Makeup

[Pebbles]

why do we use it?
because it makes us look pretty, to feel more confident, to feel better about ourselves....

i am a person who never cared to use makeup... not when i was a little girl, teenager and even now i still not care because i want people to like me for ME...
not because i look all ''fancy'' with so many colors on my faces and thick foundation that covers up my spots or something.

why do people feel like they have to hide their true selfs from the world?
because most of the time people judge you by your looks? true.
i know a lot of people judge you by your looks and if you do not look good enough for them they won't bother to get to know you really... it is a terrible thing humans do id say
and that is why so many do put it out there every day; do not judge a book by its cover

yet so many people still do and i guess that is why so many do not even dare to go out of their house in the morning , going to work or school without first putting makeup on and stuff... which i have seen myself, can take quite long, i bet a lot of ladies get up early in the morning just for doing their makeup
but why be so insecure about your looks? so what if somebody calls you ugly.... those are mean, rude and idiotic people you shouldn't care about

btw for those who do wear makeup everyday, i am not trying to say you cannot wear makeup, i am not trying to offend anyone here who does wear makeup, please do not get me wrong because i agree makeup can look pretty on us ...
i just wish people wouldn't be so afraid to be themselves
you only live once right? thats what they say anyways
but why spend so much money on something to make yourself look like ''something else''

i know not all people who wear make up are insecure and do it to feel more confident.... but a lot do it for those reasons, am i wrong?
but yeah, i just wish people could love themselves a bit more and less hate themselves and the way they look
because at the end of the day, all you got is YOU
be happy with yourself.... stop caring & start living​

 

[Electricbluewolf]

I feel more confident with a certain amount of makeup on. I like making myself look fancy every once in a while as hell why not. I like the way I look but sometimes I think eyeliner will go with my outfit, or lipstick will highlight my face a little.

It's so very easy to say "don't judge a cover by it look" but unfortunately for every single thing we do we are judge by look. That is the way of human nature: pretty things to look at are much nicer than "ugly" things.

In job interviews you're meant to look your best; in certain work places I know the people have to reapply their make-up every 2 hours. Why? Because as consumers are used to and expect to see that. Would you shop somewhere were someone looked dirty/unkempt? Well a lot of make-up, perfume shops, clothing etc expect you to want to see people looking nice as well.

What I don't like is the assumption that people who wear a lot of make-up or make-up all the time are stupid or uneducated.

 

[Kanzler]

I think a lot of make-up is just habit now, really. We're probably just moving on from the minimalized look of the 90's and early 00's.

 

[MiracleGhost47]

If you think about it, this can be applied to a lot more than just make-up. It's okay to judge a book by its cover, but only if you're going to be risking or losing more than you would by taking the time to read the whole book.

 

[Sydian]

i mean. i do make up because i like it. it's fun to put on, it's fun to come up with new looks, and i enjoy improving at it. i equally go around completely without make up as well. -shrug- i think it's a bit silly to assume most people do it to hide their "true selves" and it's equally as silly that some think make up is trying to convince people that some of us have blue eyelids lol. like i mean i ain't trynna hide the real me. i just like to use make up and i don't mind paying for things i enjoy. think of it as other things you buy because you like or enjoy them, like collectibles, clothes, video games, etc.

i cannot speak for everyone though so it's like. idk.

 

[Melody]

When I wear makeup it means something to me. It means a lot to me. It reflects the true me. As someone who is genderfluid, makeup is one of the few things I can use to communicate that lighter, more caring side of me actually exists, and that I actually feel! I don't really identify on the binary at all, so in reality I'm actually being more honest with makeup on than I am without!

I know that sounds kind of weird, but that's the truth of who I am. I enjoy makeup! I enjoy wearing colors to show my passion! I wish it were more okay in society as a whole for me to do it more often! Because I would! I have a lot of energy and love for things when I can be myself. I don't when I can not. x3

 

[Arylett Charnoa]

I think makeup is pointless and don't use it at all, finding it to look kind of ugly or too unnoticeable for me to care in most cases. Similar to the OP. But as someone who has tried wearing a wig on a regular basis because of how much I hate my hair, I'm in no position to judge. It's not just about what other people think of you, it's about what you feel about YOURSELF. That is what's important. Some of us have... a very high aesthetic sense and we want to refine ourselves to look to an ideal vision in our minds. It is to display what you feel is truer than this random appearance real life has given you. Basically, like the clothes we wear, makeup is part of an expression of oneself.

