A History: Eyeliner.

Around 10,000 BC Egyptians wore various cosmetics to protect the skin from the scorching desert sun; Research has also speculated that the Egyptians wore eye liner to protect the wearer from the evil eye.

Ancient Egyptians used Kohl eye liners which were made from a mixture of materials including lead, copper, ore and antimony which is a toxic metallic element, The materials were ground into a paste and applied with rounded sticks of wood, bronze or glass which had been created and molded for the purpose, Kohl pots where very common and were used to crush and serve as cosmetic containers for the eye make-up, The vast use of Kohl is documented by the sheer number of pots found among burial belongings from the Old Kingdom to the end of the New Kingdom.

Eye liner started to gain popularity in the early 1900's using the same formula that was made in the Egyptian times using kohl and animal fats. The Popularity of the commercially made eyeliner began when the members of the Russian ballet performed in London in 1909, dancing upon the stage with defined and dramatized eye make-up. This was also the time that the demand for mascara and eye shadows where increased in popularity as well.

Helena Rubenstein and Elizabeth Arden two big heavy weights in the cosmetic industry in the early 1900's where inspired by the Russian ballerinas and started to create eye make-up to bring to the public what they saw on the London stage.

Helena Rubenstein is also credited with having invented a new special kind of Kohl or eyeliner to make then movie star Theda Bara's eye look and appear more dramatic on the big silver screen.

During the World Wars women kept their faces clean and simple, very little eyeliner was worn around the eyes, but the shortage and unavailable items such as silk stockings lead to an interesting use of eyeliner where the women for the war times would apply eyeliner along the back of their legs to give the impression that they were wearing stockings.

The 1960's brought on the invention of the liquid eyeliner and it was used to replicate the thick black lines that was on the fashion run ways.

Today we are spoilt for choice when it comes to eyeliners, we can choose an eyeliner in just about any colour from the traditional black, to bright primary colours, browns and grays and even ones that are glitter based, it also comes in pencil form with is similar to a coloured pencil and is sharpened to apply the product, gel and cream form are much softer than a pencil or kohl eyeliner and is applied with a brush and liquid is an opaque liquid that comes in a small tube or bottle and is applied with a brush or felt applicator that comes with the bottle. It is used to create sharp, bold, precise lines and is usually only applied to the top lash line.  Eyeliner is commonly used in a daily make up routine to define the eyes making them appear either bigger or smaller it also draws attention to the eyes or if applied in certain ways can change the eye's shape. It is applied upon the water liner, tightline, underneath the lower eye lashes and upon the top lash line.

How Was It Invented: Mascara.

When: 1913
Where: Europe and United States
Who: Eugene Rimmel and T.L Williams

The product that women and make-up artists the world over recognise as mascara today wasn't developed until the nineteeth century, By a Chemist named Eugene Rimmel. Eugene Rimmel developed a cosmetic using the newly invented petroleum jelly. The name Rimmel became synonymous with the product and still translates to "mascara" in the Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch, Greek, Turkish, Romanian and Persian languages today.

At the same time in 1913, a man named T.L Williams created a very similar substance for his sister Maybel. It was later in 1917, L.T. Williams started a mail-order business from the product that grew to become the company Maybelline.

The product that these two men developed consisted of petroleum jelly and coal in a set ratio, It was extremely messy and a better and less messy alternative was soon developed. A dampened brush was rubbed against cake that contained soap and black dye in equal proportions and was applied to the lashes, It was still extremely messy, but no significant change or improvement happened until 1957 with an innovation by Helena Rubinstein.

Rubinstein's improvement began in Paris in the early 1900s. There in the fashion capital of the world, mascara was quickly gaining popularity. Elizabeth Arden and Helena Runinstein who were two giants in the American beauty industry had watched and kept updated about the development of mascara. After the First World War, The American consumers became eager for new products, Taking advantage of this opportunity, Rubinstein and Arden launched their own brands of cosmetics that included mascara.

With the invention of photographs and motion picture mascara had become even more popular and more in demand across America as the average woman soughted to mimic the looks of the actresses they saw on screen.

In 1933 tragedy strut, a woman who is only known as Mrs Brown from court records, agreed and consented to have her eyelashes permanently dyed. Unfortunately, the product which was called Lash Lure used a chemical called paraphenylenediamine it is extremely toxic to the body, the company had used this chemical as a dyeing agent. At the time cosmetics were unregulated by the Federal Drug Administration and the dangers of paraphenylenediamine were unknown. Within only a matter of hours after having the treatment done, Mrs Brown had began to experience severe symptoms of stinging and burning eyes. By the next morning Mrs Brown's eyes have developed weeping ulcers and had swollen shut, The use of Lash Lure ended up blinding Mrs Brown and fifteen other women and also caused the death of another, It was only after the Lash Lure accidents, that Congress granted the FDA the right to regulate cosmetics in 1938.

