Monday, May 28, 2012
But before we start going cray-cray about the good ol' days when men looked like James Dean and women didn't leave their panties in your fiances glove compartment, let's not forget that the movie stars of Old Hollywood weren't exactly "natural beauties" either. In fact, as this little trip down memory lane will attest, many of these bizarre old-school beauty tricks would make even Joan Rivers wince. If she could.
German actress Marlene Dietrich is considered to be one of the greatest actresses of all time, but was also highly prized for her sculptured glamour. She believed in accentuating the natural lines of her face with shading, shaping and contouring. One of her most startling features were her perfectly shaped brows. She achieved this look by shaving them off and drawing them on with a brow pencil, as was the fashion in the 1930s. She also never used mascara on her lower lashes, as she believed it cast a shadow below the eyes and made her look tired.
American actress Joan Crawford didn’t use fancy products to keep her legendary face smooth and taut – She chewed gum in the belief that it firmed up her jaw and helped to drain the toxins out from under her chin. She was also religious about her cleansing regime, and would splash her face 25 times with ice cold water after every wash.
There’s a reason Kim Carnes wrote a song about Bette Davis’s eyes – they were enviably huge, bright and line-free. How did she keep them that way? Simple – cucumbers on the eyelids every night before bed and a layer of petroleum jelly under the eyes at night to protect against puffiness and dark circles.
Ever wondered where the phrase ‘blonde bombshell’ originated from? Look no further than platinum-haired 1930s starlet, Jean Harlow. Although, she had a rather unorthodox method of obtaining her baby blonde locks – she lightened her hair with a potent mixture of peroxide, ammonia and Lux Flakes (an old fashioned washing powder).
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