Odor, Wrinkles, and Stoutness ... Oh My! Beauty Problems in 1907

We hear a lot about our society being beauty-obsessed, but upon reading through the issues of The Delineator from 1907, it became clear to me that this is not a new phenomenon.  I supposed I would have expected a strong emphasis on beauty in a women's magazine from over 100 years ago, but I have to admit I was surprised by the number of articles and ads to do with weight loss, as we tend to discuss obesity as a problem of today. 

Two of the major beauty issues of the day, judging by the number of products advertised and the number of articles written to address them, were wrinkles and weight.  I couldn't even begin to show the variety of ads for various lotions and creams purported to reduce wrinkles. 

A couple of articles written on the topics of wrinkles and weight by one particular contributor, Augusta Prescott, struck me with their directness. 

In her article from October 1907 called "The Woman With Wrinkles in Her Face," Ms. Prescott asserts, “Wrinkles make a woman look old.  They make her seem unpleasant.  They make her look sour, no matter how sweet she may feel.  They furrow her face and destroy its expression . . . Nobody likes wrinkles, nobody admires them; and it is safe to say that the woman who is afflicted with them is cheated out of a great deal of the admiration and the pleasure which would otherwise naturally be hers.“

Some suggested wrinkle remedies include: massage, using steamed cloths, application of cold cream, facial baths of sour milk, patting the skin with a cosmetic ball soaked in cold cream, using an electric or rubber roller.

Yikes! I almost ran to the mirror to see if I truly looked sour and unpleasant, since Ms. Prescott stated that at the age 30, women should be at their peak but usually aren't because their wrinkles become apparent. I suppose it's hopeless for all of us who are over 30 . . . of course, Ms. Prescott had not yet heard of Botox!  :)

Ms. Prescott also addressed the topic of weight with characteristic tact in her October 1907 article titled "The Woman Who Weighs Too Much": "The stout person, be she girl or matron, is to be pitied for she loses so much by being fat.  There is no beauty in flesh; neither is there any grace or loveliness in rolls of fat . . . ‘Don’t be fat’ is a good law for any woman.”

She suggested several exercises for reducing flesh, including this one in case you'd like to try it: "The walking exercise is one that does the fat woman lots of good.  She should put on a loose waist and a short skirt—and walk!  The trick is to exert the muscles as much as possible.  And this is done by clinching the fists as one walks and stepping violently."

Dr. Anna Galbraith wrote a running feature on medical issues called "The Care of the Woman."  Her topic in the August 1907 issue is obesity.  Being a doctor, she does offer some much more sound advice on losing weight - for example avoiding starchy ("Bread is a very dangerous food and should only be taken in small quantities.") and sugary foods, having frequent smaller meals, and eating lean meats. 

I had to laugh a little at this statement: "Too great variety must be avoided, and the number of courses must be limited, since variety alwasy increases the appetite.  For the same reason all spices, condiments and othe rarticles which sharpen the appetite much be avoided."  And I was really surprised to hear her recommendation of saccharin as a sugar substitute.  I had no idea it came into use as early as 1907, but on investigating its history, I found that it was even used by none other than Theodore Roosevelt.

Being "stout" wasn't the only problem women had with their figures.  They were quite concerned about being "filled out" in all the right places.  Check out these ads for products that improve the figure:

And my very favorite, the H&H Pneumatic Bust Form, which seems to be an air-pump of some sort that fills out the bust:

While wrinkles and weight get the most attention in 1907's Delineator, a couple of other products did catch my eye.  Like this hair switch, made from human hair, necessary for the elaborate hairstyles:

And more prevalent ads for deodorant (compared to 1906), a powder that was sprinkled on the dress shields worn inside the dress:

It doesn't seem that too much has changed in regard to women's interest in staying young and pretty.  And I guess I prefer some of the beauty ideals from a century ago.  Instead of trying to look like a Kardashian in 2013, I'd probably rather try to stay slender to look fabulous in clothes like this: