Pin up Plan - Art of Seduction - The Natural

"The Natural embodies the longed-for qualities of childhood - spontaneity, sincerity, unpretentiousness.  In the presence of Naturals, we feel at ease, caught up in their playful spirit, transported back to that golden age..they make a virtue out of weakness, eliciting sympathy for their trials, making us want to protect and help them." - The Art of Seduction

Cora Pearl

Famous Naturals:

• Cora Pearl
• Josephine Baker
• Charlie Chaplin

Josephine Baker

Keys to the Character:

• Charming, unthreatening, Pleasurable attitude towards life
• The Innocent - Appears to see the world through uncorrupted eyes, vulnerable
• The Imp - Brazen, Blissfully uncaring, lighthearted spirit, naughty
• The Wonder - Spontaneous, Impulsive, ability to improvise
• The Indefensive Lover - Playful, receptive spirit.  Seems to age less rapidly, graceful.

Pin up Style

Louse Brooks

Hugs and Smooches,
D

Pin up Plan - Art of Seduction - The Ideal

"The Ideal reflects one's fantasy.  They are an artist in creating the illusion you require.  In a world of disenchantment and baseness, there is a limitless seductive power in following the path of the Ideal." - The Art of Seduction

Madame du Pompadour

Famous Ideals:

• Madame du Pompadour
• Tullia d'Aragona
• John F. Kennedy
• Cassanova

Tullia d'Aragona

Keys to the Character:

• The ability to observe
• Combination of sensuality and innocence
• The ability to stroke people's vanity
• Stir up good feelings and a positive response

Symbol - The Portrait Painter:  Causes other's physical imperfections to disappear.  Brings out noble qualities, immortalizes.

Pin up Style:

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Hugs and Smooches,
D

Pin up Plan - Art of Seduction - The Siren

First up in the Art of Seduction series..The Siren.

"The Siren is the ultimate fantasy figure.  Her presence is always heightened and sexually charged.  She is a mirage..cultivating a particular appearance and manner.  She embodies the male fantasy."



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Famous Sirens:

• Cleopatra
• Marilyn Monroe
• Aphrodite

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Keys to Character:

• Voice - Calm, unhurried, low pitched
• Body and Adornment - Everything must dazzle, but also be harmonious.  Clothing more often suggests sexuality than screams it.  Reveal only one part of the body.
• Movement and Demeanor - Graceful, suggestive, langorous.

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Symbol:
Water - The song of the siren is liquid and enticing and the siren herself is fluid and ungraspable.

Pin up Style

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Hugs and Smooches,
D

The Pin up Plan -The Art of Seduction

The Art of Seduction by Robert Greene has been in my literary arsenal for some time now.  One of my many "phases" involved a fascination with courtesans..which led me to this book and also a love of burlesque.

Art of Seduction - Robert Greene

I am a big fan of empowered women, and I think that courtesans and burlesque performers get a bad rep.  In reality, courtesans had far more freedom, education and power than their married couterparts, and burlesque (in my opinion) takes a certain level of comfort in your skin and self confidence.  (Not to gloss over the fact that there was indeed some ugliness in these professions as well..but I prefer to focus on the positives ;)

Veronica Franco, Courtesan Extraordinaire (The movie Dangerous Beauty was about her.)

Dita Von Teese, Burlesque performer and vintage darling

But I digress.  I had considered doing just a book review of The Art of Seduction for the Pin up Plan, but then it struck me that the different seductive characters addressed in this book can correlate to your pin up style.

For the purpose of this blog, I will only address the female seduction styles as follows:

• The Siren
• The Ideal
• The Natural
• The Coquette
• The Charmer
• The Charismatic
• The Star
• The Anti-Seducer

My intention is to relate each style to a pin up (past or present) and/or historical figure, to break it down as it relates to style preferences and to give examples of how you can use it to enhance your personal style.

..and before you think I'm advocating that you go out and seduce the world (though I'm certainly not opposed to that ;) I think this book can be read many ways.  It's not only a tool for "seduction", but insight into how you interact with others, what your strengths are and how you can use them to communicate to your best advantage.  After all, successful communication is flirting at it's best ;)

Hugs and Smooches,
D

Pin up Plan Calendar Girls - Jane Russell

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"I like a man who can run faster than I can." - Jane Russell
 

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Jane Facts:

• Jane founded the World Adoption International Fund
• She was married 3 times and adopted 3 children
• Her hand and footprints can be found at Grauman's Chinese Theater
• Production of her movie "The Outlaw" was held up because Jane's rather ample cleavage was a problem with the censors.
• Howard Hughes engineered a special bra for her to wear, but she tossed it in favor of good old fashioned Kleenex ;)
• Her measurements were 38D-24-36 and she was 5'7"
• "Culture is the ability to describe Jane Russell without moving your hands." - Bob Hope

Jane Movies:

The Outlaw

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

The Paleface

 Jane Music:

Fine and Dandy

Miss Jane Russell Sings

Jane Books:

Jane Russell: An Autobiography

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How to get Jane Russell Cleavage:

Hugs and Smooches, D

Pin up Plan Movie Review - How to Marry a Millionaire

How to Marry a Millionaire

"All my life ever since I was a little girl I've always had the same dream. To marry a zillionaire." - Loco Dempsey (Betty Grable)

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I can't think of a more perfect "research movie" for the Pin up Plan!  Not only does it feature Marilyn Monroe (a future "Pin up Plan Calendar Girl") and Betty Grable (A prior "Pin up Plan Calendar Girl") along with the lovely Lauren Bacall, but the girls' characters in the movie are models, so there is SO MUCH fashion eye candy!

