The Origins of Nail Polish

Nail polish is definitely a beauty staple and it actually has been around for centuries. Researchers believe nail polish originated in China over 5000 years ago. Chinese royalty wore gold and silver polish and it was used to distinguish the ruling class from the general population. In fact, there are even reports of public execution of common people who were caught with colored nails!

From China nail polish spread across the continents and became popular in Northern Africa. In ancient Egypt, the lower classes wore pale colors, while the upper classes painted their nails reddish brown with henna. Mummified pharaohs often had henna painted nails.

Nail polish, as we know it today, was not developed until the 1920's and the first nail polish patent was in 1919. Before that, women painted their nails with car paint! In 1932, @Revlon established the first nail polish brand. The first color was a neutral cream - which is one of my favorite nail colors. I am so old school!