Cindi Silhouettes style me pretty!

Cindi Silhouettes style me pretty!

                How often do you hire an entertainer for a wedding, and let them be your theme and event planner?  It is rare, but renown silhouette artist Cindi Harwood Rose, once was an event owner, and a wedding planner, at the same time she was snipping her way to silhouette stardom.  It really began with a dream.  When a child, Cindi, would read fairy tales, thinking of " happily ever-after".   Shy, but talented, she would sit with paper and colored pencils drawing fashions and planning decorations to be seen at imagined banquets and events.  Her inspiration was simple-- the story of Cinderella, going to a ball, being friends with nature, and in a minute being transformed into a beauty. Harwood, a beauty contest winner, never felt pretty, until she met magic-- thin, long scissors and black French silhouette paper and thick paste.  This gave her an opportunity to connect her heart with others through art.  She could style others prettier than they felt they were, and that made Cindi's heart swell with love.

This was how she discovered, as a teen, that she could cut a silhouette from site, after first being hired to draw portraits for hundreds per day.  "When I hand-cut a profile, I see the beauty in my subject, and capture their light, a real silhouette artist does that, but a Photoshop silhouette or wall-traced one distorts people, " Harwood-Rose explains.  Silhouette artist predate the camera, and to do it any other way minimalizes the person.  "It is exactly what Kara Walker says-- most silhouettes you see are fake so they are less than what you are, when I do a silhouette I incorporate facial features, style statement, psychic feelings, physiognomy, and often humor," C. H. Rose explains. That is how the art began in the 1500's, and it is vogue today when done correctly.

                  First try at freehand cutting realism, Cindi was given the prestigious position of "the silhouette girl" for the Disney owned art company.  Let's move 7 to 8 years later.  The young artist was so people skilled, and dependable, that she was asked to own all the art concessions in the Houston based amusement park. The fancy Disney manager, was fired.  This allowed the honor communications and fine art manager to hire over 40 artists to work for her, just seasonally.  The park closed when school season began  To keep her artists faithful to her, she formed a talent and event company, calling it Cameo A+Aritsts.  She enlisted florists, bakers, caricature and portrait artists, herself as the silhouette artist, clothing designers, photographers, and party rentals.  When someone needed an event, Cindi Harwood (now Rose) would ask what they were looking for in the way of their vision.  She offered her creative output, with options such as chair covers, unique centerpieces (with feathers, crystals, silhouette centerpieces, often with herbs and flowers).  She also encouraged music to vary throughout the evening.   Strolling musicians for the reception, a harpist, or trio, a wedding singer (normally from your place of worship) personal poetry vows, and a big band, DJ, small band, or R and R group, depending on the feel the engaged couple would want.  She also booked business functions and guest speakers, videographers, and was known to even put make-up on the bride and wedding party. 

                "It is important to make your style-statement at any function, regardless if it is totally serious and sales oriented", Cindi Harwood Rose attests.  It should start with invitations, and the theme can be carried throughout.  Black and white are trendy, but silhouettes can be in any color,  Never confuse an artist that has to draw a person first then cut them out, or trace a shadow off a wall, as a silhouette artist.  They are imitating the art.  It is sad to see them in wonderful publications like Martha Stewart, who does not know the difference between master silhouette artists, who look and hand-cut profiles in 2 minutes or less per person, with interior details, to the kind that school teachers will clumsily trace off a wall. The Photo Shop, is not human, and the personal wedding touch is. Why start the ceremony with computer generated imitations, when real silhouette artists are on-line.   The acclaimed international silhouette artists, vary the neckline, can add pearls, hair ribbons, headbands, the flowers on the tux, through intricate paper cuts that are done on the spot.  Cindi can do 50 accurate, detailed silhouettes an hour with full details at a wedding, twice as fast as any other silhouette artist in the world.   

                At many weddings, Cindi not only created the invitations and stationery designs, she has done silhouettes for the bride and groom table cloth, necklaces with cameo silhouettes for the wedding party, personal bride and groom cookie cutters, silhouette lip balms, silhouette coasters, silhouette cake toppers, and she has gone as far as designed the wedding dress and bridesmaid dresses, to go with French, English Victorian themes.  Hand-cut silhouette art is a prized, cherished, classic, contemporary, timeless, heirloom.  At weddings Cindi Harwood does two silhouettes-- one for each guest, and one for a guest book that the guests signs.  She can draw the silhouettes on cardboard for the wedding florist to fill with flowers, to create extra drama to a lovely style me pretty, Cindi silhouette artist wedding!  For more information see silhouettesbycindi.com and watch Cindi's wedding silhouette supreme video on YouTube, join her on SilhouettesbyCindiFacebook and donate to cancer research through purchasing wedding silhouettes from TheHollyRoseRibbonFoundation 501 (c ) ( 3 ),  Thank-you for reading Silhouette Cindi Style me Pretty and please share on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and post on your Pinerest!