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The story follows three lovely models; Loco Dempsey (Betty Grable), Pola Debevoise (Marilyn Monroe) and Shatze Page (Lauren Bacall) as they hatch a plan to try and find themselves millionaire husbands.  Hilarity ensues as the girls try to prevent each other from falling for (what they believe are) "poor, gas pump jockeys".  In the end, the girls realize that money can't replace happiness.

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I love this movie (thought truthfully, I love just about anything with Miss Monroe in it).  While it may seem a bit sexist to some (it was the 1950's after all!) you need to watch it with the pre-feminist times in mind and enjoy it for the humor and the comedic timing of the wonderful actresses!

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                                                                                                                                                                Hugs and Smooches, D

Pin up Plan Calendar Girls - Bettie Page

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"I was never the girl next door." - Bettie Page
 

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Bettie Facts

• Often called "The Queen of Pinups"
• While risque, Bettie's movies and photos never featured any sexually explicit content.
• In 1955, Bettie won the title "Miss Pinup Girl of the World"
• Bettie's career lasted several years, uncommon for most pin up models who had careers that only lasted a few months. 
• In 1959, Bettie converted to born again Christianity.
• In the 1980's, Bettie's popularity surged again.  In a quote from MTV "Katy Perry's rocker bangs and throwback skimpy jumpers. Madonna's Sex book and fascination with bondage gear. Rihanna's obsession with all things leather, lace and second-skin binding. Uma Thurman in Pulp Fiction. The SuicideGirls Web site. The Pussycat Dolls. The entire career of Marilyn Manson's ex-wife Dita Von Teese" would not have been possible without Page.^[27] Many rockabilly and gothic girls emulate Bettie's hairstyle with the black blunt bangs. You can see Bettie's hairstyle and timeless facial features emulated in many modern pin-up models, such as Bernie Dexter and Masuimi Max."

Bettie Movies

The Notorious Bettie Page

Bettie Page: Varietease and Teaserama

Bettie Books

Betti Page Rules

The Real Bettie Page

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How to get Bettie Bangs

Hugs and Smooches, D

The Pin up Plan Workout

I once read that you should write down all the activities you found the most joy in as a child and try to work them into your adult life.  (I'd love to source that little bon mot for you, but I'm afraid I'm a self-improvement book junkie and at this point there are all sorts of little jumbled bits of wisdom floating around in my brain that I can't quite place ;)

Gil Elvgren

I've decided to apply this to the workout portion of the Pin up Plan.

So..what did I love to do as a child...

Gil Elvgren

• Hike and climb trees - I spent 2/3rds of my day in the woods when I was a kid.  I loved exploring, building forts and planting flowers.  I had a backpack full of field guides (I had every Audubon book ever written on trees, plants, mushrooms and birds), snacks, and a sketchbook.  Doesn't that sound fun??  
• Dance - I was born into a family of dancers.  I started my first dance lessons at 2yrs old.  I danced my way through my childhood and into my teens, which was when my grandmother retired.  Then I became a cheerleader and danced some more.  In my 20's I got my dance fix by going out to clubs with my girlfriends two (sometimes three) nights a week.  At some point, after having my first child, I stopped.  Clubs did not feel appropriate for a new mother and there did not seem to be another venue for me to "get my dancing out".
• Swimming - I grew up on a lake, so we spent a good portion of our summers in the water.  I loved (and still love!) being at the beach.

Gil Elvgren

Now..how to apply these to the Pin up Plan.  My objective with this workout is not to become "skinny", but to create a more defined shape.  I have the bare bones of a 50's silhouette (A bust!  A waist!  Hips!!), but I would like to create a stronger hourglass shape by narrowing my waist, and shaping up my shoulders and bottom half.  Toned, but not muscular.

Hiking will be a great way to tone my lower half.  We are lucky enough to live close to a few mountains, so I have some weekend adventures planned with the kiddos.  I've also purchased some pilates and ballet workout videos and books, along with some fun burlesque workout videos.  I plan to fit in a ballet style workout two times a week and try a new video once a week (an excellent way to build up your "core" muscles and create a defined waist!).  It's a little cold to start swimming in the lake, but there's a pool at the YMCA near my work that will do nicely!  Swimming will help to keep my muscles lean instead of bulky.

What about you?  What did you love to do as a child and how can you work it into your life now?

Hugs and Smooches,
D