The beauty journalist carefully studied the biography of the legendary product and discovered many interesting facts.
“Secret weapon. The history of red lipstick ” – a complete guide to beauty products from the journalist Rachel Felder, who applies a product of a bright shade to her lips every day and considers it her trademark. The book will be useful for women who know about the power of red lipstick and want to get acquainted with her biography, as well as learn interesting facts from the lives of celebrities who have used it (including Cleopatra, Rihanna, Madonna, Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn).
Wday.ru and the publishing house “BOMBORA” have prepared a fascinating excerpt from the book about why Adolf Hitler hated red lipstick.
During World War II, red lipstick became a symbol of resistance among women in the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition. With its help, they declared that neither adversity nor shortage caused by the rationing system of distribution of products and goods could break them. Crimson lips emphasized the ability to overcome difficulties, courage, a sense of comradeship and strength needed by women who remained in the rear and were forced to master traditionally male professions. In addition, the fair sex, even in the most terrible times, like to feel attractive.
Adolf Hitler, by the way, hated red lipstick. For him, the purity of the Aryan race meant a natural, unpainted face. The bright red lipstick was too deliberate and sexy for him. He was also a fanatical vegetarian who rejected all animal ingredients, which were often used in cosmetics at the time.
Vogue 1941. Tussy’s Kiltie red
During the war, all essential goods were distributed by cards, including food, gasoline, and tin items. Cosmetics, especially such a conspicuous item as red lipstick, were considered important for life, because they supported the spirit of women and nourished their self-esteem. Many believed that the card system should not apply to her.
In England, Winston Churchill and the British government supported this point of view and issued red and any other lipstick as needed, not on coupons. As a Supply Department 75 told the British edition of Vogue magazine, “Cosmetics are as important to women as tobacco is to men.”
Despite the initial intentions of the authorities not to restrict access to cosmetics, in wartime they were nevertheless subjected to high taxation and therefore became, in the literal sense of the word, a precious commodity – a deficit. Many women have started using beet juice to color their lips. Bright lips gave a sense of a normal life, in which there is a place for hope and beauty.
Elizabeth Arden red lipstick on model
In America, for some time, lipstick cases were made not as usual from metal, which was spent on military needs, but from plastic. In 1942, the American War Industrial Production Committee decided to significantly reduce the production of cosmetics. However, a few months later, it returned to its previous volume due to the performances of disgruntled women.
During the Second World War, along with men, women went to the front. Prudent cosmetic companies were seized by a patriotic impulse: having decided to support their homeland and enrich themselves, they began to produce entire collections for front-line women. The most famous lipsticks of the period were Victory Red 1941 by Elizabeth Arden, Fighting Red by Tussy and Regimental Red by Helena Rubinstein. British brand Cyclax introduced its Auxiliary Red shade as “lipstick for women in the service” and even produced black and white advertising posters on which the word “lipstick” was written in bright crimson.
Elizabeth Arden has been active in the United States military. First, she had the exclusive right to sell cosmetics on military bases. Secondly, she received an order from the American government to develop a special shade of lipstick for the Reserve of the female auxiliary of the Marine Corps, created in 1943. Women serving in the Marine Corps were required to paint their lips and nails the same color as the red details on their military uniforms. Arden 76 named the color Montezuma Red after the words of the Marines’ anthem, in which they promised to fight for their country everywhere – “from the palaces of Montezuma to the coast of Tripoli.” A year later, this shade joined the Elizabeth Arden line of lipsticks and was successfully sold thanks to advertisements celebrating its military background.
Demonstration of lipstick Cyclax
The war was over, and red lipstick was still a lifesaver for women. On April 15, 1945, British troops liberated the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in northern Germany. To help women recover and get back to normal, the British Red Cross sent boxes of red lipstick to the camp. While at first glance it seems that such assistance was impractical, the premise was of great importance. As one of the first officers to cross the threshold of the death camp, Lieutenant Colonel Mervyn Willett Gonin, wrote in his memoirs:
Women lie on beds without sheets and nightgowns, but with scarlet lips … They have no clothes, and they cover their shoulders with blankets when they get up, but their lips are scarlet … Finally, someone has returned their individuality – they have become women again, and not serial numbers with stamps on the shoulders.
Of course, red lipstick was not able to cross out the horrors of war that they had to endure, but it helped breathe life into these women.
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