Cause A Frockus

Vintage homemade beauty recipes

Sep 10, 2014 | by Becky Oeltjenbruns

We love a great, old reference book. It’s not only a treat to get an in-depth peek into customs, but it’s fun to learn how women tackled issues of beauty before modern chemistry and merchandising. I was recently gifted an incredible volume from my grandmother’s collection, “Manners, Culture, and Dress of the Best American Society” by Richard A Wells, A.M. It was published in 1891 and is full of all sorts of information. We’ll share more of the insights in future articles, but for now we focus on vintage homemade beauty recipes.

Vintage skincare solutions

Removing sunburns

The authors recommend applying a rinse of almond milk in this situation. Who would have guessed you could have your cereal and tackle a common ailment at the same time?

Getting bright and smooth skin

While we have all sorts of high-tech approaches nowadays, the late 1800s focused on the simple approach: take a tepid bath and dry off with a harsh towel (gotta love exfoliating) and enjoy plenty of fresh air and exercise. It may sound pretty basic, but when you think of all the additional benefits of an active lifestyle, it serves as a great reason to dust off the walking shoes.

Taking care of rough/chapped hands

Sometimes you must go to the kitchen before you go to the medicine cabinet! The Victorian expert recommends combining a trio of ingredients to relieve you of that nasty side effect of dry, cold air: three ounces of lemon juice with three ounces of white wine vinegar and a half pint of white brandy.

Vintage hair care solutions

Softening your hair

Beat up four egg whites into a froth. Take this mixture and rub it thoroughly close to your hair roots. Let this dry on and then wash your hair clean with a mixture of equal parts rum and rose-water. Once your hair is looking shiny and gorgeous, we recommend you make a lovely cocktail with the rum you didn’t use!

Hair-curling fluid

Ever wonder how the vintage lady kept her hair coiffed to perfection before the days of hair spray? Well here’s a hint: dissolve a little piece of beeswax into an ounce of olive oil. Add your favorite scent to the mix to make your own special blend. We recommend you take a trip to an essential oils shop and get acquainted with the varieties of aromas available.

To keep hair curly

The authors suggest taking a few quince seed, boiling them in water, and then adding a scent if you’d like. You will then wet the hair with this liquid. It’s also a good idea to keep the hair in place on the forehead and avoid windy conditions. (But with a beautifully placed scarf, you can take scenic drives in a convertible with confidence!)

Rose-water

Throughout this chapter, the benefits of rose-water are touted. But it can be an expensive item to buy and thankfully this book offers up a homemade recipe for this beauty essential.

“Rose-water may be made by taking half an ounce of powdered white sugar and two drachms of magnesia; with these mix twelve drops of attar of roses. Add a quart of water and two ounces of alcohol, mixed in a gradual manner, and filter through blotting paper.” (page 485)

Let us offer a translation: a drachm is an antiquated unit of measurement. In modern terms, a drachm is 1/8 of an ounce, so in our recipe you’ll want to add 1/4 ounce of magnesia (magnesium).

Attar of roses goes by a plethora of names: rose oil, essence of rose, or otto of rose. It is a very fragrant, but essentially colorless liquid. We did find a recipe for attar of roses here.

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Cause A Frockus would like to thank their tremendous resources: “Manners, Culture, and Dress of the Best American Society” by Richard A Wells, A.M. and the people who post their images without restriction.

For our readers: Do you make your own beauty solutions? If so, what are your favorite recipes?

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