What are the ingredients of modern Make-Up and how does it compare with the past?

Freiheit

Hi I work in a museum and it's normal for us to write something, give a 10 minute talk at some point. We have Roman Make Up implements, so I was thinking of doing it on modern versus ancient Make-Up. I know sut was used as mascara, lead and charcoal were also used, would they be safe to use today if I was to demonstrate? and what's in the average MAC eyeshadow or Nail Polish? I notice they don't usually display contents.

I know I could look up wikipedia and will in due course, but thought I'd post here first.

Ideas appreciated

Thanks
R

FullblownRose

Freiheit wrote: »

Hi I work in a museum and it's normal for us to write something, give a 10 minute talk at some point. We have Roman Make Up implements, so I was thinking of doing it on modern versus ancient Make-Up. I know sut was used as mascara, lead and charcoal were also used, would they be safe to use today if I was to demonstrate? and what's in the average MAC eyeshadow or Nail Polish? I notice they don't usually display contents.

I know I could look up wikipedia and will in due course, but thought I'd post here first.

Ideas appreciated

Thanks
R

Interesting Lead is not safe, but charcoal is an ingredient in some modern products They used to use drops of some kind of extract from the deadly nightshade (Belladonna) plant to give themselves dilated pupils and more attractive eyes, small concentration are still used by opticians to dilate pupils during eye exams. The ingredient that does this is Atrophine.
Romans used oil to cleanse their skin, they would scrape it off, taking the dirt with it. A lot of us use oil based cleansers now, or pure il like coconut il, for the same purpose. Coconut oil has been used for various beauty applications for centuries, in India. X

Kohl (eyeliner) was used by Egyptian women, and was treated as a sort of mystical form of protection, which is why it and other makeup is still sometimes is called 'war paint'

Freiheit

Thanks Rose , never knew about the Eyptians and the 'war paint', another nugget Apparently arsenic was also used in cosmetics, not sure what, maybe perfume, but something, as a poison many gorgeous women dropped dead at balls, hence the term 'drop dead gorgeous'

Semele

There seems to have been a move recently back towards natural skin care/make-up ingredients. There is obviously the overall shift towards increasing technology and "science" in skincare, but there has also been big trends for things like Argan oil, coconut oil etc recently, which are being sold on the basis of how natural they are and how long they've been about...I don't know if this is just a marketing trend, but it seems to fit within wider societal trends towards simplicity and anti-consumerism. It would be interesting to see how the socioeconomic climate affects how much we look forward, or backwards to tradition, even in something like make-up!

Freiheit

would any of the ancient Make Up's, like Sut or charcoal or rust be safe to apply now? if I wanted to demonstrate?

FullblownRose

I just came across a product that's used in d.i.y facemasks and as toothpaste. According to a reviewer, it states in a warning on its label that it contains lead.

I recently purchased the clay based on the good reviews I read on Amazon and other sites. The item arrived as quickly as I expected and fully sealed. Unfortunately, I have not been able to use the clay to comment on its efficacy because I was put off by the WARNING marked on the tub. It reads that "this product contains trace amounts of lead, a substance known to the State of California to cause birth defects or other reproductive harm". The product's website goes into more detail:

http://www.redmondclay.com/2013/why-is-there-a-warning-sticker-on-redmond-clay/

FullblownRose

After further exploration I found an interesting book about cosmetics and the dodgy ingredients that are still used in them

https://www.drbronner.com/DBMS/MEMO/BONJPF.html

Freiheit

wow Rose that's really interesting shocked that lead is still used