1940's Glamour - Hair and Makeup

Agius, M (2009). 'The Art of Makeup'. USA: Author House. p53.
Aucoin, K (1999). 'Making Faces'. London: Little Brown. 

Rita Hayworth's first scene within her film 'Gilda', an example of the type of glamour so idolised within the 1940's period. 

As the concept of my Mrs Laderman character is based on this idea of transformation from before and after a state of personal development/ self discovery it is important to research the concepts for both sides that will create my character. For the before image my Mrs laderman concept is that of a glamorous 1940's housewife, following the conventions of a middle class ideology and obsession with the beauty of modern cinema starlets. My concept for my 'before' version is that of the cliched ideologies of vintage beauty however as it is for a mature model I will tone down the classic looks to be more suitable to my model and the age of my character. Within Marie Aguis's book 'The Art of Makeup' she supplies a breakdown of the key conventions for the classic 1940's woman, discussing makeup techniques that were used by women of all socially classes to achieve this statement look that became iconic of the era. Both the hair and the makeup of the period were heavily inspired by the Hollywood starlets that were considered the dream girls of the period, these included actresses such as Rita Hayworth and Betty Grable who's looks were of huge inspiration to the 1940's woman.

1940's Hairstyling

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/309622543108265412/

Typically hair within the 1940's (apart from the woman working in the factories throughout the day, of which would have had their hair wrapped in bandana's) was left down. The hair was deeply set on the parting to one side of the head with the hair falling into soft waves and curls that flowed around the whole shape of the head. Curls were brushed out and positioned to sit next to the front of the face on one side, framing the cheekbones with the use of waves. The other side was commonly pinned back behind the ear so that the bone structure was exposed. High volume was placed at the root of the hair in particular around the fringe area which was lifted away from the scalp into waves that flowed down the side of the face. Hair was rarely longer than shoulder length due to the level of curl put into the hair but also as it was trimmed to maintain a length appropriate for working within the factories. This was a concept mainly focused at the working class woman during the Second World War.
The main inspirational person for my hair design of Mrs Laderman is that of Lauren Bacall who was famous for her long bob length hair that curled elegantly around her face in a soft wave. The hairstyle is very conservative and feminine and feel that it would work before for my conservative Mrs Laderman.

1940's Makeup
In regards to makeup by this era foundation had begun to be worn by all woman as a daily essential to the beauty regime, it was applied to the face and then set using the same powders that had been used for decades prior to its creation as a grease based formula by Max Factor in 1914. By 1940 the 'pancake' formula was one most popular. For daily beauty looks the eyes and brows were kept to a neutral tone of soft browns and creams. Eyebrows were kept tamed through shaping and plucking however this was done predominantly to retain a clean arched shape, sometimes these too were enhanced using a brown shade of eyeshadow. In addition to this was mascara which was another important element for drawing attention towards the creation of thicker lashes, the eyes became a very alluring feature on the face and this was enhanced further through the use of eyeliner which was applied thinly and winged out slightly at the edges. Eyeliner within the 1940's was significantly less dramatic then that of the 1950's and was designed purely to emphasis the lash line.
The key focus of makeup within this period however was of the lips and cheeks which were both enhanced with a bright red pigmentation in a single vibrant tone of blue red. Within the 1940's only one tone of red was available for purchase, this was a very clean, sharp red that in todays society is very similar to MAC's Ruby Woo which like the lipsticks of the time is also of a matte texture. Lips were lined using the colour slightly outside of their natural shape and rounded towards the cupids bow as this was considered the most desirable lip shape for women. The rest of the lip was then filled in with the same colour and set with powder.
Makeup within the 1940's predominately followed this one set guideline and therefore this is what I will be creating for my Mrs Laderman (before image). It is unlikely that I am going to create numerous face charts for this as it is only one set makeup look as opposed to a concept which I would be able to experiment with.