Today, apparently, is National No Make-up Day. Not in my house it isn't. Aside
from the fact that my colleagues have done nothing to deserve the sight of
me without my under-eye concealer, it is a ludicrous concept. You may as
well have a National No Shoe-Wearing Day, or a National No Shouting on the
Today Programme Day. Inconceivable, not to say inadvisable.
According to the organisers, we need it because we women are too dependent on
make-up. Damn right we are - just as we're dependent on breathing. There is
absolutely nothing wrong with giving Mother Nature's work a little touch-up
now and then.
But no, it's for our own good, see. Time to throw off the mask, to let our
skins breathe (not true, by the way: today's modern formulations don't clog
up the skin), to be “more courageous in baring all”. Hmm. I've seen where
this “baring all” gets us, and it's not pretty. How To Look Good Naked may
make great TV, but in truth most people don't (look good naked, that is).
There's a reason clothes were invented, and it wasn't just to keep the cold
air out. Let's not apply the same misjudgment to our faces.
The British have always had an oddly puritanical attitude to make-up. Many
women I know consider it somehow at odds with their feminist principles.
Personally, I don't see it that way. Make-up gives me confidence, and
confidence is good. Besides, many men claim that they prefer their partners
without make-up - so you could argue that the wearing of it actually
constitutes a small act of feminist rebellion.
Ultimately, however, it's all about how you wear it. A tacky gash of scarlet
and Ashes to Ashes-style blue eyeshadow isn't going to fool anyone. Modern
make-up, properly applied, looks neither tarty nor obvious. It's about
looking yourself, only slightly less frazzled. And there's nothing wrong
with that.
Wearing no make-up for once, HANNAH BETTS fails to get attention
My name is Hannah and I am a cosmetics addict. I have worn make-up every day
since I was jailbait young, a not so fresh-faced 11. It started with Lolita
lipgloss and continues, at just short of 37, with a routine that encompasses
foundation, concealer, powder, eyeshadow, eyeliner, mascara, rouge and lip
balm. Women tend to have a thing. Make-up is my thing. I don't do hair,
nails, or particularly compelling outfits. However, I do reserve my right to
go about with emerald eyelids.
We slap sporters are accused of vanity. Yet surely it is greater vanity to
inflict one's unedited features upon the world? It is assumed that we are
man-motivated. Yet chaps profess to despise cosmetics and are never happier
than when informing me that I look more desirable without them. More- over,
many's the time I have been chastised by weekend feminists who believe that
I am letting down the sisterhood.
To all dissenting voices, I say: “This isn't about you.” Make-up is my public
face and my private pleasure.
My day sans slap has an inauspicious start. The spectacle that confronts me in
the mirror at 7am on Monday confirms my impression that not wearing make-up
is for those who spend their weekends in the lotus position. I spent the
weekend carousing, hitting the sack at 3am in the wake of a teary argument.
My skin is greenish chalk, while my eyes have gone beyond the proverbial
hole in the snow and are suggestive of domestic violence. And did I mention
that I have my period? Cosmetics are the means by which I would wrest back
control, only today all control is abandoned. I knock back three Nurofen,
apply teabags to my lids, slather on my bodyweight in eye cream, and -
that's it - unfinished face finished.
Four hours writing at my desk, and my features are becoming vaguely less
Hammer House of Horror, but, still, as I prepare to leave the house, my
virginal face propels me into crisis. Everything is thrown out by it: my
clothes - too ballsy; my scent - too provocative; the rest of me - too
bedraggled without a “done” focus as anchor. I look nondescript,
characterless, bland. I am also ghoulish pale, reminiscent of those painful
years before I discovered rouge, when schoolboys would follow me about
humming The Addams Family theme. A neighbour mouths: “Poor you,” assuming
lurgy.
I go for a working lunch at London's hottest venue, the Connaught, with three
of the capital's most glamorous and imposing PRs. The consensus is that I
look young, but not good young. “Kind of Dickensian, laudanum-addict young,”
as Kate puts it. Curiously, the lower half of my hitherto blemish-free face
is breaking out in boils. “It's the detox,” notes Paula. “Your skin can't
have been exposed to the air for years.”
