I wanted a retro-spiderweb theme, kind of like the set on the old Vampira show, and Liz totally delivered. She made the bib necklace and the belt, and supplied the dress, hairflowers, earrings, and some of the rings, too. Makeup was by the fabulous-as-always Beauty By Samantha White and hair was by the superb NM Beautybar.
I have two new pinup publications with some great new collaborators: Liz of Bombshell Pinup Photography and Sam of Beauty by Samantha White! Our images are featured in six-page spreads in both Retro Lovely No. 237 and Bombshell‘s February Valentine’s issue! And, we got a cover!
The first set was a lovely Gil Elvgren-inspired Valentine’s Day collection of images featuring a beautiful vintage satin comforter set acquired by Liz. I brought some cool fake roses, my vintage See’s Candy Valentine heart boxes, and a goodly chunk of my lingerie wardrobe, and here’s the result:
Sam’s makeup was amazing, Liz’s hairstyling was sublime, and my Bettie Page lingerie, What Katie Did Demi corset, vintage jewelry, trusty dusty Manolo Blahnik Sedarabys, and Catherine D’Lish lilac Cassandra robe did their jobs!
The second look was very bondage-y, inspired by our Pinup Queen, Bettie Mae Page. I brought my hand-tooled leather collar and black lingerie, and borrowed Liz’s PVC corset, shoes, and props. Sam gave me a bold red lip and Liz gave me Bettie waves. And we were off!
The June issue of Bombshell magazine is out! My Hearst Castle-inspired set by Marilee Caruso (who also did the makeup and hair) is in Book 1, including the inside cover facing the table of contents. If you want to grab this – or any – Magcloud publication on sale, there’s a discount code right now: MAG25.
Since I am a huge fan of William Randolph Hearst’s La Cuesta Encantata estate (“the enchanted hill,” now a California State Park located near San Simeon, CA), I wanted to incorporate a sliver of the atmosphere there. Virtually all aspects of the architecture and decoration were overseen by architect and Berkeley grad (Go Bears!) Julia Morgan over nearly three decades, and it remains one of her most impressive projects.
Since we couldn’t shoot at the actual house, we adapted Marilee’s “study” setup to double as W.R.’s library. The original room is very Spanish Baroque in ways that only a wealthy media mogul who collected lots of European antiques can replicate, but we did our best. I added a reproduction Greek vase (dude collected tons of art, including a huge ancient pottery collection from Greek antiquity which he highlighted in his library) and my “Citizen Kane” snowglobe to the studio set.
Marilee put images from my Film Noir shoot on the late 1940s tv console to add another layer of meaning, as both Hearst and Marion Davies (his girlfriend and major silent era and golden age of Hollywood star) were involved in the early American film industry. Given the tv cabinet and the more mid-century look of the studio set, we couldn’t do 1920s or 30s. And since the house was closed during World War II and Mr. Hearst and Davies left the house in 1947 due to the former’s ill health, we figured a small evening party in 1946 or 1947 “coulda happened” like this.
You can find this and all my issues via my Linktree.
Marilee Caruso (photographer) and Rockwell DeVil (makeup and hair) teamed up to make me look good for the holidays! My Christmas pinup set is featured in the holiday issue of Bombshell Magazine, and I’m on one of the covers.
I love red velvet and Christmas lights are basically in my blood at this point, so everything about this set is essential Catherine Morland, LOL. Marilee did a wonderful job for me. Every set is even better than the last, and I am grateful for her inspired work.
I was basically channeling one of my old Vampire: the Masquerade LARP characters, a dancer from Clan Toreador whom I named Lily after Lily Bart in Edith Wharton’s House of Mirth. Marilee did some very romantic Rachael-from-Blade-Runner-ish hair and makeup, and I wore one of my “Elisabeth” dressing gowns from Catherine D’Lish, a black lace bodysuit from Torrid, garter belt and stockings by What Katie Did, and a pair of signed Manolo Blahnik Campari pumps I got third-hand for like $35. Oh, and the fangs are one of two great custom pairs I got from Kaos Kustom Fangs.
Check out the latest regular issue of Bombshell Magazine to see me in a cool film noir-themed set photographed by Marilee Caruso. I’m even on one of the covers! Fabulous Rockwell DeVil once again did my hair and makeup, and my wardrobe for the shoot included vintage jewelry, a 1940s robe by Trashy Diva, a basque by Bettie Page lingerie from Playful Promises, stockings by What Katie Did, and shoes by Remix.
(FYI, I’m a nonsmoker, but posed with a cigarette for the shoot because this is noir, people!)