Dear Makeup,
I know you're probably surprised to hear from me after such a long time, but let's start at the beginning of our relationship. When I was finally allowed to wear you at the anticipated age of 16 I was ecstatic! In my mind, you were the instant glamour that all my friends got to use to enhance their beauty while I was stuck as a plain, "natural" little potato. The makeover my mom treated me to on my 16th birthday only served to further my fascination with you as the girls at Bare Essentials used all their tips and tricks to glamorize my potato face. However, the next day proved to me just how difficult you were going to turn out to be.
I had no idea how to put you on, no money to afford you and even when I could afford to splurge on you I had no idea what brush or product to buy!
You sneaky little fox. You were supposed to simplify my life by making me pretty, fun and exciting but instead I just felt confused. Whenever I used you I felt like I was merely upgrading from a plain potato, to a plastic looking Mrs. Potato head with all of her gaudy colors and plastic additions. It was a little heart breaking to find out that the glamour I saw was a lie, that even after the makeup and the enhancements I was still the same girl. This disillusionment caused me to take a hard look at my relationship with you and my "glamorous" friends.
After taking a hard look at your worth and mine, I decided to try and enhance my beauty in other ways. I became less embarrassed of my love of reading, started enjoying my time in the woods more instead of feeling unnatural for being out there and embraced my athleticism without feeling the need to cover all those things with a veneer of plastic girlishness.
Years later I've somewhat rekindled our relationship as I see that you do have some redeeming qualities. Every now and then it's fun to have a night out with you on and I've learned enough of those tips and tricks myself so that I don't look like Mrs. Potato head after we've spent some time together.
I do want to call you out on your lie before I end my letter though, I do not need you to be beautiful because my beauty comes from the inside. I don't need Kim Kardashian's makeup routine to have lovely eyes and my birth marks don't need to be concealed in order for me to have a flawless complexion.
I'm going to leave you with this quote from Audrey Hepburn: "For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness; and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone."
Yours truly,
Cienna