Beauty products are not something you would learn about in your school history lessons and if they were our school grades would have been much higher! But they do however have a history and people behind these fantastic inventions we all use, and are deeply grateful for. So Beauty Bible has decided to educate you all on the history of some of our favourite tools and products!

The Mascara

My favourite of all things beauty, The Mascara was invented by an American chemist named T.L Williams in 1913 for his sister Mabel who was trying to win back an ex lover with luscious lashes! It was made from coal dust and Vaseline. The product was a huge success for the brother sister duo and so they formed their company and named it Maybelline which is a combination of his sisters name Mabel and Vaseline. Maybelline Mascara is still one of the world’s highest sellers and was voted by Beauty Bible readers as the best!

The Lipstick

Even as far back as Ancient Egyptian times women still longed for the perfect put pout and used ingredients such as red clay and even the dye from seaweed to create it! When Queen Victoria took to the throne in Britain, she even banished lipstick and it was only deemed acceptable for prostitutes to wear. These lipsticks were made at home using beeswax and plant derived red dye but the first sold on the market was manufactured by Guerlain a brand you will still find in department stores worldwide.

The Nail Varnish

Believe it or not the inventors of nail varnish were inspired by the technology of opaque pigments used in car paint! Sounds strange but thanks to brothers Charles and Joseph Revlon they created the first ‘paint’ for your nails in 1932. The company Revlon grew bigger and bigger and so did they’re product range and to this day they still have one of the best collections of nail varnish on the market as well as being one of the best qualities.

Moisturiser

Oscar Troplowitz a German pharmacist succeeded in 1911 for the first time in combining oil and water into a smooth white cream in which he named Nivea which is from the latin word Nivis meaning snow. It is believed that the basic recipe has to this day remained the same! Wonder about the gorgeous scent of Nivea?

Hairdryer

The company AEG is to thank for the decrease in bad hair days thanks to the invention of the hair dryer in 1900. The first model debuted weighing 2 kilos and blew 90 degrees of hot air from a nozzle pipe. Lighter plastic hand held dryers with a higher wattage finally became available in the 1950’s.

So next time you use the above beauty essentials take a moment to think of the people who invented them and allowed us to have the perfect pout, smooth skin, long lashes and great hair!