Tea at Trianon: Gommage

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Friday, November 6, 2020

Gommage

From Healthline:

Gommage is a French exfoliation technique that’s been gaining popularity in the United States. The word “gommage” literally translates to “erasing” or “exfoliation.”
The concept of exfoliation isn’t new in France. Marie Antoinette supposedly used a mask made of cognac, eggs, powdered milk, and lemon juice to cleanse and exfoliate her skin while ruling France in the 1700s.
Modern gommage uses a combination of ingredients that exfoliate your skin chemically through the combination of enzymes and scrubbing. Along with other exfoliating techniques, it has the potential to clear away dead skin cells and stimulate skin cell growthTrusted Source to keep your skin looking polished and smooth.
Keep reading to find out how gommage exfoliation works, why you may want to include it in your skin care routine, and who makes a good candidate. (Read more.)

Visit the Trianon Health and Beauty Blog.