How beauty trends like contouring & baking owe their origins to Drag makeup

Despite social media teeming with beauty educators today, there’s little conversation about the origins of the makeup practices that are popular among makeup-wearers. Techniques like contouring, baking, lip-overlining didn't appear out of thin air. Often seen as elements of the mid-2010s' “Instagram makeup” style, they are actually staples in, and originated from, Drag makeup.

From contouring to baking, drag makeup trends popular today

Most people will be surprised at how many makeup techniques originated from Drag makeup.

For instance, nearly everyone overlines their lips today, from Sabrina Carpenter to Kendall Jenner. But mainstream beauty channels will tell you that Kylie Jenner started the trend in 2014. However, the reality is that Drag queens had been overlining their lips for decades before that. Of course, film actresses in the thirties also overlined their lips. But, not in the way that we see today.

That’s not all. Contouring—something people think Kim Kardashian invented—was done by Drag queens much before that. The same goes for baking with loose powder, and the “full beat” look that blew up in 2015.

Then there are those ombre brows we see online, where the front of the brow is light and the tail of the brow is darker. That’s also a trick used in Drag makeup! Plus, the cut-creases we thought were invented by beauty creators on Instagram in 2015, have been a fixture of Drag makeup for quite some time, as have large faux lashes.

Why Drag queens did the makeup they did

There were several reasons Drag queens incorporated these specific makeup techniques into their routines. Most of the time, Drag makeup was done prior to shows. So, queens set out to create performance makeup that would work under stage lights, be visible from far away, and stay on throughout the night. In addition to that, this makeup was meant to feminise masculine-looking features. Last but not least, Drag queens also had to exude an aura of exaggerated glamour.

So, baking with loose powder helped set the makeup in place, making it last really long, so sweat and oil wouldn’t ruin the look in the middle of a Drag show.

Plus, both heavy baking and contouring helped sculpt the face and create sharp dimension. This would create an illusion of a different kind of bone structure, by creating contrasting shadows, with dark contour and pale powder. That changed the appearance of one’s features, especially under bright stage lights.

Similarly, lips were overlined to emphasise that pouty, hyper-feminine glamour that was central to a Drag look. Brows were blocked, shaded, and sculpted for all these reasons, too. The centre of the face was supposed to be lighter, and the sides darker, to give a heart-shaped look to the face. That’s why the brows were lighter towards the front, and the centre of the face was highlighted with pale powders. The high arch of the brow also helped amplify expressions during performances.

Bold, fluttery eyelashes were used for two reasons. First and foremost, these changed the shape of the eyes. Secondly, these could be seen from far away when a queen performed on stage. The cut-crease eyeshadow looks also added dimension to the eyes, making them look bigger and rounder, and sometimes giving a doll-like appearance.

Why is Drag makeup’s contribution to beauty not recognised?

Even today, when there has been significant conversation on the origins of these makeup trends, Drag artists still don’t get credit where it’s due. There are makeup gurus like Trixie Mattel and Kim Chi who have helped popularise Drag makeup. We’ve also seen makeup collections inspired by Drag being launched by brands like Lunar Beauty. Of course, there’s also the popularity of 'RuPaul’s Drag Race’. Despite all this recognition, though, Drag makeup is still stigmatised, and social biases lead to the marginalisation of queens.

So, ironically, men who do Drag makeup are mocked, sidelined, and shamed for it. But when cis-het women -- or women who identify with the gender they were assigned at birth-- appropriate the same makeup looks, everyone applauds. This makes it clear that society expects women to wear makeup, and discourages men from doing so.

That’s probably why, even today, society isn’t ready to acknowledge the many LGBTQIA+ pioneers who transformed the beauty industry. These are the people who taught the world a lot of the tips and tricks popular today. So, the question that remains, is: Why is society ever-ready to borrow from Drag culture, but afraid of recognising LGBTQIA+ peoples' contributions to art and culture?