There is a significant difference between cosmetics and paint; cosmetics are described as various potions mainly from plants, fruits, vegetables and other natural ingredients which generally helped the health and natural appearance of the skin and hair whereas paint referred to the mineral substances that were often poisonous which were applied to the skin, these could change the appearance of the person who wore them. In short cosmetics were approved of, whereas paint was condemned.
In northern Europe there was very male attitudes towards women wearing make-up, the thought of it pandered to masculine pride and lead to the fear of female power. It was viewed as a corruption of natures handiwork to apply makeup and cosmetics and was constantly being debated by moralists, this was very different to the women in Italy, these women were very liberal in the application of their makeup often staining their eyelids, lips and cheeks with colour. It was refreshing to see women in England with bare faces, women would aim to keep their faces supple with lotions made from cold cream, this was said to be a recipe created by Greek physicians in the second century. An emulsion of oil & water melted with bees wax and scented was applied to cloths and placed on the forehead to remove wrinkles.
Another cosmetic cream that was made was rose-water this was a lotion made from camphor roots, egg whites, mustard mixed with honey, urine (or to us urea which is still commonly used in antiperspirants, moisturisers, mouthwashes and shampoo's, in modern times it is usually synthetic, but it used because it is known to absorb, attract and retain water and also contains multiple vitamins).
Although women during this time took a great deal of time trying to keep their skin nice, there was a huge problem with decaying teeth, people would boil rose petals in white wine and swill their mouth with it to freshen their breath, bad teeth during this time usually occurred through the English's love of sugar, but it was also caused through the use of paints. To try and counteract this the teeth were cleaned with cloth and mouthwashes were made out of honey mixed with vinegar, white wine, strawberry water, powdered tree bark, powdered alum and even sulphuric acid or at the other end of the scale some people would hold precious gems in their mouth in belief that it would freshen their breath. The thing that is concerning about these products used is how some of the substances are either highly corrosive, or are full of sugar, so these would do the opposite to the teeth, this resulted in teeth falling out, if you were affluent teeth would often be replaced with new ones made out of bone or ivory, however if you were poor they were often made out of wood and these replacements resulted in problems speaking.
In regards to paint, this was often really dangerous, ceruse was one of the most popular thing to use on the face, this was made by exposing lead plates to the vapour of vinegar, it was so popular as it went on smoothly and adhered to the skin, it is such a dangerous thing to use because lead is poisonous, it lead to lead poisoning, hair loss, muscle paralysis and also deteriorated peoples mental conditions. When lead was applied it corroded the skin as a result this would leave the skin unattractive so thicker and thicker layers had to be applied each time. Although lead has been known to be a highly dangerous substance it is still used in modern day cosmetics, tests commissioned by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics found that two thirds of top selling red lipsticks still contain lead and also is found in every brand of kids face paints.
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Fenja Gunn. ( 1973.). Late Fifteenth and Sixteenth Centuries. In: Hippocrene Books The Artificial Face: a History of Cosmetics. New York: Hippocrene Books. p70 - 88
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