There is a certain expectation that once you are a woman, you are supposed to like makeup, even more so if you are one who is heavily into fashion. For as long as I can remember, wearing makeup has also been an expectation from both sexes. Women sometimes ridicule other women for not making an effort to look “good,” whilst men calculate beauty points according to how well your face is defined by way of contouring. This usually leaves little or no room for a woman to complain in peace if she actually does not like it.
I know persons would automatically expect me to be pro-makeup, because I am into fashion. And while I am not anti-makeup, I hate the process of the application especially if I am doing it on my own. The genuine reason behind my use of makeup has always been to counter my acne insecurities. To be quite honest if I never had them I would probably consider never wearing makeup.
Scarring caused by popping my pimples has left me with dark spots on my cheeks and forehead. I have used makeup my entire life to cover up these supposed beauty flaws. I have done so particularly because the projected standard of beauty includes so-called flawless skin. I never felt that I met that standard, even though acne is part of being human and is nothing to be disgusted about.
I felt naked if I was not wearing foundation; so much so that I would prefer not to leave the house if I was not wearing any. I always felt I had to impress people, even people I didn’t know and would casually walk by.
This crippling attitude is where the problem lies. It damages your self-esteem and makes you feel unworthy. Media, together with the product-hyped beauty industry plays on our insecurities. Sometimes the messages we receive make it so that we do not even want our own faces. In the end, we develop a habit of thinking that our faces are not good enough for the world to see. In addition, we continue buying into the industry to find “cures’ for our beauty issues.
When singer Alicia Keys announced that she was going makeup free, it was welcomed! Finally, someone in an influential place was starting to add more definition to the “acceptable” beauty standard. Unfortunately, once she started appearing at prominent events like the MTV Music Awards people began to express outrage at her choice. While I am not surprised at the outrage, this is the very reason why I believe the no-makeup movement is necessary.
While I don’t reject the use of makeup, I don’t believe society should expect it of women. Once it is continuously treated as an expectation, weaker folk concerned about their supposed flaws will continue to shred their self-esteem to pieces and this in turn can have a negative effect on how they view themselves.
As far as the ‘outraged’ people are concerned, it would have probably been okay if Alicia Keys had decided to step out to the supermarket with her face devoid of makeup. She didn’t, which made her appearance controversial and more appealing to the movement. She chose to make the point that even in a place noted for genuflection to “glamorous”, the meaning of the glamour and beauty can be altered and it should be for the sake of all women who are made to feel that they are not good enough.
The no-makeup movement is necessary just like natural hair movement. Women need to feel comfortable with their choices. They need to understand that society has hypnotized them in the most negative of ways.
I still have my acne scars and while I will admit I am not 100% comfortable with my face, I am not as unhappy about it as I was before. Makeup application is time consuming and acquiring a proper makeup product selection is expensive as what works for one person, may not work for another.
Preserving personal happiness is much more important. Whether you choose to go make-up free or not ensure that your reasons are independent and in tune with your personal happiness and choices and that you are not unhappily struggling to reach some benchmark set by others and society.
