Third Blogiversary Special: Collecting Vintage Powder Compacts

Third Blogiversary Special: Collecting Vintage Powder Compacts

Powder Cosmetopia Digest   Sunday, January 17, 2016

I cannot believe I have actually stuck to this blog for three years now! When I started it on January 15, 2013, I thought I would walk away in a few weeks. If I have stuck to it, it is only because of support from readers and fellow-bloggers. Thank you!
Each year for my blogiversary, I do a history-of-beauty post. Last year, it was Beauty Trends over 100 years - see here. In 2014, it was Vintage Beauty Advertisements - see here.
This year, I was going to show you vintage vanities and dressing tables I had spotted around the world but my recuperation from antibiotics at my parents' meant I spied my Mum's powder compact collection.
She has been collecting them for ages and now has about 80-ish vintage compacts, including an ivory one that was owned by HER grandmother (Neither I nor my living family members support buying ivory in any form).
She flatly refused to take out the oldest, mother-of-pearl, ivory and jewel-encrusted ones, but agreed to share her tips and thoughts on collecting vintage compacts, and allowed me to "photograph, from a safe distance only", half a dozen of them. 

Scroll down for tips on collecting vintage powder compacts, where to find them, pricing and photographs. 

Beauty trends 1880s-1980s: Second Blogiversary Special

Beauty trends 1880s-1980s: Second Blogiversary Special

Tutorials Cosmetopia Digest   Friday, January 16, 2015

 

A century of beauty trends, tips, tutorials and perceptions from 1880s-1980s magazines. 

 

The word "trend" implies something modern and not 130 years old, but more on the semantics in a minute.
I cannot believe it is two whole years since this blog began - I feel like a complete noob most of the time. I would like to thank everyone who has read this blog for their support and hope you have liked it here at least for an infinitesimal second, at some point... Thanks also go to ANYONE who has advised, helped and shared knowledge and posts with and for me. I have more colleagues now than I have ever had at any workplace and love that about blogging.
Last year, I celebrated my first blogiversary by showing you some beautiful vintage beauty advertisements - check the post here. It is my all-time favourite post.
This year, I am sharing article-excerpts from women-centric magazines from the 1880s to the 1980s, containing beauty trends (i.e., whatever was trendy at the time), tips, tutorials, and perceptions. All of these are from my Gran's and Mum's collections, carefully scanned under heavy scrutiny after months of begging, bribing, pleading, coaxing and emotional blackmailing, and returned amid many mutterings. Warning: Picture-heavy.

Enjoy the old-world beauty tips, tutorials and perceptions!

First blogoversary special: Vintage makeup advertisements from 1920s-1950s magazines

First blogoversary special: Vintage makeup advertisements from 1920s-1950s magazines

Videos Cosmetopia Digest   Thursday, January 16, 2014

My Beauty Junction is one year old today! I am so thrilled! I never dreamt that auditing my stash by writing about it would turn into a blog I am passionate about, and become a way of meeting some lovely people - thank you all for coming over and reading my blather!
Anyway, I'm sharing something very special and nostalgic to mark this anniversary - a collection of vintage makeup and skin care advertisements hoarded from my maternal great-grandmother's time. The daughter of a landlord (and later a school headmaster's wife), she bought early copies of Good Housekeeping, launched in 1922, and kept every single one. After her time, her magazines went to her youngest daughter - Gran - who was younger than great-gran's eldest grandchildren. Gran in turn hoarded the Girls' Own Paper and Heiress magazines into the 1950s during her teens and my Mum added a few Women's Own magazines to the pile in the 70s.
Being a nerd whose immediate family all collect antiques, I must say I thoroughly enjoyed doing this post.

Here are some lovely vintage advertisements of makeup and beauty products from the 1920s to the 1950s from various magazines.

Hallowe'en Special: Seven Deadly Sins link party

Hallowe'en Special: Seven Deadly Sins link party

Tags Cosmetopia Digest   Saturday, October 26, 2013

No, not the Seven Deadly Beauty Sins post (here). This is a link-up for Hallowe'en that I found on Nina's Bargain Beauty - who in turn found it on Whispering Sweet Nothings. And since my NaNoWriMo 2013 project is titled (for now) "Seven Deadly Shimmers" (christened by one of the more creative people on their forum), I figured the timing was right for me to do this link-up.

A lovely day! (OOTD, NOTD and the Accessorize joy and heartache)

A lovely day! (OOTD, NOTD and the Accessorize joy and heartache)

Nail art Cosmetopia Digest   Tuesday, April 16, 2013

I had the most lovely day yesterday. Here are some pictures.

The dress