Elizabeth Arden
Posted by
Mark Woodard
She was born,
Florence Nightingale Graham, on December 31, 1876.
She was born in Woodbridge,
a suburb of Toronto,
Ontario, Canada.
Her parents were immigrants in
Canada. Her
father was Scottish and her mother was English.
Her father was a grocer to Ontario
when
Florence
was born, the last of five children. They
named her, as many other parents did at that time, for the great
nurse in
England.
Florence
grew up in poverty and never finished high school. She
drifted from job to job. She even tried going
to nursing school, but dropped out. In 1908
Florence
moved to New York City
to live near her brother.
After moving to
New York City, she found a job as a
bookkeeper, for the E.R. Squibb Pharmaceuticals Company.
After working during the day as a book keeper,
Florence
would spend hours in their lab at night, learning about
skincare. Although Florence Graham was 30,
she looked 20 because of her smooth skin complexion.
That's all she needed to get started in her life's work.
In 1909, Florence Graham formed a partnership with
Elizabeth Hubbard.
Together they opened a cosmetic shop on
5th Avenue in
New York City. Just a
few months later, Elizabeth Hubbard wanted to get out of the
business, so Florence Graham became the sole owner.
The name “Elizabeth Hubbard” was painted in gold on the
window. So Florence Graham decided to legally
change her name. Florence
chose the name
Elizabeth, because she really liked it,
and she wouldn't have to scrape it off the front window.
She then chose the last name of
Arden, from the Tennyson poem, “Enoch
Arden”. At that time, the new Elizabeth Arden
added what would become her trademark, a huge red door with a
brass nameplate.
In 1909 cosmetics were still not accepted by women in
America.
In the Victorian era, the only women who painted their
faces were girls on the stage or prostitutes.
But things were changing. Elizabeth Arden was
telling women they should wear cosmetics. It
was a big thing in Paris
France.
Ignoring World War I, which had just broken out, and braving the
submarines,
Arden crossed the Atlantic Ocean, going to
France
in 1914.
She was surprised by what she saw.
Arden
collaborated with A. Fabian Swanson, a chemist, to create a
“fluffy” face cream. The success of the
cream, called Venetian Cream Amoretta, and corresponding lotion,
named Arden Skin Tonic, led to a long-lasting business
relationship. Arden
introduced modern eye makeup to North
America. She also introduced the
concept of the “makeover” in her salons. This
revolutionized cosmetics, bringing a scientific approach to the
formulations.
Elizabeth Arden married her American banker, Thomas
Jenkins Lewis, in 1915. Through this marriage she became a
U.S. citizen. 1915
was the same year she began international operations.
Thomas Lewis took over management of the cosmetic lines
of Elizabeth Arden, but
Elizabeth
would not let her husband buy stock in her company.
The partnership flourished, but the marriage did not.
They got a divorce 24 years after their marriage, in
1934. Her husband went to work with Helena
Rubinstein, a competing company, or as
Elizabeth would say ”that woman”!
In the 1920s and 1930s, Arden
was constantly opening salons in the
US and around the world.
In 1938 Elizabeth Arden bought a summer home in
Summerville South
Carolina. The house is
located at 200
Sumter Ave. It was
built in 1891 for Mr. Samuel Lord, a
Charleston attorney.
The house was built by A. J. Baird, the man who also constructed
the Pine Forest Inn. The house is still
standing, but the inn was torn down.
Elizabeth Arden sold the house in 1954. It
had 15 rooms with 12 foot ceiling. It was a
beautiful home.
In and during the last part of the 1940s,
Arden recognized the changing needs of
the American women entering the work world.
She showed women how to apply makeup and dress appropriately for
careers outside the home. She created the
lipstick called Montezuma Red, for the women in the Armed Forces
that would match the red on their uniforms.
In 1943, Elizabeth Arden married Russian émigré, Prince
Michael Evlanoff. This marriage lasted only
13 months and ended in 1944.
Horse racing became
Arden's passion, and she made money at
it. She established Maine Chance Stables
{named for her former country home in
Maine, which she had turned into a
health resort}.In 1945 her horses’ winnings totaled $589,000.
In 1946 she appeared on the cover of Time magazine,
looking 40 but she was actually closer to 70.
The next year 1947, her horse, Jet Pilot, won the Kentucky Derby
.
Elizabeth Arden had a fascinating life.
If you saw her, you would probably see her wearing a pink
dress. She loved the color pink.. Elizabeth
Arden was all business, never losing the outward appearance of a
woman who lived for beauty and refinement. In
recognition of her contribution to the cosmetic industry she was
awarded the Legion d’Honneur by the French government in 1962.
She died in
New York City on October 18, 1966 and was interred in
the
Sleepy Hollow
Cemetery
in Sleepy Hollow, New
York
under the name Elizabeth N. Graham. At the
time of her death her estate was worth some $40 million dollars.
Mark D. Woodard
Summerville Tours
{843} 817-8618
