The measures people will take to feel beautiful are staggering and staggeringly painful.
Bizarre Beauty Trends: Neck Rings
It was Marco Polo who first commented on this bizarre, lifelong beauty treatment in 1300. But in the 700 years that have passed not much has changed. The donning of the neck ring, somewhat commonplace in Asian and African cultures, can occur as early as the age of two. Women, in their pursuit of “beauty,” sport the metal coils, which compound annually–sometimes to the point that it looks as if these women bear a metal snake wrapped twenty times around their neck. However, the elongation of the neck is illusory: the weight of the coils pushes the collarbone and ribs downward at such an angle that makes the neck appear similar to that of a giraffe.
Source: WordPress
Source: Blogspot
Pale Skin Of The Elizabethan Era
Queen Elizabeth is known for many things, but it is seldom her dangerous beauty regimen that fills the pages of her many biographies. The Queen’s lily white skin was considered a sign of nobility, thus many who wanted to appear to be a member of the Elizabethan elite opted to smear a concoction called ceruse on their faces. Seems easy enough, but when the ingredients are examined (a poisonous combination of white lead and vinegar), the look is not so much CoverGirl as it is a sick one.
The Most Bizarre Beauty Trends: Lip Plates
Source: Flickr
For whatever reason, the thought of puncturing oneself only to insert a blunt object into its fleshless hole is one that is and has been shared throughout the world for centuries. Invented independently at least six times, the labret (any kind of lip piercing ornament) has nestled itself into cultures and regions ranging from the Balkans to Coastal Ecuador. For Suma and Mursi women living in Ethiopia, the size of the lip plate is thought to convey the amount of cattle to pay for the bride. Others speculate that the lip plate demonstrates female strength and self-esteem.
Source: Blogspot
Source: Blogspot
Source: WordPress
History’s Bizarre Beauty Trends: Foot Binding
Source: Flickr
Perhaps the cruelest and most barbaric definition of ‘beauty’, the bound foot has thankfully become a rather painful relic of the past. Gaining popularity among the court dancers of the Song dynasty and eventually spreading to the wealthiest subsets of China, the bound foot became popular throughout Chinese society.
One prevailing thought is that the dainty, concubine feet freed well-to-do Chinese girls from manual labor and thus served as a highly-coveted status symbol–albeit one whose bearer would presumably prefer not to have. By the 19th century approximately 40-50% of Chinese women had bound feed; and for the upper class it was closer to 100.
Source: Blogspot
Source: Michele and Tom
Source: Wikimedia
Victorian Wasp Waist Corset
Source: WordPress
Much like a gnat, a woman’s desire to look like an insect–via oversized glasses or a tiny waist–is a trend that simply won’t go away. Thankfully, though, the wasp waist corset is no longer prominent. Meant to abrupt the transition from a natural rib cage to a barely-there waist, all the corset really did was saddle its users with a slew of ailments, some of which include cracked and deformed ribs, deformed internal organs, respiratory failure, and, should they be pregnant, miscarriages.
Source: WordPress
Source: Deviantart
Extreme Body Modification
Source: Gawker, http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/7/2011/09/mugshotbodymod1dbig.jpg
Given the diversity of methods and manifestations of body modification, it is futile to attempt an explanation as to why people go to such extreme measures to achieve such strange results. Some do so for religious rites, sexual enhancement, shock value and self-expression. Its more ardent advocates (like some of those featured here) are speculated to suffer from body dysmorphic disorder and/or other mental illnesses.
Source: Tumblr
Source: BMEzine
Source: TQN
If you enjoyed this article on the most bizarre fashion trends, check out our posts on Japan’s bizarre street fashions and the dumbest diet trends in history.
