cosmetic vs war paint

cosmetic

noun
  • Any substances applied to enhance the external color or texture of the skin, e.g. lipstick, eyeshadow, eyeliner; makeup. 

  • An intangible influence that improves the overall perception of some thing or situation. 

  • A feature existing only on the surface. 

adj
  • External or superficial; pertaining only to the surface or appearance of something. 

  • Imparting or improving beauty, particularly the beauty of the complexion. 

war paint

noun
  • Cosmetics, makeup. 

  • Pigments ritually applied to the face and/or body (originally and still especially of a Native American warrior) prior to going into a battle. 

How often have the words cosmetic and war paint occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )