Makeup of the Ages: Part 1 - Ancient Egypt & 1900-1910

Makeup over the ages has had many different ingredients and mythologies, but the main purpose of wearing makeup has stayed the same.

Ancient Egypt (as early as 4,000 B.C)

Ancient Egypt without hesitation was the birthplace of cosmetics. Cleopatra and her dark seductive eyes, outlined with black heavy eyeliner and green eye shadow (made of malachite and galena), is one of the most beautiful women known to history. When I think of Egypt I automatically think of her and her winged eyeliner. As most of us ladies know the "winged eyeliner look" is one of the most popular ways of doing your eye makeup today, and although the look did fade with time, it came back again during the 1920’s when we discovered the tomb of Tutankhamen. We will discuss the comeback more in my Roaring 20's segment that I’ll be posting in the future. Stay tuned for that!

Now back to talking about eyeliner, or ‘kohl’ as the Egyptians knew it, it was the most distinct beauty product of Ancient Egypt. Makeup was a unisex thing to wear that didn't stereotype a person, and if anything, it differentiated a person’s social status based upon the amount of makeup they were wearing. They would dip a small wooden stick into a paste that consisted of galena (mineral), soot (fine black particles), and water, which together made kohl, to outline the lower and upper rim of the eyes. It was believed that the kohl would protect them from ‘evil eyes’ or people whom didn't mean well. Just like now, eyeliner was a staple beauty product for the Egyptians. And although some don’t believe that it has ‘magical healing powers’ as they did, some girls may beg to differ.

They also believed the kohl had antibacterial properties. It was believed that eyeliner prevented ocular infection, strengthened their immune systems preventing potential diseases, and aided in protecting them from probable eye damage due to the glare of the sun. It was also believed to stimulate the production of nitric oxide (NO) in their skin (NO “plays a key role in orchestrating the skin’s response to external stimuli such as heat, ultraviolet (UV) light, response to infection, and wound healing, as well as possibly underlying certain pathological conditions) (Grierson and Ormerod.)) So basically, if you were living during this period of time you wouldn’t have to wear sunglasses. Just apply some eyeliner and you should be good to go! Good-bye Raybans!

Makeup was not just used for the beauty and healing, it was also used for religious purposes. They believed that makeup was a sign of holiness in the present life and in the afterlife. Egyptians would bury their deceased in tombs with cosmetic palettes because they believed that a body with makeup would bring the individual closer to their gods after death. Well, if this is the case... then I’ll take a Lorac Pro Pallet please (it’s my personal favorite).

Above you will find a fun, fast, and easy look I did of Ancient Egyptian makeup with modern day products of course!

(I am not a makeup artist and this is not a tutorial. I am just showing you the products I used to recreate this look).

America (1900-1910)

Some would agree that the years 1900-1910 would not have been the most terrible time to live through! Women didn’t have nearly as many rights as we do now, but the fashion and overall look was absolutely beautiful, and impacted a lot of fashion trends throughout the years. Long dresses were always worn and makeup was very lightly applied.

Having a tan was not something that was praised during this time. Unlike today, a girl with a beautiful tan during the early 1900's was scorned. Oh how times have changed! (although my sister would probably disagree and say that pale skin is making a come-back) The objective of this era in relation to makeup was to look young and beautiful without anyone knowing you were wearing any makeup. Women would even wear a shade lighter of foundation so that their actual skin tones would look rosier. If a lady had a tan, or was just naturally tan, she would be questioned if she was of lower class or if she "worked the land". Unlike now, some wear a shade darker of foundation so that their faces don't look too pale in pictures using a flash! Just blend that bad boy into your necks, and you're good to go!

Wearing a bear face and looking like you hardly had make-up on was the way to go during this time. Most of the women who did wear ‘heavy makeup’ were either prostitutes or women who acted on the stage. So forget spending your weekends shopping for the best blushes, bronzers, or foundations! Shopping for cosmetics around this time was not a public thing to do, and had to be done in a very secretive manner. Finally in 1909, a man in London named Gordon Selfidge opened the first cosmetics counter allowing women to try cosmetics before they purchased them. Well thank you Gordon Selfidge, I don’t know where so many of us would be without you today! Sephora and ULTA are forever indebted to you!

So there you guys have it! My first installment of Makeup of the Ages. Who says makeup isn't interesting on all levels!? Stay tuned for my next post on The Roaring 1920's to The Great Depression in the1930's.

References:

-GRIERSON AND ORMEROD, M. C. N. A.

Nitric oxide function in the skin

“plays a key role in orchestrating the skin’s response to external stimuli such as heat, ultraviolet (UV) light, response to infection, and wound healing, as well as possibly underlying certain pathological”

Grierson and Ormerod, M.-M. Cals- nd A.D. 'Nitric Oxide Function In The Skin'. Science Direct 2004. Web. 23 Jan. 2015.

-BOSE, D.

Ancient Egyptian Inventions

Bose, Debopriya. 'Ancient Egyptian Inventions'. Buzzle 2013. Web. 23 Jan. 2015.