Why are we so obsessed with makeup?

[asphyxiad0ll]

Hello ladies! I posted this over on MakeUp Alley a few times, purely for my own fascination. Being a journalist, however, when I saw how interesting the responses I got were, I decided to turn this into a magazine article. So after pitching the idea to my editor and getting the go-ahead, I decided to take this to a few other communities to make sure I get a balanced POV. So, here's the question I pose to you:

We come here all the time to gossip about the latest makeup trends, and discuss which products are our tried-and-true. But what is it about makeup that makes you so interested in it, really?

For me, it's actually a kind of calming, creative process, like drawing or painting. It allows me sort of go into a 'zone' and use my face as a canvas. Also, I like the idea of creating a new personality for myself every morning by the way I do my makeup.

Post yours!

 

[kimmy]

this is a really cool idea! i'd love to see the article when you finish it.

i think alot of it is a self esteem thing, at least for me. if i think i look good (ie. my makeup looks tops) i feel a little more confident and ready to face the world. i'm not dependent on makeup for my confidence, but it sure does give it a healthy boost.

and of course, you can express yourself and how you're feeling through your makeup and that has very calming properties, so it's a really good thing to start the day off with. if you're dreading the work day because of some stressful deadline, it's nice to just take those few minutes for yourself in the morning to enhance your own natural beauty with cosmetics.

 

[medusalox]

Seriously, I was just thinking about this.

For me, its 2 fold. I really enjoy the artistic process of deciding which colors go where, and what not...and I really enjoy 'improving' my look by painting on some makeup

I also enjoy collecting it, for whatever reason. The hunt for a rare eyeshadow? I'm all about it.

As my mom puts it "I'd rather have you addicted to MAC than addicted to heroin". Hehe

I'm interested to hear what others say!!

 

[..kels*]

Quote:

Originally Posted by asphyxiad0ll For me, it's actually a kind of calming, creative process, like drawing or painting. It allows me sort of go into a 'zone' and use my face as a canvas. Also, I like the idea of creating a new personality for myself every morning by the way I do my makeup.

i completely agree. makeup is my calming & creative outlet.

 

[asphyxiad0ll]

Thanks for the replies, so far.

The article doesn't come out for another month or so, but I'll be sure to post it when it's through. And if I decide to quotes some of your responses, you'll definitely get a message from me letting you know.

 

[iamlelilien]

Because it's fun. It's the artistic aspect of it that I like.

 

[xmrsvindieselx]

I don't think make-up makes one beautiful, but I think it helps someone's self esteem. And a higher self esteem makes them beautiful

I also find it fun. colors you dont normally see together can look amazing on your eyes!

 

[Janice]

I've moved the thread to a more trafficked forum and stickied it. Hope this helps you get responses & your article comes out great!

 

[Sonya Adams]

For me, personally, I'm a big girl - no, a really big girl. I don't get much attention and I don't call for it either. I don't dress out there and I tend to keep to myself in public, but when someone comes up to me out of the blue and says something like "you are just gorgeous" or "I have to ask what eyeshadow you're wearing" etc..., it just makes you feel like you're just like everyone else out there. It makes you feel pretty - and enjoyed by others, despite not knowing them.

I rarely leave the house without makeup, and if I do, I'm sincerely hideen from everyone else - and rarely get service anywhere. When I'm made up, it's as if I command service and get tended to very well.

Makeup is a joy in that respect. It makes me feel better inside and out, and is a serious attitude boost.

 

[MiCHiE]

Well, I think for me it's become sort of an outlet. I relocated to Texas after Hurricane Katrina. I was/am a manicurist/nail tech and I had TONS of nail supplies at home. I was able to retrieve a lot of items and things that were on my table, but I don't really do my nails like I used to before the storm. So, basically, I became hobbyless.....I was working at Nordstrom after I got setttled in TX. and makeup was about all I could afford, LOL! Seriously, we used to be so slow in the spa that we would wander downstairs and get makeovers or just look at makeup. Now, I had NO interest in this stuff at all, but all the girls I worked with thought I would look great if I got made up (that's better than saying, "You weren't at The Superdome, no need to look like it!", right LOL?). So, a girl at the Smashbox counter did a make over and I looked HORRIBLE. It was a bunch of browns and some blush. I looked SO OLD!! I looked like a kid trying to play "Make Up", but it inspired me....I bought a MAC mascara, then some eyeliners. A few months later I was buying shadows and the obsession was born.....

 

[ilovexnerdsx]

i like to stand out, and makeup is one not so common way to do it. everyone's all about the latest fashions or even rebelling against the latest fashions by doing something totally random, but i get to output my creative energy into something that not so many people my age (high school age) are completely into. i'll admit, it's a hard balance to wear a lot of eye makeup and have people not assume you're fake, but it's such a fun process. so i get to output my creative energy into something, and look noticeably better while doing so.

there's also the sheer art of collecting. it's so fun to stay up to date with collections and find colors that complement each other and find things you haven't tried before.

