What do bone marrow and lard have in common? The answer may not only surprise you, it might sicken you as well. But that's because you're not a Victorian (at least not in this life). In "Beauty: What It Is And How To Retain it", a book originally published in 1873, and recently re-released by the British Library, the beauty secrets of Victorian women are laid bare...and lard and bone marrow are merely the beginning.
In an era in which make-up was associated mainly with prostitutes and actresses (wanton creatures!), women who wanted to enhance their natural beauty walked a fine line when it came to the use of cosmetics. In fact, women who dared to indulge in the use of such things as lipstick and rouge did so at the risk of their reputations, something that most Victorian women held as dear as their very own lives. Instead, in order to achieve their meximum beauty potential, women of that era focused on natural elements to achieve shiny hair and smooth skin. In the "Beauty" book (the authorship of which is simply credited to "A Lady"), women are encouraged to wash their hair with bone marrow to bring out its sheen, and to brush it 20 times in the morning, then repeat the process at night. Women who long for silky skin are given directions on how to create a facial mask using lard, and, to keep their hair healthy, to wash it with rain water, although the author cautions that if the rain water happens to come from London, it's best to filter it to get rid of "smuts." Dental hygiene is also addressed, with readers being advised to use a "soft badger-hair brush" to clean their teeth.
Of course, it wasn't only Victorian women who were concerned about appearances. Men of the era were equally interested in looking their best when riding around leaving calling cards in fashionable neighborhoods and strolling through the park. "The Gentleman's Art Of Dressing, With Economy", a guide for men written by "A Lounger At The Clubs" in 1876 addresses such questions as how to deal with a wet top hat, and warns male readers that they should never wear the same pair of trousers two days in a row in order to avoid "a hackneyed" look. This comprehensive little guide even goes so far as to devote entire chapters to specific items of men's clothing, such as waistcoats, shoes, and shirts. Clearly, when it came to appearances in the Victorian era, both genders were committed to playing by the rules.
But that doesn't mean there weren't some who were willing to "buck the system" and take an alternate route to achieve their beauty ideals. Madame Rachel, a London cosmetician who had changed her name from Sarah Russell when she left the fried fish business to set up shop on Bond Street, was infamous for attracting wealthy female customers with the slogan "Beautiful Forever." To make good on her slogan, Madame Rachel subjected her clients to a process called "enamelling", which involved filling in facial wrinkiles with a concoction made of arsenic and white lead paste. Madame Rachel's questionable career came to an end when she was convicted of swindling a rich widow out of thousands of pounds after the woman went to her in the hope of having her face repaired following the damage that had been done to it by "the Indian sun." Madame Rachel's subsequent imprisonment for her crimes only served to bolster the firmly-held Victorian belief that cosmetics and those who used them were to be avoided at all costs. After all, why court physical and social disaster when you can just as easily rub lard on your face?
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