Cosmetics came into the mainstream. Respectable women now wore rouge and powder, and in doing so, claimed themselves as sexual, attractive beings without sacrificing their good name.
Makeup was simple: pale powder and cream rouge circles on the cheek-apples; brows plucked and penciled in thin arches; lips were painted very red, emphasizing the Cupid's bow of the upper lip, and de-emphasizing the width of the lower lip, creating a rosebud pout. These "bee-stung" lips are unmistakeably characteristic of the 1920s. They could change their appearance subtly or drastically. By 1929, women were using an average of a pound of powder a year on their faces.