Beauty
EYE LASH WONDERLAND
The history of mascara and our favorites
The eyelashes have withstood quite a few trends. Longer, darker, thicker, clumpy (yes, really, that has been a trend too) to colorful eyelashes or just the tips coated with a touch of gold. Mascara is perhaps the most used beauty product. For a very, very long time. Just a quick summary.
Ancient Egypt
Okay, let's take a significant leap back in time. Because around 4000 years BC, kohl was already being used to darken the eyelashes. Occasionally, they even shaped the eyelashes. So mascara is not a beauty invention of recent years; it has been around for a very long time.
The very first mascara
They say that the very first mascara was invented by Eugène Rimmel for Queen Victoria. It was a mixture of coal dust and petroleum jelly. And Rimmel, you probably know him now, so you also know where that name comes from. Around the same time (in 1913), T.L. Williams created a similar combination for his sister Maybel. And Maybelline has of course also become quite a well-known term.
The mascara cake
And then there was another new invention, because of course, there was further development. Once something was found, it was built upon. Soap and black paint were combined, which was applied to a brush and then rubbed onto the eyelashes. Remarkable. But it was already quite close to mascara.
The perfect curl
In the 1920s, eyebrows were thin, skin was pale, and eyelashes needed to have a significant curl. And so the eyelash curler was invented, which was the basis for that extreme eyelash look with a perfect curl.
The winner
In the 1940s, a mascara was finally invented that made our lives a lot easier. Crying unabashedly during movies, overcoming a rain shower, and surviving a tropical dive without panda eyes: it was (and still is) possible. The waterproof mascara was there.
Mrs. Helena Rubinstein
Helena Rubinstein can actually also be named the inventor of mascara today. She ensured that the formula was pressed into a tube and that the brush came out black. Over the years, there have been many changes in brushes, resulting in at one point thirty different brushes being sold. All for a different result.
Thick clumps
In the 1960s and 70s, the trend was: the thicker, the better. Just look at Twiggy. She wouldn't have been nearly as iconic without those huge eyelashes around her eyes.
And today...
Everything is actually possible. Long spider webs around the eyes, broken pieces on the eyelashes, eyelashes in a color... It can all be done!
And because everything is possible...
I present to you the favorites of the editorial team. These are the mascaras we can't live without. We don't want to live without. And what are also truly our most used beauty products.
Jet: Diorshow Pro, €35.95, DIOR
Kiki: Sumptuous Extreme, €29.95, Estée Lauder
May-Britt: Volume plus mascara, $25, Vincent Longo
Josselin: Smokey Eye mascara, €29.50, Bobbi Brown
