What The Rise Of Men’s Makeup Means For Masculinity

“Beauty is about style. It knows no gender.” So proclaims the press release announcing Chanel’s first line of makeup for men, Boy de Chanel. Named for Coco Chanel’s lover Boy Capel, the line launched in September in South Korea and comes to stores in the U.S. in 2019. The line may be capitalizing on a growing trend. Some believe that makeup for men is becoming more and more mainstream, buoyed by makeovers on Queer Eye and an expansive attitude toward masculinity among American youth. Makeup and skincare for men are now not just accepted, but seen as tools men should use “to practice self-care, but also just to look and feel better,” David Yi, founder of the men’s beauty site Very Good Light, told Vox. Men’s makeup is far from a new phenomenon. Male courtiers in 18th-century Europe wore it, and as Yi points out, cosmetics are already popular among men in South Korea. But in the US, men have traditionally shunned makeup. Read more at Vox.