Face Paint by Lisa Eldridge

Face Paint: The Story of Makeup by Lisa Eldridge ISBN-13: 9781419717963 Hardcover: 240 pages Publisher: Abrams Image Released: Oct. 13, 2015

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Makeup, as we know it, has only been commercially available in the last 100 years, but applying decoration to the face and body may be one of the oldest global social practices. In Face Paint, Lisa Eldridge reveals the entire history of the art form, from Egyptian and Classical times up through the Victorian age and golden era of Hollywood, and also surveys the cutting-edge makeup science of today and tomorrow.

Face Paint explores the practical and idiosyncratic reasons behind makeup’s use, the actual materials employed over generations, and the glamorous icons that people emulate and how they achieved their effects. An engaging history of style, it is also a social history of women and the ways in which we can understand their lives through the prism and impact of makeup.


My Review:
Face Paint is an overview of the use of makeup throughout history. The author mainly focused on the last 120 years, but she included a brief survey of the use of makeup throughout history in Europe, the Middle East, and the Far East.

The first section focused on makeup in ancient to recent history and included what types of ingredients were used as pigments, what tools were used to apply makeup, and trends in what part of the face was painted. But she didn't include details like actual historical recipes with directions. The rest of the book focused on the rise of mass-produced makeup. She described the origins of the first makeup brands, how trends were made, and changes that were made to improve products. She covered the history of commercial mascara, eye shadow, nail polish, lip stick, blush, powder & foundation, and bronzer.

The book contained many full-color photographs, including pictures of different products and historical ads. She also included many pictures of trend-setting women throughout history paired with short biographies. I'd recommend this book to people interested in trends in wearing makeup throughout history and how its use became so common in the last 120 years.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.