Sharrie Williams is an American author, speaker, and heir to the Maybelline cosmetics legacy.

Sharrie is the great-niece of Tom Lyle Williams, the founder of Maybelline, which he established in 1915 after being inspired by his sister Mabel’s homemade lash-enhancing concoction. Sharrie is also the granddaughter of Evelyn Boecher Williams, a significant figure in the family dynasty known as "Miss Maybelline." Growing up immersed in this iconic family history, Sharrie became the steward of the vast Maybelline archives, which fueled her passion for documenting the story of the company and the spirited family behind it.

Her most prominent work, The Maybelline Story and the Spirited Family Dynasty Behind It, published in 2010 with Bettie Youngs Books, chronicles the rise of Maybelline from a small mail-order business to a global cosmetics giant. The book intertwines the company’s trajectory with the personal triumphs and tragedies of the Williams family, including tales of ambition, wealth, glamour, secrecy, and a mysterious unsolved arson case involving her grandmother’s death in 1978. Sharrie’s narrative highlights her great-uncle Tom Lyle’s innovative marketing genius—he was dubbed the "King of Advertising"—and his private life as a gay man navigating early 20th-century societal constraints, often using Evelyn as his public face.

Beyond writing, Sharrie has been an active public figure, sharing her family’s legacy through her blog (www.maybellinebook.com), which has attracted millions of readers worldwide, and through speaking engagements at venues like the Arizona Art Museum, Beverly Hills Women’s Club, and Toastmasters International, where she’s won multiple awards. Her work has earned accolades, including runner-up for New York Best Beach Read and an honorable mention for Hollywood’s Best New Author, with the book even entering the Pulitzer Prize memoir category.

Sharrie’s personal journey is as compelling as her family’s saga. Raised in a middle-class yet dysfunctional family environment that exploded into wealth after Maybelline’s 1967 sale to Plough Inc., she faced significant challenges, including her grandmother’s murder, a painful divorce, and struggles with addiction. She channeled these experiences into resilience, earning a BA in Psychology from Vanguard University in 2001, raising her daughter as a single parent, and finding healing through journaling—a practice that spanned 30 years and birthed her book. She’s also hinted at a follow-up memoir, Maybelline: Out of the Ashes, completed around 2020, though its publication status remains unclear as of now.

On X, under the handle

@SWMaybelline

, Sharrie often posts lighthearted updates about her life with her dogs, Leo the Lab and Mixi, blending her personal quirks with nods to her heritage. Her posts reflect a playful yet reflective spirit, like her recent musings on nature and family from February 2025. Sharrie’s life and work embody a blend of historical preservation, personal redemption, and a continued celebration of the Maybelline name, which today thrives under L’Oréal Paris.

What is The Maybelline Story about

The Maybelline family history is deeply intertwined with the foundation and growth of the Maybelline cosmetics company, established by Tom Lyle Williams in 1915. Here's a comprehensive overview based on available sources:

Origins and Founding:

• Tom Lyle Williams founded Maybelline after being inspired by his sister Mabel's beauty hack of using a mixture of Vaseline and coal dust to enhance her eyelashes after an accidental burn. This led to the creation of Lash-Brow-Ine, the precursor to Maybelline Cake Mascara, which was the world's first modern eye cosmetic.

   Dynamics and Business Growth:
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• The Williams family was central to Maybelline's operations, with various family members playing significant roles. Tom Lyle's sister Mabel married Chet Hewes, who handled manufacturing. Their family expanded, with Mabel becoming a loving matriarch known as "Auntie Mabel." Eva, another of TJ and Susan's children, married Ches Haines, who was in charge of transportation at the company.

  The family's history is rich with tales of love, betrayal, and the pursuit of beauty and perfection, as chronicled by Sharrie Williams, Tom Lyle's great-niece, in her book "The Maybelline Story and the Spirited Family Dynasty Behind It." The narrative includes the family's journey from Morganfield, Kentucky, to the glamour of Hollywood.
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Cultural and Historical Context:

• Tom Lyle Williams was a pioneering gay entrepreneur in an era when being openly homosexual could end one's career. His personal life, including his relationship with Emery Shaver, was kept under wraps, reflecting the societal norms of the time. This aspect of his life was largely untold until after his death in 1976.

  
  

Legacy and Sale:

• Maybelline remained a family-run business until Tom Lyle sold it to Plough Inc. in 1967, a decision he later regretted. The company is now part of L'Oréal and known as "Maybelline New York."

   Lyle's legacy was also in branding and marketing, making Maybelline one of the first cosmetics brands to use radio advertisements, before and after photos in ads, and celebrity endorsements.
• Literary Contributions:

• Sharrie Williams, through her book and blog, provides an in-depth look into the family's history, detailing not only the business aspects but also the personal stories that shaped the Maybelline legacy. Her work has been instrumental in preserving the family's story, despite some family members having mixed feelings about the public disclosure of personal details.

  
  

Cultural Impact:

• The Maybelline story reflects broader themes of American entrepreneurship, the cultural significance of beauty, and the challenges of maintaining a family business through various economic and social changes.

  

  This narrative encapsulates the journey of a family that not only built a cosmetics empire but also navigated the complexities of personal identity, family dynamics, and historical change.