Impact Magazine - Issue 211 - June 2011

Page 38

Gaga’s got nothing on these guys‌ Every  generation  unveils  a  new  form  of  â€˜cutting  edge’  technology  soon  to  be  replaced  by  the  next  big  thing.  Where  once  we  marveled  at  the  VHS  cassette,  we’re  now  WH\ZPUN HUK YL ^PUKPUN SP]L [LSL]PZPVU ^P[OV\[ H Ă…PJRLY VM excitement.  But  it’s  not  just  enormous  mobile  phones  that  ^PUK \W VU [OL ZJYHW OLHW VM SPML Âś 4HKVUUHÂťZ JVUPJHS IYH HUK .LYPÂťZ <UPVU 1HJR KYLZZ YHPZLK HZ THU` L`LIYV^Z HZ Gaga’s  penchant  for  meaty  tailoring,  but  now  seem,  well, Â

VYKPUHY` HUK JVUĂ„ULK [V [OL ^HYKYVILZ VM OPZ[VY` 0[ÂťZ LHZ` to  fall  into  the  trap  of  believing  that  we’re  doing  it  bigger  and  better  than  our  predecessors  â€“  but  in  the  world  of  fashion  and  beauty,  the  weird,  wonderful  and  frankly  terrifying  are  all  around  us.  This  issue,  we  take  a  look  at  some  of  the  extraordinary  lengths  people  have  gone  to  in  the  name  of  fashion,  breaking  boundaries  centuries  before  Madonna  stepped  out  in  pointy  lingerie. Â

The pursuit of the perfect silhouette If the shoe fits... If you think sucking in those extra inches with support pants is bad, spare a thought for the generations of women coerced into corsets and layers of petticoats for the sake of fashion. Whilst stories of crushed organs and tiny 14-inch waists are thankfully rare extremes, the fact remains that the combination of tightly laced steel-boned corsets and heavy skirts often led to fainting, back problems and an unnaturally tilted posture for girls as young as 8.

Pass the leeches dear, I’m looking dreadfully tanned Kohl eyeliner began life thousands of years ago as a concoction of delightfully poisonous ingredients such as lead, copper ore, and soot. However, this ancient form of make-up is by no means the weirdest. Over in 13th Century Italy, women in search of D Ă DZOHVV FRPSOH[LRQ WXUQHG WR IDFH SRZGHUÂŤ PDGH IURP arsenic. White lead and mercury were used to bleach the skin and bleeding with leeches was a popular method of draining colour from the face. The coveted ‘pale and interesting’ look led to numerous health problems during the Renaissance period, including hair loss, muscle paralysis and poisoning.

Something to make your skin crawl ,Q UHFHQW \HDUV WKH DUW RI ERG\ PRGLĂ€FDWLRQ KDV VWHSSHG XS LWV game. Unlike traditional piercings such as the ears and nose, the new trend is for jewellery inserted into and under the surface of the skin – anywhere. With microdermal implants, jewellery known as a ‘skin diver’ is inserted under the skin leaving the stud resting on the surface. Transdermal implants, however, are more extreme. The implant, often a spike of bead, is inserted under the skin. The skin then heals over the implant, leaving the shape visible beneath the skin as a raised mound.

Squeezing your feet into high heels is never fun, but in the history of painful footwear we’ve got it easy. The ancient Chinese practice of footbinding saw girls as young as 2 years old undergo a series of ‘treatments’ to modify the feet whilst the bones were softest. Feet would be soaked in herbs, animal blood and crushed monkey bones, before being broken in several places and bound into the shape of a lotus bud. This painful process limited the length of time a woman could stand, let alone walk. Footbinding represented discipline, tightness and eroticism. Once the feet reached the desired 3 inches, the struggle to walk made the buttocks tighten, much like the effect of heels today.

Easy, tiger The name Dennis Smith probably means nothing to you. But what about ‘Catman’? Yep, Dennis likes to be known as ‘Stalking Cat’ and is rumoured to have spent over ÂŁ100,000 on his transformation. The tattooed tiger stripes are just the beginning. 7HHWK Ă€OHG LQWR SRLQWV VXUJLFDOO\ altered brows, forehead, nose, ears and lips and implanted whiskers win him the world record IRU PRVW ERG\ PRGLĂ€FDWLRQV $QG he’s not the only transmogrify fan: ‘The Lizard Man’ and ‘Katzen the Tiger Lady’ are hot on his PRGLĂ€HG KHHOV

Make your mark Branding is a practice associated with livestock, yes? Well not anymore. Tattoo studios across the country are introducing EUDQGLQJ DV D QHZ W\SH RI VFDULÀFDWLRQ $W WHPSHUDWXUHV RI XS to 1000 degrees, strips of steel or a surgical pen are used to scar the skin with shapes associated with traditional tattoos. The smell of burnt hair and skin as it sizzles under the heat means branding is not for the faint-hearted. Though studios offer hygienic techniques from £40, for some fans, DIY is the method of choice. Think I’ll give this one a miss.

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ISSUE 211 | JUNE 2011

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