The truth is that life isn't that simple. It isn't just a matter of ignoring the way you look, of ignoring peer pressure. These things are easy to apply to other people, but try looking at things from their perspective. They may be in a completely different situation and have a completely different mindset. You'll find that even though you find something pointless, there's always a reason for it. Just think of it like refining a work of art. Applying the right colors and look that appeal to that of the artist. Sure, you might think that doing this to a picture is pointless, but as long as the person doing so finds it aesthetically pleasing, it does not matter. Some people are just inclined towards these sorts of things for many reasons and it is an oversimplification to look only at the worse reasons one could do these. Whether it be because they want to use it to "hide their true self" due to really low self-esteem, to express themselves more freely, or to just do a simple touch-up on a minor flaw they find unappealing.

So to those who wear makeup: Do whatever makes you happy, even there are people like me who don't really see the appeal in it. After all, I've been judged SO MANY TIMES by my annoying female family members for not wearing it as well. And it's just as bad to judge the other way around.

 

[noa]

I love my face with makeup. I also love my face without makeup. I don't use makeup to hide my "real face" from the world, I do it because it's fun to experiment with it and it makes me feel good about myself. Sometimes that little confidence boost can mean everything to me.

 

[Psychic]

I want to preface this by saying I'm actually not huge on makeup. Most days I don't wear any, but sometimes I like putting on eyeliner and mascara if I'm going out (even if it's just to go downtown), and I love lipstick. I like makeup when I get to wear it on my terms. That said...

but a lot do it for those reasons, am i wrong?

Sorry to say, but you are very wrong.

I realize this post was mostly a rant and is just your perception, but there are a lot of assumptions here that are not only pure stereotype, but they're also kinda sexist, and I think it's important to address that. I get that this wasn't your intention, but when you say stuff like:

1. i want people to like me for ME

2. why do people feel like they have to hide their true selfs from the world?

3. yet so many people still do and i guess that is why so many do not even dare to go out of their house in the morning , going to work or school without first putting makeup on and stuff

4. but why be so insecure about your looks? so what if somebody calls you ugly

5. i just wish people wouldn't be so afraid to be themselves

6. but why spend so much money on something to make yourself look like ''something else''

7. but yeah, i just wish people could love themselves a bit more and less hate themselves and the way they look

You're implying a lot of really mean and degrading things about people who wear makeup that just aren't true, even if you didn't mean it. This is basically what they mean:

1. People who wear makeup don't want others to "like me for ME"
   
2. People who wear makeup do it because they feel like they have to hide their true selves from the world
   
3. People who wear makeup are afraid to go to work or school without makeup
   
4. People who wear makeup are insecure about their looks. People who wear makeup are considered "ugly" when they don't wear it
   
5. People who wear makeup aren't genuine - they're afraid to be themselves
   
6. People who wear makeup try to look like "something else." They transform themselves to look like completely different people
   
7. People who wear makeup don't love themselves. They wear makeup because they hate themselves and the way they look

As an outsider, this is what you seem to be saying to me. You might not have meant it that way, but these are a lot of assumptions, and much of it implies that women wear makeup because they don't have self-confidence, they don't like themselves, they're trying to deceive others, and that they're not attractive without makeup. I hope you can see why that's troubling.

Here's the thing about makeup: everyone is allowed to wear as little or as much as you want (including none at all). It's totally cool if you don't wear makeup! But a huge percentage of women do wear makeup, and to make so many assumptions about so many people is not only rude, but it's also sexist. Nobody ever talks about how men should stop grooming their facial hair because "they're insecure about their looks" and "they should stop caring what others think"!

That said, it's impossible to ignore the fact that society pressures women to wear makeup. It's normal and acceptable for guys not to wear makeup, even if they have acne or skin problems, but it's almost always expected of women. It's a scandal when a female celebrity goes outside without makeup! Businesses are allowed to force their female employees to wear makeup! So a lot of women wear makeup because they feel like they have to. That's not their fault.

That's why being allowed to choose whether or not to wear makeup is so important! While many women feel forced to wear it, many others actually enjoy it! Makeup is an art - just ask any makeup tutorial Youtuber, or professional makeup artist! It's a way to express your creativity and individuality. It's a way to emphasize your favourite features. It's a way to feel pretty and self-confident. It's a way to have fun, and for some people it's a genuine hobby and passion.


