The evolution of makeup over the past 100 years (part I) | GoBeauty
The evolution of makeup over the past 100 years (part I), Photo 1151

05 September 2022

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The evolution of makeup over the past 100 years (part I)

Over the last century, not only have notions of human rights, and fashion changed but so has the representation of female appearance in popular culture and the notion of beauty in general. See how our beauty preferences have changed in 100 years!


The 1920s: MAKEUP WITHOUT PROHIBITIONS

“Roaring 20s”. It was an era of freedom and courage, bright accents on the eyes and lips. Makeup has finally become fashionable.

Face

The light tone and soft pink blush, shaded on the cheeks in circles, as at the beginning of the century remain in vogue.

Eyebrows

They began to stand out more than a decade ago. Girls often shaved their eyebrows to draw a thin arc line in the spirit of the trends.

Eyes

One of the features of the makeup of the ‘20s is a haze of shadows along the contour of the eyes.

Lips

In lip makeup, preference was given to juicy red shades from light red to dark burgundy.


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photo credit: Pinterest



The 1930s: FEMME FATALE MAKEUP

In the 1930s, the experiments continued. Thanks to Greta Garbo and Marlene Dietrich, women began to look closely at pantsuits, which they introduced into fashion with great scandal. Makeup began to lose the provocative brightness, but still retained some features of the last decade.

Face

To make it more sculptural, blush was applied in a triangle under the chin bone.

Eyebrows

Thin eyebrows-arches are still trendy. The girls gave their eyebrows a curve so that their long tails looked down.

Eyes

A haze of black shadows was replaced by calmer eye makeup. At the same time, coloured eye shadows began to gain popularity. They were used, however, not by everyone and not always, but mascara became a real must-have in the ‘30s.

Lips

In the 20s, the girls went crazy about bow lips. And in the ‘30s decided, on the contrary, to expand their contour and soften the lines, making them smoother.


Common:header.Blog, Photo 1151
photo credit: Pinterest



The 1940s: THE COMBAT SPIRIT OF BEAUTY

The tragic events of this decade have not made women forget about beauty. New trends continued to appear and came primarily from the United States, where the production of cosmetics continued during the war.

Face

Powder and red blush helped to get a fresh, healthy complexion.

Eyebrows

Fashion in eyebrow makeup began to change. In the ‘40s women wore wider eyebrows of natural shape.

Eyes

Eye makeup was quite natural. The girls preferred mascara. Shadows and eyeliner were not popular..

Lips

A distinctive feature of the makeup of the ‘40s were red lips with a clearly defined contour and gloss.


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photo credit: wonderzine.com



The 50s: THEATER BEAUTY

The world is learning for the first time what the “face of the brand” is: advertising posters with beauties are becoming popular. Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Grace Kelly and Elizabeth Taylor become the standard of beauty. There is a cult of youth: now makeup is applied not only to make the face more attractive but also to mask age-related changes.

Face

Liquid tonal bases are gaining popularity. They allow masking skin imperfections better.

Eyebrows

In the ‘50s fairly wide and emphasized eyebrows became the most popular.

Eyes

Eyeshadows are becoming dazzling. The palettes of shadows of 3-4 tones became extremely popular. In general, makeup was with an emphasis on the contour of the eyes – with eye wings and mascara.

Lips

Shades become more muted, red lipstick is replaced by pastel pink (Revlon was first to launch it).



The 1960s: DOLL EYES

A notable event in the cosmetics market is the emergence of Mary Kay – the first brand to make direct sales. Twiggy was the idol of those years. Her legendary appearance has absorbed the most relevant makeup trends of the ‘60s. The main emphasis was on the eyes.

Face

Girls pay attention to the even tone, which is achieved with the help of powder applied in several layers.

Eyebrows

They could be drawn as in the ‘50s. However, the eyebrows still had to be well-groomed.

Eyes

Dark shadows, smoky eyes, mascara in several layers – this is the everyday makeup of the ‘60s!

Lips

The popularity of bright lipsticks has plummeted. Now it is fashionable to only lightly touch the lips with a colourless gloss.





Read more in our next publication.