In the early 20th century being modern focused on being feminine dresses, lace, frills, hats and even corsets for a slimming hourglass figure. Neutral looks and plain colors for clothing, make-up, and hair. People wanted to be modest even with hair and makeup. “For women in the 1920s, freedom in dress reflected the new freedoms opening up for them to take up careers, to study at college, and to enter professions. The skirt hemline rose steadily to become, at its shortest in the years 1925–27, knee-length (Sachar,2020) .” With the short skirts, coloured stockings were introduced, made from expensive silk or more practical lisle or wool. ”  Overall beauty was about being feminine, but it started to include some workplace attire. Modern meant being feminine but also being professional or a working woman. Overall for women, they were always expected to wear dresses and skirts. For men style didn’t change much. They often wore suits, trousers, and tuxedos, sometimes sports coats, and were clean shaven.   

The term “modern” is related to the present or recent times as opposed to the remote past. Things that were considered modern in the beauty and fashion industry in the early 1900’s are not the same things that are considered modern in 2021. Currently brands convey they are modern by promoting diversity in their advertisements and in their products and by using brighter and bolder products. In 1921 the beauty industry only had products for white women and light complexions. The beauty and fashion industry was not focused on other nationalities or races. 

Today if you go look at a beauty store,  you will see that many brands have embraced diversity. These modern beauty brands include many different skin tones and shades. Another modern change is that people of all shapes and sizes are represented in advertisements. The beauty and fashion industry is no longer targeting only white slim women, it has diversified. Sales went up in the beauty industry because diversity has been more of a focus in advertisements. As a result these brands have gained more consumers because people of different nationalities are now able to see themselves represented by these beauty brands.  For example, brands like Fenty are very popular right now because Fenty has successfully created multi-shade foundations and included diversity. If this type of progress had not happened, people of different skin tones would never have considered purchasing these products. “It is very important that modern brands include diversity for people of different races to be able to imagine themselves wearing/using the product(Kestenbaum, 2017).” The beauty industry will make more profits if they include more races. If a brand does not include people of different nationalities, races, shapes, sizes and gender, this brand is outdated.  

       Another way that the current beauty industry communicates what is modern is through the use of bold and flashy advertisements. The modern beauty products are also bolder and brighter. Now people’s individuality is celebrated and people can wear bright colors and makeup. Brands such as Cle De Peau, Shiseido, NYX, Bobbi Brown, Cover Girl and L’oreal communicate modern beauty. Modern makeup includes new trends such as contouring, soft glam, and glam.

  Soft glam makeup includes contouring and highlighting, but just enough to accentuate your features, and also includes natural looking lashes. “Glam makeup is a combination look of Old Hollywood Glamour style containing bold lips, long lashes, contour and the soft glam style (Sachar,2020).” This combo is called glam makeup. Glam makeup is a modern trend and usually adds a pop of color to the eyes or lips. Modern eye makeup includes some sparkle, dramatic liner and long lashes. 

  Glam looks are marked by bold lips , long full false lashes, black winged liner, a defined brow, contour and highlight that stands out to make your cheeks pop. The dominant element of the black eyeshadow and liner is that it is very bold and stands out. “The black lines and eyeliner are what creates the balance and composition of the face (Kestenbaum, 2017).” The black lines on the face contrast with the neutral color.  In the beauty and fashion industry the use of black shows sophistication. While the use of red shows power and boldness. Red is a powerful color even with a small amount on the face. The red color is also very different from the neutral color on the face. The use of these colors allows the face to have a contrasting effect. 

In the early 1900’s modern meant being modest and not being too “ loud” in your beauty and fashion choices . “Products were advertised and promoted by magazines and newspaper advertisements in the 1900’s (Sachar,2020).”  Now being modern means more freedom of expression and diversity in the industry. People are able to wear bold colors, have bright colorful hair, and stand out. Now, modern advertisements are digital, promoted on social media, and youtube. 

                                                     Citation 

Sachar, A. (2020, October 15). 7 different types of foundations and how to pick the best one for yourself. Retrieved April 12, 2021, from https://www.vogue.in/beauty/content/different-types-of-foundations-and-how-to-pick-the-best-one-for-yourself

Kestenbaum, R. (2017, June 21). How the beauty industry is adapting to change. Retrieved April 12, 2021, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/richardkestenbaum/2017/06/19/how-the-beauty-industry-is-adapting-to-change/?sh=7607eb9a3681