Earlier, I was chatting with a friend here about makeup. Over the years, I have tried various wig styles and colors. Some worked and some... not so much. In reviewing some photos I have taken I noticed how a subtle nuance can make a big difference. Generally, I do my makeup the same way and even stick to the same palette. With a warm-colored skin tone, you want warm colors, or like me with cool-colored skin, a cool palette of blues and greens. But for hair, it can be the opposite (as you will see). With a cool skin tone, warm blondes and reds seem to work well, but cool gray/silver not so much.
Another difference is lighting. The way you look in your makeup mirror is not the same as how you look in the bathroom mirror, or sitting in your car or office. Small things like false lashes, sunglasses, jewelry, and such can change the way you look and even make you look younger or older.
So here are some pictures of me since coming out in 2019.
FaceApp was used to give me more prominent cheekbones, but sadly it washed out the color of my hair. It gave me an idea of what look I wanted and how to achieve that with makeup.
October 2021 - Same hair - my favorite wig. I struggled with droopy eyelids and eventually had surgery to fix them.
Both of these were taken on May 19, 2022. Notice the difference? On the right, false lashes and sunglasses hide the top of my head making my head look smaller. The lighting is different too: bathroom light vs sitting in my Jeep.
November 2022 - same hair, lashes, and makeup. No sunglasses. The look is similar because the lighting is similar.
January 2023 - going to a New Year's Day party. The makeup is a bit heavy up close, but from a distance, it looks good.
January 17, 2023 - Makeup toned down. Just enough coverage on the face and a little eyeliner.
August 11, 2023 - Camping in the Black Hills, so no wigs. Makeup is a bare minimum, mostly sunscreen. The forest lighting was very kind and helped hide my "old lady wrinkles".
The next day, August 12, 2023 - Rockhounding out at Teepee Canyon. Again minimal makeup, and sunscreen as a coverup. I think the commonality between this one and the previous one is both were taken outdoors in the morning when the sun was not so harsh.
August 25, 2023 - the start of a Steampunk Halloween costume that never transpired. The buckles are silver and the buckles on my boots are gold. I was also done with this wig. It was human hair, so required styling after every wash. My hair grew long enough to be a pain to wear under this wig and remain comfortable. So I donated the wig to a friend of a friend.
October 12, 2023 - Makeup again a bit on the heavy side, but not bad from a distance.
Taken the same day, but indoors. Different wig - A new topper (that doesn't match my hair color).
December 4, 2023 - my favorite wig again. This pic shows the color much better. Sadly, it is wearing out and I have not been able to find this one again. My stylist attempted to recreate the look by coloring my hair like this and a matching topper. That did not go well.
December 26, 2023 - I toned the topper to correct for the brassiness (see the pic up a couple) But I overcooked it and it turned gray. I decided to embrace the gray and colored my hair to match (Nice N Easy 8S Silver Gray). Better, but I am so over the gray bit.
Same day - Back to one of my older wigs. Add a touch of eye shadow and it's a whole new look.
I don't have any pics from 2024 yet. I'll wait until I see what the new Raquel Welch wig catalogs have to offer, and then I'll add to
this album.
