MAKING UP.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLII, Issue XLII, 5 January 1923, Page 5

MAKING UP.

THE WEAKNESS OF WOMEN. (From lac Argus.) Before the war the girl or woman who according tf> the old-fashioned blunt speech "used paint" was " not considered quite "nice," and that mild adjective curiously enough sets a high standard according to feminine reckoning, and certainly it is a social hallmark which most men and women recognise The attitude of men towards paint, and even towards the innocuous powder, 1S that of dislike. It is curious now men cling more tenaciously than women to the ideas which were planted m their minds during the influence of home life, yet most cf the women of a passing generation put those who made up" mto a class by themselves. ,w"n y the,^uan *ity of complexion improvers and "make-ups," apart from honest powders and skin creams, which is sold in Melbourne is surprising "If we were forbidden by law to sell 'asses or roses/ "^ said•, one chemist, "the trade would have a serious loss, for one out of every three customers ask tor a box, and I can usually persuade them to add some other cosmetic to their purchase." Recently a young: woman who had come to settle in Melbourne decided on opening a "beauty parlour," for she said, judging by the complexions which were to be seen in • Collins street, and in fact everywhere most of them came out of boxes,' and she was sure that there must be lucrative business in >BsSng commodities which were so much in demand It must not be taken for granted that tault is being found only with the younger members of the present day generation, for, as a matter of fact many Older women are indulging in the same folly. A man in a high position in Melbourne said recently, when the ques- ' • j women in Parliament was i-aised: How can women expect to be taken seriously when they lower themselves and any ideas of their efficiency *v ? € i paint ' which d««s not add to their beauty, while it absolutely tnars such as Nature has given them " lhis may seem hard, but it is true, J the idea of many that a man cannot detect the true from the false is another fallacy worthy of the ostrich. The difference between the make-up of the older woman and that of the W T]p r ,1 s ,' as ? a lack of care in ™m- i 7 haStll y a^y a era*» >carlet patch, somewhere near the cheek 3OIHJB, and then powder is dabbed on more- or less carelessly. The woman of about 20 years is a f ar more finished product and as a work of art she ivould be almost admirable but that her artificiality is so horribly obvious, birst, her skin is treated to a covering of thick liquid powder, which, as it reaches the base of the nose, assumes i delicate mauve tint, but the tip of the nose js as white and ;as f rozenooking as ice-cream. Then she gives to her cheeks the supposed natural Hush which she obtains from a cake of 'ashes of roses," or some other handy vi! J of« rou Se- When this is well rubbed off at the edges, a fine layer »f dry powder, which somewhat softens the hectic colour, is added. Then the hps are made, to look like a scarlet gash, and if our young friend has a minute to spare before catching the tram or tram she puts a touch of pink inside her nostrils. If this statement is regarded as an unkind exaggeration a second glance at the colour of the powder-puff, which is so often used in public, will show its truth. . Very few powder-puffs show white, for the majority are dyed pink from the contact with ,the boxed colour. Oscar Wilde in "A Woman of No Importance," makes a cynical man say that there are only two kinds of women—the plain and the coloured; but hfe knew a generation of women who played tennis m aprons provided with" pockets to hold the balls, and to whom eurvthmica and physical culture were unknown. Consequently they were more or less of the anaemic type, which to-day has, let us be thankful, passed out of existence. To-day the craze for fresh air and .good conditions of employment have given topmost girls soft, clear !*"" s \ NJ> m»*t«r how many excuses may be offered for the crowing habit of painting faces, there is no extenuation. It cheapens womanhood.