So please don't jump to conclusions about everyone who wears makeup. We have to acknowledge that society does pressure women to wear makeup, and that needs to stop, but at the same time there are many women who find makeup to be fun, just like any other hobby or creative outlet. :)

~Psychic

 

[Pebbles]

look folks
i was just trying to be positive and tell people who do feel insecure and think they HAVE to wear makeup for the world or else they are not good enough / lots of people feel that way / that there is no need to feel that way
love yourself and there is no need to care what others think of you and your looks
be happy with yourself, there is nothing wrong with your cute face

but i guess i said too much , did not mean to offend anyone
but like i said... i know not everyone who wears makeup does it because they feel that way, i am not an idiot haha

anyways.... good for you people, if you wear makeup just because you CAN and not because you think you are ugly without
nobody is ugly <3​

 

[Mawa]

I like Make Up :)

It's like washing my face.. I feel neat after I did it. I feel like and can be productive and it wake me up, It might sound wierd but if I don't wake up it's because I spend all day at home, and I'll probably won't dress nice, maybe staying in PJ's. That's comfy and I don't care if I see my boyfriend or some friends when I look like that. But it's too comfy. These are the days I saty on PC aaaalll day !

SO yeah, Make up is a part of my routine. I feel better. I don't care if I look better or not. Because I know... nobody care! Nobody will care if I don't put makeup in the morning. It won't change my day nor theirs.

I hope I'll be better at it tho :/ I can only apply some eyeliner and mascara, maybe a bit of lipstick. I can't do anything with my hair either. I wish I could be better at dressing up and taking care of my look. But hey, that's how I am :)

 

[MiracleGhost47]

be happy with yourself, there is nothing wrong with your cute face
​

But I don't wanna be cute. D:

 

[Dusty]

Seeing as how pretty much everyone in this thread so far has at one point used makeup, guess I'll throw in my two cents as someone who has not.

Honestly as a guy, I don't mind makeup, but I despise excessive uses of makeup. Most people who use makeup are fine, it improves your looks. Makeup is just the same as wearing a nice looking shirt and pair of pants, or a nice dress. It doesn't change who you are, it only makes you look a little better.

But if it becomes obvious that someone is trying to hard, those are the times that I really hate makeup as well as appearance in general. If you have to put so much makeup on that you look like a doll and dress provocatively in order to get others attention and get acceptance from others, than there is something wrong with you. Its not your appearance that's wrong, its your own view of yourself.

I've met plenty of people who use minimal amounts or no makeup at all, and those people often have the largest amount of self confidence that I know. On the other hand, those who do doll themselves up all the time seem to have low levels of self esteem. If you need to use makeup to feel accepted by others, maybe you need to look closer at yourself.

TLDR version: Makeup is fine, excessive makeup is not. If you need makeup to feel accepted, or feel like you have something to hide with makeup, something is wrong with your self esteem.

 

[Psychic]

look folks
i was just trying to be positive and tell people who do feel insecure and think they HAVE to wear makeup for the world or else they are not good enough / lots of people feel that way / that there is no need to feel that way
love yourself and there is no need to care what others think of you and your looks
be happy with yourself, there is nothing wrong with your cute face

but i guess i said too much , did not mean to offend anyone
but like i said... i know not everyone who wears makeup does it because they feel that way, i am not an idiot haha

anyways.... good for you people, if you wear makeup just because you CAN and not because you think you are ugly without
nobody is ugly <3​

Thanks for replying! :)

I realize you don't actually think those things about all people who wear makeup, and I definitely don't think you're an idiot, but I do think it's important to ask yourself why you have so many negative perceptions of people who wear makeup. I understand that you were trying to be positive, but there is a difference between saying, for example:

"Video games is a cool hobby, but a lot of people tend to sink a lot of hours into video games, which isn't always good."

V.S.

"I don't understand why people who play video games never go outside! Nobody will think you are a loser! Just have confidence in yourself and go meet people!"​

Unfortunately, your post was a lot closer to the second one, and I think you can see why someone would be troubled by that.

It sounds like you want people to have self-confidence and to love themselves, and that shows that you're a very compassionate person who wants to help others. But in the process of trying to help people, you're targeting the wrong thing. You and Stardust are right that when someone has low self-esteem, they might use a lot of makeup to make up for it. But you're focusing too much on makeup, when that's just a symptom of a greater problem: body image. Poor body image is a huge problem for women especially, and it's a delicate and complex subject. If someone struggles with their body image, the solution isn't to say "stop wearing so much makeup," but rather to understand why they have this issue, and figure out how to change it.

