by: Jeannine Schenewerk
There seems to me to be definite parallels between this era, and the
Elizabethan Age, when it comes to women, and their desperate struggle to
either halt the natural aging of their appearance, or, to discover a
miracle age-reversal method. During the sixteenth century, well-born
women were obsessed with achieving, and maintaining, 'ideal' beauty, as
they perceived it, to the point of what we would call 'madness'. What
was this ideal they so longed to possess? Youthful unlined alabaster
skin, overly bright eyes, red cheeks and lips, and the fairest of hair
colors. Add to these attributes, a high, arched, pale eyebrow, and high
brow line. To achieve the 'look' of perfection, these women made use of
the period’s highly respected skin care techniques, and the finest
cosmetics available to them, at the time.