Slap happy!
IT’S been worn for thousands of years – and now a new documentary is set to reveal all about the story of make-up.
Presented by Lisa Eldridge, Make-up: A Glamorous History will explain the origin of cosmetics, as well as the tales of people from the past who wore a bit of slap.
Ahead of the programme, NATASHA WYNARCZYK reveals 10 little-known beauty secrets from history…
THE first use of cosmetics can be traced back
1
to Ancient Egypt. Cleopatra used lipstick made from ground red beetles, while other Ancient Egyptian women used clay mixed with water to colour their lips.
In Roman times, a law was brought in
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banning women from wearing expensive make-up, as it was seen as being a flagrant display of wealth. Using cosmetics was also associated with prostitutes and was frowned upon by Roman writers such as Ovid.
The Ancient Chinese initially invented perfume
3 as a disinfectant. It was believed the smell of it was so powerful, it could rid a room of disease. Meanwhile, in Ancient Persia, kings would have their own signature scents.
In Ancient Mesopotamia, now modern-day
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Kuwait, women liked the finer things in life when it came to their slap. It’s believed they would crush semi-precious jewels, mix this with a paste and use it to paint their lips.
Pale skin was fashionable
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from the Middle Ages until the 20th century, as a tan was associated with being lower class and working outside.
High-class European men and women used white powder on their skin to keep it pale, but this often contained lead or arsenic, and sometimes poisoned and even killed them.
The modern-day trend for
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being tanned came from designer Coco Chanel.
In the 1920s, she was accidentally sunburnt while on holiday in the French Riviera. When she arrived back to Paris, it had faded into a tan and her fans started adopting the look in order to emulate Chanel’s luxurious lifestyle.
Painting your lips was
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frowned upon by the Church in Britain during medieval times, but Queen Elizabeth I made it popular when she often wore a red lippy.
It was banned during the 17th century, after it was thought women could be tried for witchcraft if they attempted to seduce men by using cosmetics.
The trend for bushy eyebrows 8
isn’t new – upper-class Georgian women would use silk, velvet and even patches of mouse skin to create false brows.
The pelts would be trimmed into the desired shape, then stuck to the adhesive.
Medieval women would 9 often remove their eyebrows and eyelashes because the forehead was viewed as the sexiest part of a woman’s face, and taking off brows and lashes accentuated this.
10 Queen Victoria
condemned make-up as a forehead using an practice limited to actors and prostitutes, so it wasn’t commonly available. Women at the time would instead bite their lips and pinch their cheeks to bring colour to those areas before meeting suitors. ●Make-up: Glamorous History is showing on BBC Two at 9pm tomorrow.
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