I understand why you're talking so much about makeup in conjunction with self-confidence, but if you want to help people, then posting all of these negative assumptions about people who wear makeup isn't the answer. Please ask yourself why you think these things that are simply untrue, and consider other ways to help people. :)

Seeing as how pretty much everyone in this thread so far has at one point used makeup, guess I'll throw in my two cents as someone who has not.

Honestly as a guy, I don't mind makeup, but I despise excessive uses of makeup. Most people who use makeup are fine, it improves your looks. Makeup is just the same as wearing a nice looking shirt and pair of pants, or a nice dress. It doesn't change who you are, it only makes you look a little better.

But if it becomes obvious that someone is trying to hard, those are the times that I really hate makeup as well as appearance in general. If you have to put so much makeup on that you look like a doll and dress provocatively in order to get others attention and get acceptance from others, than there is something wrong with you. Its not your appearance that's wrong, its your own view of yourself.

I've met plenty of people who use minimal amounts or no makeup at all, and those people often have the largest amount of self confidence that I know. On the other hand, those who do doll themselves up all the time seem to have low levels of self esteem. If you need to use makeup to feel accepted by others, maybe you need to look closer at yourself.

TLDR version: Makeup is fine, excessive makeup is not. If you need makeup to feel accepted, or feel like you have something to hide with makeup, something is wrong with your self esteem.

This is another assumption about makeup - that people who use a lot of it are doing it for attention. Personally, the people I know who wear a lot of makeup so do because 1) they love makeup, or 2) they're a makeup artist. They're doing it for fun, to experiment with different looks, to express their personal style and creativity. They don't do it to seek male attention - the ones I know are already in relationships, and they're definitely not doing it for their boyfriends!

That said, as I mentioned above, people who lack self-confidence will do a lot of things, and using a lot of makeup can be one of them. In those cases, it's just a symptom of a greater problem. Focusing on makeup doesn't really address the root problem.

~Psychic

 

[zakisrage]

I'm perfectly fine with makeup. My mother, my older sister, and my girlfriend all wear makeup. Even I wear makeup. I occasionally wear kohl - in my family's culture, kohl is worn by both sexes. Some makeup is fine, but too much makeup is never a good thing - back in the day heavy makeup was actually associated with prostitutes, plus it looks ugly. One of my dad's many cousins literally drowns her face in makeup and it makes her look awful.

The only people I know of who have problem with makeup are feminists and Christian/Islamic fundamentalists. Even women I know who don't wear makeup usually don't have a problem seeing it on other women.

 

[Elysieum]

One of my very favourite quotes comes from Nigella Lawson, when challenged on her quite glamorous image in the world of food and food literature -

"One can think and wear eyeliner."

I am cautious of falling into a spiel about feminism that I probably can't support, but it is always refreshing to hear about someone who thinks like this. Wearing make-up does not detract from intellect at all.

 

[Kanzler]

One of my very favourite quotes comes from Nigella Lawson, when challenged on her quite glamorous image in the world of food and food literature -

"One can think and wear eyeliner."

I am cautious of falling into a spiel about feminism that I probably can't support, but it is always refreshing to hear about someone who thinks like this. Wearing make-up does not detract from intellect at all.

I was confused because how can one think eyeliner? For a moment I thought that quote was deeper than it is.

 

[Elysieum]

I was confused because how can one think eyeliner? For a moment I thought that quote was deeper than it is.

It seems I am confused by your confusion. The quote is simple enough to grasp. Lawson meant that someone may have a strong intellect and wear make-up regardless of it. The two are not mutually exclusive, which seems to be a feeling common among many people across the world.

 

[Kanzler]

It seems I am confused by your confusion. The quote is simple enough to grasp. Lawson meant that someone may have a strong intellect and wear make-up regardless of it. The two are not mutually exclusive, which seems to be a feeling common among many people across the world.

Yes, I get the quote. I was just sharing a humorous anecdote, that's all.

What Lawson means is

One can think (pause) and wear eyeliner.

What I initially read was

One can think and wear (pause) eyeliner.

So the issue is, how can one think eyeliner? aaaaah. Sounds like something out of Zoolander, tbqh.

 

[Thepokefansophia]

For me I disagree about make up hiding your truth selve and etc.
I wear makeup because I like makeup. I find it fun and yes it does make me feel more attractive as I used to have bad acne but that was because I used to have a bad diet.
But I wear makeup because I like experimenting with different eye shadows and different lipsticks. Makeup makes me feel more confident about myself and its a routine to me. I started wearing makeup because of some nasty boys in the class calling me ugly but now I just enjoy wearing makeup and collecting makeup.

Besides most girls I know wear makeup anyway.