Decades of Makeup: Women That Paved The Way
Women have been paving the way for make as far back as the Egyptian Era. This is dedicated to decades of makeup and the women that paved the way. Here are the 10 decades of makeup.
1920s
The Roaring 20s is what this decade was known for. The Jazz serenaded nightclubs. Women’s makeup stood out as they were moving into more independence and feminism. Women wore dark lipstick mainly reds to create a cupid heart shape on lips. They used wax for their eyelashes. Light rose hues were on the cheeks.
1930s
Known for the Great Depression and WWII. Makeup was more subtle as women went for a more light tone foundations to brighten up their face and rouge for their blush. Rose hue tones were applied on the lips. Eyeshadow had more colors which included, blues, purples, and greens. Thin eyebrows were fashionable than by using an eye pencil.
Women were no longer looking for thinner lips. They wanted a much fuller lip look and took lip liner to fill in. Red was the color of choice in lipstick. The brighter the red the better. It made women feel young and healthy.
1950s
Marilyn Monroe, Natalie Wood, Grace Kelly, and Elisabeth Taylor graced the movie screen. This decade was the beginning of models. Foundation was flesh toned, and although red lipstick was still a hit more rose color lipstick started to appear. Creams and skin improvement took off. Eyeshadows were pastels with shimmer and women started the cat eye-line look. The creation of eye curlers allowed for longer looking eyelashes.
1960s
Hippies, Woodstock, The Beatles, and Janis Joplin. The flower power child was born. The 60s were all about the eyes. Models like Twiggy took the cover of magazines and with those vibrate eyes you could drown in them. Although the cat eye look didn’t make it into the 60s. Mascara was on the rise for both the top and bottom lashes. The use of fake eyelashes gave fuller looking eyes.
1970s
From Hippies to Let’s go to the disco. Women in the 70s were fighting for equality and independence and wanted less color in makeup. Disco clubs popping up on every corner women dressed for show and their makeup was no different. With eyeshadows, that had shimmer and took on more colors. However, the blush and lips stayed more natural looking. Women during the 70s were not the only ones wearing makeup. Men such as David Bowie took center stage full of makeup.
1980s
Women went bold in the 80s and didn’t care what anyone had to say about it. It was big or go home. Women like Madonna and Cyndi Lauper paved the way for the makeup industry in the 80s. The word “paint” your face was born. With heavy eyeliner and bright eyeshadows that covered the entire eyelid and beyond. The colors were vibrate. With bright pink blush to flash off those cheeks.Lipstick went from dark black to dark red. Men wanted in on the fun as well. Rock bands like Twisted sister and Poison were full of makeup.
1990s
Grunge makeup was born. Lip liner was a fav and instead of blending it in with lipstick the look was to see the lip liner. Makeup was subtle other than the lip liner. Eyebrows took on either a more natural look or drawn in high arch look. Glitter was used in lipstick and eyeshadow.
2000s
In the 2000s there was still a need for glitter. However saying, there was a slight shift in colors. Darker hue lipsticks and darker colored eyeshadows. Earth tone colors took form and created a more natural look. Pink was still a popular color on the lips and cheeks. And that dang lip liner was still visible.
2010s
Eye pencils are rarely used as brushes designed to give you fuller eyebrows. Contouring, highlighting, and baking the face is not for drag queens any more honey. Furthermore, makeup has become so defined, with unlimited options. From changing the shape of the nose and cheek by defining it with contour and highlight. Women love to go bold with shimmer (glitter) eyeshadows and lipsticks in every color imaginable. Grandma’s makeup is long gone.
Looking through the decades, makeup has shifted in so many directions. Cosmetic companies will sure keep pushing the envelope and create more ways women can PAINT their faces in the future. As a multi-billion dollar industry. I doubt it is going anywhere soon.
