Bardot Forever – Beauty Icon Brigitte Bardot

She is an icon for the ages, as timeless as it gets, and always an inspiration.  Brigitte Bardot epitomizes French sexuality and allure, and summers spent in seaside villages on the Riviera. She has and always will be the one of the ultimate "girls of summer", enduring more than fifty years since she first shook the world with her raw sensuality, and child-like charm.  

This year’s high-waist bikinis, gingham, off the shoulder blouses, ruffles, stripes, and overtly feminine styles are everywhere, and now is the perfect time to channel your inner sex kitten for summer’s hottest beauty look.  Think cat eye eyeliner, flushed rosy cheeks, and a pale pink pout.  Wear your hair loosely up in a bun to show off bare shoulders, or try a tousled ponytail with whispy flyaway hairs, or cascading down from a center part. 

Brigitte Bardot was a woman ahead of her time, creating a persona and beauty ideal that is as modern today as it ever was.  So many famous models have channeled her allure from Claudia Schiffer to Daphne Groenveld, as she continues to inspire designers, photographers and brands to this day.  So go ahead and skip washing your hair, sleep in your eyeliner, and be as girly and feminine as you want.  After all the ultimate glam means never looking like you have to work at it.  Vive Bardot!

                                                                 XOXO  Shelley

#Brigitte Bardot #Bardot beauty #French beauty icon #how to look like Bardot #sex kitten beauty #French beauty #facethis.blogspot.com #Shelley Goodstein

Love Your Selfies! The Easiest Top Tips from Models and Photographers

Who doesn’t feel a sense of excitement when you nail a selfie that you actually love?  Ever look in the mirror someplace and think “wow – I actually look like the vision I had in my mind – I need to capture this now”?  This is followed by at least fifteen snaps on your phone from various angles and the expressions, usually followed by despair, and “arghhhh I don’t look as good as I thought I did”.  Stop! It’s not you but how you are taking the picture, and believe me when I say models take tons of selfies in every sort of situation, trying to find the right angles, the best light, and the hottest/freshest/cutest expressions  - and so should you.

1)  Start with a flattering light without shadows or bright spots.  Try facing a window when indoors as that is probably going to be the brightest and most natural light in the room.  Face the window directly for some shots and at an angle for others and see what works for you. 

2)  Watch out for distortion:  Tweety Bird foreheads and Jay Leno chins don’t make for great selfies.  Extend your arm and see what distance keeps the right proportions of your face. 

3)  Expressions – pro tips from top beauty photographers: 

Sticking your chin out and then down when facing the camera directly diminishes the prominence of your nose and makes you open your eyes in a way that plays up a bright-eyed innocent look with big lashes.  This is a great way to capture a fresh-faced, innocent look.

                                                                                    (click pic to enlarge)

Tilting your chin a bit upwards gives the face allure as the eyes become “bedroom eyes” that are dreamy and half open, the cheekbones and jawline become more refined, and the mouth will be slightly open giving the lips a sexy look. This position works well with a glam look with makeup.

                                                               (click pic to enlarge)

4)  Don’t be afraid to smile or be natural and “real”.  These are the selfies you will love later as they will evoke happy memories or fun moments.  Just make sure your smile has a laugh behind it or it will look fake and both you and those who look at the pic will know it. Always tell a story with your eyes no matter what the emotion is behind the pic.  You aren’t a paper cutout and neither should your selfies be, so practice and try these tips and you will have more pics to love and much less to delete.    

                                                            XOXO Shelley 

                                                                                                                         

#selfies #models' tips for selfies #how to take a great selfie #photographer tips of selfies #easy selfie tips #love your selfies #facethis.blogspot.com #Shelley Goodstein

The Golden Ratio: George Clooney rated the Most Beautiful Man in the World

We’ve known it for decades but science has confirmed it: George Clooney is the most beautiful man in the world, at least the world of celebrity.  London plastic surgeon Dr. Julian De Silva used the Golden Ratio to measure the faces of male celebrities rating them on a scale of ten by their score out of one hundred, with George Clooney at the top of the list with a score of 91.86. (But seriously, did we need science to tell us that? Just saying.) 

So how do you measure beauty using math? The golden ratio, or divine proportion is an ancient Greek mathematical equation based on “phi” or 1.618, where the sum of two qualities is equal to the ratio of the quantity as a whole.  Sounds greek to me, but generally it was used by the ancient greeks as a way to measure symmetry which they found to be the most perfect representation of beauty in relation to art, sculpture and architecture.  Ever noticed how ancient sculptures of greek gods are representations of perfect male specimens?  Divine proportions indeed.

So does this theory hold true to modern day beauty standards?  Consider the top ten list compiled by Dr. De Silva: no one would argue with the results, although maybe personal preferences might rearrange the ranking order. 

The Golden Ratio measures “beauty” based on symmetry which leaves out sexiness, personality, humor, or expression, all of which add to a man’s appeal, so while a symmetrical face might make a man beautiful it doesn’t replace a twinkle in the eye or an off-kilter smile.  Having such symmetry may have a great effect on achieving success in the world of celebrity, as even though most people are completely unaware of why they are attracted to a celebrity’s facial beauty.  It makes leading men more telegenic and photogenic, which means more screen time.  Of course a beautiful face won’t go far without being backed up with serious acting or music skills. George Clooney and the others in the top ten list have depth, charm, and talent, that combined with their symmetrical good looks is a winning combination. But being handsome, certainly doesn't hurt career prospects.

The Golden Ratio is ageless meaning the most beautiful male celebrity is 56 year old George Clooney, and we agree. Can’t argue with science. 

To learn more about the Golden Ratio and how to find out where you fit on the scale, see my post:  The Perfect Face - Golden Ratio Beauty Calculator

                                                               XOXO Shelley

#golden ratio #George Clooney #most beautiful man in the world #most handsome male celebrities #divine proportion #golden ratio ratings for men #facethis.blogspot.com #Shelley Goodstein