Top 25 Fun Lipstick Facts That You Didn’t Know Of!

Lipsticks have been around for a long time and have an exciting history, with their influences on society as time passed by. Today, lipsticks have become an essential part of our cosmetic routine; the lipstick shades often reflect our moods and vary with the occasions. Here we have fun lipstick facts that are sure to make you curious and surprised at how they have become an almost inevitable part of our lives.

1. Fish Scales in Lipstick!

Although this is one among fun lipstick facts, it may seem icky to know that the very scales you remove from fish are what you coat your lips with. The fish scales provide a shinier appearance to your lipstick.

2. Could There Be Any More Weird Ingredients?

Well, if you think fish scales are the only weird ingredient, you have yet to know what they used in Ancient Greece. They used crocodile excrement, human saliva, and sheep sweat to make their lipstick– bizarre, fun lipstick facts you never knew!

Meanwhile, in Mesopotamia, people crushed gems to make their lipstick, while Aztecs used crushed beetles.

3. Do Women Who Wear Lipstick Eat 2 Kg of Lipstick in Their Lifetime? Myth Alert!

Women who wear lipstick daily eat approximately 2 kg of lipstick in their entire lifetime– this statement has been making rounds for a long time, and it is time to see if it’s true.  2 kg of lipstick is approximately 530 tubes of lipstick, which we would not consume, even though we do ingest a little bit each time we use it.

For a more mathematical proof, click here.

4. Lipstick in Ancient Egypt

When it comes to fun lipstick facts, Ancient Egypt cannot be avoided. Men and women in Ancient Egypt were avid users of lipstick, especially to show their social status. They mainly used shades of purple and black.

Cleopatra was said to have used a dark, bright red shade of lipstick made from crushed beetles. This made her stand out from others, as those who couldn’t afford these costly methods stuck to rusty tones. Thus, lipstick was also a status symbol.

5. Ancient Greece and Lipstick

The practice of having colored lips have been around for a long time, which makes it challenging to go about fun lipstick facts without taking a trip back in time.

While other civilizations had their people wear lipsticks to show status and superiority, lipstick fell out of fashion in Ancient Greece. It was avoided by women of higher classes, while prostitutes were forced to use lipstick to separate them from the rest.

6. Lipstick, Religion, and Faith

When going through fun lipstick facts, we can find that they are riddled with different people’s thought processes at other times.

From being a status symbol in Ancient Egypt to a way of recognizing prostitutes in Ancient Greece, we come to the Middle Ages, where using lipstick was a symbol of worshiping Satan or being an incarnation of Satan. The Church in the middle ages prohibited the use of lipstick, saying it indicated resistance to God and his creation.

7. The Kiss of Death

Queen Elizabeth I, believed that lipstick had magical powers and the power to heal illnesses. This led to her heavy use of lipstick at times when she was ill.

However, many of the lipsticks made during those times contained lead, which would slowly poison the user and lead to death. The very irony of this found Queen Elizabeth I dead with half an inch of lipstick on her lips, this being called the ‘kiss of death.’

8. Boosting Enthusiasm During the War

Lipstick was produced even during WWII, as Winston Churchill felt that it boosted morale. It was one of the only industries to continue production in cosmetics while others were rationed.

9. So, When Did Men Stop Wearing Lipstick?

One of the most amusing and fun lipstick facts is that men also used to wear lipstick, especially during the Renaissance period. This trend came to an end during the French Revolution, when wearing lipstick came to be associated with supporting the aristocracy.

10. Can Lipstick Break Your Marriage?

Well, since we are on fun lipstick facts, we can see that there were some pretty weird rules and customs involving lipstick, some of them highly discriminatory. So was the case with a law in Pennsylvania in the 1700s, wherein if a woman used lipstick during courtship, you could get the marriage annulled.

11. Lipstick in Pots?

This is a fun lipstick fact that gives you an insight into how, the easy to carry lipstick tube you have today, came into being. Before the lipstick tubes that we have today, lipstick was stored in pots. They were eventually sold with a silk paper wrapping until Maurice Levy invented the metallic containers in 1915.

