Hair Today, Pass Tomorrow

Kerri's Beauty Tip

By Kerri Edwards


Some of TGF's prettiest readers have agreed to share with us their favorite style and beauty tips. Kerri is married and lives in South Carolina. She is a life-long crossdresser and a regular contributor to the Sigma Epsilon (Atlanta chapter of Tri-Ess) newsletter "Southern Belle." Visit her web site
T o those who know me well, the title of this little piece might appear to be an oxymoron. However, Cindy asked me to do it and nobody in our community should be allowed to refuse a request from her. Besides, she promised to run my picture again if I would do it.

I have gone out in public environments as Kerri for many years. My goal, at least in the beginning, was to be able to spend an hour or so in a shopping mall and leave without small children pointing and snickering or, worse yet, screaming. In retrospect , however, that was a wonderful form of feedback - it told me instantly whether something was amiss and I learned a lot from the reactions of those little devils.

The single biggest thing I found to improve my appearance and believability was choice of hair. Most women do not grow and/or wear their hair arranged to resemble that of RuPaul's. Those who do are using it purposely to bring notice to themselves which, except for special occasions, is the last thing I want. So, while my hair is not extremely short, neither is it very long and, hopefully, does not attract too much attention to itself and what is under it!

As you can see from the photo, my face is somewhat thin and wedge-shaped. To soften the impression of masculine angularity, I selected a hair style that is both partially concealing and adds width and fullness to the cheek and jaw area.

Finally, after trying several colors, I came back to one that very closely matches my own hair and is consistent with my skin tone and, especially, eyebrows. Since I'm blond, that little trick allowed me to use much lighter and more natural shades of mak eup and brow tint. Also, by returning to my "roots" (no pun intended), I was able to select colors in clothing that were more complimentary to that of my skin and hair. So, just as an interior decorator can design and arrange the colors used throughout a large building by starting with one small swatch, I began with my natural hair color and "built" Kerri from it.

The whole point is to present an image that is plausible, and, for lack of a better word, "together". For me, it begins with the hair and just goes from there! Of course, dark rooms are a plus, too.


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