I sidle off to purchase a new phone. The pubescent who couldn't wait to get
his clutches on my contract when I accosted him with full maquillage rebuffs
me. But, then, I have the sweaty-palmed demeanour of a shoplifter, skulking
about, refusing to meet anyone's gaze.
I pride myself on my ability to flirt with man, woman and child, but, by
supper, all charm has escaped me. I fail to secure anyone's attention: the
waiter's, fellow diners', even my own. My 25-year-old ally tells me that I
look cooler, edgier than usual. A trip to the nightspot Bungalow 8 is
aborted after I suffer an attack of the vapours.
Next morning, I have a power breakfast with a prominent editor, restored to my
beloved ladyboy mode. I ask my date what she would have thought had I turned
up naked faced. “But, why would anyone do that?” she demands. Why, indeed?
I can cheat and get away with it, says make-up novice CAMILLA CAVENDISH
When my commissioning editor asked me to do this piece, I was surprised. “But
I do wear make-up,” I protested. “I wear mascara!” She raised one carefully
crafted eyebrow. And I realised that my involvement in this project might be
her friendly way of telling me that the look I have worn since my teens - a
flick of the comb and a 30-second whirl with Lancôme Black/Brown - may no
longer be as appealing and carefree as I like to think.
It's partly indolence, not wanting to spend time pondering the cosmetics racks
in Boots. It's also that these racks are largely indecipherable to me. I
missed out on the stage when other girls were learning about concealer and
lip-liner. I was playing the piano seriously when I was 16, and my piano
teacher used to brandish her scissors at the slightest hint of a fingernail,
so I never made it into the world of nail polish and manicures either. I
usually end up rubbing most of it off because it looks so vampish.
I do care how I look. It's just that I have always regarded make-up as
cheating, somehow. It is only recently that I have begun to realise that
many of the women I have admired as effortless beauties are actually dab
hands with the bronzer. My own recent experiments with bronzer came to an
end when a male colleague became concerned that I had a rash, because of the
line where I had forgotten to blend it in.
So when the lovely Paul from Bobbi Brown rang my doorbell, I was determined to
memorise every brushstroke. And boy, were there a lot. There was concealer
and corrector and blusher, all in delectable little black pots. It took a
long time. But it felt fabulous, being adored and adorned. As Danny
positioned the lights and flashed the camera, and Nicky expertly tweaked my
hair, I felt like a B-list goddess.
The first person to see me was my husband. He glanced in, laughed, tried to
stifle the laugh and went off to an important meeting. The next was my
three-year old. “Why have you painted your hair?” he asked, frowning. After
several repetitions of this toddler non-sequitur, I wasn't sure whether to
laugh or cry. But of course I couldn't cry. I felt I couldn't even blow my
nose, in case I erased my face.
I liked the flushed cheeks and startling blue eyes of the creature in the
mirror. But she did look as if she was trying a bit too hard. Everyone said
how “natural” I looked. But my cheeks felt as though they were wearing stage
make-up. My skin felt tickly.
On the other hand, it was a face that clearly deserved to be dressed up for. I
found myself pulling on a much smarter jacket than normal, and some kitten
heels that I hardly ever wear. Leaving the house, I braced myself for
pitying stares. But apart from a few vaguely appreciative looks from
builders, there was no reaction. Entering a smart restaurant in the West
End, a waiter rushed to open the door for me. I was lunching with a business
contact I see about twice a year. He said: “You look different, somehow. Is
it your hair?”
It gradually dawned on me that what I thought of as war-paint was expertly
subtle. At Broadcasting House, where I was doing an interview for a
programme I am presenting on Radio 4, no one gave me a second glance.
Ingrid, my producer, who has known me for two years, didn't bat an eyelid.
Later that day, I gave a talk to some people in the City. One financier came
up to me afterwards. “You're a great-looking woman,” he said. “Did you ever
think about TV? Your looks won't last for ever, you know. You should get on
with it.” So thank you, Paul, for creating the delusion. It still feels like
cheating. But if I can cheat and get away with it, why not?
THE MAKE-UP I COULDN'T LIVE WITHOUT
Beverley Knight
I don't wear it every day but I really enjoy putting on make-up. If I could
use only one product, it would be mascara. My big eyes love it.
Joan Bakewell
I've been wearing make-up for 50 years now. I'd be bereft without my lipstick.
