Skin Care

Skin Care

Throughout the late 1800's and until the present, cosmetics and skin care have been important in the lives of
women in America. Certain trends have come and gone, just as some have remained. In the past 100
years, the roles and lives of women have changed drastically, but their cosmetics have always been around.
Charm books along with step-by-step manuals give us today a look into the past. Advertisements are also a
great source of history. Using these means, central themes in cosmetics can be determined, almost simply.
Throughout the past century, pleasing your man, looking natural, and being a sophisticated, contemporary
woman with a fresh young look, have been important to the cosmetic companies and to their female
consumers.
In the late 1800's, cosmetics were being produced and sold to college-aged women and older. However, a
large hypocrisy was occurring. Women were being told that it was necessary to wear cosmetics, however,
it was vain to wear noticeable make-up. It was quoted from St. Paul's Magazine that, "If a girl has the trial
of a complexion so bad that the sight of it gives one a turn, it is simply a duty for her either not to go into
society at all, or, if she does, to conceal it…you have no right to inflict your misfortunes on everybody-it is
an unpardonable offense against good taste" (Williams 113).
The women of this time were being bombarded with mixed messages. Their problems with this
hypocrisy were settled to o...

Skin Care

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