A Brief History of Beauty Part 2

The 1400's brought the Renaissance era and with it white makeup made with mercury! Being pale was still all the rage and so started the practice of adding mercury to white lead powder to achieve a sort of "healthy glow." This powder was applied to the bust line as well as the face. (I think I will keep my mineral powder, thank you very much!) A natural appearance was more the look of the day and other than the use of white powder, most women shied away from other forms of makeup. Eye lashes were worn short and thin. Eyebrows and hairlines were tweezed and cut. Often times, women would pumice the hairline to hide marks left from tweezing too much.
During this time, the "womanly figure" was celebrated. This just means that being plump was thought to be the height of sexy. (Too bad we can't keep a touch that mentality today.)

Elizabethan times continued the deadly practice of lead makeup (this time mixed with vinegar for a more liquid foundation approach) and "bleeding." Having pale skin was a sign of the upper class so the men were expected to appear more fair as well. They dyed their hair yellow with a mixture of cumin, celadine and oil, from what I understand-this would enhance the look of alabaster skin. Khol once again enters the scene to darken lashes and vermilion was used to redden cheeks and lips.
When makeup alone would not serve to lighten skin, women would spend several hours sponging themselves with buttermilk and applying lemon juice.
The following is a recipe made for Mary Queen of Scotts in 1569 and later copied by Queen Victoria in her scrapbook and used for her ladies in waiting:

Mix together with silver spoon 4 parts oil of almonds
4 parts whale oil
4 ounces red rose water
Stir to make a smooth paste and apply directly to skin

Another popular recipe made for Mary Queen of Scotts was used to cure the itch of bug and flea bites:
2 ounces oil of scorpions
2 ounces hedgehog grease
2 ounces badger grease
2 ounces bear grease
1/2 pint olive oil
Mix all together, spread on linen cloth and apply to infected spot

(Good luck hunting down the scorpion, hedgehog and badger!)

Skipping ahead to the austere Victorian Age, both men and women did away with heavy makeup, elaborate clothing and expensive wigs. During this time the focus once again shifts from covering up a problem to dealing with the health of the skin. Beauty masks and packs were made from ingredients such as honey, eggs, milk and oatmeal (we are still gleaning the fabulous effects of these ingredients today).
The prize of every woman was a head of healthy, shiny hair. They would brush their hair for ten minutes morning and night and masks of egg whites were used regularly. To get hair to grow a mixture of rum and castor oil was suggested.

Well that about does it for this post! In the last and final post of this series, we will look a little more closely at the 30's, 40's and 50's. With the launch of makeup staples like Max Factor and Estee Lauder-this is perhaps my favorite era to discuss!

XO-Nanette

Published with permission of Nanette Semon