1940s Etiquette Rules and Cosmetics

One 1940’s college newspaper article gave a warning to young American women, regarding ‘Lillian the Leech’ advising not to loan her your new face powder. Loaning personal items to friends can always be risky. This is a health issue and one can easily spread pimple causing bacteria, pink-eye, lice or worse, among other reasons — “Take for example the case of ‘Lillian the Leech.’ She is always borrowing your comb, lipstick, pencil, or bobby pins. She doesn't just ask you for them once in a while, but so often that you wonder if she even has any cosmetics.”

Modeling Expert Gives Rules for Pretty Faces

The trend in lipstick, as Peggy Healey sees it, is darker for blondes and lighter for brunettes. Peggy, who told us this as she smiled across a big desk at the models agency, has seen a lot of makeup in five years of dashing across Europe and America, modeling fashions and posing for photographs.

She is a blonde herself, and thinks the darker makeup gives her an exotic flare, especially, in the evening. And televised blondes find darker lipstick reproduces better. Peggy is a living example of what three simple rules do for pretty faces. These are the rules:

Cleanliness really is next to godliness. (Peggy favors cold showers and plenty of soap and water for her face. She doesn't depend on a lot of creams.) Foundation makeup should be chosen carefully for each skin. Practice in applying makeup is the surest way to get that essential natural look.

Eye makeup, Peggy says, is very important these days. It takes time, too. Black mascara is the thing. Omit eye shadows if you have large eyes. You can make small eyes lovelier by pencilling a tiny line from the inner corner of the eye, across the lashes out and up a bit at the outer corner. — (AP) Feature Service, 1940

🍽Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber, of The RSVP Institute of Etiquette, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia