Away We Go! Purse & Clutch Spring 2013

Shooting the Spring campaign with Jen Lewis for Purse & Clutch has allowed me to marry my vintage pieces to modern in a storytelling style, which always gets me excited!  As I’m learning to explore more with my camera and styling, I hope to continue pushing towards bigger and bolder.  This year’s theme for Spring 2013 is: Away We Go!  Matching bags to different means and methods of travel, for function and for fun, Purse and Clutch can go with you anywhere throughout your day!

This time around, I was thrilled to be able to do makeup and hair for the shoot.  My inital inspiration was the timeless cool of vintage ”It” Girls Bridgette Bardot, Françoise Hardy and Marisa Berenson.  Late 60s/70s superstar Marisa Berenson was right on my mind for this particular shoot.  She always had this sporty, languid, luxe gypsy look about her.  A real globe hopper.  Of course, whenever I shoot vintage, I try to keep it feeling modern and not skewing too period or costumey.  The 60s had lots of great cut out dresses, and this trend was huge again in the 80s and 90s, and it’s a massive trend in fashion design at the moment.  Cut outs and peek-a-boo elements are all over the runways, but in very chic and exciting ways.  It can look very sporty, accentuate the body in wonderful ways, or add some real edge and illusion.

Here Jen is wearing a vintage 90s cut out dress by Andrea Polizzi for Rex Lester.  It fit her just perfectly!  The black fabric is an excellent foil for the colorful bags, which I wanted to show off as a great partner for evening wear, or for a night out on the town.  I added a large vintage silver Indian-made cuff with abalone detail and some oversized 60s drop earrings in faux turquoise (Ms. Berenson always wore massive earrings in my favorite shots of her).  It drew attention to her face and those gorgeous baby blues!

The eye makeup and lipstick were very graciously provided by Rae Cosmetics.  Their makeup artist reviewed online images of Marisa Berenson with me when I shared my inspiration, and then provided tips for the application.  These eyeshadow compacts are fantastic, with great pigment, and Rae prides itself on their product’s wearability in extreme Texas heat.  I would highly recommend visiting their shop and talking with an artist for a color consultation or to experience the feel of the products.  They know how to accentuate natural beauty, and I was impressed with how polished the application looked without feeling the least bit heavy.  In Jen’s case, I wanted the colors on her eyes to bring in the greens and golds of the bags, with a slightly exotic feel.  We kept her lips modern and natural.  The makeup had a 60s impact while looking thoroughly modern, which is exactly what I wanted!

Some of my favorite shots with Jen from this series are by the fountain, where I think she looks like she’s going to have the most fantastical night out and possibly be mistaken for a contessa.  And her flirtation with statuary.  Jen always has a playful spirit.

Hair and Makeup by Hold Vintage

Eyeshadows and lipstick provided by Rae Cosmetics

Clothing, Styling and Photography provided by Hold Vintage

Bags and Model by Purse and Clutch