I wear orangey-brown shades as I've got rather sallow skin. Make-up isn't
hugely important to me but it's always a surprise how much difference it
makes.
Susan Greenfield
I carry blusher - the very pale pink kind - with me wherever I go. It's the
quickest thing to change how you look and really lightens my face.
Jane Seymour
No matter what I'm doing, I always wear mascara.
Katherine Whitehorn
Make-up for older women is one thing we have over the men - we don't go bald
and we can avoid the awful pallor of age. A decent fake tan two or three
times a week can stop you looking like a lump of lard hung up for the birds,
and concealers deal with those odd brown bits that turn out not to be
exploded coffee grounds after all.
Paula Radcliffe
The one piece of make-up I just can't do without is black Lancôme mascara.
Lady Antonia Fraser
I'm like Marie Antoinette - I wear make-up with great pleasure. I've been
wearing my nice pink lipstick since I was 16. Back then it it was something
by Rimmel called, I think, Pink Plumb Beautiful. If I'm at home writing I'll
put on a little. I look depressing without it.
Sheherazade Goldsmith
I use black eyeliner inside both eyelids. I can't live without Becca
Shimmering Skin Perfector in Pearl. It makes my skin glow.
Ann Widdecombe
Goodness me, there's no make-up I simply couldn't live without. When I'm
working I wear foundation, lipstick and eye shadow. No mascara. But I
couldn't tell you what make or even what colour they are.
One-minute make-up, according to Bobbi Brown
Step one: Apply moisturiser, eye cream and lip balm
Step two: Dip finger in concealer. Dab under eyes, in inner corners and on
upper lids.
Step three: Cover any blemishes with Bobbi Brown Foundation Stick (£24)
Step four: Dip finger in cream blush and apply to cheeks and lips
Watch our make-up videos and learn how to apply spring trends and smoky eyes
at timesonline.co.uk/beauty
I am 17 and feel the need to wear make most days at school now because it gives me more confidence than without it. I even get compliments for wearing it like 'you look really pretty today' and so on. Its not that i need to wear it its just I like wearing it. If it makes you happy then do it!!!!!
Frederica Rich, St.Albans,
Is it just my impression, or do the eyes of the brunette woman whose images appear at the top of this article actually look rather close-set in the image WITH makeup? And the placement of the blusher actually not only downplays her lovely bone-structure, it makes her look older.
I have nothing against makeup--I can happily go about with nothing on my face but a high SPF sunblock and a bit of powder, or wear anything from a nearly-invisible smidge of makeup to a full goth effect--but it just seems that in many cases (such as the one above) women manage to undermine at LEAST one attractive feature, sometimes more...
Not wearing makeup for a day seems like it would be a good way to assess the effectiveness of the makeup that is worn daily; after all, feedback to going barefaced is as likely to include comments such as'Oh, I never noticed how large/wide-set your eyes are' as 'you look pale' (for the latter, their is the remedy of a half-minute's worth of light slaps to both cheeks).
Mjx, Aarhus,
Thalia: EVEN being a red-head?! You obviously have no idea how many men find red-heads extremely attractive.
An excellent example of what a strange perception some women have of themselves ...
M.R., stockport,
I'm 45 and haven't worn makeup since my teens. Consequently I don't have any wrinkles, lines or blemishes on my skin, and am often taken for a woman in her mid-20s. My husband prefers the natural look as well, and I wore no makeup on my wedding-day. I think women who feel the need to slap on makeup every day must suffer from very low self-esteem.
Alys, Colchester, UK
This article was discussed on one of the forum's I visit, and the general conscensus was that the ladies in the pictures look better without the make-up - particularly Hannah.
The ladies both have a lovely glowing complexion, and the make-up in the pictures only hides this and makes their (naturally beautiful faces) look very harsh.
Sadly, many women now rely upon their make-up and think that they need it in order to look their best. An earlier comment suggests that love is blind because the lady's boyfriend thinks she is naturally beautiful - but I think it is she who is blind for not realising that it must be true because coloured powders cannot change a beast into a beauty!
