Sunday, November 20, 2011

Pin Up Girl Style for Black Women

What do you think of you you hear the words "pin up girl"? I'm not talking pornographic centerfold, I'm talking about pin-up girls of the 40s and 50s  (and they were mostly White). Pin up girl makes me think of whimsical photos of curvy, rosy cheeked women in provocative and playful poses. Pin up girls are sexy because of their poses and form fitting clothing (no nudity), but they also appear innocent because of their big smiles. They don't appear to know they are sexy and they are definitely not trying to be sexy. There is an innocent nymph quality to the photos. This video can tell you a bit about the origins of the pin up art genre and why they are different from centerfolds and many modeling photos today. The video below is full of cute, feminine pinup art.



More videos: Slideshow 2, Black pin ups 1, Black pin ups 2, Modern pin ups,

Do you notice the difference between the pin up model and the two models in the photos below? 
It's the attitude! The pin up model is smiling and just being pleasant and feminine, and any sexiness is inadvertent. On the other hand, the other models (Christina Millian and Nikki Minaj) are not smiling, and they look like they are hungry for sex and want everyone to know it. You can like sex, but being sexually aggressive and advertising that is very masculine. Feminine sexuality is more subtle. The pin up girl looks friendly, playful, and approachable. But Nikki and Christina could scare off some men with their sexual aggression or attract the wrong kind of men. I'm not naive, I know that women will be thought of as sex objects by most men, the difference is that men will ONLY look for sex from women who pose like Nikki and Christina. Take a look at these Google images from King Magazine (images). Barely any of the models are smiling! Who took these photos? Men complain that Black women look mean but they take these photos and buy magazines full of women who look like this! Everyone should get some tips from Angelique Noire, a modern day pin up girl, who happens to be Black and beautiful. Her smile and playfulness is very reminiscent of the 1940s pin ups and she has great natural hair too! (Thanks for the link Black Girl int he City :)

The pin up style is great for Black women who have curves and even plus sized women. You can work some elements of the style into your current wardrobe. The key is that the clothes are feminine and fit your curves, but they don't have to be short or revealing. My favorite pin up style item is the pencil skirt (video and see photo below). They are appropriate for work, dates, or a night on the town. They make your backside pop and give you a sexy wiggle when you walk. I love to wear mine high on the waist because it makes my waist look narrower, my thighs look thinner, and they look great with feminine tops. Key elements of this style are kitten heels, curly hair, red lips, nylons with garters, and sheer undergarments. There are many videos on YouTube about pin up hairstyles and make up (by black women), as well as clothing options. This is a style befitting any EBW.

Photobucket

Many of you have probably seen modern pin up models. For some reason people thought that new pin up models needed some sort of "edge" so now they have tattoos and piercings and aren't often smiling in their photos (I prefer the old style). There is also a store called Pin Up Girl Clothing that sells this style of clothing exclusively (notice the tattoos and almost no one is smiling). 

Videos
Ashanti - Good Good (showing modern pin up style on a Black woman, love this song)
Kreesha Turner - Don't Call me Baby (towards the end of video, she's Black, love this song)
Kanye West - Goldigger (lyrics are negative about women, not enough smiling so the women don't look innocent and playful)
Katy Perry's style

Articles
Modern Pin up photos
20 Classic On-up Girls Before and After (fascinating! They made the waists smaller, hair bigger, and bodies curvier)
How to Dress Like a Pin up Girl
10 Ways to Look Like a Pin Up Girl

11 comments:

  1. Have you heard of Angelique Noire? She's fabulous! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYNX39LmM_s)

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  2. I saw this vid for pin-up make-up a few weeks ago.The make-up is too heavy for my taste, but I like the basic look. I plan to try it using a lighter hand and with much less product.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHbbWpjZ5eM

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  3. Thanks Black Chick in the City! Her site is awesome and it's exactly what I was looking for :)

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  4. I love to read all the info I can on pin-up girls, but I've been frustrated lately because hardly any of them are women of color. After a lot of searching, I managed to find a few....I love the beauty and soft but sexy feminitity of the pin-up look and attitude...its not just style, it IS an attitude!
    I've also come across some very nice websites featuring not only pin-up style cloting and accessories, but also pretty underthings and they feature them in plus sizes (I'm a curvy size 14...I have a smaller waist, but very curvy hips and backside). Awesome!
    Please continue to post whatever you can find about pin-up sites or models that are women of color, we need to see more!

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  5. Hi Elegance.

    You may have heard of this site already but pinupgirlclothing.com has cute vintage styles in a range of sizes. I've never purchased anything from the site but I occasionally look at it because I love the photos (the hair, the make-up and the photo styling). A few of the models are black.

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  6. Oops! Sorry. Just seeing the link to pinupgirlclothing.com in your post. I wish I could delete my comment. Sorry again.

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  7. Hi my name is Candace Michelle and I want to invite you to my Facebook page, Black Pin Up Models. Like everyone else I was frustrated with the lack of black pinup models, past and present. I did a lot of researching and found as many pictures of pin up models from the past. I also have burlesque dancers, actresses, singers, and singers dressed as pin up models. So everyone please like my page. And spread the word. www.facebook.com/pages/Black-Pin-Up-Models/274448509280942

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  8. kiss me down low by Kelly Rowland has pin up style to it

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  9. The pinup style is really popular with black women now. You might like this article.
    http://www.beyondblackwhite.com/pinup-girl-look-smashes-notions-black-femininity/

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  10. I just watched this makeup tutorial recently by Randi Nichole Joan.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYGS6Ggazmc

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