"Even women who don't wear makeup wear lipstick. It's the one cosmetic we can't live without- and can't seem to get enough of. (...) It has the highest usage of any cosmetic product."
..."when food and other daily necessities were scarce, women still found money for the single cosmetic that would boost their morale."
"It makes a woman feel like a woman"
"I never leave home without my swiss army knife and a tube of lipstick. As far as I'm concerned it's the only two weapons a woman needs. The knife I seldom use- the presence in my bag is mostly symbolic. The lipstick, on the other hand, truly empowers me. (...) Just try this test: at the end of a meal in a restaurant, ansentmindedly reach for your lipstick, uncap it with a quicknudge, twist the wand out of its cartridge, and stare at it briefly. You'd think you pulled a gun. All eyes are on you."
"Silenced for centuries, women have learned to wield their lipsticks as a substitute for speech."
(Introduction, Veronique Vienne, Read My Lips, A Cultural History of Lipstick, Meg Cohen Ragas & Karen Kozlowski.)
