Retro Beauty: Cold Cream!

That smooth, clean skin.  That dewy complexion.  She's only 85.

If you thought cold cream is some ancient beauty relic, you would be correct.  Cold cream has been around for a couple of millennia, and the basic ingredients used almost 2000 years ago remain the same today.  Water, oils and beeswax are emulsified to produce that greasy glob used by women (and men, no doubt) for centuries.  So why stop using it now?

If you walk into any Target, Super Market, Drug Store, you may have to look a little harder for a jar of old fashioned Cold Cream.  Only the most expensive lotions and serums are kept at eye level.  But look down at foot level, and you may find jars of some inexpensive, but no less impressive products.

A jar of this stuff probably sat on every lady's vanity table 50 years ago.
Unless of course she didn't own a vanity table.

The one big con going against Cold Cream is the grease factor.  You may feel more like you’re rubbing Crisco all over your face, and it will certainly look like it.  But a little goes a long way, even to remove makeup.  And don’t mistake the shiny residue left behind as something that needs to be removed.  Cold Cream is a great moisturizer, leaving the skin on your face nice and soft without any special extracts, acids, chemicals and what-not.

Modern Day jar of Pond's Cold Cream.

To remove make-up, I recommend shmearing a nice dollop of cream(a teaspoon’s worth to start with) all over your face, and your neck (depending where you apply your daily makeup) but avoiding your eyes.  Let the cream sit for a moment and then gently being to wipe away with a soft tissue.  There is no need to rub your skin, like you’re washing it.  Just gentle wipes until you’ve removed the cream, and it’s all on your tissue.

 

After you’re done with your face, take another dollop of cream, rub it between the fingers on both hands so you have an equal amount on the right and the left, shut your eyes tight, and gently smear the cream on your eye lids.  Again, let the cream sit for a moment with your eyes shut, and take a fresh (and ready) tissue and gently wipe one eye, and then the other.  When you feel it’s safe to open your eyes, you may still see eye liner or mascara smudged around your eyes, but a gentle wipe with a bit of tissue can help remove that.  The main thing to remember is the need to be gentle with the eye lids.

I’ve gotten into the habit of removing my makeup as soon as I get home from work, rather than waiting until I hop in the shower to wash my face.  Because I’m not using soap or an astringent to remove the makeup, I don’t experience the dry-tight sensation on my face that I feel after washing my face the old fashioned way, warranting the immediate application of lotion!

Cold Cream doesn’t have to replace your favorite facial treatment, but it can certainly help supplement it, and extend the life of your more expensive lotions and serums.   And who knows… if you get into the Cold Cream habit, you may end up throwing that more pricey stuff out.

Great Ad for Cold Cream out of Good Housekeeping - 1949

Full Pond's Ad from Good Housekeeping - 1949.
I bet that Countess hasn't aged a day, thanks to Pond's.