Who inspired you to get into pinup?

[Modeling]

i was six when i first saw bettie page, only a glimpse my grandpa had a magazine of her. her hair caught me first because only my mother and i had coal black hair. years passed and i turned sixteen and found her again. that same day i  cut my bangs into bettie bangs. loved them and felt more "me" that was the start of rockabilly/pinup  for me found who i was sort to speak.

so the question is who inspired you?

[milly2012]

I've always been fascinated with glamorous women, on and off the silver screen. I dove into the realm head first in high school when I saw Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell in "Gentleman Prefer Blondes". Now I always loved Marilyn Monroe but after seeing that film I fell in love with her. I then dedicated my free time to watching the old Hollywood movies with starlets like Greta Garbo, Rita Hayworth, Ava Gardner, etc. The list goes on and on. And of course Bette Page. One must not forget the queen of all pin ups. Oh and the girl with the million dollar legs, Betty Grable. I have many inspirations, Marilyn being number one.

[DiandraGodiva]

I was 5 when I discovered Marilyn Monroe in my best friends parents Fine Art & Frame shop. It was a nude print & I was absolutely enchanted with her. From then on my best friend & I have loved her. We even went to the extreme of putting fake beauty marks right where Marilyn's was in the art store and telling customers casually that we had the same mark as Marilyn Monroe.  We were 5..haaha! I also love Bettie Page & Pin Up art. It is all wonderful, but Marilyn has a special place in my heart. 

[Roxy Tart {PL Team / Comm. Mgr}]

I think the best answer would be straight from my biography:

Sometimes I feel like I was groomed to be a pin up from the beginning. My dad thought that the modern movies I wanted to watch weren't appropriate, so he started me on the classics early. My love affair with them it started the first time I watched Gentlemen Prefer Blonds staring marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell. After that, I watched every classic Hollywood movie I could get my hands on. This was pretty easy to do. My grandma was in the theater so broadway musicals were a part of life. Once she found out I was interested, she made sure I had every classic movie, starring every beautiful Hollywood starlet. I became her "theater baby", and would spend hours backstage watching everyone get into make up and costume, sneaking a little rouge or a strand of pearls when no one was looking. I'd run around the theater like it was my playground, putting on my own plays for anyone who would stop for a minute and watch me, pretending to be a fabulous leading lady. From the clothes they wore to the way they moved, I knew what I wanted to be when I grew up; A bombshell, pin up socialite!

[milly2012]

OMG ROXY TART I wish I had a grandmother like yours (although I do love both of mine dearly)

[RL]

   Esquire Magazine. Playboy wasn't around yet.  (I had older brothers)

[Miss Carla Lune Harlow]

Hey Steffy!
It all started when I was a kid too.Since I can remember (me being like 8 years old), I always had so much admiration for Marilyn Monroe and all those girls that appeared in old movies. Always so glamorous and classy. My mom tells me I had an obsession with James Dean. While growing up and having access to the internet, I started getting information on these Icons. And in the search results, there was mixed pictures of gorgeous, curvy women and instantly caught my attention. I found who Gil Elvgren was and fell in love with his art. When I was 15, I started collecting pictures of them. Some were calendars, some just print outs. I was into some other stuff too as any teenage girl into boy bands and some other music. My "Napster" was filled with metal and hardcore music, but also with bigband, oldies, etc. My life turning towards the "vintage lifestyle". I started hanging pinup pictures on walls all over my room. When I turned 24 years old, I can say I found my self in a more feminine woman. For so many years I have admired PinUps, Hollywood actresses, etc. So one day I said to my self "I'm going to try this that I have admire for so long!", and here I am, loving it every day of my life, living it and embracing it. keep following all the modern PinUps and enjoying it. I have been featured in magazines, something I would've never imagined. 

