The history of cosmetics spans at least 6000 years of human history, and encompasses almost every society on Earth. There is archaelogical evidence of cosmetic usage in Ancient Egypt during 4000 BC, and even the poor wore eye makeup to protect their eyes from the sun and ward off evil spirits.
The Ancient Greeks and Romans also used cosmetics, along with the Persians and peoples from many other Middle Eastern Countries. In The Americas, some Native tribes used face paint for ceremonial events and for battle. In ancient Rome the production of cosmetics was usually done by female slaves called Cosmetae.
Chinese people stained their fingernails as far back as 3000 BC, and the colours they used represented social classes. The lower classes were forbidden to wear bright colours, and in Japan, geisha girls wore lipstick made of crushed safflower petals and painted their eyebrows and edges of their eyes and lips as well. They also used a kind of wax, which was a softer version of the sumo wrestler's hair wax, as a makeup base, with rice powder to colour their faces. 13th century Italian women wore red lipstick to show that they were upperclass.
In the Middle Ages European Church leaders thought it sinful and immoral to wear makeup, but many women still adopted the practice. Pale faces were fashionable during the 16th century, as it was considered a sign of aristocratcy. The higher a person was in status, the more leisure time he or she had to spend indoors, which kept their skin pale. Women and some men, attempted to lighten their skins by using white powder.
During the early years of the 20th century, make-up became fashionable in the United States and Europe owing to the influence of ballet and theatre stars, but the thing which had the most influence was the new film industry in Hollywood. In the 1920s, The 'Flapper' style brought it's influence to bear on cosmetic fashion. They used dark eyes, red lipstick and red nail polish as a symbol of independance. Also the suntan, suddenly became fashionable, following its adoption by designer Coco Chanel, starting a craze for fake tan products, both men and women wanted to achieve the 'sun-kissed' look, but not so in Asia, as skin whitening continued to be their idea of beauty.
During the 1960s and 1970s, many women in the western world were influenced by feminism, and decided to go without cosmetics. They believe that wearing cosmetics made women mere sex-objects and therefore second class citizens. In the 1970s, cosmetics were divided into a 'natural look' for day time use and a more sexualized image for evening wear.
Several companies started creating ranges for African and Asian women, creating makeup that worked for richer skin tones, such as foundations and powders that provided a natural match.
In the 21st Century Beauty products are widely available, from dedicated internet-only retailers, who have more recently been joined online by established outlets, to the major department stores, the 'traditional' bricks and mortar beauty retailers.
