When I think about beauty now, a kaleidoscope of images rush through my head. Matte lips. Holographic lips. Blue lips. Glittery eyes. Winged flicks. No make-up. All the make-up. Curled hair. Straight hair. Long. Short. None. It’s a smorgasbord, a do-as-you-will world where beauty innovations can render you any way you’d like, and make life a dressing up box that is forever proffering endless options.
Things weren’t quite like that back in the 1950s. Then, beauty was a bit more of a cut-out-and-replicate affair, with poster girls leading the way. Red lips were on the most part a given, as were fluttery eyelashes and glossy, curled hair. For inspiration, women looked to Grace Kelly, Marilyn Monroe, or Ava Gardner - basically, the icons of the time, who were nowhere near as diverse as our films stars are now (though, admittedly, there’s still much work to be done on that front).
There’s a reason for that conformity: beauty always reflects the times, and in the 1950s, women’s choices in all things were fairly limited. It was post-war, pre-feminism. A time when the economy was in recovery, movie star glamour revered, men were primarily at the industry helm once more after WWII, and women mostly still played a domestic role which also still meant looking pleasing, as a rule.
Now despite the perhaps troubling ideals upon which this look rests, I found wearing it for a few days a joy because it was indeed flattering and made me feel a more polished, feminine version of myself. Watch the video to see more on how I - and others - felt about the 1950s Mads About Beauty challenge, and, if you’d like to give it a go, here are some products that have stood the test of time and have been around since the 1950s - or even before - which I used throughout, and a little guide on how to do it.
Top 1950s Beauty Products
, and they became a mainstay of their product range. Fire and Ice’s famous 1952 campaign cemented it in the affection of the public. from InStyle.com)
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Revlon Fire and Ice Nail Polish, £7.99
Brothers Charles and Joseph Revson created the first red nail polishes in the 30s with the help of chemist Charles Lachman (Revson + Lachman = Revlon), and they became a mainstay of their product range. Fire and Ice’s famous 1952 campaign cemented it in the affection of the public.
Available at Boots | £6.49
, while Elizabeth Arden created red lipstick for women serving in the armed forces during WWII, which was also when adverts appeared to remind women that red lips were a must to boost morale. This Power Red shade is based on that original, classic red. from InStyle.com)
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Elizabeth Arden Power Red Lipstick, £21
Despite red lipstick being a bit of a faff at times, it has interesting links with feminism. During the suffrage movement, women wore it as a sign of defiance (at that time, only actresses or prostitutes were likely to have braved wearing red), while Elizabeth Arden created red lipstick for women serving in the armed forces during WWII, which was also when adverts appeared to remind women that red lips were a must to boost morale. This Power Red shade is based on that original, classic red.
Available at Look Fantastic | £21
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Max Factor Creme Puff, £6.99
Launching in 1953 to an audience hungry for smooth, powdery skin as per Hollywood complexions that didn’t look chalky. Over 60 years later, this pressed powder is still a top seller.
Available at Boots | £6.99
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Vaseline, £2.09
First invented in 1872 by Robert Chesebrough, this petroleum jelly has been prominent since, with it selling a jar a minute a mere two years after launching. It’s had some seriously famous proponents: Queen Victoria used it on her dry skin, it was taken to the North Pole in 1909 by Commander Robert Peary, and Marilyn Monroe used it on her dry skin to sooth and lend it lustre.
Available at Boots | £2.09
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Babyliss 3045BU Thermo Ceramic Rollers
Available at John Lewis | £35.00
Get The Look
Curl hair. Adverts in the 50s debated when hair should be curled for fear of a head full of rollers putting off the all-important husband figure. The solutions most magazines offered up? Chuck in rollers, then cover them with a (clean and perfectly-ironed) hanky. I obviously didn’t mind my husband seeing me with rollers in (quite frankly, he’s seen me in far worse states), so just used my Babyliss 3045BU Thermo Ceramic Rollers throughout.
Make skin soft-focus. Whether dewy (Marilyn achieved that with Vaseline), or powdery (Max Factor Creme Puff was the go-to at the time), 50s skin was smooth and looked touchable. I used foundation first to cover redness and spots, followed by powder and a pink blush.
Add a reflective element. This didn’t happen across the board, but if you want to channel the 50s glamour thing, you need a bit of health. Vaseline again could do the job well here, but I used Soap & Glory Glow All Out on cheeks, Stila Smudge Pot in Kitten on my lids, and a little Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Cream (which was around in the 50s) in the centre of my lips.
Add a flick. Don’t think big 60s flick, think 'cute enhancement to lashes' sort of flick. For this, I used either Hourglass Liquid Liner in Ultra Black, or Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Liner.
And lashes. Not all women were falsies in the 50s, but they certainly add to the impact of the look. I found Eylure Accent Lashes to be ideal as they start at the outer corner to really give that authentic flutter. To coat my own lashes, I used Victoria Beckham X Estee Lauder Eye Ink Mascara.
Lips. Of course women didn’t constantly have perfectly-lacquered red lips at all times during the 1950s, but that was basically THE colour of the time and if you wanted to be in, red was it. I mostly alternated between Revlon Fire and Ice and Elizabeth Arden Power Red, both of which were around at the time. Quick Marilyn cheat: she used to use lighter red and a little sheen in the centre of her lip to make them look more pouty, so on the Marilyn day, I used this technique.
Paint nails. Nails were either perfectly clean and shiny (for this, buff with a Margaret Dabbs Super Shine Buffer), or glamorous and red. During the video, I wore Revlon Fire and Ice Nail Polish.
