To the friends who take the time to do the makeup of those less makeup-savvy than they, I salute you.
I'm talking about the friend with an eyeshadow collection the rainbow would envy, the friend with seven eyeliner options, the friend who has foundation in your shade. This is for all the girls who, when preparing to go out for the night, budget the time to do other people's makeup too.
You are so appreciated. I am utterly clueless when it comes to makeup; I can apply mascara, and maybe smudge on some eyeliner, but I am unable to work the kind of artistry on my own face that you do on yours. Your gentle touch, your laughter, your patience and your artistry all combine to create a version of me I could never have found alone. I am never more beautiful than when I wear the carefully-applied evidence of your love for me.
If you are the friend with the skills and the time, know that your friends consider you a minor goddess in the pantheon of amazing women in their lives. By taking the time to make sure that our eyeliner is even and our complexions flawless, you are imbuing in us some of your own beauty, and that is no small thing. You bless us with your brushes and sponges, absolving us of our acne and our ineptitude.
To my dearest friends who have done my makeup in the past, I send all my love and appreciation. There is nothing quite like the bond between a girl and the friend who does her makeup. There's a level of trust that can only be achieved by holding perfectly still as another person leans over your face to carefully not-jab you in the eye with eyeliner.
Allowing someone to slather your face with lotions and potions, wield pointy sticks of all sorts, use brushes so varied in size and shape I can't even begin to count, is only possible when coming from a place of confidence and love. When I place myself in your chair, closing my eyes to allow you to work, I am saying, "Make of me what you will. I know you will find the best and brightest parts of me, burnish them and help me to shine." It's saying, "I trust you completely." And every caress of brush, every gentle smudge, says, "I love you too."
If you, like me, have a friend who is a patient makeup goddess, make sure to thank them. Let them know how much they mean to you and how much you appreciate what they do. Life would be a lot harder and more stressful without the friends who do our makeup. There are few things as beautiful as the people we become when we trust each other and help each other. It may seem like the smallest thing, to do a friend's makeup, but it says volumes about how much you care.
So, to the friends who do my makeup: Thank you, thank you, thank you. You may not realize how much it means to me that you take the time and make the effort to make me shine brightly. You are as beautiful on the inside as you make me feel on the outside.
