Today I would like to talk about the ideas that people hold regarding women who wear makeup, specifically makeup that is visible. Bold and visible makeup seems to make people uncomfortable, and these people often make snap judgments about the wearer. I want to debunk some of these myths because I am tired of hearing them.
Makeup Ruins Your Skin
While it is true that specific ingredients in makeup can cause some people to break out, makeup does not inherently ruin your skin. Since I have gotten into makeup, my skin is better than it was when I never wore makeup. I attribute my skin's improvement to the fact that when I got into makeup, I also got into skincare at the same time. I learned that clean and moisturized skin was optimal for applying makeup, and as a result, I have adopted a multi-step routine that gives me fantastic skin. Makeup will not ruin your skin. What destroys your skin is sleeping with makeup on or using makeup that hurts your skin. As long as you adopt a good skincare routine when you start wearing makeup, you will be fine.
Makeup is False Advertising
I especially loathe comments that echo this idea because these comments contribute to the objectification of women. I am a person, not a product. I do not exist for your benefit. I am wearing the makeup I am wearing because I like it and because it brings out my best features. We all enhance ourselves to some extent using tools such as flattering clothing and exercise, but no one has been able to explain why we draw the line at makeup. Makeup is another tool that both women and men can use to make themselves look their best. By this argument's logic, any enhancement is deceiving because no one wakes up with the perfect skin, hair, or body. Instead of objectifying women, consider recognizing them as humans who have their ideas and logic behind wearing makeup.
“You Look Better Without Makeup”
Although this comment seems like a compliment, it is quite backhanded. When I say backhanded, I mean that often when people make this comment they also put down the makeup that you are wearing. It is okay not to like bold makeup, but if you have to put down a person's makeup style to uplift your makeup style you need to work out your issues with bold makeup. A second reason why I do not like this comment is that often times people do not know what a truly makeup-free face looks like and will point to celebrities that are wearing natural or no-makeup makeup. And finally, when these people see a woman not wearing any makeup they make rude comments about her appearance, so women cannot win either way. Wearing makeup equals insecure to them and not wearing makeup equals slob.
Makeup= Low Self-Esteem
I will say that there are women who have poor self-esteem and use makeup as a mask, but that is not the case for every woman. In some of the previous reasons, I have mentioned that women like to wear makeup because they want to look their best or they are expressing themselves through their makeup. I find this comment insulting because the person who made it has not gotten a chance to know why I am wearing makeup and has already come to their conclusion. Also, comments such as the low self-esteem comment can be signs of internalized misogyny among women because some women who do not wear makeup think that they are not like other girls. Chances are you are the one with low self-esteem because you insulted me and you are trying to look appealing to others.
