14 Ridiculous Beauty Trends From History
If you think that some beauty trends are weird now, you're definitely in for a surprise.
Beauty trends have always had a strange way of making sense to the people living through them, even when they look completely unhinged later on. From whitening treatments to bizarre grooming rituals, history is full of beauty fixes that were once treated like normal routines.
This roundup pulls together some of the most ridiculous, risky, and downright gross trends people actually followed for the sake of appearance. A TikToker named Zachary Margolis highlighted many of them in his "Offbeat History" series, and the results are hard to forget.
Some of these habits are so wild, they make modern beauty fads look tame. Read on.
1. When someone says your head looks like a rat's nest, this is what you will remember
offbeathistory2. Too much X-ray exposure is dangerous!
offbeathistory3. They wanted to make their teeth disappear?
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4. Arsenic wafers as skin whitening alternatives, but they come with a series of dangerous side effects that could lead to death
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5. Well, that explains a LOT of the paintings we see today
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Some of these trends are so extreme they almost feel like a joke now.
6. We have truly come a long way...
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7. Its modern-day equivalent is: "Just get a piercing"
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8. Take a look at the video below!
That video makes the whole timeline feel even more absurd.
It’s the same kind of “influencer energy” as the Old Masters portrait scenes that made modern beauty trends look tame.
9. Oh, so sickly, drained looks were in back then. No wonder so many people are attracted to Timothée Chalamet.
Disclaimer: he is gorgeous, and he is a fantastic actor!
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10.
Iconic as ever.
11. Other people's sweat as moisturizers? Hell no.
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12. Killer hair dryers
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13. Coco Chanel started a trend just by sleeping
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14. Frida Kahlo does it best and naturally
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15. Seriously, urine? Good thing someone invented legitimate mouthwash in our time!
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16. It is SUCH a relief that the process is much different nowadays
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Did some of these leave your jaw hanging? They are so ridiculous and gross that you might finally begin to appreciate the "ridiculous" trends we have now!
Good thing we were born much later than when these trends were mainstream because there is no way this generation would ever touch a splash of someone else's urine, let alone gargle it! Disgusting!
Which of these made you cringe? Comment with your thoughts below or share this with your family and friends to see!
History really knew how to make beauty weird.
For more “built different” stories, see the vintage photos where your grandparents look like they had zero safety rules.