[Red Dahlia]

Bettina May was my inspiration a few years ago. But as a child and a teenager, I remember always being drawn to costumes like saloon girls, chorus girls, anything that involved a corset - and also Catwoman, of course. What I was being attracted to was what I now know as burlesque - I just didn't know what to call it when I was younger. I knew that I loved glamour, sequins, rhinestones, feathers, beautiful shoes and anything racy. Of course I got a lot of flak from my mother. Actually, I still do now and again and I'm 42 years old. :)

I've always found drag queens mesmerizing as well. I think I always loved pinup and burlesque, even when I didn't know what it was. Playing dressup is just something I never grew out of.

[Kent Steine]

Simple . . . beautiful women.

Over the years, I have been asked numerous times why I elected to paint glamour and pin up art. There are many answers to that question, but I’ll simplify my words by saying that women have always been a great influence and motivation for my successes, failures, education and emotions.

Perhaps the most important motive is how I was raised, and the many elements of life observed as I was growing up. Glamour, beauty and poise were an everyday matter of fact during my formidable years. As a child I noticed that my mother wore a skirt, makeup, and heels even on trips to the grocery store. Most all of the other women I would see did the same.

Then there was my older brother and all of his gorgeous girlfriends. I was more in love with all of them than he was . . .

[dmpx]

A combination of Bettie Page (you know, the one in Playboy with her next to the tree) and the paintings on the side of WWII bombers. I had some friends in a rockabilly band in college, and when I went to their shows, I realized I couldn't take my eyes off the women there. Bright red lipstick, their eyes, I just love the look!

[Mrs. Liberty Belle]

I was inspired by my love of all things vintage! I was a scared little girl full of self doubt and two women let me know I was more than I had valued myself. Micah "Flossie Carmichael" and Angela Ryan showed me how to pose how to prep for shoots and even who I needed to work with in the business! If I didn't have them in my life I would still be a scared little fat girl afraid to come out of her shell and show the world who Liberty Belle really is!!!

[Kasey La Flora]

   Who inspired me? Well that would be the most amazing person I've ever met in my life. My grandmother. The first time I ever realized who I wanted to be was the first time I ever saw her modeling portfolio. She was a pin-up model in the late 40's to early 50's. I remember looking at the photos when I was a little girl and thinking I'm going to be just like her some day. Her beauty was breath taking. She was so glamourous and elegant. And knowing her was even better then the photos. She was the kindest person you could ever meet. All I could think was I'm going to live my life just like she did. I wanted to look like her, dress like her, think like her, listen to the same music, and watch the same movies. She taught me to dream and dream big. She told me to never let anything get in the way of my dreams. She taught me how to enjoy life because as she used to say that's what its there for. Now I have her portfolio and every time I look at it I feel the exact same way I did when I first saw it.

   As I got older she and I started watching old movies where she introduced me to my second biggest inspiration Marilyn Monroe. America's sweetheart. The girl who was loved by the world but had no one to love. The girl who was completely misunderstood yet every woman wanted to be her. The girl who could put a smile on her face no matter how bad things got. The girl who showed me how to be strong even when times were rough. The girl who showed me to love no matter what the sacrifice. The girl who taught me not to mind what people thought because everyone is entitled to their opinion. She taught the world to just be themselves even if it ment being ridiculed. She's an amazing person to look up.

  These two ladies have made me the pin-up I am today and I couldn't ask for better role models. :)

[Reina LaLuz]

I have always been into anything and everything vintage. For goodness sake my favorite tv shows as child were "The Rifleman" and "I love Lucy".  I walked past a poster of Marilyn Monroe when I was 9 years old and I never looked back. I was inlove with the timelessness of her beauty. And then I found Audrey Hepburn (which I'm name after...technically my grandmother was named Audrey first but, nonetheless), and my ultimate inspiration Dorthy Dandridge. The timelessness,glamour,elegance,and grace of these women have captivated me so that I hunger to live my life that way. Besides its a lifetime of playing dress-up...who wouldnt want that? :D