In 1957, Helena Rubinstein created and manufactured a formula that changed mascara from a hard cake into a lotion based cream, Rubinstein packaged the new mascara in a tube to be sold with a brush. To use this new mascara the cream was squeezed onto the brush and applied to the lashes, Although it was still messy it was a step in the right direction towards the modern mascara product we use today.

Soon after the grooved rod was patterned. This handy little device picked up the same amount of mascara for each use, Then the grooved rod was changed and altered to the brush similar to the ones used today. The change in applicators led the mascara to be even easier to use and its popularity increased even more.

In 2005 Procter and Gamble developed the Moldtrusion brush, it is a mascara wand that the bristles of the wand are made out of thermoplastic instead of nylon, The first company to market this new and improved brush was the Max Factor Lash Perfection.

With the increased demand for mascara growning over the decades has led to the development of the mascaras we see in the current market. Despite there being many different varieties, all formula's contain the same basic substances, Pigmentation, oils and waxes.

The pigmentation for black mascara is similar to the pigmentation used by the Egyptian and Victorian women, Carbon black has replaced the soot or ash that was once used, Tar and Coal are strictly prohibited by the FDA, Where brown mascaras are usually coloured by the use of iron oxides though the specific compounds are different and unique to each brand.

There is a great deal more freedom and leeway among the oils that are used, Different oils that might be used are mineral oils, linseed oils, Castor oil, eucalyptus oil, lanolin and oil on turpentine can be found most frequently among many mascara formula's.

Waxes that are usually found in mascara are paraffin, carnauba wax and beeswax

The formula's for mascara differ from one another due to the desired effect, The most basic effect is if the mascara is water resistant or not, Water resistant mascaras have a base in substances that rebuff water like dodecane. Non water resistant mascara have base ingredients that are water soluble. Mascaras that are formulated to lengthen or curl eyelashes often contain nylon or rayon microfibers.

Interesting Facts.

Mascara can be documented all the way back to ancient Egypt where in around 4000 BC it was refered to a substance called kohl that we still use today, it was used to darken eyelashes, eyes and eyebrows both men and women wore it, it was often made out of galena, malachite and charcoal or soot, crocodile poop, honey and water was added to the kohl to keep it from running.

Make up was considered to be unsightly in the Western culture until the Victorian era, During this era where the social opinion shifted towards the promotion of cosmetics and where women were know to spend a majority of there day occupied with grooming and beauty regimens, many wanted the illusion of long, dark eyelashes, to do this Victorian women made a type of mascaras in their own homes and kitchens, They would heat a mix of ash or lampback mixed with elderberry juice on a plate or in a bowl and apply the heated mixture to their eyelashes.

Items a Woman should have in her handbag and clutch.

As a woman I am sure you know that your handbag is your life line, it carries around what you need to get through the day and items for things in case of an emergency but what do you actually need to carry with you ? Well it is entirely up to you what you put into your handbag and how much you need to carry around. Me, myself I need a lot of things with me constantly, I am starting to believe that it might be a slight case of OCD after recently I attended a wedding and was getting anxious that I couldn't fit the contents of my large coach handbag into a small clutch, "I need it, I need it" kept going through my head as I tried to jam the contents into a smaller bag, it was a mission I failed. I am sure many women have gone through this and I am not alone in trying to work out what to carry on a day to day basis and what to carry in a small clutch here in this blog I will help you and hopefully give you some ideas and tips on what to carry with you and how to transform it all into a small clutch. Enjoy.

Every day handbag items that every woman must have:

1. Mobile/Cell phone, Fully charged.
2. A music listening device, mp3 player or ipod.
3. A camera, tho one can skip this step if you have a camera phone or an ipod that has a camera.
4. A stylish purse that can hold all your cards, cash and identification.
5. Sunglasses, these are a must to protect your eyes from the sun and wind.
6. If you wear contacts and/or glasses make sure you have the stuff that you need to look after them, always carry a small bottle of contact solution and spare contact/glasses with you.
7. A small note pad and a few nice pens, for jotting down things you need to do or to record some important information, I don't trust technology. So I always have a paper and pen handy.
8. A nail file or two to help in a nail emergency.

The following items should be stored in a small cosmetic case for easy access.

9. Tissues, always good to have on you for emergencies, like say you are in a public toilet and you forgot to check the toilet paper before hand, there will be no need to stress if you have tissues in your bag.
10. Sanitary spray, to spray trolleys/baskets at shopping centre and public toilets before you use them.
11. Hand Sanitiser, great to use when you can't get to a place to wash your hands
12. Headache pills.
13. Paper soap, for when you are in a public toilet and there is no soap available.
14. Band-aids, handy for when you get blisters on your feet and for minor cuts and abrasions.
15. Dental floss. After lunches and dinners when food is caught in your teeth.
16. Tweezers. For when you see a stray eyebrow or in an emergency, like a splinter.
17. Tampons and sanitary pads. Also little plastic or paper bags to dispose of them in.
18. Anti-bac wipes for wiping down surfaces or your hands.

