How I Became “The Lipstick Witch”

Often when we think of a talisman or a magical object, it is this crazy rare, hard-to-obtain, coveted object. Something like The Heart Of The Ocean, The El Corazon, The Lamp, The Stone, The Sword, or whatever Indiana Jones and Alan Quartemaine went out to get all those times at the temple in the jungle.

I always knew lipstick was a significant object in my life but more recently, I have had the opportunity to understand how much something seemingly so simple, has shaped who I am.

One of the first memories in my life is of my Grandma, putting on a hot pink lipstick in the bathroom mirror. I loved watching the transformation that occurred within her as she applied it, she went from a busy housewife to a confident woman in a matter of seconds.

My grandma was raised by working-class parents in the 1930s and 40s in a family-owned grocery store. From what she shared with me, it seemed like her mother and grandmother were very no-nonsense, no-frills, lots of strict rules. There were very few if any, luxuries in the early years of her life.

In her teenage years, she was introduced to makeup through a girlfriend in school who had given her a bright pink sample-size lipstick from AVON and when she put it on her lips she instantly felt pretty, powerful, mature, and confident.

My grandmother fell in love with the way that little lipstick made her feel and she kept it hidden from her family. Every morning as she walked to school she would sneak over to a corner somewhere and put a little bit on, then wipe it off on the way home.

This lipstick was nothing more than a little bit of colored wax in a plastic receptacle, but it came to be a magical, life-altering talisman for generations to come.

Fast forward to the late 1950s, my grandma was married with three sons. As the children got older, her anxiety became unmanageable alone. She was encouraged by her doctor to find something to distract her mind and have some fun.

Enter AVON.

My grandma hardly wore any makeup, but she loved her hot pink lipstick., and over the span of 20 years, my grandma was a successful AVON consultant.

She had a home decorated with limited-edition perfume bottles in different themes, and commemorative plates for all seasons to demonstrate her love of her job.

In the 1980s, she would recruit my stepmom to join. I was basically raised on AVON.

There was always Skin So Soft in every form in my house, and we always had colored bath roll-ons and got everything “on-demo” so we could let customers test, and then we got to try.

I was literally dying to wear makeup and perfume, but most especially, lipstick. The rule in my house was no makeup until I was 16, which seemed like, forever.

When I was 12, AVON came out with a tinted lip balm called Slick-Tint, and I thought for sure this was going to be allowed. But alas, I was told no.

On my 13th birthday, I got my very own Slick-Tint, in Bubble Gum, and it was the crowing joy of my existence. Before I knew it, I owned them all.

Here is where I should rewind to about 1980, back to the memory of grandma putting on her pink lipstick, before we “putted off to the store” as she would say, in her green VW bug.

I watched her put that lipstick on, and I wanted it too. I am not sure how I verbalized it because I was 2 or 3, but I got the point across. She would neatly roll back the golden tube and gently pat it on my lips. Then show me the mirror and say“pretty”.

I think this worked a couple of times but I recognized quickly that I wasn’t getting any payoff, and became insistent about getting actual lipstick on my lips.

That Christmas I got my lipstick, in a plastic vanity set from my grandma.

Even though this lipstick did not transfer, I gleefully ran that angled tip over my lips and the lips of anyone who would let me.

From that point on, I was obsessed with beauty and just could not wait to wear makeup and perfume.

When I was 12, my grandma taught me how to use Jergen’s cold cream properly to clean my face. She explained that washing your face at night is an important priority, as “we need to keep our face clean to prevent blemishes.” I was ecstatic to be in the face-washing club, and even more thrilled later that year to receive a bottle of Baby Soft and Sweet Honesty perfumes.

But still, I was literally DYING to wear lipstick, and that never ended until I turned 16 and got to finally, try some on.

Growing up immersed in the world of beauty, was really inspiring to me.

As a teenager, I became the hair and makeup girl for theater and experimented with white eyeliner, dark lip liner, re-shaping my brows to nothingness, butterfly clips, and glitter gel.

I adored the tinsey fruit sprays that fit in my mini backpack from Bath & Body Works and Dr. Pepper Lip Gloss. I thought about becoming a fashion designer or cosmetician.

In the early 2000s, I found myself in an esthetician school. Which I loved, but my favorite classes were when the makeup artist would come to class to teach us. I eventually took her private classes outside of the school.

Once I got my license, I started my career in skincare, but the second my foot hit the Department Store tile my love affair with cosmetics reignited in full force.

I spent 12 years on that tile, learning as many products and techniques as I could, making over moms, grandmas, prom dates, graduating seniors, laughing, and connecting with my co-workers over lipstick.

After spending 12 years on the store tile, I went to work in Education for a major cosmetics brand, and I spent 8 years there, writing education content, training global leads, and executing education events and programs.

Posing with my fragrance certification when I worked in retail

Even though I loved my job, I always dreamed of the day I could do the work I was doing and be 100% myself, authentically.

In addition to becoming lipstick-obsessed at an early age, I also had many psychic and supernatural experiences. When I was 14, I re-connected with my mom and she validated that these senses were real and inherited and taught me to read tarot. Tarot led me to study witchcraft and magic and I practiced on and off from then on.

As an adult, I became busy and preoccupied in my life and did not have as much time for my spirituality and tarot, but I would still read for myself and close family or friends from time to time.

As my daughter got older and I began to have more time for myself, I started connecting more with my spirituality again, taking classes on mediumship and energy healing, and it honestly felt like I was coming home to myself.

Eventually, I began to read tarot professionally, and shortly after, I learned about lip print reading. Instantly, I knew this unique service was my calling.

Almost immediately, I began studying Lipsology to learn the art and science of reading lip prints and became a professionally trained Lipsologist.

During my studies, I quickly realized that I was intuitively blending the technique of Lipsology with my psychic abilities, creating my own unique reading style.

Looking back now, it is amazing to see how Lipstick has literally shaped my life.

About six months ago, a friend and fellow medium reached out with a message from my grandmother. She said she was proud of me and the fact that she started me on this journey, and that it is time for me to step into my big-ness and be who I am destined to be.

As I let her words digest over the following days I began to understand that what my grandmother had bestowed upon me was not just a love of beauty and a desire to help others see their own beauty, but a transformative & magical tool, that has shaped and transformed my life.

She taught me that something so seemingly regular, can be important and life-altering, and I am so proud and grateful to have been born, a lipstick witch. 💋

Beautiful Talisman

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