Dinah, elegant in black introduced us to the history of make up and wearing black. Peppered with anecdotes, for example, her own experiment with wearing false eyelashes and how one “spider” landed in her soup just as she was trying to impress her new boyfriend, her talk made for an amusing evening.
Turns out that make up has its ancient roots in tribal warpaint and enhancing your sex appeal, evidenced by pictures of Ancient Egyptians and Saxons. Looking at pictures of 1970’s punks and the Vogue models through the years, things haven’t changed much. Our speaker touched on other aspects of our fashionable appearance. Eyebrows have been in and out of fashion, literally, as they are shaved off and drawn back in or even stuck back using mouseskins. Hair was used to show off status. Marie Antoinette had an elaborate boat placed in her hair, which contributed to the outrage against the Noblesse, resulting in the French Revolution (and the loss of her head). The wearing of black has always sent out signals and can either be staid or shocking. Women wear it to mourn, to serve and to seduce. A ballet, Strapless, currently being performed at the Royal Opera House, tells the story of a painting by John Singer Sargent where the strap on a black dress slipped seductively off a young socialite’s shoulder. Deemed too shocking to display, the painting had to be repainted with the sleeve in place. Princess Diana played with convention as she wore black evening gowns for formal photographs and a bias cut glamour gown to both mourn and celebrate her break up with Prince Charles. The Queen more traditionally emphasises the solemnity of occasions by wearing black. Make up and black clothes are not the sole preserve of women. Permanent make up, tattoos are popular with men and black, was worn by men in history to indicate status and power. The Dandy, Beau Brummel led the way with this. Black Leather, is favoured by rock stars and actors. So next time you reach for your little black dress and mascara just pause for thought and think about your place in the history of fashion.
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AuthorMalden Manorettes Archives
May 2016
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