12. Lipstick and Women Empowerment

Red lipstick was distributed among suffragettes and used by them during their rallies as a symbol of their boldness and power. It soon became a part of their outfit/uniform as they noticed that the bold red seemed to intimidate men.

13. The Attention Grabber

According to a study conducted by scientists from the University of Manchester, it was observed that red lipsticks gain the most attention and catch the eye of the viewer, followed by pink lipstick when compared to bare lips.

14. The Right Time and Place To Wear Lipstick

At a time, lipstick and makeup were worn only at home. When makeup was starting to get accepted in public, it was said that lipstick could be used only during lunch, and not during dinner in public.

15. Kiss-Proof Lipstick

Hazel Bishop developed the first kiss-proof, long-lasting lipstick and sold them for $1 per tube in 1950. Her lipsticks came with the tag line, “It stays on YOU, Not on HIM!” They were made using molten wax, dye, and lanolin, and were guaranteed to not smear on your teeth, glasses, or cigarettes.

16. Lipstick in Television

This is another one of the fun lipstick facts that may be unknown to you. When black and white television was in use, the cameras had red filters, which made red lipstick or natural lip color look dull and pale. To get the necessary effect, actors used green lipstick.

17. Lipstick and Femininity

From women being forbidden to use lipstick, came the time when women were seen as mentally ill or lesbians if they did not wear lipstick. This was in the 1960s when lipsticks were a symbol of femininity and a woman wore lipstick primarily due to this reason.

18. Lipsticks That Sense Your Mood

The 1980s saw the rise of mood lipsticks that change color depending on the wearer’s mood. This was sold to adults, although it was earlier available as play makeup. The phenomenon behind this was the change in color due to a change in skin pH.

19. The Lip Gloss

How can we think about fun lipstick facts without talking about lip gloss? Lip gloss is a favorite among many lipstick users due to the shine they impart. The Max Factor Company introduced the first lip gloss in 1930 for commercial sale.

20. Are Lipsticks Still Poisonous?

Traces of lead are still found in lipsticks as contaminants, which affects the user’s health detrimentally. A study report called “A Poison Kiss” concluded that 61% of lipsticks contained toxic amounts of lead, out of the 33 brands they tested. This small content of lead could accumulate in the body and lead to eventual poisoning.

21. Lipstick Prints in Crime Scenes

From a lipstick print, it is possible to extract DNA in the saliva used in forensic investigations and studies.

22. The Lipstick Effect

This is an economic theory that said that in times of a financial crisis, consumers spend more on less expensive luxury items. This was also backed by the apparent rise in lipstick sales after the 9/11 attacks.

Another study conducted said that the lipstick effect results from the mating psychology of women, wherein they try to attract men/ mates and that the crisis is linked to this behavior.

23. How To Make Your Lipstick Last Longer

A lipstick’s life can be prolonged by storing it in a fridge, as they have an expiration date and may go rancid.

24. The Most Expensive Lipstick in the World

Guerlain is a French brand that produced the first-ever lipstick for commercial sale. At a whopping $62,000, Guerlain’s KissKiss Gold and Diamonds Lipstick is the most expensive lipstick in the world.

The price is mainly for the tube that holds the lipstick, which is 18K gold encrusted with 199 diamonds, and don’t worry, the tube is refillable, and this series offers 15 shades of lipstick.

25. Bad Weather? A Lipstick Might Help!

Confused? Well, lipstick may, after all, have a healing effect on your gloomy day. This makes its way into the fun lipstick facts as lipstick sales are seen to increase when the weather is bad, indicating that lipstick does bring in fun and cheerfulness!

From these fun lipstick facts and interesting facts too, it is evident that lipsticks have been since time unknown and have a rich history. While they indicated power and status in some places, they were also used to discriminate between different classes and professions.

Lipsticks production has grown from crushed beetles, ants, and gems to being made from wax and dye; the famous smudge-proof lipsticks soon came into being, and lipsticks were seen as a symbol of femininity.

While arousing our interests, these fun lipstick facts have also taken us through how the use of lipstick was judged through time and the expectations and notions of people regarding the use of lipstick. In the end, what matters is what you are comfortable with, whether that is going bare, choosing a bold red, a shocking pink, or a daring purple shade, whatever works for you!

Sreelakshmy