All posts by Born Unicorn

Pedantic archivist of beauty products in films and tv shows

Written on the Wind (1956)

The dresser in the picture above is packed with perfume bottles. Among them, I’ve been able to identify the following (from left to right):

fabergetigress_bornunicornFabergé Tigress, launched in 1938. It’s the bottle with the fake fur stopper. Another bottle can be seen on the right, the stopper having a different fur pattern.

caronbellodgia_bornunicornCaron Bellodgia, created by Ernest Daltroff and launched in 1927. There are two bottles of it.

bourjois_maisoui_bornunicornBourjois Mais Oui, launched in 1938. There are two bottles with the signature fan-shaped stopper; one of them is in its open box.

guerlain_mitsouko_bornunicornGuerlain flacon bouchon coeur. Impossible to tell which fragrance it contained.

American Horror Story S04E06 (Bullseye)

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When Elsa Mars (Jessica Lange) announces she will move to Hollywood for a fresh start, her “freaks” give her a precious gift: a set of Westmores of Hollywood beauty products.

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The set is made of three golden bottles and a round box. The gold bottle on the left surely contains body powder, while the box contains face powder. The three bottles look like factices, while the box is emblazoned with the Westmore logo.

Ethel Darling (Kathy Bates) explains these products are “the best” and she’s right. The brand was founded in 1917 by George Westmore, an English wigmaker who established Hollywood’s first make-up department; he became the forefather of a dynasty of make-up artists who left an indelible mark in the history of cinema.

Girl Most Likely (2012)

girlmostlikely_bornunicorn (2)There are many interesting products in Imogene Duncan’s bathroom cabinet.

maclipstickboxes_bornunicornThe black boxes on the top shelf are by MAC and contain lipsticks.dioraddictedp_bornunicornIn the lower shelf there’s a blue perfume bottle with gold accents: it’s Dior Addict by Dior, a white floral fragrance created by Thierry Wasser and launched in 2002.
lamereyeconcentrate_bornunicornThere’s also a jar of La Mer eye concentrate treatment.

benetint_bornunicornLast, there’s a red box containing BeneTint lip and cheek stain by BeneFit.

Death on the Nile (1978)

deathonthenile_bornunicorn (2)There are two perfume bottles in Colonel Race’s cabin. Despite the ribbons in different colours, I think they are the same bottle – Penhaligon’s Hammam Bouquet.

penhaligonshammambouquet_bornunicornThe woody floral perfume was created in 1872 by William Penhaligon, who found inspiration in the Turkish baths located in Jermyn Street, London.

The bottle above has the old packaging, the Turkish star and crescent design being a nod to its main inspiration.

Ocean’s Eight (2018)

oceanseight_bornunicorn (11)One of the most important scenes of the film is when the actress Daphne Kluger (Anne Hathaway) finally gets to wear the Toussaint, a $150 million Cartier diamond necklace, for the Met Gala.

marcjacobs_remarkablefoundation_bornunicornHer dressing table is packed with Marc Jacobs make-up, among which several bottles of Re(marc)able liquid foundation.

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marcjacobs_airsoftblush_bornunicornHere she’s holding Air Blush soft glow duo.

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marc-jacobs_instamarc_contouringpowder_bornunicornThe large compact is Instamarc light-filtering contour powder.