Ava Gardner’s beauty was smoldering, magnetic and impossible to ignore. But the smoky eye that became one of her earliest trademarks wasn’t created with luxury cosmetics or studio‑perfect palettes. In her pre‑MGM days, before she had access to professional makeup artists, Gardner used a resourceful, era‑typical technique: soot mixed with petroleum jelly to darken andContinue reading “Ava Gardner: Her Smoky Eye Was Created with Soot + Petroleum Early in Her Career”
Tag Archives: WWII
What Happened When Nylon Stockings Were Scarce During WWII? Women Got Creative! Plus, the Birth of Sally Henson Leg Makeup
During World War II nylon stockings largely disappeared from civilian life, because nylon production was re-directed to military uses (parachutes, ropes, tire reinforcement), prompting rationing, black markets, creative leg-make-up solutions came into play and intense post-war demand that sparked the so‑called, the infamous “nylon riots.” Nylon was invented in the mid‑1930s and introduced to theContinue reading “What Happened When Nylon Stockings Were Scarce During WWII? Women Got Creative! Plus, the Birth of Sally Henson Leg Makeup”
Materials for Lipstick Were Scarce During WWII, the Importance of Victory Red and What Did Lipstick Represent in the War?
During the Second World War, in both America and Canada, lipstick materials were in shortage, leaving women to become creative, since lipstick has sustained a powerful symbol of morale and normalcy on the home front. Upon the conclusion of the war, the “Victory Red” shape was worn by women in celebration, much like the VictoryContinue reading “Materials for Lipstick Were Scarce During WWII, the Importance of Victory Red and What Did Lipstick Represent in the War?”
Victory Rolls of 1940’s WWII Wartime
Victory Rolls, the hairstyle that was about patriotism. Victory Rolls were a 1940s women’s hairstyle that became a symbol of wartime practicality and patriotism, popular from about 1940–1945, named either for the V for Victory and this hairstyle widely spread by Hollywood and working women. Victory Rolls are sculpted, sausage‑shaped curls rolled upward and pinnedContinue reading “Victory Rolls of 1940’s WWII Wartime”
How Lucien Lelong Single-Handedly Saved French Haute Couture During WWII from the German Occupation
Lelong protected his younger designers including Christian Dior and Pierre Balmain, by keeping them employed inside his couture house during the Occupation. Under German rule, French men risked being deported to Germany for forced labour. By maintaining couture as an active industry, Lelong ensured that his staff remained classified as essential workers, protecting them fromContinue reading “How Lucien Lelong Single-Handedly Saved French Haute Couture During WWII from the German Occupation”
Burnt Cork: The Popular Wartime Make-up Hack for Brows and Mascara
As substitutes for mascara and brow colour when cosmetics were scarce, women in the 1930s, primarily in the 1940s during wartime, relied on creativity. Burnt cork became one of the most ingenious beauty hacks of World War II, used by women across Canada, Britain, and the United States when cosmetics were scarce or rationed. WithContinue reading “Burnt Cork: The Popular Wartime Make-up Hack for Brows and Mascara”
