How young is too young?

[PRETTYGIRL26]

Wow, I started wearing make-up when I was 12, actually that was when I discovered my love for make-up, my mom didn't approve of my colorul looks but she did understand I had a passion for makeup. I've used makeup since then that was like 1993 or so, I then went on to use Cover-Girl foundation and eyeshadows at 16,. Then at 18 I graduated and starting using MAC. I think she's just discovering her new found love for makeup, I would say let her indulge, just don't let her go outside looking fully made-up but I think every little girl should have a makeup kit, and just play and discover her creativity. I hope this helps.

 

[RaynelleM]

I lived in the UAE too when I was 10 and I definitely was not allowed to wear make-up to school or anywhere else for that matter. I'm sure both my parents and teachers would have forbid it. Honestly though I don't even remember being concerned about make-up or feeling any pressure to wear any. lol I wasn't even allowed to shave my legs back then!! How times have changed!! Plus, when I lived there (not sure how it is now) it wasn't like I could have gone to the corner drug store and bought make-up on my own like here in Canada. I can't even think of a name of a store that sold make-up over there back then.
My first make-up item ever was a lip gloss, one of those flavoured bonne bell ones, that my mum got me when I first came to Canada and that was in grade 10 when I was 15 and it was a beige-y colour so it just blended into the rest of my face!! Then when I was 16, my mum got me coloured eyeliners (blue & green) and face powder and I didn't start buying my own make-up or experimenting with it until I was 18 (and I had a job to pay for it lol!!). I'm 25 now and my parents still comment on how much make-up I'm wearing and tell me not to wear too much.
I think you have the right idea to talk to your bf's niece about skin care cuz once puberty kicks in she will definitely need to know how to take care of her changing skin and control break-outs etc. otherwise she should just enjoy being a kid! There will be plenty of time for make-up once she is older. Not only that make-up may make her look older than she is and get her some unwanted attention!!

 

[miszjenny]

holly molly!! 10 year old is just tooooo young. I started wearing eyeliner when I was 17, started wearing liquid foundations at 18, and didn't start wearing eyeshadows not till I was 21.

 

[browneyedbaby]

I think I was about 13/14 wear I started wearing make-up but only really powder, mascara and lippy sometimes.

I think younger can be ok, if it's just done for FUN at home.

 

[redambition]

i think 10 is too young for "real" makeup.

i have a 10 year old cousin, and the most she's allowed (which i agree with) is some bonne bell or cheapie sheer lip gloss, and some nail polish every now and then. the nail polish is usually in such shockingly bright neon colours that there's no doubt it was done for the fun factor.

if she wanted to play with makeup at home - i am sure her mother wouldn't be too opposed to it as long as it wasn't worn outside the house. i think that's fine as well - that playing with makeup at home can be part of learning how to apply it.

 

[Gblue]

i was asked by a mum to recommend make up for her little girl (she was 9) because her friends at school are wearing it and she is getting bullied by them because she isn't.
i told her i didnt think she needed it, but she was adamant that she needed something. so i just gave her some tinted moisturiser and a tinted lip balm. her mum had taken her into bobbi brown and had a full face done and said it was far too much. i cant believe how quick these kids want to grow up.

 

[Simply Elegant]

I don't think it's too young for some stuff and if it's for the right reason. If she just considers it like something fun and artistic like painting then I don't see a reason why not. I don't think parents should limit their children to not wearing makeup just because of pedophiles because whether or not the makeup is on, they're still attracted.

I wore makeup when I was 10. I just thought it was something fun. I didn't do it to impress anyone or because I thought I had to hide or because I thought I was ugly.

 

[MiCHiE]

Honestly, I'm surprised at how many posters wore eyeliner (!) and powder (!!) at such young ages. Why? HOW? I was still perfecting my cursive handwriting. I think my sister began to pressure me to wear MU at about 15, just to be lady-like. But at elementary age? My mother would've probably beat the living shit out of me for putting anything on my face.

 

[NutMeg]

When I was about twelve I stole an eye liner from one of my friends (ewwww, I was such an unsanitary twelve year old!). It was the beginning of a long and sordid love affair. It was quite awhile before I actually started wearing eye shadow and even longer before things like foundation came up. I think that you should wear makeup for the right reasons... and being pressured into it is not one of them. At that age I think some skincare products, maybe some lipglosses (ie Lip Smackers type things) and maybe some clear mascara would be appropriate if she's really interested. I wouldn't go too much further than that at her age.

 

[glory9705]

10 is a little too young to be wearing mu....There's too much pressure for girls nowadays to look good and be thin or whatever! I believe that we have to teach our kids to have good self-esteem and to believe in themselves, but by wearing mu at that age (if a parent accepts it) they're just giving their child the wrong message...that's just my honest opinion. I have a daughter who'll be 9 in 2 months and she loves to paint her nails and wear clear gloss & mascara around the house to play, but I don't let her go out w/ mascara...maybe just the gloss!

 

[bebs]

I dont really know... I started wearing make up when I was 11 - 12ish mostly the nail polish and lipgloss and then eyeliner .. and brows plucked way to much.

I work with 4th and 5th graders and most of them just have the normal nail polish and lipgloss that they play with for "make overs" at lunch. a few of them play with eyeshadow every now and again. but really nothing really un natural ..

I think its mostly in middle school when they start wearing color and what not

 

[SparklingWaves]

I read somewhere that girls are experimenting with makeup at 7 and wearing it at 10.

Well, I don't care what other parents are doing. I wouldn't let my child look older than she is. It's actually the parents that are allowing this to be the norm. I wouldn't do it.

