DIY Decorative Floral Hair Comb

I'm still in a very spring-y mood, which means - you guessed it - more flowers! After looking at all these lovely botanical photo spreads like this one and this one, I felt that I needed something new and floral for my jewelry box.

This is my DIY tutorial on how to make a lovely little blossomy hair comb.

You will need:
A small decorative comb - from Glitter
Resin flower flatbacks - from Green Papaya
Super glue (make sure its the kind that works on plastic)

Step 1: 

Figure out how many flowers you will need. I originally went with four, but ended up suing five. Just align them along the winds of the comb and see how many you can fit in there. 

Step 2: 

Put some super glue on the back of your flowers and attach it to the comb one by one. Then leave it to dry. 

Step 3:
Ta-da! The comb is ready. Add it to your French twist or Edwardian tuck for maximum gorgeousness.

Speaking of flowers, I have recently discovered Fentimans Rose Lemonade. And it is now my drink of choice. It's a lovely ginger-flavored soda with just a hint of rose. Perfect for spring picnics.  

    

Georgian Makeup Tips & Tricks for Modern Lady

It is no secret that make-up has had a bad rap up until well into the 20th century. In the 17th and 18th centuries, when make-up was commonly used by both men and women, it was not only being bashed by moralists but was also very likely to kill you. It contained such unsavory substances as lead, belladonna, arsenic and many more. Maria Coventry, Countess of Coventry, for instance, paid a heavy price for her makeup addiction. She died at the age of 27 from lead poisoning.

Maria Coventry, Countess of Coventry (1733 – 1760)

By the end of the 18th century, the cult of the natural began to take hold. Women donned simpler style of dress, and makeup became even more despised. But that did not stop people from using beauty products to improve their looks and complexion. In a hilarious scene from Jane Austen's Persuasion, the vain and silly Sir Walter Elliot advises his daughter to use Gowland's Lotion to improve her looks. This advice would have been pretty dangerous since Gowland Lotion contained, among other things, mercuric chloride. A substance you should keep away from your face.

An ad for Gowland's Lotion which was a chemical peel  

But while many cosmetics of the past were downright lethal and incompatible with our modern aesthetic, we can still learn a few things from our foremothers.

La toilette by Lucio Rossi (1846-1913) 

The 18th century was not a very great time for bathing. Ladies avoided baths and hair would not be washed for months, especially when the high puffy styles came into fashion around the middle of the century. These elaborate updos took a long time to construct and no lady would willingly ruin it by washing. The hair was built up and kept in place with a generous helping of powder. What we modern ladies can take from this is that powder is a wonderful degreaser.

Hairdresser powdering a lady's hair.  Galerie des Modes, 12e Cahier, 1e Figure

While I do not recommend going without bathing for months on end, hair can be made presentable by a bit of hair or talcum powder. Just put some on your hand and run it through the hair, shake off the excess and  you are ready to go. I prefer unscented talc, but you can find powder with a variety of very pleasant scents like vanilla, jasmine and rose. Some powders have glitter if you like a little extra glitz.

Lulu Organics Hair Powder 

Lush Vanilla Puff Powder

Ageless Artifice Perfumed Powder 

Rouge has been used for ages to give cheeks a glowing healthy look and to put some color into wane lips. It has mostly been replaced by blush and lipstick in our beauty kits.

Madam de Pompadour applying rouge   

However, it is about time we bring rouge back. There is no need to run to the local pharmacy for some white lead, vermilion and alkanet root. It can be easily replaced with lip stain or lip tint. Unlike lipstick or blush that could look heavy, lip tint gives a more natural flushed effect. The other advantage is that it is a two-in-one product. You can use lip tint to rouge up both lips and cheeks. Some shades can also be applied instead of cream eye shadow for a very pretty look. Just remember to dab some powder on it to keep it from creasing.

Lush It Started With A Kiss Lip tint

Odora Candy Color Mineral Lip Stain

Ageless Artifice Red Paint for the Face

Would you like more tips on how to emulate that 18th century beauty? Katie Cannon over at Ageless Artifice has a wonderful blog about historical cosmetics and a site where you can buy many of them. Great for all you makeup and history junkies out there. 

Nineteenth Century Medusa Gorgon

Horrible Idea. Punch Magazine (1869) lampooning ladies' twisted chignon hair style by suggesting they include a stuffed snake to their up-dos.   

It may be a bit impractical as an everyday style, but it would be a wonderful idea for Halloween. 

A Lady's Hairstyles Through the Ages

Such a beautiful video and such a clever artistic project. While the "looks" do not seem to be always historically authentic, that hardly matters. It feels that the project is more about our perception of the past rather than true historical facts. Not to mention that at any given time there are a variety of hairstyles and to show them all would require a lot more than 4 minutes.

What strikes me as interesting is that what this video excludes tells more about our society than what it shows. Many a worthy maid is conspicuous by her absence.