Brilliantine is a hair-grooming product intended to soften men's hair, including beards and moustaches, and give it a glossy, well-groomed appearance. It was created at the turn of the 20th century by French perfumer
Édouard Pinaud
Édouard Pinaud (29 December 1810 – 2 October 1868) was a French businessman who founded the Ed. Pinaud perfume house and cosmetics company in 1830.
Leaving home at age 13 for Cologne, Pinaud sought to become an apprentice in perfumery. In 1 ...
(a.k.a. Ed. Pinaud). In English-speaking markets Pinaud's name is associated with the Clubman tradename in men's toiletries. He presented a product he called ''Brillantine'' (from the French meaning "brilliant") at the 1900 ''
Exposition Universelle'' in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
. It consisted of a
perfume
Perfume (, ; french: parfum) is a mixture of fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agreeable scent. T ...
d and colored oily liquid.
''Brillantine'' was used as the French title for the film ''
Grease'' in
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirteen ...
,
Canada.
See also
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Brylcreem
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Brylcreem () is a British brand of hair styling products for men. The first Brylcreem product was a hair cream created in 1928 by County Chemicals at the Chemico Works in Bradford Street, Birmingham, England, and is the flagship produ ...
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Hair conditioner
Hair conditioner is a hair care cosmetic product used to improve the feel, texture, appearance, and manageability of hair. Its main purpose is to reduce friction between strands of hair to allow smoother brushing or combing, which might otherwise ...
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Pomade
Pomade (; French ''pommade'') or pomatum is a greasy, waxy, or water-based substance that is used to style hair. Pomade generally gives the user's hair a shiny and slick appearance. It lasts longer than most hair-care products, and often re ...
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Macassar oil
Macassar oil is a compounded oil that was used primarily by Western European men throughout the 1800s and early 1900s as a hair conditioner to groom and style the hair.
It was popularised by Alexander Rowland (1747–1823), a celebrated London b ...
References
{{Reflist
Hair care products
Products introduced in 1900