When Jessica DiLullo is hiking through Fairmount Park in high heels, people take notice.
The stares come from any number of visual zingers that take the average bystander by surprise.
“Is that a bride?” a couple asked.
The pin-up model/nanny/blogger’s lips are painted a deep, soulful red.
“Russian red,” DiLullo calls it.
DiLullo’s hair is dark brown and she wears colors that seem to be plucked from a pinwheel, comfortable yellows and aggressive greens that pop from her vintage-inspired skirt, peasant top and heels. The thermometer reads 98 degrees with an excessive heat warning but DiLullo doesn’t seem to be affected. Her porcelain skin completes her look, that of a pin-up girl.
Popularized in the 1930s and ’40s by painter Alberto Vargas and illustrator Gil Elvgren, two of the most well-known artists in the field, this particular look portrayed women as simultaneously wholesome and sexual — the ideal of femininity in its heyday. Pin-up drawings and paintings were mass-produced to create posters that were “pinned-up” and became popular during World War II.
More than half a century later, DiLullo, 24, is trying to resurrect the art.
However, modeling pin-up clothing wasn’t always on her radar.
“Five years ago I was chubby, in a bad relationship, a little bit in denial about being gay and dating a guy. It really wasn’t working for me,” she said.
She discovered Pinup Girl Clothing online, made by women, for women.
“I thought, if they can look like that, then I can too.”
The company, based in Los Angeles, has nearly a million likes on Facebook. The owners and designers pride themselves on open dialogue with their customers.
“I ordered my first dress and never looked back,” DiLullo said. “At first, I’d go out like this in public and people would ask if I was going to a costume party. I’d say, ‘No, this is how I dress.’ Over the years, I’ve gotten way more into it.”
In 2012, she launched her blog, “Warning: Curves Ahead.”
It began as a lingerie blog but quickly morphed into something more. She learned how to fit herself for vintage clothing, like petticoats and dresses, and started putting her own personal style into the clothing she modeled, attire with feminine silhouettes and sassy curves. Companies began to send DiLullo samples to review; if she didn’t like something, she wouldn’t pitch it to her readers.
The blog doesn’t generate any revenue, but through her own journey to becoming more self-confident, DiLullo wants to support other women who are interested in wearing pin-up clothes.
In Philadelphia, the pin-up scene is anchored by DiLullo’s friend, photographer Celeste Giuliano, who holds the largest ’50s-era party in Philadelphia each year, the Pin-Up Peepshow.
“Pin-ups celebrate the everyday girl,” Giuliano said. “I have seen women of all shapes, sizes, color, ages and sexual orientations enjoy the confidence-building experience of being a pin-up.”
That experience is an everyday exercise for DiLullo, who builds her passion for pin-up fashion around her daily routine.
It is Monday morning and DiLullo’s alarm is going off. Even pin-up models need to work.
“Coffee, coffee, coffee,” said DiLullo. “I get dressed, walk the dog and then more coffee. I jet out the door (don’t forget, coffee to go!) and am at work by 8:15 a.m.”
She is a full-time nanny for a family in the Graduate Hospital neighborhood. The “city cool” parents, as she describes them, have a 14-month-old daughter.
“She’s the kind of kid who moves right through obstacles instead of finding a way around them,” said DiLullo. “I started with her when she was six months old; there is something incredible about watching a child grow from day one, the bond is so unique. Since then, she’s morphed into my little partner in crime. We do everything together, from play dates to picnics in the park.”
Although DiLullo admits that being a full-time nanny doesn’t lend itself to dressing in pricey, vintage pin-up clothing, she still finds the time.
“If there’s a day I know I’m not going to end up covered in peanut butter, I try my best to dress like I would on a normal day [in pin-up clothing]. I obviously don’t spend each workday in a petticoat, but I try to stay true to myself while still allowing room for play.”
Outside of work, DiLullo sometimes meets people who don’t quite understand what she does.
“Sometimes I get scoffs and eye rolls when I tell people what I do for a living. Not everyone understands how physically and emotionally draining the job can be. Being a nanny comes with many of the responsibilities of being a parent, but without many of the perks,” she said. “I’ve lost contact with previous nanny-kids after jobs ended, and it was absolutely soul-crushing. I’m not just a babysitter; I’m a woman who comes into a home and pours my whole heart and soul into helping raise, protect and love the children I care for. I think that deserves a lot more credit than the general public gives us nannies.”
Similarly, her pin-up work has also been misunderstood.
“With modern-day feminism, there’s an attack on femininity. My interpretation of feminism is that I have the ability to choose how I want to dress and act. It’s hard to be a straight-passing lesbian. People tell me I don’t look gay. But what does gay look like? Do they think when you become a lesbian you get flannel and boots in the lesbian starter pack? I love dresses and high heels, makeup and women.”
Luckily for DiLullo, her girlfriend, Laura, who’s a bit more androgynous, understands. They plan to get married and have their own kids one day.
“I don’t think I could date another hard-core femme like myself. Imagine how long it would take us both to get out of the house,” she laughed.
Back at the Horticultural Center in Fairmount Park, DiLullo is surrounded by cherry blossom branches and extra-large playing cards that hang from invisible strings for a photo shoot with her best friend and photographer, Sarah King.
She is all focus. DiLullo has just completed her third wardrobe change of the day and is wearing an “Alice in Wonderland”-themed Pinup Girl skirt — fitting, considering her line of work.
“My style is about being myself. Life is too short to consider other people’s judgments every time I get dressed. I want to dress for myself. Every person should.”
For more information on DiLullo, visit warningcurvesahead.com.