the calendar yet and want to see it in the flesh, you’ll find it locally now in store at Flowers of Canterbury, and Anton’s Clothing in Melbourne Central! Now, time for a bit of a sit down I think!

If you’re as young as me (*ehemm*), you may be lucky enough to have a grandfather who introduced you to the secret world of men’s hairstyling.  Not giving away all the secrets mind you, but letting you sit and watch as he readied himself for a day at the shops, running a comb through his shiny hair before returning it to his top pocket.  There was no one hour hair dryer action and touch ups of spray tans, these daily mirror rituals were the stuff that my Hollywood heroes were made of.

What I saw as I watched my grandfather do his hair, was a moment fast disappearing in time. A time when men use that marvellous stuff, pomade, to give them the slick, shiny look that had once set a beaux’s heart racing.

The word “pomade” in English is derived from French, pommade, meaning “an ointment”.  The root word is the Italian “pom” meaning “apple” because the original ointment recipe contained mashed apples. So don’t get confused and rub this stuff into your apples, cause its not going to do them any good!

The first popular commercially made pomades were Royal Crown Hair Dressing and Murray’s Superior Pomade, and who can forget the fabulous Brylcream ( I swear by the stuff).  The problem though, is that these gems (and the skills of their proper application) have been all but lost by the wayside, only accessible to those committed souls who go searching them out.

Finding a good old fashioned pomade hasn’t been the easiest thing for chaps for quite some time. With the advent of all the wax-y, gel-y, stick ‘em up until they crack products out there, the romance of the old has been pushed the dusty back shelf. But some canny friends of mine, with killer hair, are bringing back old school pomade and making men swoon worthy again.

Images from left to right: Johnny Cash, Gene Kelly, High Life Pomade, Folding comb, High Life moustache wax, Scotty Baker, Atomic Life.

Atomic Life, operating out of Sydney, understand that the road to successfully bringing back the romance of the past is all about getting to the heart and soul of it. I spoke to co-founder, Paul “Squizzy” Taylor about how how he and co-founder Ben Livingstone made  Atomic Life  happen.

“We started just over a year ago when Ben met Adam Dorsett (Mr High Life) at the Tattoo Expo in 2010. We then met Adam again at Viva 2010, and got talking to him about pomade. We thought about making our own, but realised we like High Life so much that we should try and bring it into the country. So we had a chat to Adam (and of course our wives), and the fruits of Atomic Life was born.

We decided that our focus should remain old school and for the rockabilly bloke, seeing that ladies were catered for quite well. Our first market was at the Rock n Roll Markets in Tempe in October 2011. From there we’ve traveled across Sydney, up the north coast to events at Brisbane, Port Macquarie, and Taree, and are now making our first trip to Melbourne.We then decided to contact Prison Blue as we both wore their jeans, and they were happy for us to bring their stock in too.

 We have since expanded our pomade importation to include Cock Grease, and are also looking at some other favourites to bring in. We’re also looking at getting our own pomade made too which is very exciting. So our focus like I said is about old school rockabilly….think jeans, hanes tee’s, pomade, and a Pendleton and you’re pretty much there. Both Ben and I think it’s important though not to just go out and use the scene for our own profit, but to actually support to scene in terms of getting out to gigs, and supporting all of our friends that make the scene what it is… That’s what it’s all about.”

While we ladies have an arsenal of grooming products at our disposal, a gentleman’s shaving cabinet appears sparse in comparison. How very fortunate for them; and their hip pockets.  But if you’re man’s toilette is so sparse that it only contains a worn down disposable razor and a bottle of Brut; then I suggest you stage an intervention!

With Movember now in full swing, I’m pleased to finally have the opportunity to introduce Mr SKM to Atomic Life.  He has graciously (and astonishingly) offered to go the “Full Poiroit” for Movember, and I’m hoping to reward the end of the month with some High Life Stach Wax – moustache wax, in an attempt to see it remain.

So I’m hoping, that with an army of wily Christmas elves to fill stockings around the country with pomade and suggestive notes, that 2012 will be the year of the well groomed man.

Every time I head to the hairdressers of late, I’m tempted to cut my hair shorter and shorter.  It is so much easier to style and set, but if I go too short I won’t be able to do some of the amazing up do’s I love so much. So I’ve decided to take a leaf from those canny ladies of the 1960′s and build a wardrobe of hair pieces that are the perfect short cut to the perfect do.

The idea of using pieces or ‘falls’ is not a new one, but as it went out of vogue for a while, a whole new generation is discovering the joys of artifice once again.  It’s taken a while for the market to pick up on the hair extension trend outside of the salons, and the more people want them, the more cleaver the manufacturers are getting. Not long ago the only options we had was either to buy human hair extensions from dubious sources, or synthetics that couldn’t take any real styling or heat.  Hair extensions that come in at $800 for each section are also off the table for me given just how many I’d need to create my ideal ‘hair wardrobe’.

