Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Boston Herald - First Lady Potential

First Lady Potential

As the Republican presidential candidates head to South Carolina, Boston style experts cast their vote for the political wife with the best First Lady potential.
Hair stylist Liz Cecchini of Somerville (who has worked on “The Fighter” and “Body of Proof”), makeup artist Dani Wagener of Boston (who worked on Caroline Kennedy), Nara Paz (who dressed Sen. Scott Brown’s wife Gail Huff for a White House dinner) and uber-stylist Lydia Santangelo held their own caucus to see how these GOP ladies measure up.
Mary Kaye Huntsman
The Look:All-American casual. She could go toe-to-toe with Michelle Obama. “ She looks confident and she dresses accordingly,” said Paz. She “would give Michelle a run for her money,” said Santangelo.  <br> The Hair: Cecchini gives props to her dark blonde color and highlights. “I like it. She’s an attractive woman and it’s pretty.” <br>  The Makeup: Huntsman is always tan and sporting a frosty pink lip. “She looks like an OC (Orange Country) housewife,” said Wagener.

The Look: All-American casual. She could go toe-to-toe with Michelle Obama. “ She looks confident and she dresses accordingly,” said Paz. She “would give Michelle a run for her money,” said Santangelo.
The Hair:Cecchini gives props to her dark blonde color and highlights. “I like it. She’s an attractive woman and it’s pretty.”
The Makeup: Huntsman is always tan and sporting a frosty pink lip. “She looks like an OC (Orange Country) housewife,” said Wagener.
Ann Romney
<strong>The Look:</strong> New England mom. “She’s all about being herself,” said Paz. “She’s not afraid of color, and she’s fan of the wrap dress,” praised Santangelo. “You can see her wearing a silk she might have come from the barn in.”  <strong> The Hair:</strong>  Romney has aged out of her hair style, which Cecchini said is too long for a First Lady. “She needs to take it up three or four inches in the back. She needs some bounce,” she said.  <strong> The Makeup:</strong>  The natural look - minimal foundation, neutral eye color and soft rose on the lips - gives Romney an edge. “She’s the only one who sometimes gets it right all around,” said Wagener.

The Look: New England mom. “She’s all about being herself,” said Paz. “She’s not afraid of color, and she’s fan of the wrap dress,” praised Santangelo. “You can see her wearing a silk she might have come from the barn in.”
The Hair: Romney has aged out of her hair style, which Cecchini said is too long for a First Lady. “She needs to take it up three or four inches in the back. She needs some bounce,” she said.
The Makeup: The natural look - minimal foundation, neutral eye color and soft rose on the lips - gives Romney an edge. “She’s the only one who sometimes gets it right all around,” said Wagener.
Callista Gingrich
<strong>The Look:</strong> Overpolished and overcoiffed. The youngest of the four wives - Gingrich is only 45 - her not-a-hair-out-of-place style has an aging effect, said Paz. Jewel-tone jackets and dresses, paired with 16-inch triple strand pearls and matching double-strand bracelets, evoke a “Bush-like appearance,” said Santangelo. <br><strong>The Hair:</strong> The color isn’t as problematic as the overuse of hairspray. “A little bit less lacquer would make her more approachable,” said Cecchini. <br><strong> The Makeup:</strong> Wagener said Gingrich has beautiful skin, but her foundation and makeup are too heavy-handed.

The Look: Overpolished and overcoiffed. The youngest of the four wives - Gingrich is only 45 - her not-a-hair-out-of-place style has an aging effect, said Paz. Jewel-tone jackets and dresses, paired with 16-inch triple strand pearls and matching double-strand bracelets, evoke a “Bush-like appearance,” said Santangelo.
The Hair: The color isn’t as problematic as the overuse of hairspray. “A little bit less lacquer would make her more approachable,” said Cecchini.
The Makeup: Wagener said Gingrich has beautiful skin, but her foundation and makeup are too heavy-handed.
Karen Santorum
<strong>The Look:</strong> Hiding in plain sight. “At the moment she is like everybody else and she is blending with the crowd,” said Paz, who suggested Santorum wear more tailored pieces and fewer washed out neutral shades. “She’s in black and white and oversized shapeless blouses and jackets. She’s totally under the radar,” said Santangelo. <br><strong>The Hair:</strong> .“Oh my - it’s drab,”said Cecchini. “I think she’s probably got really great hair, but the color needs to be redone, the whole thing.”  <br><strong> The Makeup:</strong> Santorum’s small features - her eyes and lips - get lost with her washed out ‘do. Wagener suggested some baby false eyelashes and some color on her cheeks

The Look: Hiding in plain sight. “At the moment she is like everybody else and she is blending with the crowd,” said Paz, who suggested Santorum wear more tailored pieces and fewer washed out neutral shades. “She’s in black and white and oversized shapeless blouses and jackets. She’s totally under the radar,” said Santangelo.
The Hair: “Oh my - it’s drab,”said Cecchini. “I think she’s probably got really great hair, but the color needs to be redone, the whole thing.”
The Makeup: Santorum’s small features - her eyes and lips - get lost with her washed out ‘do. Wagener suggested some baby false eyelashes and some color on her cheeks