Kirsty, Worcester, UK
I was a total tomboy and didn't wear makeup until I was in my 20s. These days, although I'd be comfortable going out without makeup, I choose to wear it simply because I think it makes me look better! Not that I think I'm ugly without it, just better with. :-) I never wear foundation, just a few dabs of concealer if necessary and a brushing of powder. I also wear eyeshadow and eyeliner, but never mascara, and I've never plucked my eyebrows in my life! My eyes are my best feature, and I love using makeup to enhance them. I'm a visual artist; maybe that's something to do with it! But I never wear lipstick - I hate the stuff, it never looks good on me, and bare lips draw attention to the eyes even more. Yes, I am happy with my 'routine'... my skin isn't exactly blemish-free, so I wouldn't want to go out without concealer/powder, but going out without eye makeup wouldn't be a problem for me. I have a partner, so I'm not doing it to impress the men, nor because I lack confidence.
Kinsao, Leicester, UK
Hi Helen E! I think if I was the only human left on earth, the first thing I'd do is go and see that massive crater :-D
But seriously, some women cheer themselves up by eating ice cream, some like massages, some like their allotments, others like acid green eyeshadow. Each to their own - whatever makes you happy. Make up and adornment can also be a celebration of cultural femininity in its own right. I am getting married later this year - and can't wait for my mehndi (henna) party with all my female relatives. And yes - its for ME, to feel beautiful, to celebrate who I am and my culture. Lighten up!
glaciergirl, Bristol, UK
I am a make-up addict and have been ever since I discovered it. I'd like to think it's purely to enhance my confidence, which is a factor, but this is only because it was my way of putting an end to the taunts at school when I was younger. Since then, I can't imagine going anywhere without a full face. In all honesty though, I am the palest person I know, and make-up prevents me from looking like I've just escaped from the morgue...plus it shows that I do, indeed, have lips.
Oddly, my current boyfriend says I am beautiful without make-up and means this sincerely. Whilst I appreciate this, to me it just proves that love is curiously blind. I think he'd rather I didn't spend so long applying my make-up, but it's part of me now, so I'm not changing!
L, Coventry,
I am in my 20s, i use little makeup to enhance my features, that is usually just a lipstick and a mascara.. all men i've been involved with said they prefer me with no makeup.. i don't really know how true that is ... i feel more noticed with makeup... but of course maybe its all in my head... maybe i am more confident when my face is painted and i get noticed purely for that reason...
Roberta, London,
Haha, Gmac from Kassel in germany, that is truly very funny (I know you didnt intend it to be) if a little bit of an exaggeration. There are arguably reproductive reasons for absolutely everything we do in life, and of course trying to look attractive is no exception. I think you might be trying to insult women who wear make up by calling them ugly, but I am not sure you are entirely correct.
Personally I think I look really tired and pale if I dont have some concealer, mascara and blusher on - but most people assume i dont wear make up, because it's not obvious.
Must say though - if the example in the picture above is meant to be representative, id say a) the made up face looks terribly gaudy and unnatural, make up doesnt have to look like that !and b) the un-made-up one looks great - I suspect she's actually wearing some good foundation and concealer!
Christina, London, uk
I'm 30, and I never wear makeup.
There.
I said it.
I just don't see the point. I look better without, and my skin hates the stuff. What's the big fuss? The bird in the photo looks just as fit without, too!
S Evans, Hawick,
Glaciergirl: you're seriously telling me if you were the only human being on earth, with no other humans out there to see you, you'd get up in the morning and put on loads of makeup?
You may have a PhD in geology, but you don't have the brain cells to work out that makeup, as so many other adornment-type tools, are most certainly not for ourselves, but for other's responses. Nothing wrong in many of these mind you, but don't be so ignorant and claim you do it for yourself; you just sound daft.
Helen E., London, UK
Each to their own. But problems begin when people - women especially - buy into the expectation that all women should wear this stuff in order to look 'professional', and consequently think that women who don't wear it are somehow slapdash and careless. We don't demand that men waste time and money painting their faces so why demand it of women?
Wearing make-up isn't anti-feminist; thinking that the wearing of make-up is superior or necessary is.
Lyn, Birmingham,
Wow, it's quite depressing when women refuse to be seen without make-up and believe that they "can't live without it". You see this is why I prefer working with men - it's just so refreshing.
