My Secrets of Charm

1922

By Marilyn Miller

In a woman's smile lies her charm. And the woman who knows how to use her smile may attain the heights.

It is not so much knowing how to smile as it is to keep the proportion balanced. For it is as equally uncharming to see the automatic, insincere smile that plays constantly on the faces of some women who have misunderstood its true asset as it is to see the droll countenances of others who do not know how to smile.

The secret of the charming smile lies in the spirit behind it. And unless it bubbles from the heart, unless the emotion of pleasure is truly aroused before its evidence may be expressed sincerely, the smile will not be genuine.

Perhaps next in importance is the mouth and teeth. They should be made as attractive as possible. And the foundation of this result is immaculate cleanliness.

The lips should be watched constantly to keep them smooth and lubricated. Sometimes a fault in diet will cause those ugly, cracking lines that roughen the surface of the lips. They not only destroy beauty but stifle the natural impulse to have the lips roll back easily over flawless teeth in the true smile that charms.

Cold cream should be applied nightly. The lip cream is left on all night, and in the morning only the excess that has not been absorbed need be carefully wiped away. If this practice is followed faithfully you will find your lips sufficiently lubricated to move easily and gracefully and they will have lost their roughened surface.

The gums, too, need attention. Healthy gums are a light red in color. Sometimes, of course, the individual constitution alters this general rule, and one finds perfectly healthy gums, in some instances, retaining a pinkish hue. But once the gums begin to lose their brightness and take on the whitish appearance it is long past time they received the attention nature is demanding.

The mouth ought to be rinsed every night before retiring, after the teeth have been thoroughly washed with a boracic acid solution. In this way the crevices that the toothbrush cannot reach will be cleansed. Examine carefully the gums around the base of your teeth from time to time. See that the reddish tissue clings tightly and retains its healthy color even to the edge. If you find those telltale white spots, or if the gums are soft and have a tendency to fall away from the teeth even to a slight degree, I would suggest that you consult your dentist at once. Many women allow this stage to go by unnoticed until at last the damage has been done and the dentist to whom you go for treatment will tell you that pyorrhea has developed. Dentists claim that this insidious disease is the cause of the loss of tooth vitality. It is brought on by the incorrect cleaning of the teeth. Sometimes using too stiff a brush that breaks the gum tissue and opens the way to the original infection or a general condition of the health may be responsible.

When cleaning the teeth daily they should be brushed gently in an up and down motion, never crosswise. It is best to moisten the brush first, sprinkle a little powder or a length of paste along its surface and proceed to brush first the outside of the teeth. Then, with a fresh application of the cleanser, the inside of the teeth should always be brushed just as carefully. The mouth rinse is used finally and dental floss may be then employed to remove any accumulations between the teeth that the brushing has failed to touch.

Night and morning cleansing is the general rule. And the rule should be followed faithfully to obtain the reward of a charming smile. It is more disastrous to retire with soiled teeth than it is to neglect the morning mouth bath.

—Appleton Post-Crescent, Appleton, Wisconsin, January 3, 1922, page 12.