I’ve been using synthetic clip ins on occasion for a while now, and these are the only way I can get my hair to look even remotely decent when I’m in tropical countries. But now I’m looking at them more for options of creating styles that I can leave readily done and set for those moments when I need some ‘shazam’ but I only have a couple of minutes.  Of course that means I need pieces I can actually style.

I’d been shopping around for options when I was invited to try out the new pieces made by Lady Jayne; clip in’s that retail around about $40 for a full width, 30cm long and pre curled section. Very affordable and not a bad range of colours either.  What had caught my eye about these in store was that they are heat resistant up to 210 degrees celsius, so I can actually curl, blow-dry or straighten them with no ill effects! (Note – you can’t dye synthetics though, so if you’re hair is a very specific shade you may run into problems… or an opportunity for creativity!)

I wanted to show just how easy these are to put in as well, so given that I’m somewhat of a hair guru it wouldn’t be fair if I said it was easy. So I asked Mr. SKM, (who incidentally hasn’t had any hair on his head for 20 years) to put them in for me.  I used two of the Volume and Length pieces in 30cm long black to create this super fast, what can change in the space of one minute, look.

Okay, it is pretty simple and probably would have benefited from having a brush run through it, but it shows just what a massive difference two extensions can make. I kind of like this disheveled look too. All the fun and none of the frizz I’d usually get if I did this with my own hair.  Over the next few weeks, I’m going to do some experiments with these pieces to see what else I can do with them and how easy they are to keep in in various conditions. If you have any questions about this particular brand feel free to ask away and I’ll do my best to help you out.  They are currently available at Priceline, some pharmacies and also Big W, so they are pretty easy to get a hold of.

If you’ve used DIY extensions like this before, what are your favourite things about them and have you ever thought about building a hair wardrobe like I am?

I’m living in crazy town at the moment. That place where I forget that I exist in the same time space continuum as the rest of the world and try and pack even more into a week than a sane person usually does. And yet, how can I not with all this fun to be had?

Last week I had a full week of photoshoots, hair & makeup, weddings and events planned; and boy was it a big one! First up on Tuesday  I spent a full day on set with four of my glamorous models putting together a look book of my vintage bridal and formal styling. It was fancy gowns and full hair & makeup looks that ran the scale from 1930′s movie star to 1950′s prom sweetheart. I’m presently working with the talented team at Finessence who produce some of the most stunning wedding shots I’ve seen in ages. I’m putting all this together for a showcase at the Love Vintage Fair coming up next Friday!  If you’ve wanted to see what it is that I do, this is your chance. Come along and check out all the fancy vintage hair and makeup looks we can create for your special occasion. I have all sorts of surprises in store for you!

How’s that for a good looking bunch? My talented photographic team in the front and me with my lovely models and styling assistant in the back.  Just wait till you see the complete picture; I’m simply dying with anticipation to show you!

So after a full day of divas and diamonds, it was my turn in front of the camera again.  This time with the delightful (and secretly hilarious) Helen McLean of Notorious Dames fame.  First up I wore the new “Rocker Girl Jane” dress by a wonderful local designer Peta Pledger. I have a few of Peta’s pieces now as they are all handmade here in Melbourne and are top quality.

And this super cute daisy print shirt with its little puffy sleeve and proper collar.

Remember the Birdy dress that I wore for my Vintage tour outing complete with tiara? We shot that for my lovely sponsor Miskonduct Klothing too.

And then this beautiful ‘Bamboo’ dress by Bernie Dexter that is stocked in Australia by Miskonduct Klothing too!

And that wasn’t all, but I won’t totally photo bomb you today!  It is all systems go here with so many events, shows and new projects on the horizon.  For some reason my winters always seem to be the craziest time of year, but I’m not complaining, I simply love my work!

It’s been a while since I featured some of my vintage hair and makeup work, but I’ve been having such a wonderful time working with vintage bridal hair and makeup recently.  Both the classically vintage and those that are more creative on their take.  I’m currently working on a few late 1920′s, early 30′s styled weddings; lots of Mad Men looks, and last year even worked on the most fantastic Halloween wedding production!

Here’s a look at some of my lovely ladies….

Late 1920's early 1930's hair and makeup look for a wedding client

Late 1920's early 30's vintage hair and makeup look for a Melbourne Wedding client

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1960's hair and makeup for a Mad Men party client

1960's Mad Men party client Rear View of Hair

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Hen's Party Pin Up Afternoon of 1940's vintage hair and makeup creations.

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The Halloween wedding bride

The Halloween wedding bride

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Dorothy hair and makeup for halloween wedding

Dorothy hair and makeup for halloween wedding

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If you couldn’t already tell, I absolutely LOVE my job!  Helping people showcase their most glamorous selves is one of the most enjoyable and rewarding things in my life.  If you, or someone you know, would like a helping hand with their vintage hair and makeup looks or are planning a glamorous vintage wedding; make sure to drop me a line!

** Please note: All images are the work of and copyright to Candice DeVille Pty Ltd 2011 **