Kirsty, Leicestershire, UK
Why be so feminist about the issue? Wearing makeup doesn't mean to say that you are less of a (strong) woman, or less independant. Some women like wearing make-up because they want to enhance their features or look pretty - and here's the catch - FOR THEMSELVES! not for anyone else. Same reasons as those women who choose not to wear makeup. Myself, I have a Ph.D in geology, I have a demanding job, I work in a white, male-dominated field. I am impartial to funky coloured eyeshadows and a bit of lipgloss - does that make me less of a woman and more of a bimbo? I don't think so. Get over the issue - people are different and you gotta accept that.
glaciergirl, Bristol, UK
All the men on this post who are saying most women look worse with make-up: If you notice make-up on a woman it is because she doesn't know how to apply it properly; therefore of course she looks worse. I'll bet 95% of the 'natural beauties' you all admire for their clean fresh-faced look are actually wearing quite a lot of make-up, it's just that they are able to apply make-up the way it is supposed to be done - in order to enahnce their features. We're all wearing make-up, it's just that some of us know how to do it better than others.
Coco, London,
“But, why would anyone do that?†- Maybe, just maybe the rest of us are happy enough to face the world with our unedited features. Believe it or not, not all of us are attracted to painted emerald eyes and gloopy, glossy lips.
Please, if you would like to wear make-up then at least use it to enhance your natural beauty instead of creating a multi-coloured mask.
Meg, Loughborough, England
Make up works - lots of girls are a whole lot less attractive without - plus the morning after racoon eyes are always a fright - beautiful girls don't need make up.
Arnold Ward, Weybridge, Surrey, UK.
Foundation always, and I mean always, looks obviously unnatural. Good skin does not need foundation.
Arnold Ward, Weybridge, Surrey, UK.
I always wear make-up - it's barely there but my skin looks smoother and my eyes look bigger.
Friends always say I do it really well and to look like a natural fresh faced beauty takes quite a while. I love a good foundation and blusher they are an instant pick-me up.
I think the key thing is to practise applying it. Make-up is much better than it was 20 years ago - you can look scrubbed and clean, it doesn't cake up on your face it's sheer and illuminating.
EVe, London,
Make-up? Life's too short and too full to waste money and time on such things. I am just so sorry that so many of my sisters feel the need to spend all that time, effort and money when you could do so many other far more rewarding things with the time, effort and money. Not one of my friends wears make-up and we all seem to be doing pretty OK.
Christine Madder, Chester, England
I feel naked without make-up!! I am 44, and I have good skin, no lines - thanks to the protective power of make-up against the sun.
jenny, uk, uk
i wear hardly any makeup - usually just mascara and eye liner. my husband would like me to wear more. i dont really like how it feels when its on and would worry about it coming off when i got hot....or even smudging or caking...if you dont notice that could be embarrassing
EVEE, stoke,
I rarely wear make-up day-to-day, I did when I was younger but for the last 15 years (I'm 42) I have just not bothered. I am blessed with good skin, few lines, and am quite dark-skinned, I gain a tan just by smiling at the sun and spend a lot of time out of doors, so I generally have a healthy blush too. I do wear make-up for special occasions and big nights out, but that's it. My confidence does not need that sort of a boost, and I often find people are surprised when I DO wear make-up, the usual comment is that I just don't need it.
elrohana, Leeds, UK
I've never been a fan of make up - like Ms. Cavendish I didn't pick up the techniques in my teens and would be completely unable now to put on anything apart from the habitual mascara and some lipgloss. I understand that for many women a fully made up face makes them feel more confident, but I have known people who have been so self conscious that they wouldn't nip out for a pint of milk without their full face on. Ultimately it's all about what you feel comfortable in - a few friends of mine "did" my face for a college ball one year and even though they did an excellent and subtle job, I didn't recognise the person in the mirror nor was I happy with the way my skin felt underneath - it literally felt like a mask. Quite a few people are surprised when I tell them I don't wear any make up apart from mascara and lippie, which is a huge compliment obviously. Me, I'm just content with the way I look - I tend to find that those friends who rely on daily make up masks are not so secure.
Helen, Loughborough,
I missed out on learning how to apply make-up. I spent my time playing computer games and playing sports. I guess being a tom-boy from the age of 12 makes it more difficult to appreciate masscara and concealer, compared to the latest and greatest Playstation game.
