The Victorians' obsession with physical appearance is well documented.
This was a society in which one's clothing was an immediate indication of what one did for a living and by extension, one's station in life. In this era, things were what they seemed. The Victorians placed great faith in bodily appearance. To them, a face and figure could reveal the inner thoughts and emotions of the individual. Because of this belief in physiognomy, a woman's physical appearance was thought to represent the traditional feminine virtues such as purity, kindness, cheerfulness and love.

Culture defines beauty, so how did the Victorians define beauty?
For women, that definition was a strange mixture of ideals. During the first half of the nineteenth century, the ideal against which she was measured was tall and statuesque, stately, elegant and refined and of feminine proportions such as Queen Victoria herself.

In the later part of the century, another definition of beauty arose. There are indications that it had its basis in the women's rights movement. Men believed that women
should remain powerless and any women that attempted to seek independence from men were thought to be unstable, scary and even insane. The Victorians found sexually attractive women inherently threatening because they represented a powerful force that men could not resist or control. Women could supposedly wield terrible powers over men through their beauty, so, by their thinking, a physically frail woman would probably be less aggressive, therefore less threatening and the more desirable type.

What ever the type, young women knew how to use their beauty to their best advantage. Although physical beauty was unquestionably important in the minds of the Victorians, they were willing to embrace it in many different forms.

During the first half of the nineteenth century, commercial beauty products were not readily available, which left young beauties to their own devices to create products for their toilette. Older women handed down recipes for skin and hair care to their daughters and ladies could also research women's magazines for suggestions and instructions in making shampoos, skin creams, and toilet waters.

Bathing was the start of a ladies beauty routine. On occasion, they would visit spas to take medicinal dunks in the mineral waters. They believed that such baths would cure the nervousness, anxiety, insomnia, depression and headaches that modern technology was inflicting on them. For the most part, the day began with a sponge bath, hip bath
or a trip to a bath house. Soaps and creams that were used were made from home recipes such as the following for lemon soap:

Two ounces of lemon juice
One ounce of oil or bitter almonds
Two ounces of Venice soap

Stir the cold mixture until blended completely until
it's the the consistency of honey.

The average Victorian woman spent a considerable amount of time at her dressing table utilizing an assortment of beauty paraphernalia much like women today: a brush, comb, hair pins, bottles of fragrance, creams, etc.

The sun was something to be guarded against because a fair and luminous complexion was a sign of beauty and also an indication of a woman's social class, as it represented a gentile lifestyle. The skin was protected by an assortment of parasols and gloves. If the sun did have its way with a ladies skin, the solution was to wash the face at night with sour milk. It was believed it would remove the redness of sunburn and would cause freckles to fade. They also had a home concoction that might be tried:

Grate fine horseradish
Let it stand a few hours in buttermilk
Strain and use as a wash at night and morning

Women were not supposed to indulge in powder and paint. However, as more commercial beauty products and cosmetics began appearing they became more accepted.

The finishing touch to the Victorian woman's toilette was the application of delicate floral scents either in the form of toilet waters or colognes. Perfumes and fragrances were considered a necessary part of the toilette, but were to be at all times subtle and delicate. Preferred scents were lavender and lilac.

Hair care and dressing followed and then it was off to their social functions!