Sometimes it feels like red lipstick is timeless, with no beginning or ending. You might be surprised to find out that is almost true. Red lipstick dates back farther than most people can even imagine.
The story begins over 5,000 years ago
The first known red lipsticks were made by crushing gemstones and wearing them on the lips in Mesopotamia over 5,000 years ago. Later, lipsticks would be made from red algae and fish scales. The first molded lipsticks resembling what we use today were invented by Abu Al-Qasim Al-Zahrawi during the Islamic Golden Age.
It is truly amazing and almost impossible to believe that the makeup we wear today is based on traditions from thousands of years ago. Over these millennia, the available shades of lipstick to choose from have expanded to a seemingly infinite number -- and there are just as many shades of red alone to choose from.
Image Credit @the.pin.doll on IG
The legacy of the color red
Red has many cultural connotations that have made it a popular (and sometimes controversial) color over the years. But, no matter the decade, red lipstick has stood the test of time, becoming truly iconic.
And from the beginning of red lipstick, the one common thread among every shade of red is that red makes a bold statement for whoever chooses to wear it -- for people of all ages, all classes, and all cultures across the globe.
While stained lips were signs of aristocracy in places like Egypt, other countries around the world saw it as the sign of the prostitute. In Greece, prostitutes were expected to use lip colors and obvious makeup in public or else they would be punished because it implied that they were deceitfully posing as ladies.
This association would continue into England in the 1700s, where in 1770 a law ruled a marriage could be annulled if a woman wore lipstick before her wedding day. Lipstick continued to be associated with prostitutes and even actors, regardless of the fact that Queen Elizabeth I was known for wearing bright red lips with a powdered white complexion.
By the 1920s it was finally accepted and fashionable for a Londoner to wear her lipstick, almost 40 years after its commercial debut by Guerlain.
Dark Red was the color of choice in the 1920s. Women wore red as a symbol of their newfound independence. Actress Clara Bow inspired the "cupid's bow" worn at the time. Women had the freedom to now apply their lipstick in public.
Red lipstick today
Today, red lipstick is synonymous with fashion, glamour, beauty, sexuality, rebellion, winter, luxury, wealth… and so much more. The list is nearly as endless as the shades.
The legacy of red lipstick continues to influence fashion and cosmetics today, with limitless possibilities and potential for color combinations and bold statements.
From classic reds inspired by the courageous women we think of when we think of the beginning of modern makeup trends to the dark and sultry tones of later decades, there are limitless options to choose from.
But, beyond the power of choice is the power of expression. Every era of red lipstick -- whether it was lauded or shunned by society at the time -- brought us closer to the freedom of expression we enjoy today and built a historic legacy for something as simple as adding color to your lips.
Over the years, red lipstick has given icons like Marilyn Monroe her distinctive look or added beauty and elegance to beloved characters such as the extensive ensemble of Disney princesses. Everywhere we look, shades of red lipstick have added color, courage, and charisma to the global stage -- from fashion magazines to the silver screen.
So, next time you carefully apply your favorite shade of red to your lips as you head out for a glamorous night on the town, feel empowered by the fact that you are participating in a powerful story that began thousands of years ago... and will continue for thousands of years to come.
And if you are not sure what's the perfect red lipstick shade for you, try Gabriela's shadefinder and you might be surprised at how something as simple as lipstick can change the way you feel.
Grandmothers, mothers, daughters. There is a thin veil of red lipstick that has bound every generation of women for centuries. Cleopatra, Elizabeth I and Marilyn Monroe adored it, as did legions of women (men and non-binary) who still consider it a beauty essential. No one has been able to stir up love and hatred like it, continually passing from periods in which it was used as a synonym for social prestige to others in which anyone who dared to flaunt it was an outcast, a person of dubious morals, or even, as was believed in the Middle Ages, a child of the devil. The history of red lipstick is long and troubled, but each of its steps has helped transform it into what it still represents today: not only a beauty secret capable of illuminating the complexion with a single gesture, but a true symbol of emancipation, an injection of self-confidence and courage that helps us overcome difficulties. It is no coincidence that in times of economic crisis its sales increase nor that Coco Chanel used to say, "If you are sad, if you have a sentimental problem, put on makeup, put red lipstick on your lips and attack!"
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Here are 5 things to know about the history of red lipstick.