Zoe, Croydon, UK
Women and girls everywhere: Make up mostly just makes you look older and less sincere. At least for God's sake lay off the foundation will you? You do know it looks hideous? It. Makes. You. Look. Worse.
Peter Nichol, London,
Bright red lipstick is used by women as they know that it will send out a message that men will interpret sub-consciously or other wise. Said message has reference to the supposedly aroused female labia. Men have evolved to prefer blond hair on a female as blond hair can be used as a refernce to increased health and fertility. Females dye their hair blond. Concealer hides the moles, blackheads and spots of unattractive females. The aim of all this is so that ugly women can couple with an attractive mate, and so improve the chances of an ugly woman bearing less ugly children.
gmac, Kassel, Germany
'I face the world with the face God gave me.
Carolyn, Los Angeles, Calif, USA'
So do they all in California ;-)
isabel, London,
Happy bunch arent you. Lets admit it - make up helps most women and most need help. Now they just need to work out how to help us men.
Angus, Sutton,
I am 54, now, and haven't worn a bit of makeup since I was 17. I did not wear makeup as a bride at my own wedding. I have a loving husband and a successful professional career. All without slathering colored goop on my face.
I face the world with the face God gave me.
Carolyn, Los Angeles, Calif, USA
It is no makeup day in my house every day. I am 59 and
wore makeup when I was younger but I am far too busy these days to even think about it. I work fulltime, go to university parttime. work out and swim three times a week. volunteer
twice a week, grow my own fruit and veg, look after my 3 bedroom house, keep 7 cats and once in awhile sit down and read for pleasure. Who has the time or the money to waste
on makeup? Mutton dressed as lamb is still mutton!
Kate, Victoria BC, Canada
I've personally always preferred the untouched face, particularly natural eye brows: very rare, but so attractive.
There are some girls/ladies that benefit from makeup, but most don't. They hit 15 and that's that. A wreckage.
The same goes for hair: the reason young nuns and arab girls are so good looking is that their features aren't ruined by their hair styles. 98% of hair styles diminish the lady.
Greg Lorriman, Leatherhead, UK
Why do women insist on looking like circus clowns? Do they really think it makes them look more pretty. I actually associate women who wear loads of make up with low incomes.
Am I the only man who thinks that make-up on women (and ofcoarse men) is disgusting. So many women insist on covering up their features.
Less makeup is more pretty.
Chris, Belfast,
I haven't worn make-up in years and so I'd feel strange if I suddenly started wearing it again. I think the nicest thing anybody can put on their face is a warm smile; sometimes I even practice smiling so that I can develop my laughter lines :-) Of course, if you're like me and live somewhere with lots of UVs, a little sunscreen doesn't go amiss.
Jenny, Adelaide, South Australia
I wear make up (ie, lipstick and a bit of red on the cheeks and I'm not tanned at all) only for work. Having young school children, I don't have time in the morning to do my eyes. Week end is relax at home or going out with family only. Because I'm not so self conscious about my appearance, but more focuse on the activity ahead, effectively, I don't really pay attention to what other people think. A bit of make up is ok if I look pale/sickly, but when I was a kid I've also seen the ravage of too much make up on women who looked 60 when they were barely 50, I always think about it. I think foundation is the worst product for your skin in the LONG term! I find it sad to see teens with lots of mascara on their flawless skin!
Catherine, Welwyn, Hertfordshire
50% of the time, it works all the time.
ok i joke, but the before/after photos of the brunette is surely an example of when it doesn't work. I personally think she's far sexier without the layers. and maybe that's the point; it doesn't make any difference what i think, some women seem to need those extra layers just to get through the day.
i bet if they were hypnotized into thinking they were wearing their usual daily mask, their confidence would remain high, their eyelids would still flutter, and they wouldn't notice a spot of difference.
G, Shanghai, China
Anyone can do natural. Artifice is infinitely more attractive.
HC, London,
Up at my local gym, there are both young men and women as trainers. And I hesitate to admit this, but from the purely aesthetic aspect, the men are better looking than the women. I'm referring to face, obviously. Guess us boys are not accustomed to seeing women without make-up.
Andrew Milner, Karuizawa, Japan
I've been allergic to make-up and contact lenses all my adult life and it hasn't slowed the boys/men down at all that I'm au natural.
Even being a red-head.
Thalia, london,