The following items should be carried in a cosmetic case.
19. A few lip glosses.
20. 2-3 lipsticks
21. An eyeliner and mascara for touch ups during the day.
22. Press powder.
23. Clips and hair ties.
24. A small roll on perfume and a roll on anti-perspirant deodorant.

While this seems like a lot of stuff to carry around in your hand bag it isn't in this day and age everything can now come in mini sizes so you can buy mini hand sanitisers, mini dental floss, small packets of tissues and so on.
With all your hygiene products and cosmetic products being in small cosmetic cases they are easy to find and there isn't a huge cluttered mess in your handbag and you aren't searching through your handbag to try and find the product that you need, it is all in one convenient little bag that you just have to pull out and there is the product you need, it also keeps them safe and clean as well so they don't get nasty and contaminated.
Now lets move on to the items you should have in your evening clutch. As you will be going out you won't need as much as you would need while you go about your every day.

Items a woman should carry in her clutch.

1. No need for a purse, you just need money, some form of I.D and your visa card, put these important things in the zip part of the clutch.
2. The lipstick you will be wearing that night to touch up between dancing the night away.
3. A few band-aids for blisters.
4. Mobile/Cell phone. Fully charged.
5. A camera. To capture memories.
6. A few tissues.
7. Spare contacts/glasses.
8. A small hand sanitiser.
9. A few headache pills. Simply cut off 2 rows and pop them into your bag, good to have them in case a pesky headache tries to ruin your night.
10. Your house keys and/or car keys if you are driving.

And that is all, I hope you have found this article helpful, while I have listed these items you don't have to carry them yourself. These are just some helpful suggestion and what I use and carry with me on a day to day basis, Please feel free to leave a comment with suggestions of what you like to carry with you in your handbag.

How to do a french manicure.

French Manicure: How to.

You will need:

A nail file
A bowl of warm water
Cuticle remover
Cuticle sticks
A french manicure set
Guide Strips
Nail polish remover


STEP 1, Go to your local beauty supply store and pick up a french manicure set if you don't have the white polish or neutral colours in your nail polish collection, you can also find the kits that have all the equipment that you need it one little convenient box.

STEP 2, File, clip and shape your nails the way that you want them to look, this is also the step where you remove any old or chipped nail polish then soak your nails in the bowl of warm water to soften your cuticles. Once your cuticles are soaked, apply a little bit of the cuticle cream to each cuticle then using the cuticle stick gently push the cuticles down, do not trim or cut the cuticles as this can lead to infection.

STEP 3, After washing and drying your hands, Apply a base coat over all of the nails leaving it to dry completely then peel off a guide strip and place it below the tip of the nail or what is also known as the free edge, This guide will help you to paint an even white tip with precision.


STEP 4, Paint each nail tip white, painting from the top of the guide to the end of the nail, make sure not to get any white polish on the nail below the guide but if this is to happen do worry just simply remove it with a cotton bud and some nail polish remover. Let the nail tips dry.

STEP 5, Once the nail tips are completely dry remove all the nail guides and remove any sticky residue with a cotton bud soaked in nail polish remover also clean up the sides of your finger if you got any polish on them.

STEP 6, Apply a coat or two of the neutral polish, letting the first coat dry completely before applying the second coat. Finish with a top coat.

Tips and Tricks.

• Why not be adventurous and apply a back nail polish with a red tip, a Tiffany blue with a white tip, a pale purple with a dark purple tip. The colour combinations are endless.
• You can have a feature nail, gluing some diamonds along the edge of the nail of your pointer or ring finger it will add some extra sass to a classic look.

Don't worry if you find you have some difficulties achieving this look right away it may take some practise so why not practise on yourself and your friends and family too.

A History Of Lip gloss.

A History Of Lip gloss.

When: 1932
Who: Max Factor
Where: USA

Max Factor wanted to create a lip product that would make lips shiny and glossy for films and movies, It was Max Factors job to create make up for the movies and the stars that made films back when it was in black and white, Women were inspired by the movie actresses and they also wanted to make up that they wore.

The very first commercially available lip gloss was launched in 1932 it was called X-Rated and it was made by none other than Max Factor. The original formula was sold until 2003 when the current owners Procter and Gamble decided to retire the product. (Heres hoping they will release it again soon, maybe as a limited edition).

Then in 1973, Bonne Bell introduced the first flavoured lip gloss, Lip Smackers. Lip smackers were and still are popular among teenagers. (I remember using these in high school, they were all the rage.) Lip smackers use to come in two sizes small and big, The small one could easily fit into a pocket or a pencil case easy for usage at school. While the bigger size hung on a rope around the users neck, The advertisement encouraged teen girls to choose the appropriate lip smacker for a date as that would be her dates first taste of when his lips kissed her.

