“She’s wearing way too much make-up.”
“Boys like a girl that looks natural.”
“That doesn’t even look like her, this shouldn’t be allowed.”
These phrases, and many more like them, are ones that I hear almost every day. As I’m sitting on the bus going to campus, as I’m checking my newsfeed on platforms such as Twitter and Facebook –vines, blog posts, memes and every day conversations seem to center around, at least at one point in the day, the topic of make-up. More specifically, about the women (and men) who are wearing their “full face” that day.
Over the course of the last few years, make-up tutorials have taken up the majority of social media. Beauty gurus have started Instagram accounts, highlighting (make-up pun intended) their favorite products and ways to use them, thus making them sensations overnight. Make-up has changed drastically in recent years along with the drastic changes to social media, and while this gains opportunity, this also opens windows for continued ridicule from thousands of anonymous voices. These voices carry out a stigma that comes with make-up and those who wear it. This stigma involves the belief that those who wear make-up are insecure about how they actually look, that they are wearing make-up only with the intention to impress a significant other, or that they use it because they are ashamed of what they were born with. Make-up has been thought of as a physical “lie” that people wear and becomes source of judgment, causing many to be ashamed for their love of wearing it.
There is so much wrong with that stigma. Make-up is so much more than just some products people put on their face to look “pretty”. It is a form of self-expression. It is a lifestyle and a hobby that people find themselves lost in. It is something that most people who choose to wear make-up find to be relaxing and exhilarating at the same time. It is a chance to enhance ones features, rather than used as a form to cover them up –there is absolutely nothing wrong with people wanting to look their best and look how they feel. Make-up is a very powerful tool and it is one that deserves respect rather than shame.
I wear make-up because I love to. I get a thrill when I think of color combinations to try or when I get to test out the new lipstick or eyeliner I just bought. I light up like a kid on Christmas when I go to Sephora or Ulta and get to browse all the different brands. I love watching YouTube videos and learning new techniques to try on myself. While I appreciate when people tell me that I don’t need to wear make-up, because I already look good, I remind them that I don’t wear make-up because I think I look unattractive, nor do I wear make-up to please anyone.
I wear it for myself and only myself.
And that is the power of makeup.