Glamour in the Blood

Liverpool lies in the Northwest of England and in its heyday was a strategically important port city with a vibrant working class. Its women are unique and fashion has been a long standing trend within the city. The “scouse” man is always proud to show his woman off but women there often dress up just for themselves or to impress their friends. Some Liverpudlian women would argue simply that they just want to look the best that they can but this is a study that delves into the role that fashion plays in binding such women together; of how these women are bound by glamour.

Glamour in the Blood is a series of portraits capturing the essence of Liverpool women’s identity and its relation with glamour. The project goes deeper into the history of the city and the need to project an ‘ideal’ image that has been passed down through the generations. According to BBC News, “Women in Liverpool are the vainest in the UK – checking their appearance in a mirror up to 71 times a day, according to a new survey”. Endless wardrobes, WAGS-inspired outfits, towering heels, bleached hair, hair curlers, fake hair, fake nails and perma-tan. As well as tanning in sunbeds to achieve a golden glow, thousands of women in Liverpool are injecting Melanotan, an illegal tan drug dubbed as ‘Barbie Drug’.
In the conversations I had with all the women I photographed I found a common and interesting thread of why these women are bound by glamour: to them glamour is not a superficial thing but a key and defining aspect of their lives. It is important to understand that from a very young age they have been taught to follow this beauty routine and that ‘putting the best side out’ is paramount, not only when going out but also in family life. Their mothers and grandmothers and even great grandmothers were also concerned with how they looked.
Jane, a glamorous 33-year old working married woman and mother of a 8 year-old girl, explained to me that each situation requires a different look: “There is Friday night, Saturday night and Sunday night outfits- and I haven’t even started on the midweek outfits! On A Saturday night I would not wear jeans, as they are not making an effort. It also depends on what side of the city you go out in as the students don’t dress up - but then they are not from Liverpool (…).Everything has to match and we would have learnt that from our mothers, from our underwear to our hair band. I teach that to my daughter”.
She also pointed out that, regardless of their situation and income, women ensure that everyone in their family looks their best: “For example there is a shop out in Bootle -designer children’s clothes. Well, the thing is that not many people would have much money out there. Mothers would go in and put deposits on the clothes they want to buy for Christmas in September before. They would then put deposits on other clothes to stop their friends being able to purchase them and so therefore their kids would look the best. They are not working and got kids so it is a competition, nothing else going on- they are just a breeder.”
Ironically, women will walk around in the day with their hair in curlers. This is acceptable, I was told, because it allows other people to see “that they are going out that night, that they have somewhere to go. They are someone.”
Liverpool is a very complex city, with marked contrasts that I hope will make the portraits in Glamour in the Blood intriguing. Its vigorous undercurrent of art and creativity earned it the title of European Capital of Culture, which has fuelled a major retail-led regeneration impulse that has greatly transformed the city centre. In spite of being tagged as a working-class city, many working class families have encircled this transformation, without engaging in it. Many believe that the trend to project a good self-image is typical of the working class, underpinning the way the run their households. Houses are kept tidy, nets are clean, children are well turned out. After a week of work Saturday is the family night. On Saturday mothers go get their hair done and go out for a few ‘bevvies’, as ‘that’s what’s done’.
Alongside the images in the series, recordings of interviews with women from different parts of Liverpool will allow the viewer to delve into their mentality and hopefully understand the essence of who they are.