Vintage Hygiene: Body

Source



This is the fourth and last post in my Vintage Hygiene series. (Click on links to read previous posts: HANDS, FACE, HAIR, or click HERE for all the posts at one time.)

Today's topic is the body.  One product came immediately to mind:  dusting powder.  Back in my youth (I refuse to call it "the old days"), my grandmother had these wonderful smelling round boxes of talcum powder--with the big giant puff!  I LOVED that stuff.  After a bath (not a shower at her house), we'd puff all over and dressed in our summer dresses.  With no air conditioning, it helped to keep you feeling clean and dry. They always came in pretty boxes and the smell was heavenly!

Source

The talc would also come in shaker containers.  I see those around a lot today.  Shower to Shower comes to mind.  Fun name, boring bottle.  The commercial I remember said, "A sprinkle a day helps keep odor away...have you had your sprinkle today?" 

Lovely containers are still being made.  I just haven't thought about it in a long time.  Now that I've done some research for this post, I'm starting to think that I need to add some body powder into my arsenal.  I imagine I could get some modern ones that look as pretty as these vintage ones do:

Source

Apparently, talcum is actually a bad guy.  Read this report that echoes several that I read.  I generally knew that I shouldn't buy anything with talcum any more, but I had no idea how really bad it is!

Talcum Powder: The Hidden Dangers

Pretty scary stuff!  The article mentions corn starch as a homemade alternative.  That doesn't sound as soft and pretty as the stuff my grandmother had.  Maybe it wasn't "the stuff" that intrigued me.  MAYBE it was


"the PUFF!"

Source

Now that's what I'm talkin' about!  Just put together Cornstarch + a few drops of lemon or rose essential oil + The Puff and we might be onto something!   Yep, I think it's really all about the puff.  Very feminine, very pampering.

(Off to order a puff.  A big, pink puff.)