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subscribe to beauty blog via RSSShien Lee Mixes The Macabre Into Her Makeup
October 25, 2010 1:39 pm
Shien Lee is a master of disguise. As the nightlife impresario behind Dances of Vice, a roving costume party troupe, Lee might appear as a cancan dancer one night and a gothic Victorian lady the next. Since its inception three years ago, her troupe has amassed an underground cult following that cuts across New York City subcultures from punk to burlesque. This Halloween is especially huge for Lee, as she prepares for an Edward Gorey Halloween Brunch Spectacular at the Highline Ballroom followed by a Rocky Horror Picture Show tribute at Le Poison Rouge. Here, the 25-year-old reveler talks about her penchant for maquillage born from another era (Weimar Berlin, to be exact), where to find rhinestone-studded lashes, and how to really keep your lipstick from moving (two words: hair spray).
What gave you the idea to start Dances of Vice?
When I first moved to New York, I felt like a bit of an outsider. I had always been into vintage music, fashion, and beauty, and Dances of Vice was a way to meet others who were into similar things. After my first party at the Pussycat Lounge, I realized that nobody likes to dress up more than New Yorkers, and things took off from there.
What’s been your favorite costume of late?
I recently did a look inspired by David Bowie. I wanted it to be a striking, space-queen glam explosion of sorts. I wore a custom-made silver catsuit complete with silver gloves and silver platforms. The makeup was futuristic, too. I layered different tones of metallic eye shadow from light to dark on my lids to create a 3-D effect, lined my eyes with tons of dark kohl pencil, then painted my brows so they slanted up—Spock-style—and wore rhinestone-studded fake lashes.
Sounds fantastic. Tell me more, including where you got those lashes!
You’d be amazed at what you can find on eBay! But I also like Wet n Wild Fantasy Makers glue-on lashes. For my cheeks, I wanted something unique so I applied streaks of pink blush along with purple, blue, and silver eye shadow, using a credit card as a straight edge to achieve a contoured Blade Runner effect.
What makeup do you rely on?
I like independent labels. A favorite is Sugarpill Cosmetics, which is based out of Oakland. Its products are high-pigmented and never crease or break down during the night. I also like vintage-y brands like Bésame Cosmetics, which makes the best red lipstick. My shade is Noir Red; it’s a really dark, dramatic matte red. To lock it down, I mist hair spray on my lips.
Seriously, hair spray?
Yes, it works. Just close your mouth so you don’t inhale the fumes.
You also get pretty inventive in the hair department. What’s your signature look?
I use a lot of fake hair, which I usually buy on the cheap in the Harlem beauty shops around where I live on 153rd Street. I like to pin it in and wrap it around to create two messy mounds on either side of my head. If I’m doing a villain queen look, for example, I pull on the hair so it forms this wispy, cobwebby style.
And hats. I’ve heard you have a fondness for tricornes…
Yes, I have over 80 hats! I hang them on the wall for storage, so my apartment looks like a crazy museum. I collect styles from different centuries, and yes, I’m especially drawn to eighteenth-century tricorne designs. A recent love is a modern style from Topsy Turvy with gold ships and seashells on it. I wore it for a shipwreck theme party.
Where do you shop in the city for inspiration?
I go to this store Obscura Antiques in the East Village, which has a great selection of strange novelty items. I bought a riding crop recently as a gift for a friend, and found a concealed blade inside it. Evolution is also amazing when you need an alligator eye or something. My friend is a designer for PureVile, and he creates these cool accessories from taxidermy—like attaching a skull on a hairpin.
So what’s on tap for Halloween? Can you reveal what you’re wearing?
Well, actually, I’m wearing two costumes. For the day, I’m doing a classic Victorian mourning outfit with a black bustle, corset, and dark veil. For night, I’m doing a glam flapper look, based on Columbia from The Rocky Horror Picture Show. But I’m adding a 1920’s, beachy-gothic twist, just to shake it up a bit.
tags: Dances of Vice, Hair, Makeup, Shien Lee
