Final Elizabethan Portrait & Contemporary Example

The Kitchner Portrait of Queen Elizabeth I, John Dee, 1580
http://beingbess.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/elizabethan-
fact-of-day-john-dees-home.html

'The Kitchner Portrait' of Elizabeth I by John Dee was my key inspirational image from the Elizabethan period mainly due to the shape around the hairs outline and the use of a veil which I felt gave an extra decorative element to the overall portrait. The use of Elizabethan heart shapes and veils reminded me significantly of the contemporary film 'Alien' in which the creatures also possess heart shaped heads that extend backwards like a veil. Within this portrait the sides of the veil are visibly ornate with a delicate gold trim. In addition to this there are cross sections of decoration that thread through the veil acting as a decorative meshing. My idea for my final design would be to incorate this style of meshing together of materials into a hair piece that would be attatched to the back of my head. This would enable me to include the classic Elizabethan heart shape into my final design. The use of gold is a common metallic feature within Elizabethan hair therefore the inclusion of a metallic of some description would add a further link to Elizabethan portraiture.
Within the hairstyling of the portrait it is clearly visible that the hair is wound into tight curls all over the head. These tight curls were a traditional feature within 16th century hair styling and therefore would also be relevant to include within my final design, as I myself possess short hair these tight curls would be easily recreated using a small wand barrell curler. Like in the portrait by using a small curling wand the curls would also be allowed to stand upright creating a similar texture to that used within the image of Elizabeth I.

Indira Schauwecker - Toni & Guy Awards
http://costumeclotheshorse.tumblr.com/
post/41537744465/greatbritt-
i-was-inspired-by-insect-queens-for

http://www.interviewmagazine.com/fashion/guido-
1#slideshow_69777.1

For my contemporary hair design I will most likely combine the style of these two images pictured above to create a contemporary take on Elizabethan hair design. The tight curls featured on the  model to the right are significant in their recreation to both male and female hair styling within the 16th century and would supply an effective connection between both Elizabethan and modern styling. However to add that extra element of creative design to my final look I want to recreate a hair piece in the style of an Elizabethan veil, this will most likely be heart shaped and feature the use of hair the same colour as my own hair. The image to the left is an example of how I might achieve this though the use of structured hair pieces.