Whispers.
Stares.
Smiles.
Frowns.
That is what I saw and heard as I walked into campus hurrying into my next lecture hoping that my seat was not taken.
"What is special today?" Asked my teacher as she inspected me moving her gaze on me up to down then doing it again for good measure.
"Nothing miss" I answer politely.
"No there must be special. There has to be a reason you are dressed up" The teacher insisted as I kept denying that anything was special- which was the truth
Maybe it is because of the way I was smiling?
No.
It was because I had taken the time to do my makeup.
Over the day I received many compliments but some of them came with the insinuation that I had done it for attention, specifically male attention.
My "makeup look" consisted of an intricate eyeliner look along with a glittery eyeliner and a bold black lipstick.
For some this may just be a weird lipstick.
But for me it was more than just some lipstick
For me it was a way of expressing myself, but instead of on paper, the canvas is on my face
Our society tends to associate women taking efforts on their looks to be nothing more than a ploy to attract men or as a means of being insecure.
I am writing this blog post to hopefully bust some misconceptions (namely 3 main ones) regarding makeup as I am, along with other women, are tired of being accused of doing makeup only as a means of impressing someone.
Misconception 1- Makeup is nothing more than a way of hiding insecurities hence is bad as it is a way of hiding your authentic self.
Rebuttal: It would be unrealistic for me to say that there is no truth to that argument. Yes, some makeup users do use makeup to hide/ cover up imperfections But the more common (and often ignored) reason people wear makeup is to rather enhance their present beauty.
Lets take for example accessories, It is not essential for people to wear it yet people often do,
Why is that? It is to enhance their outfit. They pick out an accessory to complement the outfit to complete the look.
Likewise, makeup is also done to enhance features. Blush to being out the flush in cheeks, The eye shadow to brighten and complement the eyelids and so on.
Misconception 2- Wearing makeup is a form of deception
Rebuttal: This misconception honestly makes me chuckle but here is my justification.
One purpose of makeup is to present oneself in the best way possible.
The idea that makeup is "deception" suggests that you feel like you have a right to know how a person looks like at all times rather than just the way they present themselves. That's just wrong, and implicitly controlling behaviour. You don't have any right to anything about someone else's body unless that person gave you that right as people have the right to present themselves however they feel like and we should perceive them as such.
Would you go to a man wearing a designer suit and accuse them of deception simply because they do not always dress up that way?
And if someone looks at another person who is wearing a bright blue eye shadow, purple lipstick and other bold choices and assume that is their "natural look" has more pressing issues than just being worried about being deceived.
Misconception 3- All people who wear makeup are just doing it to fit in.
Rebuttal- Truth is, there is a certain level of truth in this statement but consider this, do you not find yourself doing multiple things with the aim of fitting in?
How many times have you found yourself buying/ considered buying something just because you saw someone else owning it?
The reason for this, in simple words, is due to the fear of being isolated and because of society's issue in favouring looks over everything else.
However for many women such as myself, doing makeup is a way of actually making a statement. A statement to be unique.
For me makeup is nothing more than a form of art. An artwork done on the face. And usually after wearing makeup instead of fitting in, I instead feel left out.
Why?
Because of these stigmas.
The fear of being judged. The fear of being seen as an attention seeker.
These are the fears holding me back.
To conclude,
I would advice makeup haters to at least open your mind and be a bit more understanding.
Stop taking everything so seriously.
After all it is just some lipstick.
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