The Victorian Era

What Were Victorian Beauty Products?

Article · Fashion & Dress · The Victorian Era, 1837–1901

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Victorian beauty products were the cosmetics, the perfumes, the soaps, the lotions, the creams, the oils, the powders, the dyes, the rouges, the lip salves, the tooth powders, the mouthwashes, and the many other products that were used to enhance, to preserve, or to alter the appearance of the Victorian body. The beauty products of the period were a major industry, and the great beauty firms of the period, including Rimmel, Yardley, Atkinson’s, Pears, Bronnley, Truefitt & Hill, Guerlain, Houbigant, and Roger & Gallet, all built their reputations in the period. The history of beauty products is examined in Victorian Hair and Beauty, and the parallel history of cosmetics is examined in What did Victorian makeup look like?.

The Face Powder

The face powder was the most important beauty product of the Victorian period, and it was used by women of all classes. It was generally based on rice powder, wheat starch, talc, chalk, zinc oxide, or the pearl powders of bismuth subnitrate (later found to be toxic), tinted white, pink, or cream, and it was applied with a powder puff, a brush, or a pad to give the skin the pale, matte finish that the period admired. The skin-whitening preparations of the period also included the older Venetian ceruse (a preparation of lead carbonate, used since the Renaissance but increasingly discredited by the mid-nineteenth century).

The face powder of the period was sold in boxes, tins, jars, sachets, and papers, and the great toilet preparation firms of the period, including Rimmel, Yardley, Atkinson’s, Pears, Guerlain, Houbigant, and Roger & Gallet, all produced face powders of various types. The face powder of the Victorian period is examined in more detail in What did Victorian makeup look like?.

The Rouge

The rouge was another important beauty product of the Victorian period. It was generally a preparation of carmine or cochineal, sometimes of alkanet or sandalwood, and it was sold in many forms: as a pot or paste rouge, as a powder, as a liquid or milk rouge, and as papers impregnated with colour.

The rouge of the period was applied principally to the cheeks and, more discreetly, to the lips, with a brush, a pad, a hare’s foot, or the fingertip, and it was blended carefully so that the colour should appear natural. The use of rouge is examined in What did Victorian makeup look like?.

The Lip Salve

The lip salve was another important beauty product of the Victorian period. It was generally a preparation of wax, spermaceti, cocoa butter, lanolin, or glycerine, often scented with rose or orange flower water and sometimes tinted pink or red with carmine, and it was sold in small pots and sticks.

The Eye Cosmetics

The eye cosmetics of the Victorian period were more limited than the eye cosmetics of the twentieth century, but they were still substantial. The principal preparations were black powders and pastes of kohl, soot, or antimony, used sparingly to shade the eyelids, darken the lashes, and define the brows; burnt cork and lampblack served the same purpose in humbler households. Belladonna drops, used to enlarge the pupils and brighten the eyes, were a more dangerous resort of the fashionable.

The Perfume

The perfume of the Victorian period was a major industry. The great perfume houses of the period included Guerlain in Paris (founded 1828), Houbigant in Paris (founded 1775), Roger & Gallet in Paris (founded 1862), Atkinson’s in London (founded 1799), Rimmel in London (founded 1834 by Eugène Rimmel in Paris, opened in London 1874), Yardley in London (founded 1770), and Floris in London (founded 1730). The perfumes of the period were generally based on the floral notes — rose, jasmine, violet, lily of the valley, lavender, and orange blossom — and they were sold as extraits, as eau de cologne, as eau de toilette, as sachet powders, as soap, as hair oil, and as hair cream. The famous 4711 eau de cologne, established in Cologne in 1792, was imported throughout the period.

The perfumes were sold in elaborate bottles of cut glass, crystal, porcelain, silver, or gold, and they were a major element of the dressing table of the period.

The Soaps

The soaps of the Victorian period were a major industry. The great soap makers of the period, including Pears (founded 1807 by Andrew Pears, the transparent soap was his invention), Yardley (founded 1770), Rimmel (founded 1834 by Eugène Rimmel in Paris, opened in London 1874), Atkinson’s (founded 1799), Bronnley (founded 1884), Palmers, and Knight & Castles, all built their reputations in the period. The soaps were generally made of tallow, palm oil, olive oil, or coconut oil, often scented with rose, jasmine, violet, lavender, or another floral note. William Colgate founded his company in New York in 1806, and the first British soap firms, including the Yardley and the Atkinsons, date from the late eighteenth century.

The Hair Products

The hair products of the Victorian period were many and varied. Pomade, a greasy preparation of beeswax, lard, or vaseline scented with rose or another perfume, was used to dress and to condition the hair. Bandoline, a sticky gum of quince seed or gum arabic, was used to fix the hair in place. Brilliantine, a lighter oil-based preparation, was used to give the hair a gloss. Macassar oil, a preparation of coconut and other vegetable oils perfumed with ylang-ylang or another flower, was the most popular hair dressing of the period, and it led to the invention of the antimacassar, the small cloth or lace covering placed on the back of a chair or sofa to protect the upholstery from the oil. Bear’s grease, a pomade made from rendered bear fat, was popular for the moustache, and was sold in small pots by Rimmel, Atkinson’s, and others.

The Face and the Skin

The face and skin preparations of the Victorian period included cold cream (a preparation of beeswax, spermaceti, and almond oil, used to cleanse and to soften the skin), cucumber juice, lemon juice, and oatmeal face wash. Glycerine and rose water were used as general skin tonics, and the firm of Rimmel was the leading supplier of these preparations.

The Teeth

The teeth of the Victorian period were the subject of growing attention, and the toothbrush, tooth powder, and mouthwash were all regular features of the daily toilet. Tooth powders of the period were based on chalk, cuttlefish, charcoal, or borax, often scented with camphor or another aromatic, and were sold in small pots and boxes. Mouthwashes were based on tincture of myrrh, on eau de cologne, or on borax and water. The toothbrush itself, with a bone handle and bristles of boar or badger hair, was a familiar implement on the Victorian dressing table.