With all the billions of dollars spent every year worldwide on cosmetics, sometimes we may find ourselves asking, How did it get to this point? When did it become the norm for me to have to wake up every morning and before I even go out the door I get to paint my face from top to bottom? Surely a woman way back in history didnt just wake up one day and apply eyelashes, lipstick, eyeliner, foundation, and rouge all at the same time. No, it was, like many things, a culmination of things from the past.
Remember the Egyptians? That was over four thousand years ago. Cleanliness and appearance were terribly important to the Egyptians. They believed the appearance was in direct link with the health of the soul. They strived to always look and smell good. And with a society who values their appearance, youre inevitably going to have people who are going to make themselves stand out. But the Egyptians, being the innovative people they were, used cosmetics for reasons that were even smarter than just trying to look good.
Mesdemet was the earliest kind of eye shadow- a substance made of copper and lead ore. The dark shades they believed would ward off evil eyes to their...