Category: Beauty

Solid Perfume

  • subtitle: Scent and Sensibility

By Matt Poitras | 10 Mar 10 | Beauty | Comment

Easy applied and alcohol-free, solid perfume has been right under our noses for quite some time. An emerging trend among a throng of chi-chi designers, it is in fact one of the oldest forms of perfume known to man. This tidy, balm-like alternative to the drench-prone atomizer, is an art with a degree of practicality matched only by the extravagance of its reliquary.

Pomander

Gold and Silver Pomander, 16th Century

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Mother Of Pearl

  • subtitle: Beauty and Brawn

By Aurora Almendral | 3 Mar 10 | Beauty, Materials | 6 Comments

Unlike its flashier progeny, mother of pearl is more than an accessory to a favorite pastel sweater set.  As masculine as the grips on Wyatt Earp’s spinning six-shooters, and as feminine as the posy holder dangling from Queen Victoria’s tiniest finger, mother of pearl’s subtle elegance was valued for adornments and accouterments, and lent weight, permanence and beauty to the everyday objects now molded out of disposable plastics.

Gustave Young Engraved Navy Percussion Revolver with Mother of Pearl Handle, 1851

Gustave Young Engraved Navy Percussion Revolver with Mother of Pearl Handle, 1851

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Natural Toothpaste

  • subtitle: And the Fluoride Controversy

By Penny Kensington | 19 Feb 10 | Beauty | 4 Comments

Toothpaste has been a controversial product from the beginning. Prior to the 1850s toothpaste was sold as a powder. Tooth powder dates back to Egypt as early as 5000 BC. The ancient Romans added harsh abrasives such as crushed bones, sand and oyster shells to their tooth cleaners.

Colgate Advertising

Colgate Advertising with Brooke Shields, 1975

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SAFETY RAZOR

  • subtitle: The Indisposable Shaving Solution

By David Vega | 5 Feb 10 | Beauty, Materials | 3 Comments

I was walking on the beach not long ago and came across a sight not entirely uncommon in Southern California - a pile of trash. Scattered amongst this little hill of debris situated along the foamy line where surf meets sand, was: A plastic lighter, an empty Dasani water bottle and a Gillette disposable razor. Further down the beach lay a Bic ballpoint pen. Now, how is it that both Gillette and Bic, who’ve won over consumers with the offering of cheap lighters, razors and pens, keep us convinced that plastic is the material of choice? When did men’s little personal effects become so cheap, so… disposable?

Gilette Safety Razor Catalog, 1909

Gilette Safety Razor Catalog, 1909 / Razor Archive

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Body Soap

  • subtitle: A Brief History of Soap Making

By Jessica Hundley | 29 Jan 10 | Beauty | 5 Comments

The science of soap is more complex than one might imagine, requiring at least a rudimentary knowledge of chemistry. Even the most basic ingredients of soap rely on key reactions with other ingredients - a give and take that makes you wonder that we ever figured out how to make soap in the first place. It makes some sense then, that the creation of cleansing products was supposedly discovered by accident.

Ivory Soap Advertising with WWI Soldiers, 1919 (Click on Image to Read the Homoerotic Undertone)

Ivory Advertising with WWI Soldiers, 1919 (Click on Image to Read Copy)

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Beeswax

  • subtitle: The Natural Wood and Leather Polish - and Much More

By Jessica Hundley | 2 Dec 09 | Beauty, Materials | Comment

Much noise is being made lately about the possible disappearance of the honey bee and the hoopla is certainly for good reason. The bee - as they say, IS busy - an essential in the natural cycle of life, growth and decay - an industrious, multi-tasker whose absence would most certainly be missed. One of the most incredible contributions of the honeybees is that of beeswax.

Pure Beeswax

100% Pure Beeswax

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Aw Boon Haw

  • subtitle: The Good Man Behind the World Famous Heat Rub

By Jessica Hundley | 20 Nov 09 | Beauty, Entrepreneurs | Comment

It may be called “hǔbiao wànjīnyóu” in its native tongue, but it’s just Tiger Balm to me. I’ve been using this since my hippie mom rubbed it on my chest during the cold New England winters of my youth. The burn on my skin still has a calming, comforting effect on me.

Invented by Chinese herbalist  Aw Chu Kin in the 1870s using the healing combination of menthol, eucalyptus, clove, cassia and mint oil. Kin’s two sons - Aw Boon Haw, a hell-raiser known for street fights and mad business skills, and Aw Boon Par, the gentler of the duo - made their father’s tincture a global phenomenon in the early 1930s, mostly just by being good guys.

Aw Boon Haw in China 1949

Aw Boon Haw in China 1949

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Natural Shampoo Bar

  • subtitle: J.R. Liggett's - How Simple Can Shampoo Get?

By Sebastian Kaufmann | 17 Nov 09 | Beauty | 3 Comments

I like it when a product focuses on its main purpose and  is designed in a way that eliminates everything that doesn’t contribute to this purpose. I like simple things. This is no different when it comes to beauty products. A shampoo as a bar is as simple as I can think a shampoo can get. And the good thing is, it works at least as well as the shampoo I used before.

J.R. Liggett’s started making shampoo bars since the mid 1980s from an old New England recipe. The package lists six ingredients. I’ve counted up to  thirty on other shampoo bottles.

J.R. Liggett's Old-Fashioned Shampoo Bar

J.R. Liggett's Old-Fashioned Shampoo Bar

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Braun Electric Shaver

  • subtitle: Goodbye Plastic: Is This the End of Electric Shaving?

By Sebastian Kaufmann | 8 Nov 09 | Beauty, Plastic, electronics | 5 Comments

When buying electric products, a compromise is likely unavoidable. I feel this  way with electronics more than with most other products. This is partly because you never really know what’s inside the shell, and often the shell doesn’t look or feel good to begin with. It usually doesn’t help that they are made out of one of my least favorite materials - plastic.

Braun Micron

Braun Micron (5410), 1976

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