Then and Now: Grantham salon offered electric face massage in 1916
In 1916 Whysalls put an advert in the Grantham Journal, writes Ruth Crook of Grantham Civic Society.
It said: ‘Whysall’s Hygienic Toilet Saloon open to the public for shaving, haircutting, shampooing, vibro facial massage, vibro scalp treatment, manicure etc. A spacious apartment above the pharmacy’.
Electric face massage became very popular at the beginning of the 1900s. It was supposed to ‘exercise the muscles, making the tissues firmer’.
Also ‘causing an improvement in colouring and general appearance, increasing nutrition by attracting blood to the surface and destroying effete matter and through lymph channels, whilst stimulating nerves and eradicating superficial lines’.
It would have been interesting to see clients’ faces as they walked along the High Street following treatment!