February Edition of Sippin & Socializing - With Sinthia Sterling

So yesterday was one of those days where I couldn't adult. I had 99.9% of this blog written and I did a fat finger moment of mashing a combination of keys together where everything deleted. SERIOUSLY?! Only me....good grief. If you don't know, I listen to the recording of our interview and type out (mostly) everything. So I had to put my monthly favorites on hold and listen to our interview again and retype this puppy out. My apologies for the delay in February's Sippin' & Socializing...so without further ado, here's Miss Sinthia Sterling <3

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I know I've said it before, but the weekend where I took classes at AmberJoy's really put me in a place to meet fantastic people and branch out. At one of those classes, I met Sinthia Sterling - she was the winner of AmberJoy's 1st Pinup Pageant.

When I sat next to her she just radiated a positive, friendly and confident vibe. So happy we see each other from time to time. I already knew she was awesome from our previous encounters and thought she'd be the perfect fit for my third interview for Sippin' & Socializing. She is sexy and smart, people!! She teaches 11th grade US History, 12th grade US Government honors and Psychology I 9th - 12th. Phew!!

Like any other interview I've done....it's hard to stay on topic because so far each beautiful lady I've sat down with is mesmerizing and I want to learn so much more about them! There are a lot of "squirrel!" spot during this interview. Also....it's funny when you get two "Chatty Cathy's" together...I swear we could have talked until the sun came up!

Who or what influenced you to delve into the Vintage / Pinup world?

Well, I teach US history. Because of that, when I get to World War II, I just love the clothes. And the hair especially is my favorite. The hair takes practice. Obviously not today because it's Friday and it's hair washing day, so that's why it's down. Whatever.

My favorite Pinup is Jayne Mansfield and the reason why I like her because she was always honest about herself - to her kids, to her fans and just to herself and I really appreciate that. She was a wonderful mother and the thing that I really love about her is that she didn't let anybody make her feel bad about who she was. She was was proud of it. She took care of her kids. She would walk them to school. She would make them their lunches. None of the other moms would talk to her. (insert rude interruption from our waitress...just kidding, wasn't rude, but we were really getting into it at this point!) It just showed me that you can be more than one person. You don't have to be just a wife, or just a mom, you don't have to be just a teacher. You can be everything you want to be in life and more. I think my love for US history and the fact that I just love the hair and the clothes... it just sucked me in from there.

How long has it been since you entered into the scene?

Ohhhhh......I'd say 2013. That's when I really started getting into it. I took a class from Cherry Dollface from YouTube. Oh my god, how do you not love her!? Like seriously, she is phenomenal. I'm on her YouTube, I'm on her Facebook, and I'm on her Instagram. Every time I've met her she's just so nice. She's so respectful of your feelings and when she talk to you she really is genuine. I made her a hair flower and she wore them on her YouTube channel. I thought that was really sweet, she didn't have to do that. She wrote me an email back thanking me for the flowers and card. I went to her class in 2014 and that's where I met Amber. She had a Cherry Dollface class at her shop. That's when Amber told me about the pageant. And after I did one pageant, I realized that I am not loser and I'm not all these things that I thought I was like mean and rude. I'm somebody that can do anything and once I realized that I was like yeah I want to do more. I feel like I never go in it to win anything. I go in it to meet new people. I've met people that are really awesome.

How have you evolved as a person since taking on this lifestyle?

I think this lifestyles encourages me to be a better person, all the time. When I tell this to other people for the first time, they don't believe me, but I'm very happy to see somebody else win. I love to see somebody else inspired. People think somebody can't really be like that. Well, I am. I like to see others happy and inspired. I think this lifestyle helps me see that more. If you have a girl that can't do a cat eye for example, then all of the sudden she masters it, that is a victory for all of us...we can appreciate that because we've all been there... or like a victory roll, or the bombshell hair or the brush out. If you could master that...yeah. The other thing that I like is that it's not just me out there. There's others that have the the same ideas are the same struggles. I don't know, that's what I like. Wanting to do better all the time that's just, I don't know, it helps me just want to be better. This lifestyle is very inclusive....like, "Hey! I can see through your victory rolls...that's cool, you can still sit with us!" That's what I really like. I've met very few people that have shunned me in this lifestyle for who I am. To me, we're all beautiful! All shapes, all sizes, every ethnicity. I follow other people like MozzyDee, she is a Latina pinup in California. She's also a plus size model, she's very very nice. Other pinups I really like are Sabrina Darling, another one I like and admire is Ginger Waston. I remember when I first met her at last years Viva. I was so awkward. I walked up to her and I was like, "Ginger!" And then I forgot what I was going to say. I said to myself "get it together Melanie, you're being an idiot right now." She's looking at me, not like I was being a freak, which I appreciated, but she was looking at me like....yes? She was really nice. It was really nice to see her at the pageant too. Another pin up that I really enjoy is Millie Michelle. She's sweet and great, she is just wonderful. Oh and Deadly Dollface, how could you not like her!? I could just go on and on. There are so many women that I admire (and I do admire them) and I appreciate them putting themselves out there so others don't feel afraid about being themselves that's what I like about it. All the pin ups that I mentioned and all the pin ups that I didn't mention but that I'm thinking about now, they are all unique. They have something to give , like the Fox and The Vamp, Cassie Blanca, Ronnie Von Sweets, Jill De Ville...I mean I could just go on and on. I could just say pages and pages because there's so many of them.

What is your favorite piece of vintage or repro clothing you own? Why?

