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Pond's Cold Cream - a childhood memory

(84 Posts)
annodomini Thu 05-Mar-20 12:01:34

Going back 70 years, I remember my aunt always used Pond's cold Cream on her face. I don't think the word 'moisturiser' had then been coined, but that was the job the cream was doing. Recently, I've noticed that some moisturisers smell just like the old Cold Cream, so assume some of the same ingredients are involved. Smells and memory have a close connection and that smell takes me back a very long way. So I looked on line to see if it still exists and found a range of products on - guess where - Ebay of course. It's probably just the name that's the same, but I almost feel inclined to try it. Has anyone here had a similar nostalgic experience?

May7 Thu 05-Mar-20 12:13:28

Oooh yes this reminds me of my nana. She always used Ponds cold cream and I would go into her bedroom and put it on my wrists when I was a child. If close my eyes I can still smell it. She also used 47 11 eau de cologne. Smells are very evocative aren't they

paddyanne Thu 05-Mar-20 12:43:43

I was on here I think on a thread about sweets from the past and mentioned my mothers favourite was Newberry fruits.Someone told me they were still available on Amazon so I bought a pack.They might have had the same name but they were just jellies ,individually wrapped no crispy sugar shell inside with liquid.I was most disappointed .I think they cost about £9 a pack to add insult to injury .Memories ,best left in the mind .

Calendargirl Thu 05-Mar-20 12:56:25

There was also Ponds Vanishing Cream, wasn’t there? Was the cold cream to apply at night, to soak in as such, and the vanishing cream to wear in the day?

annodomini Thu 05-Mar-20 13:04:16

There was a vanishing cream called 'Snowfire'. My aunt also used 4711 eau de cologne. We used to give her that for Christmas and sometimes Evening in Paris scent in that pretty little dark blue bottle with silver pattern. Funnily enough, I don't recall giving my mum these products - my aunt, her sister, was the more glamorous of the two, single until she was 40 and with a good social life.

LoveFrank Thu 05-Mar-20 13:11:37

As a child I used to travel on the bus with an elderly lady who had a wonderful smell of Ponds cold cream and face powder. I always tried to sit behind her in order to enjoy it. She wore a rabbit fur coat in all seasons and I would lean forwards and very gently touch it. I thought she was so glamorous!

mumofmadboys Thu 05-Mar-20 13:33:54

paddyann I saw Newberry fruits in Sainsburys today for £3 a box if you want to try them again.

aggie Thu 05-Mar-20 13:45:05

I remember “ Snow fire “ it was green in a wee tin and used for chilblains , very strong menthol smell

annodomini Thu 05-Mar-20 14:22:44

Aggie, you can get a Snowfire Ointment solid stick on Ebay for dry, chapped skin. It sounds as if it would be good for people who have to wash their hands frequently!

kittylester Thu 05-Mar-20 15:53:42

paddyanne the ones mentioned by momb in Sainsbury's have no crunch either- a big disappointment!

kittylester Thu 05-Mar-20 15:54:32

But, they are only £3!!!

millymouge Thu 05-Mar-20 16:00:14

Oh [paddyanne] you saying about Newberry fruits brings back so many happy memories. My dear father used to work for the company that made those and would bring home boxes of them for us. Didn’t think anyone remembered them, don’t think anyone makes anything like those now.

chicken Thu 05-Mar-20 16:09:16

We used to have Newberry Fruits every Christmas. They were my favourites with the lovely sugary crust and the liquid middles. The best one was the green one which tasted of greengages. We also had a box of fig sweets, flat and sugary in a round box, each fig in a petal shape around a central one so that it looked like a flower. I can't remember the brand.

Framilode Thu 05-Mar-20 16:25:50

Ponds Cold Cream reminds me of my Mum, that and Coty Loose Powder in a white and brown box. In a junk shop recently I found a box of Coty powder for sale. It was pretty much empty but as soon as I opened it the scent just brought the memories of my Mum back. I bought it for a silly price and open it up occasionally to have a sniff.

Purplepixie Thu 05-Mar-20 16:47:09

My mam always used Ponds cold cream and I used to love the smell. She always used a type of rouge on her cheeks in a little blue round box. Cote le'aimant perfume was her favourite as well as Vanderbilt.

BeenBizzy Fri 06-Mar-20 11:16:11

What memories, my mom always used Ponds vanishing cream, if I close my eyes I can smell it.
Her skin was lovely, her scent was lavender water.
Think if ponds vanishing cream still about might just try some, mom didn't have half the wrinkles I have today.
Jo.

TwiceAsNice Fri 06-Mar-20 11:21:00

I remember as a child watching my mum rubbing in Ponds cold cream to take her makeup off at night, I loved the smell too. She used to use Max Factor Creme Puff powder and that also had a particular smell

Griselda Fri 06-Mar-20 11:27:06

"They might have had the same name but they were just jellies ,individually wrapped no crispy sugar shell inside with liquid."
One of my children brought me some Newberry Fruits - I found it quite difficult to tell them they were nothing like the old ones even if the box was the same.

Sparklefizz Fri 06-Mar-20 11:33:03

When I was a teenager I used to use little pots of Astral cream. I saw some recently, having long forgotten about it, so bought it and the fragrance instantly took me back to the youth club in the 1960s.

Sparklefizz Fri 06-Mar-20 11:35:11

I had a Saturday job in a chemist's when I was at school, and many of the products mentioned bring back fond memories.

She always used a type of rouge on her cheeks in a little blue round box. Purplepixie - I think the brand was Bourjois.

jaylucy Fri 06-Mar-20 11:35:13

Boots used to sell big jars of cold cream that smelt the same.
I also remember the smell (and hate it) of Tweed perfume, that I think you can still buy
My mum always used to use Nivea in a blue tin(you can still get it)
I can also remember my nan using a hand cream that was in a glass jar that had a particular scent but can't remember the name of it.

crazyH Fri 06-Mar-20 11:36:07

Ponds Vanishing cream had a a large 'v' on the bottle or is that jus a false cream. My lovely older sister, long gone, used to smell of ponds cold cream

Gilly1952 Fri 06-Mar-20 11:38:23

Little red box of block mascara - my mum used to spit on the brush to moisten it before rubbing it into the black stuff! I remember a little round box containing a block of rouge - was it called “Bourgoise” or something similar? Mum had a little bottle of Evening in Paris and also some Tweed - anyone remember that. Wasn’t life simple then?

Witzend Fri 06-Mar-20 11:40:27

My mother used to swear by Astral cream for her face, found it less greasy than Nivea.
You can still get it, and it’s not expensive. I still like it as a richer body moisturiser when my skin feels very dry.

Granartisan Fri 06-Mar-20 11:40:28

My Mum had a very sensitive skin and Innoxa cream was the only cream she could use. I bought some 4711 a couple of years ago in the 4711 shop in Cologne!