National Lipstick Day: 29 July 2017

National Lipstick Day is celebrated in America annually on 29 July. It promotes the use of lipstick as a beautification cosmetic and lip protector.

In 1650 the American Parliament attempted to ban lipstick – the ‘vice of painting’ – but the bill did not pass. Although the British Parliament banned lipstick in 1770 as a ‘devilish attempt to trick men into marriage’ it is now popular as an everyday cosmetic item. Research in the mid 2000s indicated that 80% of American women wear lipstick, and 70% of French women wore it.

In the Roman Empire lipstick was commonly worn by both males and females as an indicator of social status. Even George Washington wore it sometimes, with make-up and a wig.

Queen Elizabeth II has her own shade of lipstick, called The Balmoral Lipstick, created for her 1952 Coronation.

Many cosmetic companies offer reduced prices on lipstick to celebrate the national day.

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

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