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THE
MASCARA MASQUERADE
Watch
out for this season’s revival of the mascara...as
you’ve never seen it before. Electric blue,
white and purple put a twist to lashes on the
Grey Ant and Erin Fetherston catwalks, setting
the trend for coloured mascaras and spicing
up the look for a neon ball.
TEXT
SHAKILA RAJENDRA
FLASH LASH
It
all kicked off when early Victorians, who abhorred
excessive use of makeup but used discreet enhancers,
rubbed castor oil and beads of hot wax onto
the ends of their lashes to make their eyes
look wider. Then, petroleum jelly was patented
in 1872 and quickly became a beauty favourite
as it intensely glossed and plumped the lashes.
Around the same time Eugene Rimmel invented
the first mascara product and to this day lends
his name to mean mascara in several languages.
Made from wax and coloured pigments which are
then raked through the lashes to emphasise,
thicken, and lengthen lashes, mascaras have
evolved into waterproof and multi-coloured forms
and have gone through many a makeover in terms
of its applicators and compositions.
The real evolution of mascara took off in 1913
when T.L. Williams created mascara with coal
dust and Vaseline petroleum jelly. He named
the product after his sister Mabel, giving birth
to the leading brand in cosmetics, Maybelline.
When actress Greta Garbo darkened her pale,
barely-there lashes on film, it provoked many
women to follow suit; some with deadly consequences
as a hair dye ingredient, aniline, used in mascaras
caused many women to go blind.
Today, mascaras have evolved past those dangerous
forms and are made from synthetic materials.
The latest craze for coloured mascaras was introduced
on runways a few seasons back with Dior models
sporting blue lashes and Gucci lashes tinted
gold. The intensity of a coloured lash is no
more apparent than at the Grey Ant runways where
the contrast between dark eyes and neon blue
makes a standout statement.
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The complete article appears
in the April issue of Marie Claire.
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