Bygone times: the truth behind vintage beauty adverts...
They make seem like retro novelties, but they reveal the hidden struggles that history overlooks...
I was doing a bit of research on historic beauty adverts and came across some absolute corkers.
Vintage beauty ads are often shown as being archaic and almost a bit kitschy, and sure, they are. But beyond that they’re also incredible glimpses into social history. We learn the facts and timelines in our history textbooks at school but adverts - and beauty ads in particular - unveil so much about the societal dynamics and anxieties of the era they’re from.
So here are a few I unearthed that I think are fascinating. And I’m curious to know if this makes you look at them differently, and with more intrigue…
1920s: The Assault on Grey Hair (and getting older)
Before the 1920s, beauty was a private affair - makeup and hair dye were used, but discreetly as they carried a stigma of vanity or even immorality. But younger women, inspired by Hollywood and the rise of flapper culture, were openly embracing cosmetics. This generational divide was a goldmine for advertisers, who masterfully played on women’s fears of looking outdated - of course they did.
One striking ad of the era questioned whether whether NOT dying your hair was ‘dishonest,’ flipping the older narrative around using beauty products to create moral anxieties while simultaneously selling the solution: buy beauty products or risk being left behind. Greying hair? That wasn’t just aging - it was a visible sign of irrelevance. And what woman wanted to become invisible?
1940s: Beauty is Your Duty - (along with everything else.)
During WWII, beauty was no longer just a luxury - it was patriotic. With rationing limiting food, clothing, and cosmetics, ad companies and beauty brands still pushed the idea that women had an obligation to stay polished. Winston Churchill jumped on this and reportedly feared that if women, now working in munitions factories and taking on men’s jobs, let go of their femininity, national morale would collapse. Worse, it could signal to the enemy that Britain was struggling.
Thus, the campaign “Beauty is Your Duty” was born, encouraging women to keep up appearances despite shortages. Beauty brands eagerly capitalised on this, selling war-proof lipsticks and powders as acts of resilience. Looking good was framed as being more than vanity - it was about victory. This wasn’t an entirely opportunistic grab by the beauty industry, from the accounts I’ve read it seemed like women wanted a bit of glamour actually. They lived for Hollywood’s glamourous stars and a little escapism - and they could get that from beauty.
1950s: Surplus Women & The Battle for Femininity
The 1950s were an era of contradictory gender politics. With men returning from war, the workforce was shifting, and many women were expected to leave jobs and return to homemaking. But after years of financial independence and work experience, not all women were eager to step back.
Advertisers, aware of this tension, took two approaches. Some appealed directly to men with overtly sexist ads, reinforcing the idea that a woman’s ultimate goal should be becoming the perfect wife, homemaker and of course, a youthful looking beauty. “How to keep your husband” became a common advertising trope, implying that beauty was a woman’s tool for maintaining a happy marriage.
Their other tactic was to scare women and warn them about competition. Casualties of war had created a “surplus” of women (more women than men), so ads subtly (and sometimes not-so-subtly) suggested that those who didn’t put in the effort to stay beautiful might end up alone.
Beauty was no longer just about self-care - it was a survival tactic in the battle for marriage and social stability.
1980s: The ‘Having It All’ Illusion
By the 1980s, women weren’t just expected to work - they were expected to do everything. Corporate culture glamorised high-powered careers, but domestic expectations didn’t budge. Women were now juggling professional ambition in the boardroom with traditional gender roles at home.
Beauty brands swooped in with products designed to keep women looking effortlessly polished from morning to midnight. Ads promised long-lasting lipsticks, all-day foundations, and “power dressing” aesthetics married femininity with authority. Exhaustion wasn’t an option - looking tired meant failing at the illusion of having it all. Complain and you’d be met with - ‘Well, you wanted this didn’t you?’ No Jim, I just wanted you to do the bloody dishes once in a while, and care for the children you spawned occasionally. IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK FOR?!
This one below embodies the 80’s beauty approach to perfection…
Meanwhile, men’s advertising took the opposite route, pushing hyper-masculine imagery - testosterone-fuelled cologne ads, rugged action heroes, and power suits - a reaction to shifting gender dynamics in society. See below…
From the fear of irrelevance in the 1920s to the pressure of perfection in the 1980s, beauty advertising has never been just about products. It has been a mirror reflecting - and often shaping - gender roles in society, one soap, lipstick, or anti-aging cream at a time. And it makes for fascinating analysis of bygone times!
Did any of this surprise you? I’m keen to know!
Much love and Old Spice (only if you’re a tough guy though…)
PS - Did you know I wrote a book that analyses the impact of beauty history and culture? Check out ‘UGLY: Why the word became beauty obsessed and how to break free’ in the UK here, in the US here and click here to for other countries.
I'm a huge fan of vintage ads. (Clearly, as I use them in my own Substack.) They're simultaneously hilarious, terrifying, degrading, fascinating, ridiculous, historically significant, dangerous, and a learning experience.
Wow this is SO fascinating! Reading this, it seems like SO much has changed, but also not much has changed...if you know what I mean? They prey on the same fears that exist now. Quite inspired to draw these ads tbh, they are amazing.