I would teach things about hair styles & manicures. Also, I would give her age appropriate jewelry, clothing, purses, and shoes. As far as makeup goes, I would just give lipgloss. I would teach her about cooking, music, dance, and sports.

There is only a very short time to be a child and that's the time to look and be one.

 

[Beauty Mark]

I think it depends on what people mean by experimenting. God knows my mother let me play with her makeup when I was young. I never had a desire to wear it to school, though.

It also depends on what people mean when they say "wearing makeup." Some people count nail polish in it. I painted my nails for many years before I began wearing other makeup.

I do think it is rather wasteful to spend lots of money on makeup when you're first starting out as a young teen or pre-teen.... I wasn't particularly careful with my stuff, and none of my friends were, either.

 

[Weasel]

i was 10 years old when i started wearing 'makeup' to school

i just wore lip balm and clear mascara though, i remember wearing some black mascara and eyeliner (a tiny bit on my waterline) one day and absolutely everyone noticed, so i never wore it again

i started wearing makeup properly at age 12 (a horrible foundation, concealer and eyeliner and mascara) but luckily i quickly dropped the foundation and just wore concealer, powder, eyeliner and mascara.

atm I'm 14 and to school i wear studio fix powder, blot powder (oily skin, ick) eyeliner, mascara, nars orgasm blush and omega shadow on my brows.
i dont wear lipgloss that often...

i would say get her some sheer pink gloss and clear mascara, perhaps a light blush.

clinique 'air kiss' (as suggested earlier) is a good idea, because her friends will probably be impressed with the high end brand, so wont get on at her about eyeshadow etc.

 

[gatsby]

I started wearing makeup when I was 13, but I'd fooled around with my mother's stuff inside the house for years before that. I think that's healthy -- you get to have the fun of "Ooh! Pretty colours! Look at me, Mom, I'm a grown-up" without actually walking out of the house looking like a little tart.

Personally I think people who simply cave to what kids' friends are saying and let them act as old as they please are not doing right by their kids. She has plenty of time to do her makeup every day, and when she's a teenager that's acceptable. There's no rush. Beyond lip gloss and nailpolish, I wouldn't be okay with my daughter wearing makeup outside the house at all.

$0.02

 

[YvetteJeannine]

I have my husband's niece from Pennsylvania (Gabriella, who is now almost 9) stay with us in the summer for about two weeks each year...She's been doing this since she was about 7...Technically, she's 'his' niece, but we've bonded like she's my own blood.

Whenever she's here, she watches me put on my makeup. She loves it, and she's very interested (btw, this kid just got her I.Q. tested, and it's 130, so she soaks up everything!). I remember the first time she asked me if she could wear some...I was very hesitant...After all, she was only about 7 the first time she asked for makeup...And I wasn't sure 'MOM' would approve...But, I said, "F*ck It"....It's summer...she's not going to school, and right now, she's here with ME...So, I put some on her.

She LOVED my SoftSparkle Pencils (ahhh, yes, a child after my own heart!), so I would line her eyes with them, gently. Once in a while (if we weren't going out anywhere), I would put a little shadow on her lid only..I would also put LUNE or MAIDENCHANT Cremeblush on her cheeks...just a lil' (and SO pretty on her)...And then, sometimes I'd give her a little pink lipstick. That made her happy beyond belief, and she didn't look like a mini-hooker...She looked SO PRETTY!!!

Now, this kid is GORGEOUS anyway...Olive skin, huge brown eyes, shiny chocolate brown hair....Seriously gonna be a stunner...So, I made sure to tell her makeup wasn't 'making her pretty'...it was just for fun, and to enhance our already beautiful features! I want her to understand she doesn't 'need' makeup.

We went to the MAC counter a couple times, and she had some makeup on...the M.A.'s thought it looked cute...I told her Mother I was putting a little bit on her (her Mom RARELY if ever wears makeup, so she doesn't get to have 'beauty days' at her house, like she does at mine). Hopie (her Mom) didn't seem to mind.

I will reiterate, however, that it was SUMMER VACATION. I would not put that much makeup on her for school...Or any other important function. And I told her as much...I said she really was a bit young to wear makeup, but since "you're with Auntie Yvette, those rules can go out the window"...

Having said (all) that...I will say I think it's ok for a kid of about 10 to wear makeup for fun in her own house...AND I also think it's ok to let them wear something very simple, and basic for school, etc...Like a sheer gloss, or some shimmer on their cheeks. Full makeup? NO! No child of 10 should go to school looking like JonBenet Ramsey...That's just not right.

 

[Artphr33k]

for me, it was liner (just waterline) and mascara at 13.... foundation around 15

and full faces, not until i was almost 17!! but honestly, it was mostly because i had acne, and foundation on top of acne is sick.

 

[chocodcocoa]

I would say that it would be fine for her to play with different colors at home, but she's a little young to have to wear makeup. Maybe wait till she's a teen. Also, if she doesn't need it, don't let her wear foundation! Heavy foundation at such a young age really ruins your skin... flashbacks to my classmates in 6th grade with cakey foundation and unblended shadows... shudder.

 

[iamlelilien]

Suggest roll-on glitter! When I was a pre-teen I had this fine roll-on glitter that was mostly translucent and not bright or chunky. It's fun and it would probably appeal to a girl that age, but it's still kid-ish.

 

[dollbabybex]

its crazy how times change

i remember being in high school and wearing some brown eyeshadow and wine lipstick (you know the only colour seemingly available in the early 90's!lol!)

and all the kids were joking asking if id been punched in the face and they did the same to my friend too! we were around 12/13...but now it seems the other way round!

if its fun makeup like glitters a sweep of colour..then yeah!but if its to enchance or conceal at that age i think under 15 is too young.