I wear make up to rebel.
Wait, what? Is that even possible? Everybody wears makeup.
It’s so mainstream. How is wearing it rebelling? Yes, I did just say that I
wear makeup to rebel. And yes, it’s true. I am a redhead, and I have all of the
vampire-esque features that go along with it: very pale skin, and, well, very
pale skin. I also have blond eyebrows and eyelashes. This combination of
features led me to fear makeup for the first 15 years of my existence.
Then, when I was 16 I finally asked my mom if I could get
some BB cream. That was terrifying. My mom wears a liquid foundation and fills
in her eyebrows and that’s it. My dad has always told me and my sister that makeup
is ugly. So I did my research and decided that BB cream was a good first
product because it’s so minimal. We went to Target and bought the first BB
cream we could find. It’s probably a crap brand, but I didn't (and still don't) know better, and now I had my first makeup.
Fast forward 6 months and I wear dark (considering my
pale-ness) eye makeup. Now, I will not sacrifice my sleep to wear makeup, so I
usually only wear makeup a few times a week, and I like that. I don’t want
people to cringe when they see my real face, and I don’t want to hide behind
products. However, I also really like wearing something bold on my eyes. I love
to wear my black mascara, and I wear it heavily. I also like filling in my
eyebrows so that they are actually visible. I even like playing with eyeliner.
Now, this probably doesn't sound very dramatic, but it feels
intense to me since I am still new to this whole slathering stuff on my face
and on the hairs on my face. I like how my eyelashes are visible when they are
black, and how I can show expressions better when my eyebrows are filled in.
But most of all, I like how the darkness feels bold.
The first time I wore mascara, my dad asked if I was wearing “eyelash
stuff”. When I said yes, he made a noise of disapproval. Wearing makeup is a
way for me to show that I don’t care what my parents think about my style. I
probably don’t apply it well since I've never been taught how to put on makeup,
but wearing it anyway is a way to rebel against other students’ expectations. I
was afraid of makeup for so long because I thought it would look foreign, but now I
am so happy that I have finally taken the leap into the world of makeup and the
exotic look that comes from wearing it is what I like the best.
I love this, it's so great that makeup can be so empowering!! also, I nominated you for the liebster award, so check it out: http://anexerciseofmyfaculties.blogspot.com/2015/02/liebster-award.html
ReplyDeleteI love your style of writing. A lot of people don't realize that we don't wear makeup just to impress others; we wear it because it's empowering and boosts your confidence.
ReplyDeletehttp://thatcrazygiraffe.blogspot.co.uk
aah, I can relate to this too!
ReplyDeleteDespite being a queer tomboy (don't really like the word, but kind of reclaiming it? ok, makes no sense) I am one of the very few people in class who wear make-up. Once in the locker room I heard girls from my class talking about how they were better than girls in year 11 because they "didn't wear make-up and didn't look slutty" ugh girl-hate needs to stop. Also those boys who say girls with make-up look bad, but then say the girls look sick when they aren't wearing any. Ahaha, who cares for their opinions anyway.
Also, I use bb cream and cheek blush only, but I always use too much blush, make my cheeks really pink, kind of rebelling against the ~natural make-up~ hype.
And your features sound so beautiful! Red hair and pale skin aah, like Anne of Green Gables!