Moustache Cups

Victorian gentlemen took great pride in their appearance, and the fashion for elaborate moustaches led to the development of a variety of products aimed at keeping them in immaculate condition. Often, wax was melted and applied to the moustache to keep the curled ends in place.

However, this practice was incompatible with the social habit of tea drinking. The steam tended to melt the wax, and light coloured moustaches became stained by the tea.

As the popularity of the moustache movement grew, it became seen as a symbol of masculinity. By 1860, the British Army had made moustaches a compulsory requirement. It was during this decade that the Englishman Harvey Adams is believed to have devised an unusual and innovative remedy – the moustache cup. This was a cup with a ledge called a ‘Moustache Guard’ across the inside. The guard has a semi-circular opening against the side of the cup to allow the tea to reach the lips. This idea rapidly spread to America and Europe, with many different patents being registered.

The popularity of male facial hair started to wane by the end of the 19th century, and by 1901, King C. Gillette had created the disposable razor blade. This revolutionised the male grooming industry, and being clean-shaven started to creep back into fashion.

Another factor in the decline of the moustache came with the advent of the First World War and the need for soldiers to wear gas masks. Facial hair made it difficult to create a good seal around the mask, and so by 1916, the British Army had decided it would no longer be an enforced requirement.

The vogue for moustache cups came to an end in about the 1920s when moustaches themselves fell from fashion.