beauty

Old Hollywood's unusual beauty secrets. They worked.

When someone mentions classic beauty, the names that usually come to mind are the likes of Sophia Loren, Bette Davis, Marilyn Monroe and Rita Hayworth.

Known for their flawless faces, luminous skin and hypnotising eyes, the Old Hollywood glamour girls knew how to stand out, and they did it all without the aid of modern day beauty products we have at our disposal.

Back in the era of these iconic beauties, makeup products were fairly basic. Forget BB cream and fibre mascara, it was a time of pancake foundation and kohl liner (if you were lucky). These women had to find, erm, unconventional ways to play up their best features. While some are great, we really wouldn’t recommend most of them…

1. Elizabeth Taylor

Elizabeth Taylor reportedly shaved her face with a razor to remove baby hairs and to exfoliate. She believed it helped her makeup go on more smoothly.

2. Audrey Hepburn

Apart from those incredible brows, Audrey Hepburn’s eyelashes were to die for. But they didn’t come easily. Apparently she used to separate each lash using a pin, so that they looked voluminous and didn’t clump. Risky business.

3. Grace Kelly

Grace Kelly was the original contour queen. Reportedly she used two shades of blush to define her cheekbones.

4. Rita Hayworth

Rita was known for her gorgeous hair. To keep it in peak condition she used a treatment of oil, which she rinsed out with lemon juice.

5. Ingrid Bergman

Back in the day, high hairlines were in. Ingrid reportedly shaved about 1cm off her natural hairline to make her forehead more prominent.

6. Sophia Loren

Sophia is the original Italian goddess and like any Italian, she knows the value of good olive oil. She used it to moisturise, remove makeup and as a hair treatment.

7. Mae West

Mae knew the benefits of coconut oil long before the hipster caught on. It's said that she was never without a jar.

8. Gloria Grahame

Gloria felt her upper lip wasn't full enough and so used cotton swabs or tissue placed under it to make her upper lip appear more full.

9. Greta Garbo

Greta felt her eyes didn't stand out enough so she used Vaseline under dark shadows to create a theatrical glossy eye.

Have you tried any of these tips before?