“Pre-Prom” Make-Over Madness Ensues at Mall
BY NINA LALLI

After cruising Elyria in search of hidden treasure worth uncovering, I chose a mere mall, clearly nothing exclusive but definitely something magical. Yes, I passed up chocolate rendered in the shape of guns and turtle turds, tu-tus, wigs, mustaches, pins that say “I heart gymnastics” and a diner with meatloaf listed under the “On the Lighter Side” heading. 
Great Northern Mall in North Olmstead is fancier than our more familiar Midway bazaar. We decided to take advantage of that opportunity for decadence and live vicariously through prom queens simultaneously. So we headed to JC Penney and junior Emma Straub pretended she was going to an unspecified formal ball (read: prom was not so believable). 
We were referred to Martha the Makeup Expert, a former juniors model and finishing school graduate. Straub admitted, “I think I missed the juniors modeling window,” but we went for that look nevertheless. Martha gave Straub, a self-proclaimed cosmetics wuss, encouragement such as, “No one fails, it’s just a matter of practicing.” 
With that, she carefully explained how to avoid such foundation faux pas as the cakey orange line along the jaw-line. We learned too that dark circles under the eyes are due to the thinness of the skin in that area, where the blood is close to the surface.
When she applied lavender eye shadow (to match Straub’s fictional gown) to a paper template, it started to look like Martha was not going to give a makeover. But we were determined, and with some prodding, she worked her magic on the right side of Straub’s face and challenged her to match it on the left. 
Straub showed a natural handle of the q-tip and was congratulated on a job well done. Off we went to try on prom dresses in the “Misses” department. There were several other teenagers gazing into three-way mirrors, sucking in tummies and smiling rehearsed hide-the-braces grins at their reflections as they fantasized about that final slow-jam. 
Straub conceived a possible image of herself as a perpetual high school senior who had experienced trouble passing classes and perhaps has been named prom queen several years consecutively. 

The prom dress is a delicate art. Two main veins are the high-waisted, huge-skirted, and the slinky, body-hugging. Straub went for the former, which naturally wins out due to its multitude of petticoats (widely under-appreciated in general).
We saw shiny orange numbers and plenty of shimmer. The accompanying veil or shawl or whatever seemed slightly matronly and Straub opted for the wonder bra/ Ms. Teen USA look. She plans on donning some pastels for the big night, with some kind of floral trim at the bustline to emphasize the prom queen/slut next door dichotomy.
Straub will practice her blush application and French twists. She is still narrowing down the choice of escorts. 

 

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