In America, lipstick was originally made from an extract of ground-up insects and was applied with a brush.

In the late 19th century, lipstick was made from carmine dye, an extract of mashed up insects. At this time, the wearing of lipstick was considered to be fairly taboo unless the person happened to be an actor or actress. 

However, using the word "lipstick" is probably a misnomer since lip coloring during this era was sold in tinted papers or paper tubes. The more convenient push-up tubes that we are familiar with were not made available until about 1915! 


source: OMG