If you think today’s stars go to great lengths for beauty, it’s nothing compared to what the screen sirens of yore did for vanity’s sake. With their glowing skin, tumbling curls and perfect pouts, vintage beauties such as Elizabeth Taylor and Audrey Hepburn are still the envy of women today.

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But just how did they manage to look so classically beautiful without the plethora of makeup products available to the ladies of 2016? Let’s take a step back in time and discover the super-sneaky beauty secrets of Hollywood’s golden age.There’s definitely something to be said for the fact that we’re still obsessed with the classic beauty of yester-year!

We still admire the simplistic elegance of Grace Kelly and continue to recreate the retro glamour of Marilyn Monroe. There just seems to be something effortless and undeniably feminine about the old Hollywood actresses; something refreshing about living in an age where making an effort and looking your best at all times was a way of life.

So, let’s see just how to create the beautiful vintage look in 2016, using a combination of some beauty tricks from back in the day with some up-to-date cosmetics.

Cleanse

A flawless complexion is the most vital part of creating the vintage look and we’re not talking about covering your imperfections with foundation! It’s about taking great care of the skin that is of paramount importance – but without all these modern-day face creams and cleansers, just how did they do it? Simple: cold water!

Joan Crawford famously used to splash her face with ice-cold water over 20 times to tighten her pores and keep her skin taut. Now that’s an inexpensive trick we can all try out! It’s worth mentioning that using cold water on your hair to keep it shiny was also part of the old beauty routines.

Exfoliate

Exfoliating rejuvenates the skin, rids it of dead cells and helps clear acne, so needless to say it is a vital step in creating the perfect complexion. Even Katharine Hepburn made her own exfoliant by using lemon juice, a little water and granulated sugar! Give this homemade version a go by all means or opt for a current product such as B.liv Glow and Shine Mask.

You can take things one step further, like Elizabeth Taylor or Cleopatra, by shaving your face. This habit removes the fine baby hairs and the surface layer of skin cells giving your skin a facial-like glow.

Moisturise

Hydrated skin is healthy skin, but far from using expensive moisturisers, Sophia Loren famously used to put olive oil in the bath to make her skin supple and her hair shiny. The oil even provides powerful anti-oxidants. But if you don’t fancy taking a dip in the stuff and risk smelling like a Greek salad, why not try Jo Malone Velvet Rose & Oud Dry Body Oil or Chanel Coco Noir Moisturising Body Lotion instead?

Prevent Puffiness

Vintage beauties used petroleum jelly (or Vaseline) religiously under the eyes to prevent puffiness and dark circles. This combined with good old-fashioned cucumber slices really worked to keep puffiness at bay. We are still raving over Bette Davis’ eyes. She kept them looking bright by applying cucumbers to her lids at night and petroleum jelly under the eye to combat dark eye circles.

While cucumbers are still used for this today, we now have the most amazing eye creams to choose from, such as Shiseido Benefiance WrinkleResist24 Intensive Eye Contour Cream, which contains a super bio-hyaluronic acid N that replenishes skin with rich moisture.

Prime Your Eyelids

Greta Garbo saw the importance of priming her eyelids before applying eyeshadow or liner. She used to put a thin layer of petroleum jelly on her eyelids followed by a dark eye shadow to give her a more theatrical look. She also lined her eyes with a mixture of jelly and charcoal pigment. While petroleum jelly was used back then, we now have Yves Saint Laurent Couture Eye Primer.

Blush On

Did you know that ladies used to crush rose petals and beetroot to get that beautiful rosy flush? Try that, or use NARS Blush – your choice!

No More Sun Baths

Unlike today, tanned skin was actually once undesirable and associated with the lower classes. It was porcelain skin that was considered elegant and high class, so much so that women of yesteryear made a point to stay out of the sun. So embrace your natural skin tone and put the sun lounger and tanning mitt away!

Add Some Glow

If putting maximum effort in to your skin routine still isn’t giving you the Hollywood radiance you desire, then try mixing a primer such as Elizabeth Arden Visible Difference Good Morning Retexturizing Primer in with your foundation to really make your skin glow. Marilyn Monroe famously used to layer on hormone cream, petroleum jelly and powder so she positively beamed on camera, but consequently grew a layer of blonde hair on her face.

Look out for Part 2 of this series, where we learn about the beauty secrets of timeless Hollywood beauties, such as Grace Kelly and Audrey Hepburn.

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