 

[amoona]

well for me i figured i've never gotten into drugs or drinking so make-up can be my addicition.

when i first started playing with make-up i was 18 and i was scared of it because i didn't want to be one of those women who looks like someone else without any make-up on. but i've now began to see make-up as an art form, thanks to many of the wonderful artists at MAC. i really love the art aspect of it and i don't see it as something to make me pretty (trust me my head is big enough already hehe) i see it as something that helps turn my face into art. my boyfriend hates when i wear make-up hehe but i really love it and i especially love doing bright wild colors.

now that i think about it MAC has become a big addiction in my life, but at least i'm not harming myself or others.

 

[asphyxiad0ll]

You guys are giving me *such* good stuff to work with. My editor actually said that she's one of the women who's kind of anti-makeup, and that perhaps my article could change her opinion. I think with what you guys are posting, I'm well on my way to doing just that. It's wonderful to see such a variety of responses, and the somewhat theraputic effect that makeup can have in people's lives. I love it, keep posting, girls!

 

[macslut]

For me, it is just fun. I grew up with the "make up is optional, should be fun, and it should be kept in its place" which means that I should not take it too seriously. I have made lots of mistakes but I am able to laugh at them. I know some women who are terribly upset if they don't have their perfect faces on. I don't know if that makes any sense. But it just comes down to having fun.

 

[prinzessin784]

For me it has a lot to do with enhancing my natural features to make me happier with my look and feel more self-confident. It's not really relaxing to me, in fact I stress about what to put on my face every day, not to mention how much I spend on it and what other people think of it. I love to see how I can transform my face from the fresh-scrubbed, uneven, freckled and dark undereye circle-laden canvas (eh, I guess it's not really THAT bad) into a polished, even and hopefully more attractive finished product.

 

[Jacq-i]

I'm a computer graphic artist [student], and I work with lots of ink, paint, markers, basically color all the time... I love color theory, and I tend to collect colorful things (art supplies, etc) and make-up became my new 'thing' about a year ago. I love collecting makeup, sorting them by color, rearranging them, and catologing them... They are just so pretty!!

I had worn makeup for years, but I only used a handful of nuetral eyeshadow shades, and my make-up looked the same, day after day. Then I suddenly realised my face was a canvas! Now my makeup is a different style everyday! Plus I think it ads to my 'artist' image.

 

[pumpkincat210]

I really like the art aspect of it and my face or any face can be the canvas!

 

[geeko]

I suffer from low self esteem and make up helps to make me feel better about myself.

 

[rainbow]

being the eldest in the family, there is no one to teach me or share with me the tips on makeup or anything about cosmetics. i owe my knowledge and skill from a wonderful angel - MA @ the local MAC counter.

i always think that i m just a very plain girl but hence have low self-esteem but the MA shown me that I can actually look pretty with just a few colors added onto my face. not only this, but she actually helped me to regain my long lost confidence.

i think makeup is not just about making you look pretty, presentable or professional but also helped you to gain your confidence! i certainly dun believe in ugly ducking anymore. all girls can look pretty in their own way with a *dose* of makeup!

 

[m4dswine]

I have always seen make up as the ultimate in grooming. My mum has always been immaculately made up, never leaves the house without a lipstick. My gran was always powdered and rouged, even until the last time I saw her before she died.

I love the way it makes me feel, for example if I want to be assertive and feel confident, then I black up my eyes, and wear a red lippy.

If I want to be more passive, then, I wear a neutral lippy.

I don't feel as confident without make up, my eyelashes are very blonde and my eyes are quite deep set, so without mascara they tend to disappear, and without eyeliner my eyes just fade away...
My skin is also rubbish, I have adult onset acne and the scars that go with that. I don't like going out without makeup because of that. It also helps my skin, in a perverse way, because when i have make up on I don't touch my skin because I don't want to spoil my mu, but without it, I touch and rub my skin all the time, thus making it worse.

Make up for me is about expressing my personality and its funny what people think of you... my mum is really weird with make up, although she is always wearing it, she wears quite conservative colours. I prefer being bold and bright, and wearing dark eyes and dark lips, which she says are too 'in yer face' for her tastes. Most of my colours are dark, purples and greens, and of course black, grey and silver.

My collection is exclusively MAC, apart from the gel I use to keep my eyebrows in place which is Boots Natural Collection (and only costs £1.75). I used to use a lot of other brands, but someone introduced me to MAC and BAM! that was it, I found my holy grail. Now everything is MAC, and I have a small to medium collection.

I'm quite creative with my make up, and love matching random colours together - one of my faves is Humid e/s, Grape Pigment and Chrome Yellow e/s in varying degrees. I have a skirt with those colours and it looks fab in my make up.

I'm not a big LE collector, i won't buy things I won't use, that would be pointless. Actually the only LE items I have are Nightlight pigment and Overdone lipstick.

I hope that all makes sense and is of some use!! I'm just rambling, but if I think of anything else I'll add it later.

Good luck with the article!!