Students in Ms. Tucker’s cosmetology class created hairstyles, makeup and nail designs inspired by several different cultures and time periods from history.

1. The Middle Ages

We were inspired by the Middle Ages.  Why, one might ask?  Because this age falls between Classical Antiquity and the Renaissance Period (A.D. 476~1450), we wanted to see how the previous and the following era influenced the Middle Ages.  “Madam Butterfly” was created as a result of us demonstrating the towering hair styles from the Middle Ages which were considered very flattering and elegant.  This striking presentation was accented with complimentary nail color bringing this look into the twenty-first century. 

-Mo-Yah Jones Benjamin, Author

-Olga Reyes Villanueva, Contributor

2. Victorian Age

In the Victorian Age (1837-1901), women preferred a more soft and natural look.  Because of her fair skin and blonde hair, we decided to use earth tones both with her make-up and nail color.  Women from the Victorian Age pinched their cheeks to create a natural blush effect.  When wearing subtle makeup, earth tones such as dark chocolate nail color is very complimentary.  Her overall look, including her conservative hairstyle, is perfect for a professional woman.

-Bryonna Butler: Author

-Bre’Asia Thomas, Aislinn Garcia: Contributors

3. The Greek Culture

Hairstyling became a highly developed art in the Greek culture (~500 B.C.).  “The Mermaid” reflects the Greek contributions to beauty because of her curly locks and hair accessories.  We used shells to create a decorative hair clip emphasizing her soft waves.  We used multi-colored loose glitter that could be mistaken for such minerals as chalcopyrite, epidote and apatite to mimic the colors and textures of fish scales.  The Greeks used lavish cosmetics made from ground cinnabar (an orange to brick-red mineral) and kohl around the eyes creating what we now call the ‘smoky eye’. 

-Shauna Key, Author

-Meylin Diaz, Co-Author

-Beontae Carter, Contributor

-Dayonna Ckyyou, Contributor

4. The Egyptians

The Egyptians were very innovative with their creativity.  They used minerals, insects and berries for makeup. That’s amazing!  Don’t you think? Not only that, they used henna paste to stain their nails red.  Red is the color of power, so we painted the mannequin’s nails fire engine red and applied the same color to her lips.  The Egyptians were the first to cultivate beauty in an extravagant fashion, which is why they used a lot of jewelry in their hair.   Wearing jewels was believed to protect the owner and give them strength.

-Adamary Reyes, Author

-Arnyah Brown, Contributor

5. The Chinese Culture

Throughout the Chou Dynasty (1100 B.C.), gold and silver nails were  strictly reserved for royal family members.  The color purple is also associated with luxury, power, and ambition. Naturally we selected our home football team to create our Ravens Girl a.k.a. Ms. Jackson #8. Not to overdo it with the gold, we incorporated silver glitter with her purple nails.  We also used clip-in hair streaks, colored hair spray and gold hair accessories to complete her look.

-Shayla Jackson, Author

-Ariell Hayes, Co-Author

-Luz Amaya, Contributor

-Ayslinn Garcia, Contributor