The perfect shade of nude lipstick is a beauty staple that can be quite tricky to find. Despite looking for a shade that closely matches the natural lip colour, it is very easy to end up with the wrong kind of nude that makes you look more washed out and ghost-like than classy.

With summer officially over, I am looking for a break from my pink comfort zone and in the market for a more autumnal look. I think I may have found a helping hand in the recently launched L’Oreal Collection Privee.

I read earlier that this week marked the 130th anniversary of modern day lipstick. Given that lipstick is a beauty staple for women across the world, I thought it might be fun to dig deeper into the history of this miracle worker and share some little known facts with all of you.

• Lipsticks made out of colourful fruit and plant juices have been used by women since prehistoric times
• In ancient Mesopotamia, women used to grind gemstones and use the dust to decorate their lips with sparkles.
• Cleopatra is known to have used a mixture of beetle and ant juice to colour her lips red – Yikes!