Throughout the ages, red lipstick has been synonymous with glamour, power and seduction. Ever since around 2,500 B.C. the Sumerian queen Pu-Abi, ruler of the city of Ur, began to brighten her lips with a powder mixture made from red rocks and white lead that she stored inside the shells of small animals no one has been able to resist the bold allure of this cosmetic. In Sumerian times it indicated social prestige, as it did for the ancient Egyptians, where it was worn by kings and queens. Apparently, Cleopatra used it to complete her make-up, pairing her black eyes with lips tinted in shades of orange, magenta and blue-black thanks to a mixture of chimney beetles, fish scales and beeswax, which she spread with the help of a wet stick. Even in the Roman Empire, where lipstick was called purpurissum, dyeing the lips was a genderless gesture, a status classifier that distinguished high-ranking officials and emperors. Among the biggest fans of the bold cosmetic was Poppaea, Nero's wife. She is said to have had an entire team of assistants assigned to the care of her lips, which were always perfectly tinted with ochre, iron ore, sea oak, mulberry, lemon, rose petals and wine residue. Definitely more unpleasant was the mix of sheep sweat, human saliva and crocodile excrement that Greek prostitutes were forced to use as pigments to identify their profession in public.
Flashy and showy, red lipstick was often looked upon with some suspicion. It experienced its darkest period in the Middle Ages during which it was associated with a mysterious, frightening, almost demonic femininity. It is known, red is the color of the Devil and for this reason the church was ready to condemn anyone who dared to wear it. The penalty? To be considered a reincarnation of Satan and forced to repent for being misled by the sinful cosmetic. To avoid trouble and be considered pure and pious, women had to limit themselves to softer shades such as soft pink, while the privileged could go a little further with bright pink. The social rehabilitation of red lipstick came with Queen Elizabeth I of England, who proudly sported it in public and in private. She loved that mix of cochineal, egg white and fig juice so much that she attributed magical powers to it. The happy period of red lipstick was short-lived, and when the scepter passed into the hands of the puritanical Queen Victoria, the beauty product was branded as vulgar and disrespectful, a cosmetic to be kept well away from. Even more so around 1770 when the English parliament proposed a new law: any woman who lured English gentlemen with red lipstick on her lips would be punished for witchcraft.
It was turn-of-the-century actresses like Sarah Bernhardt who brought red lipstick back into vogue, but it was Elizabeth Arden who gave it political power, elevating it to a symbol of rebellion and female empowerment. In 1912, the founder of one of the world's leading cosmetics brands took to the streets of New York and, distributing lipsticks, joined suffragettes marching for their rights. In America and England, leaders of feminist movements such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Charlotte Perkins Gilman began sporting vermilion lips with the intention of intimidating men, to manifest a kind of physical liberation from the constraints of corsets and male judgment. Since then, red lipstick has mirrored resilient femininity.
Red lipstick was one of Adolf Hitler's most hated things. For the führer it was way too libertine and sexy. For the dictator, purity of the Aryan race meant a natural face without makeup. Thus, women in the Allied countries began to wear it as a sign of rebellion against Nazism and fascism. Its patriotic meaning was such that when its cost became prohibitive women dyed their lips with beet juice. In 1941 and for the duration of World War II, red lipstick became mandatory for women enlisting in the U.S. Army. At that time Helena Rubinstein created Regimental Red, the British brand Cyclax introduced its Auxiliary Red shade, and Elizabeth Arden launched Victory Red. Arden was commissioned by the U.S. government to create a lipstick and nail polish for women serving in the Marine Corps and created the shade Montezuma Red that echoed the red outlines of their uniforms. The name was a reference to the Marines' anthem in which they promised to fight for their country everywhere, "from the palaces of Montezuma to the coast of Tripoli." After British troops liberated the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp on April 15, 1945, the British Red Cross sent boxes of red lipstick. A small gesture to help women recover, return to normalcy and restore their individuality and dignity.
Since the end of the War, the history of red lipstick has always been on the rise thanks to divas like Marilyn Monroe, Betty Page, Liz Taylor who could not do without it. The same goes for politicians such as the "Iron Lady" Margaret Thatcher, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez or activist Marlén Chow who took to the streets against Nicaragua's dictatorship and faced army interrogators with vermilion lips, inspiring men and women in her country to protest for the release of all unjustly imprisoned anti-government protesters by wearing red lipstick to the cry of the hashtag #SoyPicoRojo. Today, the boldest cosmetic ever continues to be a symbol of pride, rebellion and emancipation not only for women, but for the LGBTQIA+ community and every human being who wants to assert their identity.
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