Jordan Opp/Inland 360
Kyla Quale’s 1930s-style makeup, applied by makeup artist Jacey Johnson, includes thin eyebrows, pale blush and a red lip.
The evolution of makeup didn’t slow down during the Great Depression.
America was experiencing huge growth in the cosmetics industry. Innovations like Max Factor’s lip gloss and Pancake water-soluble makeup arrived in the 1930s, according to glamourdaze.com, and Helena Rubinstein introduced the first commercial waterproof mascara in 1939. Rubinstein “built a global beauty empire ... selling face cream to Depression-era housewives and teaching makeup tricks
Johnson
The British Daily Mail reported that “in 1931, 1,500 lipsticks were being sold to women for every 1 being sold to women in 1921.” Cake mascara — a small brick of product that was moistened and applied with a brush — and lipstick were now being sold in makeup kits.
The ’30s was the decade of a more refined eye look, following the heavy kohl liner and vampy looks of the ’20s. The same thin eyebrows, pale blushes and red lips remained popular, but the darker shadows gave way to subtler ones.
Jordan Opp/Inland 360
Makeup artist Jacey Johnson applies eyeliner to complete Kyla Quale's 1930s makeup look.
Books with makeup tutorials based on age and hair color became available in the ’30s too. Reading through a couple of them, I noticed the cupid’s-bow lip had fallen out of favor, replaced by a softer, more natural shape.
Here’s how you can achieve this look at home, demonstrated on Kyla Quale, of Lewiston.
1. Prep the skin, as they did in the 1930s, with a Pond’s cleanser, a witch hazel astringent to tone and a Pond’s vanishing cream moisturizer.
2. Use an eyebrow pencil to draw a pencil-thin, arched brow. (Use a tweezer to pluck away hairs if you really want to go for it.)
3. Apply whatever eyeshadow you wish with the tip of your finger. Finish it with a rub of Vaseline to leave a sheen. For Kyla’s eyes, I also applied shadow using a brush to enhance her crease.
4. Apply lots and lots and lots of mascara. Mascara in the 1930s was solid and came in a pan, unlike the liquid mascara sold in tubes today. You would dampen your brush or the product in the pan to apply, and you could also use it as an eyeliner.
5. Add blush from the apples of the cheeks to the ear.
6. Finish with red lipstick.
Jordan Opp/Inland 360
Makeup artist Jacey Johnson applies a red lip liner while creating a 1930s look for Kyla Quale.
If you’re interested in exploring vintage makeup, I have used a brand called Besame Cosmetics, besamecosmetics.com, that offers similar shades and products (even cake mascara) to those used in the 1920s through the 1960s.
Contact @blackmagic._beauty on Instagram or mstone@Inland360.com if you’d like to be a model for one of the coming eras.
Johnson, of Lewiston, creates makeup looks inspired by different decades in U.S. history, using you, our readers, as her models. She can be found on Etsy at BlackMagicBeautyShop and Instagram @blackmagic._beauty.
