March of the Zombies spectators as undead as the models

At Saturday night's March of the Zombies II fashion show, the spectators were almost as undead and corpsified as the models. The event took place at Bender's Tavern on 13th Street in Denver, and included the zombie-themed work of local artists and musicians.

The annual fashion show featured daring designs by talented fashionistas, paired with zombie effects makeup on models just as scary as they were gorgeous. Much of the audience came dressed as zombies, complete with fake blood spatter, torn clothing, and the odd eyeball hanging from its socket.

But the zombie makeup by no means overshadowed the work of the fashion designers. Designer Angel Garcia of Whorebath Clothing was also part of the makeup team. She wrapped her models in bold vector-style art prints on tight t-shirts and miniskirts. You can see her glamorous makeup designs at Pin-Up Pretty.

Summer Jackson --who organized the event in celebration of her husband's birthday-- dressed her models in coy, satiny mini-dresses, tule skirts, and shirts with gothic-inspired decals. You can see more of her designs at the Summer Jackson, LLC web portfolio.

At the show, I talked to makeup artist Aaron Spriggs, who plied his trade on many of the models, turning beauties into beasts. His work involved ghastly facial bruises, torn skin flaps, and claw marks (from a zombie's finger nails).

Designer and model Summer Jackson sported Spriggs's work in the form of a torn open and bloody cheek, revealing the teeth and muscle beneath. Spriggs used short press-on nails glued to Jackson's cheek to simulate teeth showing through the wound, and splattered on plenty of fake blood.

"When I was young, I was always fascinated by monsters like werewolves and zombies," Spriggs said. "I bought a bunch of makeup art books, so I was basically self-taught. I put it aside for a long time, and then last year I was asked to do makeup for a zombie exercise video, and I got back into it full-force."

Brian Kaufman, author of Dead Beyond the Fence: A Novel of the Zombie Apocalypse, held a release party for his novel at the Reader's Cove in Fort Collins. Spriggs provided zombie effects makeup at the event, which made the quiet bookstore home to a full-fledged zombie invasion.

"I like to work fast and loose and sloppy. Because it's gore, that works just fine," Spriggs said. The makeup artist has a background in biology and zoology and experience working at an animal hospital, so he's seen plenty of blood. "I think I'm most proud of the coloration on the bruises. There's a slight yellow ring around most bruises, and putting that on just adds that extra layer of realism."

The tomboyish screen-printed t-shirts of Jackson Ink, along with the colorful patchwork and layering of Studio Yoshida rounded out the evening's fashions. Each model sported unique zombie makeup to go with their unique fashions. But the undead in the audience were just as ghoulish and lovely as the models.

Stay informed, stay alive: You can see pictures of the models and audience in the slide show below. Check back for more photos and updates on the second annual March of the Zombies fashion show.

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