Beauty through the ages

THE concept of what beauty is has always intrigued me. We have seen many different faces of beauty throughout the ages and I have decided to conduct a short list of what was considered to be the height of beauty in that particular time period.

1920s: 

Mary pickford

The roaring ‘20s caused a roaring makeup industry. Cosmetic companies like Max Factor and Maybelline were on the rise and new makeup styles also emerged. It became popular for women to wear lipstick in hues of red and plum. They also drew their lips on accentuating their cupid’s bows and creating a strong pouted look. Pale skin was still in so powder was still a must-have. Women began to shave their eyebrows and draw a thin line in place of them using an eyebrow pencil.

Olivia de Havilland

1930s:

1930s makeup had a more nature look. Mascara was now a necessity in a make-up kit. Eyeliner was traced from the tear duct with an upturned effect. Contouring also became popular as women tried to achieve a perfectly symmetrical face.

Ava gardner

1940s:

Hollywood glamour was starting to make huge waves. Red lipstick burst onto the scene and lips were drawn on slightly over the natural lip line to give a fuller shape. Contouring remained popular and women used it to make their noses appear smaller and to make their cheekbones to appear higher.

Marilyn Monroe

1950s:

The 1950s meant all things Marilyn Monroe- winged eyeliner, different shades of red lipstick, bronzer and short, permed, blonde hair. The 1950s essentially took off from the 1940s in terms of makeup styles.

1960s:

Twiggy

In the 1960s everything about makeup changed. Long and thick upper and lower lashes became the trend (think of style icons like Twiggy).  False eyelashes were also used to achieve this. Pale lips were created by applying either pale pink lipstick or foundation to the lips.

1970s:

Farrah Fawcett

The natural look came back in the ‘70s with only minimalistic foundation and bronzer used to create a sweeping effect on the cheeks.

1980s:

The 1980s were described as the disco era not only in music but also in makeup. Bright, neon colours, electric blues and pinks were used as eyeshadow with a bright pink blusher being used on the cheeks.

1990s:

‘Grunge’ looks were in fashion for most of the 1990s, which meant that women wore heavy, smokey eye makeup with blacks and greys, little or no blush and pale lipstick shades. This effectively became known as ‘heroine chic’.

Kate Moss