How Was It Invented: Hairspray.

Hairspray: A History.



.

Year: 1940's
Where: Boardview, Illinois. USA
Who: Tanion Chakchay

Hairspray was first used and developed in 1943 during the 2nd world war by Chase Products Company by Lebanese immigrant Tanios Chakchay in Boardview, Illinois.


After the war had ended, the beauty industry realised and recognised the potential and power of the aerosol containers, which were pressurised by fluorocarbon which is a liquefied gas

It was in 1950 that Helene Curtis company became the first to use the term "Hairspray" for the new launched aerosol product, it was called Spray net and by 1955 the company was selling is across the world.

Then the competition started to grown at a very fast Pace, Leonard and Bernice Lavin who had the company Alberto-Culver was selling their haircare products to the movie industry in California and had started to giving Helene Curtis a run for it's money. With both companies in competition with each other they both set out and expanded the range and variety of their hair products. They both found out that aerosols also worked well with antiperspirants and sales sky rocketed in this product line as well.

In the 1970's when chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) aerosols were found out to be damaging to the ozone layer, countries around the world started phasing them out. This did not stop the beauty industry manufacturers, who got to work straight away to find alternative approaches, Then in 1977 Alberto VO5 Hair spray became the first advertised premium label to introduce an aerosol free of (CFC).

1950s and 1960's Hairspray
- 1950s the bouffant hairstyle increased the usage of hairspray.
- By 1964 hairspray was the leading and best seller in beauty product sales.
- Companies began designing and making hairsprays for different hair types.
- Women would spray their hair so heavily and then leave it until it needed to be combed or washed out.
- The lacquer found in the hairspray was so sticky that the floors of hairdressing salons and bathrooms floors become quite tacky.

Late 1960s and 1970s
- The high levels of usage of hairspray ended in the mid to late 60's with changes in women's hair styles, the long, natural look worn often by flower children, hippies and women libbers didn't lend itself to being teased and sprayed.
-Women started using hairspray with a light to medium hold that didn't look or feel stiff.
　
It was in the 1980's that heavy hairspray made a comeback. With the trend of big hair coming back during this era. Which were popularized by film and music stars and worn in particular amongst teenagers.
　
These days most women will only use a hard holding hairspray when they don't want their hair to move or become messy, this is usually during a celebration like a prom, ball, formal or wedding. Which unlike the women of the 1950-60 who left their hair style in for 7 days, now days when the celebration is over the hair style and hairspray is washed out at the end of the celebration.

Interesting Fact:
Japanese scientists have recently found strains of bacteria,"Microbacterium hatanonis" that
have evolved to live in hair spray.

How Was It Invented: Foundation.

How was it invented: Foundation.

Who: Max Factor
　

When:1914 - 1937

Where: The United States

Why: Max Factor invented the pan cake make up in 1914, it was originally made and developed for film stars, the actresses were so amazed by the effects of the pan cake foundation that Max Factor was in demand for the product to be produced for their personal use.

Foundation was only available for use within the film industry but the use of this cosmetic in the general public was some what disreputable and no one had thought to try and market foundations as an everyday item.

In 1937 and in spite of economic trouble to the era, Max Factor had the product patented and so Pan Cake foundation which was the first foundation and powder in one became one of the most successful cosmetic launches and releases of all time. It was called Pan-cake makeup because of its small, flat and pan like container and from the form in how it was made.

Pan-cake was made out of Talc rather than the normal oil or wax and it was applied with a wet sponge, it was considered to be more lightweight and natural looking on the skin.

In 1940 it was estimated to be that one in three North American women wore Pan Cake. As of February 2009 the current owners Proter and Gamble announced and confirmed the original formula Max Factor developed and used himself is still sold today.
　
Interesting facts: In 200 B.Ancient Greek women would use white lead powder and chalk to lighten their skin. It was considered fashionable for Greek women to have a pale complexion.

Wealthy Romans favoured white lead paste that can lead to disfigurement and death.

Men also wore makeup to lighten their skin tones, they would use lead powder, chalk and creams, the creams where made out of animal fat, starch and tin oxide.

In the middle ages in Europe one of the popular powders was called Aqua Tofana it was an arsenic face powder they would go to the woman who invented it where she would then tell them to apply it to their cheeks, the women unknowingly used the product of their cheeks and died because the powder was poisonous.

During the Italian Renaissance women wore water soluble lead paint on their faces.

During the 17th century and the Elizabethan era women would wear ceruse it was a lethal mixture of vinegar and white lead, they also applied egg whites to their faces to create a shiny complexion.

Many, many men and women died from wearing lead based makeup.