Vintage party hair with Yogi: Part 2

My name is Natalie Shirlaw, I've been hairdressing for around 20 years and have worked in some of London’s top salons. I'm currently working as a session hairstylist, which means I specialise in TV, film, grooming for premieres, photoshoots etc. I'm currently the “face” of  Yogi hair products and I do the hair show on QVC for them too. I've just been booked for the Sony premiere “The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo” in December too so I'm very excited about that! My website is www.shirlawstyle.com if you would like to read more about me.

Im really excited to bring some Christmas party looks for you through Playful Promises. I hope you enjoy them and find my step by step easy to achieve! I have enlisted the help of my client Sinead who is modelling for me; we met when I did her gorgeous vintage themed wedding in the summer in Whitstable and also my friend and fantastic photographer Samantha Jones who does beautiful wedding pictures – take a look at her website!

Check out our first tutorial here!

LOOK 2: Nightclub

WHAT YOU NEED                                                    

Yogi Hair Wand  

A bristle brush

Pincomb

Widetooth comb

Grips

Wide grips

Step 1

I've done this look for you so you can be a bit different from your friends! I've been looking at girls on the tube etc and everyone is now able to do the side buns and ponytails that are in fashion, so I thought I’d give you something more adventurous to try! And again it’s a lot easier than it looks!

Again the first thing any hairdresser will tell you if you want to put hair up you need lots of texture in your hair, as it's much easier to mould into shapes.  Sometimes it's easier if you try this on the 2^nd day after washing as your hair will have some natural texture in it.

I used my Yogi fat barrel wand to create more lovely texture.

Step 2

Back comb the whole head by taking sections around the head and using that stroking backcomb method previous described here.  You will be looking a bit scary when you’re done!

Step 3

Take a section from ear to ear so you have your hair in 2 sections, 1 in the front and 1 in the back. Brush the back section over to one side and pin as shown.  Then fold the rest of the hair back into itself to create a cone shape and pin to the head with the wider hair pins.  If this is too difficult you can just clip it with a long butterfly clip. 

Step 4

Place the padding on the top of the head and secure with grips.  Then take random sections and pin everything upward onto the padding. When you have something to pad your hair with it makes pinning so much easier as it gives it something to grip onto. Twist bits of hair round and pin until you get this lovely shape!

Good luck with styling and I hope you all look uber glam for your Christmas parties!

Christmas gift review: Etti

Amy was taken on by the Playful Promises team as part of their internship scheme, where she designed our gorgeous Etti set! She is now in her 3rd year at Leeds College of Art studying BA (Hons) Printed Textiles and Surface Pattern Design, and she specialises in print design for fashion and lingerie. To keep up to date with this rising star, check out her blog and follow her on twitter @amyselina

The ‘thing’ about Playful Promises for me is that extra spark their lingerie gives to the wearer, the feeling of flirtation and instant sex appeal, which I feel is personally hard to come by. Playful Promises set themselves apart as they ‘mix quirky, directional design with all things playful and flirty’, they’re always sexy, always sassy and always confident.

I often see, hear or read that people are surprised that prints are engineered in house by designers rather than sourced and bought from elsewhere. Playful Promises prints are designed in house and this makes them extra special, giving me an extra special feeling when being asked to design the print for Etti so soon into my internship (a big step up from my own disillusioned expectations of tea girl rankings, and my internship outshone every one of those).

Having already seen the design drawn up for Etti, it made designing a print to fit the mould a little easier.  I knew the print for Etti needed to fit with the feel of the fabrics - a look of luxe. I wanted to revitalise beautiful retro aesthetics in a fun, fresh and flirty way, upholding Playful Promises trade mark characteristics. It was the quirkiness of my own creativeness that I wanted to put into Etti as well as keeping the magic and creating that spark.

The print itself consists of bold brush strokes with painterly qualities and a floral overprint. The colour palette given was on trend for the upcoming colour blocking season, and I wanted to give it a quirky twist. Explosions of apricot, magenta and purple against a dark background gave for a sexy and seductive print. I added depth and opacity to aspects of the design to create a luxurious layered print that would work perfectly with Etti’s already amazing aesthetics.

The initial design of Etti set an amazing background for emphasising the print. The contrasts of print against dark mesh and sheer panels along with glimpses of flesh really add to the over all feel of this set. The fit speaks for itself, the designs offer retro yet modern and sexy underwear, flattering all bust sizes and engineered for the shapes and curves of the women’s body. The fit and feel of Etti is pure perfection, hugging all the right places and accentuating just what is needed. My favourite piece out of Etti being the longline bra, the cage effect giving the right amount of flesh flirtation with a cheeky hint towards fetishism and ultimately, what we all want to feel when we wear beautiful underwear; sexy. These sets do exactly what Playful Promises describe, beg to be shown off. Etti encapsulates freedom, rebellion and vast sex appeal, where dynamic energy and provocation are key.

When I see Etti I see the excitement reflecting in the print that I felt when I first started the design, and I hope that when everyone slips into the set they feel that same excitement.

When Etti was delivered to my door, I un-wrapped the parcel, folded back the black tissue paper and there it was, that spark. Definitely keeping the all important promises, Etti is pleasure providing, perfectly playful and definitely magical.

Christmas gift review: One Thousand and One Nights

The Morgana line from Playful Promises Autumn Winter Damascan Dreams collection really does promise one thousand and one nights of boudoir play. A black lacey and racey retro collection, including; underwired bra, brief, thong, suspender belt and garter dress, which I strongly recommend.

Initially I didn't feel the line was as strong as Etti or Jasmine, however the quiet subtlety of the line soon made it's name within magazines, blogs and photo shoots. The Morgana garter dress was an incredibly popular piece to be called in by stylists, often queuing up to borrow it for their shoots.

