The morning passes uneventfully and most of the women I see on the bus, or on Oxford Street, don't seem to be wearing make-up either. When I catch sight of myself in the mirrored lift at the BBC I realise that I look a bit rough - luckily I am doing only radio - but apart from that, I don't really think about it again. It is only when Gill the photographer from The Times turns up and shoves her giant lens practically up my nose that I begin to feel stressed and self-conscious. The closer she comes to me, the closer I come to punching her lights out.
Later, I telephone the clinical psychologist Dr Cecilia d'Felice. She is very sympathetic. “Women wear make-up because it makes them look and feel more attractive and there is something very masochistic about forcibly stripping that away and not allowing yourself some protection. It's human nature.”
I totally agree. I've left my make-up bag at home in the interests of the experiment, but a quick trip to Boots and five minutes in front of a mirror puts a smile on my face again.
I lasted all of three hours without my “face” on, and it cost me fifty quid to feel normal again. Rather than liberated, I felt robbed of the right to make the most of myself and I suddenly understood why the Miss Naked Beauty contestants felt so vulnerable. To be honest, I feel disappointed in myself. Why can't I love my unadorned face? To compound my sense of failure, when I speak to psychologist Oliver James, he tells me that the credit crunch will make me think twice about the amount I spend on unnecessary cosmetics. He believes that the recession will challenge women such as me to distinguish between real “need” and the artificial “want”.
The time I spend putting on makeup is the most relaxing part of my day. Everything drops away; kiddo needs, work hassles, commuting agro - none of that matters for 20 blissful minutes. I love it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the financial analysis. When I'm flush, a splurge on a fresh eyeshadow or lipstick gives me an emotional boost. When money is tight, I carefully weigh my needs. A splurge just adds stress, but I will buy the tinted moisturizer when I run out because I need it.
ReplyDelete"Why can't I love my unadorned face?" The same reason we don't walk around naked, speaking our minds and scratching ourselves in rude places. We have a public self. We try to look and act as pleasantly as possible because we are social creatures who want to be accepted in the society in which we live. Truthfully, I sometimes feel a sense of failure when I haven't made the effort. Am I some kind of sociopath who doesn't care about being accepted?
Maybe we're just programmed to be self-critical.
Sure, I want makeup, I don't need it. I want lots of things. I need very a few. But putting a bit of makeup on makes me feel better about myself, and I'd rather cut out other things rather than stop buying makeup.
ReplyDeleteI wonder what a female psychologist would have said.
I'm 52 and I very rarely wear make-up - I wear lipstick for the occasional big event. So I'm very used to being in public in my unadorned face and have no worries or self-consciousness about it. It makes me feel a bit sad that it's such a big deal for so many women.
ReplyDeleteI suppose it depends what you mean by makeup. For work I always use eyeliner and mascara but I rarely bother at weekends, unless I am going out. Foundation etc is a relative rarity - I tend only to fall back on it when I look or feel really rough and need a layer of protection against the world. I wear it to please me, not anyone else and do not feel naked or vulnerable without it. I am 52, and find people are surprised by my age.
ReplyDeleteI wonder how much our relationship with makeup after we reach a certain age is a reflection of the makeup we wore (or didn't) when we didn't need it?
ReplyDeleteI was always in a world where foundation was kind of uncool if it was just used as makeup.
I didn't wear makeup in my teens because I went from hippie-feminist to feminist-feminist. In my twenties, it was multi-colored boho-intellectual-punk statement makeup. In thirties it was just eyelids & bright red lipstick.
Now that I'm in my fifties, I just wear a little lipstick when I go out. But, that's partly because I don't know how to use foundation, etc!
i went through a period in highschool where I never left the house without makeup. that lasted for about a year and then I stopped caring. haha! Now I barely wear any makeup and im 26 and feel comfortable not really having anything on but concealer! but when im on a date or a night out with the girls then I'll put some on to look more polished. otherwise tho, i'd loose more sleep doing it. haha :)
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