Ladies (and Macaronis) had a range of cosmetics at their disposal. White lead powder mixed with egg white could be used to give a fine, pale complexion, although ladies taking the waters at Bath were warned that 'those who use white paste as a cosmetic are liable to have skins turn entirely yellow' from the vapours of the springs. Rouge was made from lead paste and carmine. Lips were tinted with coloured plaster of Paris. Eyebrows were blacked with lead or with green vitriol and gum Arabic, although artificial eyebrows of mouse-skin were also available to be glued on. Unfortunately the heat of the ballroom sometimes caused them to slip. Small patches of black taffeta or velvet were also worn on the face.
Contrary to popular opinion, people did wash carefully. Although bathrooms were rare, bathtubs were not, and water was piped into the houses of the rich. Bedrooms were furnished with washstands, and soap was plentiful, with 63 soap factories in London (Pears famous transparent soap was created in 1789).
Lord Chesterfield, who wrote copious advice by letter to his illegitimate son Philip, wrote in 1750, 'In your person you must be accurately clean, and your teeth, hands and nails should be superlatively so.' He advised the daily cleaning of teeth with a sponge and tepid water. Nonetheless, it was common to lose teeth, and ladies might wear 'plumpers' of cork inside their cheeks to avoid the sunken cheeks that this caused. No woman would admit to wearing them, however, and they were sold under the counter.
Soot was used as a dentifrice, as was lemon juice mixed with burnt alum and salt. Mouth washes were used, made of wine, bramble leaves, cinnamon, cloves, orange peel. Gum lacquer, brunt alum and honey infused in hot ashes. Decayed teeth could be drilled with a hand-drill and filled with tin, lead or gold. Dentures of ivory, bones, or wood were available, and set with teeth of ivory, porcelain, or even real human teeth. The prototype of the modern toothbrush was invented in 1780 by William Addis.
it was only after 1770 that ladies began to wear their hair high, bulking it out with pads of wool and false hair, or arranged it over a frame, adding ribbons, flowers and feathers. Contemporary cartoons show us exaggeratedly complex styles,
Powdered hair had been in fashion since 1715, and only went out of fashion in 1795 when William Pitt put a tax on it. It was initially used sparsely, but worn more thickly after about 1750. Probably it helped disguise any differences of colour between a lady's own hair and her pads of false hair. It was made of starch, sometimes tinted with colouring, and applied over hair which had been oiled to help it stick.
Showing posts with label rouge. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rouge. Show all posts
The Faces Behind the Masks: The "Toilette" in 18th Century England
Smallpox was a particularly virulent disease that left all survivors with pock-marks on their skin --- deep pits created by pustules drying out and scarring the epidermis. This disease is perhaps one of the biggest reasons why almost everyone who wanted to be fashionable wore a lot of makeup in order to hide the scars.
silk, taffeta, or even leather were applied to the face with an adhesive in order to hide the pock-marks. These were considered to be quite fashionable at the time, and were often dyed brilliant colors.
Other people who did not want to wear patches on their faces to hide skin disfigurement would use a thick coat of face powder to make their complexions look white and smooth. Unfortunately, the base element in face powder that made people's faces look so pale was not the talc that we use today, but finely flaked lead.
Lead is easily absorbed by the body and has the side effects of severe head pain, nausea, dizziness, bowel problems, blindness, and, if large enough amounts have been ingested, paralyzation or even death.)
Rouge was another favorite cosmetic. Its name is derived from the French word for "red." Like the popular white face powder, rouge was created from questionable ingredients, including carmine (a lead-based pigment.) People used rouge with wet bits of wool to daub fashionable red spots on their cheeks --- the general idea was that it made an aesthetically pleasing contrast to one's pale, powdered face.
Rouge was also available as a lipstick for both men and women. Sticks of solid rouge were created by mixing carmine with plaster of Paris.
Besides their complexion, women in the 1700's subjected their hair to various tortures, the least of which was powdering their hair after curling it with hot tongs and applying lard as the base to which the powder would stick. Fashion demanded that women have big, complicated hairstyles with which to complement their clothing. Many women resorted to wearing hairpieces and wigs to add "volume" to their hair. Since many of these were difficult to attach and sculpt on a daily basis, women often had their hair done (curled, larded, powdered, and then adorned with small flowers and feathers) once every few weeks and leave it unwashed so it would stay that way.
Not surprisingly, these ladies suffered from a lot of scalp problems. Infestations of lice and/or fleas were common enough even among those who did not --- or could not afford to --- enjoy such an extensive cosmetic procedure. Those wealthier ladies who let themselves be the willing victims of fashion often found mice nesting in their hair because the lard had attracted their hungry attention.
While baths were taken far and few between, people did wash themselves. They usually used home-made soaps and tonics that used ingredients that were easy to find in the garden or in a field somewhere, and everyone doused themselves with large amounts of perfume in an effort to keep away not only bad odor, but also what they believed caused sicknesses.
silk, taffeta, or even leather were applied to the face with an adhesive in order to hide the pock-marks. These were considered to be quite fashionable at the time, and were often dyed brilliant colors.
Other people who did not want to wear patches on their faces to hide skin disfigurement would use a thick coat of face powder to make their complexions look white and smooth. Unfortunately, the base element in face powder that made people's faces look so pale was not the talc that we use today, but finely flaked lead.
Lead is easily absorbed by the body and has the side effects of severe head pain, nausea, dizziness, bowel problems, blindness, and, if large enough amounts have been ingested, paralyzation or even death.)
Rouge was another favorite cosmetic. Its name is derived from the French word for "red." Like the popular white face powder, rouge was created from questionable ingredients, including carmine (a lead-based pigment.) People used rouge with wet bits of wool to daub fashionable red spots on their cheeks --- the general idea was that it made an aesthetically pleasing contrast to one's pale, powdered face.
Rouge was also available as a lipstick for both men and women. Sticks of solid rouge were created by mixing carmine with plaster of Paris.
Besides their complexion, women in the 1700's subjected their hair to various tortures, the least of which was powdering their hair after curling it with hot tongs and applying lard as the base to which the powder would stick. Fashion demanded that women have big, complicated hairstyles with which to complement their clothing. Many women resorted to wearing hairpieces and wigs to add "volume" to their hair. Since many of these were difficult to attach and sculpt on a daily basis, women often had their hair done (curled, larded, powdered, and then adorned with small flowers and feathers) once every few weeks and leave it unwashed so it would stay that way.
Not surprisingly, these ladies suffered from a lot of scalp problems. Infestations of lice and/or fleas were common enough even among those who did not --- or could not afford to --- enjoy such an extensive cosmetic procedure. Those wealthier ladies who let themselves be the willing victims of fashion often found mice nesting in their hair because the lard had attracted their hungry attention.
While baths were taken far and few between, people did wash themselves. They usually used home-made soaps and tonics that used ingredients that were easy to find in the garden or in a field somewhere, and everyone doused themselves with large amounts of perfume in an effort to keep away not only bad odor, but also what they believed caused sicknesses.
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