Introduction to 'New Elizabethans'

The Elizabethan concept of beauty is most famously recognised for the pale faces, red lips and cheeks, high hairlines, plucked brows and minimal or no eye make-up; along with fair, yellow or red hair, usually curled in round or heart-shaped styles around the head. Additions such as jewellery or a feather fan demonstrated wealth and class.

The preference in hair colour dates back to the 15^th century, when some German tribes reintroduced growing their hair long and dying it red or bleaching it to a shade of flaxen blonde, like the Celts before the Roman Conquest. It is clear that the ancient Hellenic culture influenced the Renaissance, through the preference for dyed blonde hair and saffron wigs, styled into a curled adaptation of an ancient hairstyle; Elizabethan women would often dye their hair to make it a richer colour using saffron mixes (Doran & Jones, 2014). Headdresses also date back to the previous century, when they became increasingly ornate: ‘styles varied from a simple veil or wimple to vast edifices resembling towers, winged birds and butterflies' (Gunn, 1973, pp.61-62). Similarly, the preference of long hair was continued, as during the Middle Ages long plaits extended to below the waist with the aid of false hair intertwined with one’s own. Surprisingly, however, Queen Elizabeth’s array of wigs would not always have been so fashionable; before the 16^th century, wigs were seen to be an attempt of 'self-improvement,' and early Christians who wore wigs were even dismissed by the church (Doran & Jones, 2014). The fashion of wearing headdresses decreased in popularity towards the end of the 16^th century and instead, elaborate hairstyles structured with wire and padding became preferred. Elizabeth’s naturally red hair set the fashion for all women, although any kind of fair or golden hair was considered attractive. As Elizabeth’s hair grew more damaged and began to fall out due to age and also due to the use of cosmetics such as lye, she would have to dye her hair or more often would wear wigs, and so other ladies would follow suit (Elizabethan Hair Styles, 2015).
In terms of facial beauty, much of what was considered attractive in the Elizabethan era seems to have descended from a time when women's looks could be described as 'standardised'; meaning the repetitive pale face and fair hair appearance had no hint of individuality in character or appearance. Many argue that Elizabethan portraits, in a similar way, show ‘whitened, featureless faces that sometimes defy differentiation’ (Doran & Jones, 2014). This asks the question of why such choices in beauty were so popular at all. 

The pale complexion of the Middle Ages continued into the 16^th century, with further introduction of cosmetics. Before then, preventative measures such as headdresses to shelter the skin from the sun were worn; later this evolved to garments like the ‘French hood' (Gunn, 1973, pg. 71). Women from the late Middle Ages used tweezers to remove hair from their eyebrows, temples and necks, and shaved their hairlines to extend their foreheads; a look which also continued into the 16^th century (Gunn, 1973, pg. 63). A likely reason for this is to imitate the ideal elongated oval face of the time. Small, neat features and bare eyes were also a continuation from a previous era. Desirable skin complexion was compared to the whiteness of a lily, with cheeks and lips rose-tinted (Gunn, 1973, pg. 64). Sometimes higher-status women like the Queen would even paint on fine blue veins to enhance the translucent effect. Queen Elizabeth’s preservation of her appearance became an obsession, and so she resorted to creating and using cosmetics to aid this. The main inspiration for using cosmetics came from Italy, where women were already more advanced in this field, however some people preferred the fair complexions of the English over the painted faces of the Italians (Gunn, 1973, pg. 74). Ironically, however, the level of facial cosmetics soon increased in England too, although worn in a different fashion.

The queen’s pale complexion was the inspiration for all women’s beauty, and thus white powder was vital to achieving the most fashionable look, and was the foundation upon which further cosmetics were applied. However, this powder was created using ceruse or white lead; both extremely toxic for human skin and damaging for the complexion. Red ochre was the most popular colourant for adding rouge to the cheeks; or sometimes the same white lead base was used, mixed with a colouring dye. Either way, the 'blusher' was much less subtle than it is today. Lips were also reddened with a pencil of sorts, made from ground alabaster or plaster of Paris and mixed with a colourant. After applying the skin, cheek and lip colours, an Elizabethan lady would preserve her face with a glaze of egg-whites over the top. If she were to go outdoors, a mask would be worn preserve the cosmetics and to make sure of no exposure to sunlight (Gunn, 1973, pg. 76). In addition to the face, white hands were important in terms of beauty.

Men grew more feminine in their ways compared to their Tudor relatives before them. Courtiers wore their hair fairly long and curled, with a moustache and beard groomed into a perfect shape and held there with gum. Gloves were worn to again preserve paleness of hands. Some men even dyed their hair and/or wore make-up, although others, such as Shakespeare, found this ‘unmanly’ (Gunn, 1973). 

           

                                                                                Queen Elizabeth I: Brows and forehead 

plucked, pale complexion enhanced 

by application of white lead 

powder, glazed with egg-whites.

Elizabeth at a later date. 

This detailed etching shows the veins on her 

forehead and more elaborate wigs, 

ruffs and headdresses. 

My initial thoughts about the project brief 'New Elizabethans' are positive; having done the above research I am now excited to get started and incorporate research and context into my practical work. Coming from a background of A Levels, Elizabethan beauty is not something I have studied before; thus I look forward to learning more about historic methods of creating beauty and applying it to my work. I aim to push myself to try new things and think outside of the box.   

1. Chapters 4 and 5, in: Fenja Gunn, 1973, The Artificial Face: a History of Cosmetics, David & Charles, pp. 53-88
2. Susan Doran and Norman Jones, 2014, The Elizabethan World, Routledge Worlds
3. Linda Alchin, 2015, Elizabethan Hair Styles (viewed October 2015), available from: http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/elizabethan-hair-styles.htm