This week, I decided to do something I never thought I would do: I was going to tone down my makeup routine. I know, I sound so trivial, but honestly it was something I never would have ever considered doing…until now.
I know I don’t need makeup to feel pretty, and I can go without it. But, I don’t wear it because I feel insecure (even though it is a confidence booster) I wear it because I find it to be a lot of fun; I wear it for me.
The basic idea for this experimental week was that I would start off wearing bare minimum makeup and then just slowly add to it until I got to my regular routine. It spanned over only 4 days, but it was that short becaucse I would have looked silly wearing ONLY foundation or ONLY blush. So, I broke it up into days, and wrote down my observations which I’ll share with you! I’ll also tell you every makeup product I use which is my favorite part because I use a mix of cheap brands and more expensive brands. So, here we go!
Day 1: Monday
What I wore: Mascara
Thoughts: Okay, so I was definitely a little bit uncomfortable; I felt naked. I was not used to wearing just mascara. Plus, I was annoyed that my eyelashes kept rubbing against my eyelid and leaving little black dots. No one really noticed, except for some good friends who noticed I wasn’t wearing my usual amount.
As a side note, I never realized how long my lashes are when they’re just standing on their own. I kept cringing when I looked in the mirror because my first instinct was to cover my blemishes and splotchiness. But I toughed it out, and I didn’t have much to wash off. It was such a light look, I forgot I had anything on and rubbed my eyes by accident. Luckily, I was in my room and was able to do damage control.
Likelihood I would do this again: 2/10
Day 2: Tuesday
What I Wore: Mascara & Eyeliner
Thoughts: Today, I felt a little more comfortable. I didn’t feel like my face was so bare. Eyeliner tends to make my eyes look bigger and more blue so I felt better with my look. A couple things I noticed was that my eyeliner didn’t look so good without being on top of eyeshadow, plus without having powder and everything on, my face was super oily, which was so annoying, and slightly gross.
Would I do this again? 4/10.
Day 3: Wednesday
What I wore: Eyeshadow, Mascara, & Eyeliner
Thoughts: Okay, aside from the full face, that I would wear the next day, this was the most comfortable I felt. My eyes are my favorite thing to do, which is mostly why I just focused on them, and there’s not much you can do with toning down your actual face, aside from putting nothing on it, so that’s what I did. But today, I only felt uncomfortable because my oily face again. I didn’t realize how bad it was until my powder wasn’t there to make it not as noticeable.
Would I do this again? 7/10.
Day 4: Thursday
What I wore: I found out that I couldn’t draw it out anymore, so I did my full routine, which if you’re curious is: foundation, powder, some form of contour if I’m feeling it, (usually I’m not, lol) blush, highlighter, eyeshadow, eyeliner, mascara, and on special occasions, some form of lip gloss. And it does sound like a lot, but I don’t use much of it all, and I don’t cake it on. Obviously, I felt the most comfortable today.
So, what did I learn from this?
I learned that less is actually more. I could get the basic, same look, and not have to do everything. Which was surprising to me.
But before I continue, you should know something:
YOU DON’T NEED MAKEUP TO LOOK PRETTY. Sounds silly coming from the girl who wears it everyday, right?
The thing is, I know that I don’t need makeup, and I know that I’m pretty because God made me in His image. I love doing makeup–the whole process–and I do like how I look with it on. But the difference is, I could not wear it. Would I be uncomfortable? Yes. Are there things I don’t like about my appearance? Sure, everyone doesn’t like something about themselves. BUT, the point of this whole rant is that, YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL WITH THE MAKE UP AND YOU ARE DEFINITELY BEAUTIFUL WITHOUT THE MAKEUP. I don’t wear makeup to please anyone but myself. Yeah, I was uncomfortable not wearing any and worrying if people would notice, but that’s just something I have to work on! But I know my worth, and that’s what matters in the end!
Now, if you’re wondering, here are the products I use! I know most people tend to stay with the same brands, but literally, I am so scattered with brands. Ranging from prices and from different brands. So, beware.
Foundation: Maybelline’s Fit Me: Matte & Poreless
Price: $4.97 (Walmart)
Powder: Covergirl Pressed Powder
Price: $6.99 (Ulta Beauty)
Contour: e.l.f. Contour Palatte
Price: $6.00 (Target)
Blush: Covergirl Clean Glow Blush
Price: $6.29 (Walmart)
Highlighter: Becca Highlighter
Price: $38 (Don’t panic, this was a birthday gift.)
Eyeshadow: Naked 2 Palatte
Price: $54 (Another gift)
Eyeliner: Wet N’ Wild Liquid Felt Tip
(For my lower lashes, I actually use the black color from my Naked palatte!)
Price: $3.93
Mascara: Wet N’ Wild Mega Volume Plus
I just wanted to point out that this mascara has worked better than ANY more expensive mascara I’ve purchased.
Price: $4.29
So, there’s my experiment! I actually enjoyed doing it and it also helped cut time off my morning routine, which is AMAZING when you’re in college.
So, if you guys are brave enough, try my experiment out or do your own version and let me know how it goes!
Keep continuing to be lady bosses–with or without makeup.