Welcome To JJ Publishing Group LLC
Your go-to source for Innovative Books on Specialized Cosmetology Educational Material.
Welcome To JJ Publishing Group LLC
Your go-to source for Innovative Books on Specialized Cosmetology Educational Material.
Defining Desairology
The Original Terminology of "Mortuary Cosmetology”. What Does A Desairologist Do?
What Does a Desairologist Do?
The term desairology dates back to 1980 when Noëlla Charest-Papagno published “Desairology: Hairstyling for Decedents,” a book that created a field in the cosmetology industry. It’s a desairologist’s job to ensure that the decedents are prepared to be seen before they are cremated or buried. A desairologist, or mortuary cosmetologist, will apply makeup to the decedent, ideally making them look like they did when they were alive.
Desairology takes a talented hand because there’s more work to be done on a decedent than a living person.
Humans begin to decompose minutes after death, which is why embalming is so crucial for a funeral. Embalming is also essential for desairology. Our tissue becomes very soft shortly after death, making it harder to apply makeup. But embalming helps to keep tissue firm, allowing the desairologist to get to work to create a warm and life-like complexion.
Still, even after embalming, other issues can arise that force the desairologist to adapt. Our skin often changes color in death, which means that a mortuary cosmetologist would have to counteract the transition. How much work a desairologist would have to do also depends on how the decedent passed on and if certain wounds need to be covered. Often, a family member will give the desairologist the makeup that the decedent used in their everyday life. Using the same makeup can help make the loved one look more like they did while alive. But the mortuary cosmetologist also has their own inventory of cadaver makeup.
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