Photo by: N.L. Belardes
One Bakersfield Woman's Blog to Mankind
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Hanging out with Pirates in Yosemite and Setting the Goth Record Straight…
Once upon a time a group of pirates gathered in the land of sunshine and trees to swap stories, cross swords and drink spirits. Rivers of wine flowed, eyes swam in their sockets, words began to slur as heated debates broke out. It was intense. It was freeing after a day of being read the rules. And then things turned ugly…“Will you remember this conversation tomorrow?” NL asked a lady pirate with piercing eyes, a hard voice and a strong brow bone.
“I might not, you kind of blend in with the crowd. But her I’ll remember. She’s Goth.” The lady pirate blurted.
“She’s not Goth!” NL drew his sword in my defense.
“I’m not Goth.” I added.
“You look Goth to me. There’s no one else at this conference that looks like you.”
“I’ll take that… I like looking unique. But I’m not Goth.”
“You’re attributing fair skin and dark makeup as Goth. I have issues with that, she’s not Goth.” NL crossed swords with the pirate lady.
“I just like makeup. I used to own a Merle Norman cosmetic store for ten years and was a makeup artist. Smokey eyes are my favorite look. And I really love punk makeup it’s so artistic.” I explained.
“So you consider makeup an art?” An Oracle pirate who wore no makeup and had a long French braid hanging down her back asked.
“Definitely, makeup is an art! When they teach you the art of makeup, they teach you that the face is a canvas.”
“I don’t think I buy that whole your face is a canvas thing.” The lady pirate with the piercing eyes said.
“It’s true. The face is a canvas and there is an art to applying makeup to create different looks.”
“I don’t wear makeup.” She stated.
“I could teach you how to apply makeup, it’s what I used to do.”
“I don’t know about that.”
And then the discussion turned to the world of publishing… The lady pirate with the piercing eyes drew swords with that posh publisher pirate Malcolm Margolin while the inspiring Georgetown pirate jumped into the row arming herself with technological swords attempting to save a life from mortal injury and failed publishing dreams.
I sat listening to all the pirate rambling contemplating being called Goth. I’m not Goth, I don’t dress all in black, or listen to metal or Goth music, or create Goth art, even if I did recently buy a Fairy Goth Mother for my character in my novel at a local Bakersfield art show… I’m not Goth. So why does this pirate lady think I am? Hasn’t she ever looked at the makeup featured on the pages of Vogue Magazine? Those models are wearing dark eyeliner and smokey eyes and they are not Goth!
Working in the Cosmetic Industry for ten years I learned a lot about makeup and creating looks from the dew fresh barely there daytime look of Gweneth Paltrow to the glam, sultry, smokey eyes that fashion models wear on fashion runways and on the pages of Vogue Magazine. Just look how much more interesting Gweneth Paltrow looks with smokey eyes.
Gweneth Paltrow, dew fresh and sultry smokey eyed...
As the lady pirate with the piercing eyes pointed out… there was no one else at the conference that looked like me. I like being artistic with my makeup, I like glamming it up a bit and wearing smokey eyes and dark lipstick. I like expressing myself through makeup. I like being unique in this way… but that does not make me Goth.
The art of the smokey eye...
The battle of the Goth ended without injury as all pirates agreed it was just such a rebellious act like smokey eyes that set us apart from the rule mongers and made us pirates in the worlds we created for ourselves.
Me, (the Goth Pirate), and the inspiring Georgetown Pirate share stories...
Once upon a time a group of pirates gathered in the land of sunshine and trees to swap stories, cross swords and drink spirits. Rivers of wine flowed, eyes swam in their sockets, words began to slur as heated debates broke out. It was intense. It was freeing after a day of being read the rules. And then things turned ugly…“Will you remember this conversation tomorrow?” NL asked a lady pirate with piercing eyes, a hard voice and a strong brow bone.
“I might not, you kind of blend in with the crowd. But her I’ll remember. She’s Goth.” The lady pirate blurted.
“She’s not Goth!” NL drew his sword in my defense.
“I’m not Goth.” I added.
“You look Goth to me. There’s no one else at this conference that looks like you.”
“I’ll take that… I like looking unique. But I’m not Goth.”
“You’re attributing fair skin and dark makeup as Goth. I have issues with that, she’s not Goth.” NL crossed swords with the pirate lady.
“I just like makeup. I used to own a Merle Norman cosmetic store for ten years and was a makeup artist. Smokey eyes are my favorite look. And I really love punk makeup it’s so artistic.” I explained.
“So you consider makeup an art?” An Oracle pirate who wore no makeup and had a long French braid hanging down her back asked.
“Definitely, makeup is an art! When they teach you the art of makeup, they teach you that the face is a canvas.”
“I don’t think I buy that whole your face is a canvas thing.” The lady pirate with the piercing eyes said.
“It’s true. The face is a canvas and there is an art to applying makeup to create different looks.”
“I don’t wear makeup.” She stated.
“I could teach you how to apply makeup, it’s what I used to do.”
“I don’t know about that.”
And then the discussion turned to the world of publishing… The lady pirate with the piercing eyes drew swords with that posh publisher pirate Malcolm Margolin while the inspiring Georgetown pirate jumped into the row arming herself with technological swords attempting to save a life from mortal injury and failed publishing dreams.
I sat listening to all the pirate rambling contemplating being called Goth. I’m not Goth, I don’t dress all in black, or listen to metal or Goth music, or create Goth art, even if I did recently buy a Fairy Goth Mother for my character in my novel at a local Bakersfield art show… I’m not Goth. So why does this pirate lady think I am? Hasn’t she ever looked at the makeup featured on the pages of Vogue Magazine? Those models are wearing dark eyeliner and smokey eyes and they are not Goth!
Working in the Cosmetic Industry for ten years I learned a lot about makeup and creating looks from the dew fresh barely there daytime look of Gweneth Paltrow to the glam, sultry, smokey eyes that fashion models wear on fashion runways and on the pages of Vogue Magazine. Just look how much more interesting Gweneth Paltrow looks with smokey eyes.
Gweneth Paltrow, dew fresh and sultry smokey eyed...
As the lady pirate with the piercing eyes pointed out… there was no one else at the conference that looked like me. I like being artistic with my makeup, I like glamming it up a bit and wearing smokey eyes and dark lipstick. I like expressing myself through makeup. I like being unique in this way… but that does not make me Goth.
The art of the smokey eye...
The battle of the Goth ended without injury as all pirates agreed it was just such a rebellious act like smokey eyes that set us apart from the rule mongers and made us pirates in the worlds we created for ourselves.
Me, (the Goth Pirate), and the inspiring Georgetown Pirate share stories...
As someone who wears way less makeup than she should out of impatience and ignorance about proper application, I appreciate your smoky eyes tutorial. That's one of my short-term goals: obtaining better quality makeup and learning how to use it effectively.
Anyone wanting to learn how to apply makeup should visit a department store cosmetic counter or a Merle Norman Cosmetic store and have a FREE makeover. Be specific in telling the beauty consultant how you want to look and ask questions.
Then just practice...
That lady must not know what Goth is. You are NOT Goth. Not that there's anything wrong with that.
I love how you and NL are so protective of each other. :)
I loved that pirate experience at the writer's conference! What a chaotic churn of conversation -- momentarily silenced when the loud one turns to the quiet one at the table, and plasters a label all over you... Hey, at least she was honest. And maybe, just maybe, the pirate lady actually learned something. Cheers to you, M. ~L.
ever heard of a book called: "don't go to the makeup counter without me" ?
Harrr... I mean, *sigh*...