No other person in the history of movies, television, makeup, and beauty has has such a strong and lasting influence on not just the film industry, but on the way women buy and use cosmetics to this very day. From the films of DeMille and Goldwyn to the pegs at your local Walmart, Max Factor's genius has touched the faces of glamourous Hollywood actresses and middle-aged Ohio ladies and just about every person who has ever touched a cosmetic to her face. Or his face.

Factor was a Jewish Polish immigrant who got his start at a very young age when he made wigs and did makeup for the Imperial Russian Grand Opera in the late 1800's, where his talents caught the eye of the Czar and his court. He escaped the control of the aristocracy by secreting his wife and children out of Russia and onto a ship headed to the United States, started a small cosmetic firm with a partner he met on the ship, and shortly afterwards had the entire business stolen from him by that partner. He moved his family to California where he began to work in films, creating products that filled the needs of the advancing technology of filmmaking. His first invention was the natural hairline wig, stitched onto a base of lace, and the rest is great film history.

Today, to waste time and not study, I decided to take an account of all of the makeup I keep in my handy-dandy makeup drawer. The results are thus:

Face

- Physician's Formula Gentle Cover Concealer in Yellow

- Maybelline Express Makeup in Nude

- Maybelline Wonder Finish in Light-3

- Physician's Formula Mineral Wear Loose Powder, mixed Translucent Light and Creamy Natural

- Maybelline PurePowder Light

- Physician's Formula Powder Palette Blush in Blushing Natural

- Physician's Formula Powder Palette Blush in Blushing Peach

Eyes

- Vital Radiance Smoothing Eye Primer

- L'Oreal Wear Infinite Eye Shadow Quad in Smokey Eyes

- Physician's Formula Mineral Wear Duo Eyeshadow in Taupe Minerals

- Cadette Colorworks Collection (18 shades)

- MONO Viva Diva Collection (9 shades)

- Cinema Beaute Star Lites Eyeshadow Collection (8 shades)

- Revlon EyeGlide Shimmer Shadow in Charcoal

- Physician's Formula Eyebrightener Eyeliner in Metallic Black

- Maybelline Line Stylist in Onyx

- The Body Shop Eye Definer in Blue Smoke

- The Body Shop Eye Definer in Black

- Rimmel Special Eyes in Forest Green

- Physician's Formula Lash-In-A-Tube in Black

- Physician's Formula To Any Lengths Mascara in Midnight Black

- L'Oreal Waterproof Voluminous in Black Brown

- Maybelline Unstoppable Mascara in Soft Black

Lips

- Princess Livia Lip Primer (missing sticker, but I know the tube :D)

- Sally Hansen Invisible Lip Liner

- Rimmel 1000 Kisses Lip Liner in Risque

- Rimmel 1000 Kisses Lip Liner in Wild Clover

- Physician's Formula Plump Palette in Nudes (4 shades)

- Maybelline Superstay Lipcolor in 780

- Covergirl Outlast Double LipShine in Sleek Suede

- L'Oreal Endless Kissable Shinewear in French Toast

- L'Oreal Endless Kissable Shinewear in Buff Naked

- Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick in Boudoir

- Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick in Fudge Brownie

- Victoria's Secret Mouth-Watering Lip Gloss, I have no idea what the shade is called but it is blue

- Sally Hansen LipInflation

- Sally Hansen LipInflation in Sheer Blush

The surprises are that I have a lot more lip stuff than I'd thought. And also, I am not allowed to purchase another piece unless it is to replace something that needs to be tossed--and, my goodness, I do not need more than two mascaras. I don't care that I long for waterproof black and waterproof brown; I can just always get waterproof from now on if I really must be so smudge-free. Oh good gravy. And also, my favorite products are Physician's Formula, except for lips, where, surprisingly, Rimmel takes it.

Now to 'go back to studying.' Oh, look, Claudia Black is on the Dresden Files.