That's going to have to be anything my grandma gave me. One in particular, the dress that I wore to Amber's. It's kind of like a mermaid bottom that flares out. It was my grandma's and I have a picture of her wearing it and then a picture of me wearing it. The silver one that I wore for the Hellkat pageant, that was my grandmas. She had a couple of the things that she gave me. I'm keeping it real for her. She's in and out. Sometimes she remembers who I am sometimes she doesn't. She's 91. The other thing that I really like is my aunt recently gave me (I know this is not as vintage as we like as a pinup) a dress that she wore in 1992. It is a ball gown, I just got it yesterday. It's black all the way down to the floor and it has sequence. Silver like in the 40s and the back is all open. I can't wait to wear that. So yeah, my aunt gave it to me. My mother in law gave me some vintage pieces of jewelry that are really really nice. I even wear them to work when I'm not going out out. I'm just going to work. But my kids really like it. I even wear the tiaras that I've won to work. They aren't even phased, they don't say anything anymore. It's so funny that the kids are used to it.

What is the most exciting / fun event you've done while being a pinup?

This is up there...having you interview me. I told my husband "she wants to interview me....why would anyone want to interview me?" This is definitely up there. I would say being in Pinups for Patriots because of this lifestyle I got into it. That has been so fun. My grandfather was in World War II, he was in the Battle of the Bulge. I have a copy of his journal of when he was in the war. My other grandpa was also in World War II, my Sicilian grandpa. My nephew is an EOD in the Air Force. So I'm proud of that.

Some of the Pinups for Patriots

What is your favorite way to accessorize your outfits? Why?

That has to be bracelets. I have bracelets up the ying yang. My kids wear bracelets, my kids real bracelets. I think bracelets are so feminine. They are circular to me, I don't know....I just like the way they sounds. I don't know what it is, but when I hear them it is very calming. When I wear metal ones, I have some from India, and when they clang...it's a lovely sounds. Earrings can be over played, necklaces can be over played....but bracelets??

What do you like to do in your downtime?

Downtime? Ooooh...okay.....that is so hard. I wake up at 4:10 in the morning. Then I go to work and I inspire young people to better themselves. I do that until about 2 o'clock...on an easy day. I go home while my husband is picking up the bay-beh's. I'm cleaning and cooking. Then I feed everyone...because I' Sicilian and that's what I do. After I feed, my husband is doing the dishes and I do homework. After homework, I study for the next day. I study my lesson for the next day. (At this point it's a good 15 minutes of nonsense because we both can't keep track of what we are talking about.) Okay....now I forgot what the question was. Oh....okay, downtime....my husband and I get so little time together. We work with each other and people say you're crazy, you work with your husband. Just because I work with him doesn't mean I see him, I don't. A lot of times we just reconnect. Will watch a show or we'll talk about different things or our plans. Like right now, we are addicted to with Disneyland ever since we went last summer with the kids. Enter a good twenty minutes talking about Disneyland :)

What is your "must-have" make up product.

Eyeliner. Liquid eyeliner, I would feel naked without it. I use Two Face and I got something on a whim. I had an event to go to and I didn't have time to go to Ulta so I got this liner from Rimmel. Its matte black eyeliner only $5. So far the best eyeliner I've ever used. I've done like you have, and spent $22 on eyeliner. I like the ones with brushes. But this Rimmel one - what I like about it is that it is thin, it comes with a thin brush. It helps me to build it up instead of having it large. My eyes are small and I like that I can build it up. I think it's like expert eye....or something.

She later sent me her stash

What do your kids think about you being a pin up?

Well...my 4 1/2 year old loves dressing up like me. She knows that I have my pin up name, Sinthia Sterling, so she has her own pin up name. What is it? It depends on what day it is. Sometimes her pinup name is Ariel Cupcake Sunshine. So it depends what the day is like. My favorite pin up name she has is Watermelon Ice Cream Lipstick. When I get ready for a pageant, I practice my walk...something that Sinthia Sterling would do, I always try to do something like that. When I practice, my daughter will too...she has the best pageant walk of anyone for 4 1/2 years old. She does her own little thing on stage. She'll do a whole little routine. She has high heels, the whole thing. She puts little hats on, blows kisses out....the whole thing. My older daughter, she thinks it's more like....she's oblivious. She's like "that's my mom, she's a beauty queen....yay!" But she doesn't get it. I just feel like, I'm raising champions, I really believe that. I want them to see their mother, at 39 years old, wanting to do what they want to do. I want them to see me and be proud. I want them to say that this is what our mother did..."she wasn't afraid to be older, be in a pageant, be in a magazine and be respectable. She wasn't afraid to do that, so if my mother wasn't afraid to to do that...maybe I can do this, or that....or be an engineer or I can be in a pageant. I want to be a great role model from my kids. I had to learn that later in life from my own personal journey.

If you could pass along one tip to being vintage / rockabilly or pinup, what would it be?

My one tip would is to be able to reach your goals in this lifestyle and help others reach their goals. By doing that we'll just radiate the vintage beauty that is waiting to come out. Do you have a current goal? I have a couple of different ones that I'm kind of stewing. I would like to be published in a magazine in a non-sexual way. I don't like that part of pin up. I like the true vintage look. I would also like to do, before I'm too old, a runway show. I feel like I've got something to offer.

At this point....true to form, we just continued to talk and talk. There most certainly more we could have continued to chat about, but it was starting to get late and our personal lives were calling. But this was such a fun interview where we talked about everything from our inner nerds, sticky notes, patriatizm, sassiness, Canadian chocolate and everything in between. It was such a pleasure to sit and talk with Sinthia Sterling <3

This interview was conducted at Chevy's while
sipping mango and strawberry frozen margaritas!

Cheers Dolls!

Essentially,

Evie xoxo