I'm going through a bit of a nostalgic phase. Maybe it's because I've been wearing my grandmother's blond fur stole a bunch, or maybe it's because Leap Day made me yearn for the simpler times when there were only 365 days in a year; whatever the case may be, I'm super into learning about what ladies did way back when. Earlier this week we discovered their Anti-Flirting rules from the 1920s and today we've got a vintage video from 1937 of Hollywood starlet Constance Bennett giving skincare advice.
And me oh my, it's brilliant for so many reasons. Notwithstanding the gorgeous sleigh bed, the maid, and Constance's singsong voice, the best part of the video is that it highlights the fact that women have been doing the same thing for decades.
Makeup and skincare haven't changed that much in the last 70 years, as evidenced by Constance's routine. It's hard to really improve on such a classic practice. Sure our products have improved with science (we're told) and they've definitely gotten more expensive and lavish, but the basics are still the same, and still do the trick.
Here's what Constance recommends:
Wash your face before applying anything to it. Apply a skin stimulant (which is like an astringent or an exfoliate), leave it on for a few seconds, then take it off. Apply a mask, rinse it off after 10 minutes or so. Make a joke about your maid being your alarm clock. Apply a pre-foundation moisturizer, which she calls her glow base. Use cream blush if you're not lazy. Finish it off with a setting powder.Sound familiar? Does to me. It's not something many of us do every morning, but her routine isn't foreign by any means. And I happen to love and admire her advice about cream blush. It's a must, ladies. A must. (I love Tarte's cheek stain sticks.)
There are advancements in skincare, but the process in which we go about using it is still the same. Except for the whole help-from-the-maid thing. Def don't have one of those.
See this video on The Stir by CafeMom.
What's your skincare routine like?
Photo via glamourdaze/YouTube