Shopping bag.

It wasn’t until December of 2002 that the nascent superstar came up with the name Dita Von Teese, a persona she created to accompany her long coveted spread in Playboy. She chose “Dita” as an homage to Dita Parlo, the 1920s silent film actress, but the surname “Von Teese” was more of a happy accident. It was originally Von Treese—a name she plucked from the phonebook—until an editor at Playboy made the all-too-appropriate typo. The name stuck.

In short order, Dita Von Teese became an international sensation, parlaying her success as a performer and trendsetter into a booming business. She has designed lingerie and loungewear collections, created makeup and perfume lines, and written books that celebrate women and offer fresh perspectives on traditional notions of beauty. On the pages of glossy magazines and fashionable websites, she is unmistakable. You won’t see Von Teese out and about without her signature look: a feline flick, crimson lips, and her striking blue-black cheveux, always perfectly coiffed. She still does her own hair, makeup, and styling, and she takes great care of her alabaster skin. The only mark upon her body is a tattooed beauty spot at the top of her left cheekbone—a nod to the sultry starlets of Hollywood’s Golden Age.

Ask her about red lipstick and the sex symbol opines with scholarly precision. There is matte, which she prefers, or glossy. There is blue-red and orange-red, which she likens to a tomato and says is best kept for the summertime. Then there is the semi-permanent Lip-Ink, a product praised by thespians and porn stars alike. Her favorite red is her own, “Von Teese” by MAC, which is already sold out in Europe; other reliable options include Maybelline’s “Red Revival” and YSL’s “Rouge Pur Couture.” She refuses to be seen without a splash of one of the aforementioned hues. For Dita, red means go.

All of this and more can be found in Von Teese’s latest book, which delves into the history of makeup, the tricks of the trade, skincare, nutrition, and plastic surgery. Her aim, she says, is to celebrate beauty in all of its diversity. Von Teese insists that she doesn’t want readers to recreate the looks that work for her, but rather, to embrace their own innate sense of style and self-expression.

“I remember watching ‘Phil Donahue’ when I was younger and being disappointed by the makeover specials,” Von Teese says. “They would take these truly exquisite women who had maintained their hair and makeup routines for 20 to 30 years and give them a 1980s revamp. I always cringed at the uncomfortable expression on their faces when their makeovers were unveiled.”