It wasn't until I got my hands on the Morgana bra did I realise just how wondrous this line was to be. The bra is surprisingly comfortable, I can honestly say I've never had such a comfortable bra. With lace panelled cups and two inch thick elastic, the Morgana bra is a femme fatale bra like no other.

It has a very thin, almost transparent lining between the lacey exterior making it a soft bra to wear. But more than soft-to-touch comfort, the bra offers perfect sleek support which was surprising for such a lacy piece. In particular I like the shallow dip this bra offers, making it a uniquely shaped bra ideal under t-shirts, the LBD or for playful excursions.

The chunky ribbed elastic band, the signature of this line, is really what makes the collection. Such an original trim, comfortable and yet there is something quite racy about this oversized, two inch thick, elastic finish. The attention to detail is sumptuous, this elastic is finished with a small scalloped edge, therefore the elastic isn't cutting into the skin, rolling or other temperamental activity elastic can usually offer.

The brief, also finished with this chunky trim, features a rather saucy triangle cut-out on the back displaying glimpses of unmentionable regions. The lace fabric offers a racy glimpse and the mesh shows off further flesh, making this a real temptress of the night. And I have to say comfortable and sexy to wear, a match made in heaven (or by Playful Promises).

The garter skirt, or suspender belt, is very desirable. Just like the brief, the back of the garter skirt is as detailed as the front. The chunky elastic is crossed over on the back cropping the skirt high showing off your peachy cheeks, welcoming glimpses of your best assets. I really like the cut of this retro-inspired garter skirt. It includes adjustable straps for your stockings finished with a rubber tip to grip your nylons.

The jewel of the collection, steaming the mirror in your boudoir, is the Morgana garter dress. A real show stopper, the garter dress could almost be a little black dress. Perhaps a little risqué, it's definetly something to show off. The underwired bra offers support and comfort whilst the dress shapes your curves. Again a criss-cross cut-away effect with the chunky elastic offers promising glimpses of what lies beneath.

The garter dress is a real must-have for fun in the bedroom and ideal to be worn under dresses and more. But I strongly recommend the entire line for everyday-wear, boudoir shenanigans and shaping your curves.

Vintage party hair with Yogi

My name is Natalie Shirlaw, I've been hairdressing for around 20 years and have worked in some of London’s top salons. I'm currently working as a session hairstylist, which means I specialise in TV, film, grooming for premieres, photoshoots etc. I'm currently the “face” of  Yogi hair products and I do the hair show on QVC for them too. I've just been booked for the Sony premiere “The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo” in December too so I'm very excited about that! My website is www.shirlawstyle.com if you would like to read more about me.

Im really excited to bring some Christmas party looks for you through Playful Promises. I hope you enjoy them and find my step by step easy to achieve! I have enlisted the help of my client Sinead who is modelling for me; we met when I did her gorgeous vintage themed wedding in the summer in Whitstable and also my friend and fantastic photographer Samantha Jones who does beautiful wedding pictures – take a look at her website!

LOOK 1: Barbarella

WHAT YOU NEED                                                    

Yogi Hair Wand  

A bristle brush

Pincomb

Widetooth comb

Grips

Wide grips

PRODUCTS

I use products from a company called Gentle Beauty as I prefer natural and plant derived products.  They have their suncoat range and also a range by John Masters Organics which smells beautiful and is very effective as its made by a hairdresser

This look is so popular and very easy to achieve when you know how!

Step 1

The first thing you must do when you want big hair is get texture in it,  backcombing alone isn’t good enough you first have to create a  texture in the hair.  To get great texture when you first wash your hair you must use some styling products. I used John Masters sea mist. Rough dry the hair, maybe even upside down to get plenty of body and movement.  You can even do this a day or 2 after washing if you find your hair has better texture when it is a bit dirty.  

Step 2

Next I have used my Yogi hair wand; the great thing about this wand is it's very easy to use and you don’t need any additional products to make a curl. I used the large barrel wand on Sinead’s hair. You can already see the lovely texture in her hair.

Step 3

Backcomb the hair with the widetooth comb. You don’t have to backcomb with a pincomb as this can make the hair very knotted to get out.  The trick is in the way you backcomb. Hold the section of hair and take long sweeping movements from 2 inches away from the root back down towards the root slowly and carefully (rather than sawing movements at the root!!!!) If you do this correctly the hair will stand up alone.  Spray with some hairspray. I like Sun coat spray as it is non aerosol or the aveda ones are good too!  

Step 4

Section off the hair as shown then place the padding in at the crown and secure with grips.  Take your bristle brush and smooth the hair gently over the padding and pin behind.  Keep the hair a liitle tousled as it will look too old fashioned if its too neat and Voila!!!

 

Keep your eyes peeled next week for my second Christmas party look! If you use this tutorial we would LOVE to see photos of the results - make sure you post them in a comment! 

Knicker hunt!

 We thought we would start the party games early this year, and we are kicking off our Christmas give-away specials with a knicker hunt! 

Scattered about our website are 5 little Playful Promises presents, with a set of Genie wrapped up inside each one! The first 5 people that find them all and email annas@playfulpromises.com with their locations will win a set of Genie in their choice of colour. 

(This one doesn't count!)

 Most of them are fairly easy to find, so get searching before someone else finds them all! 

THIS COMPETITION IS NOW OVER!

Congrats to our winners, Jess, Hannah, Viktoriana, Lauren and Saffron, your prizes will be winging their way to you very soon! We hope you all enjoyed taking part, we shall have to make the next one much more of a challenge ;D Keep an eye out next week for another hunt!