I used to find them rather amusing. No matter how casually they were dressed – even in running shorts and T-shirts – every day these Southern ladies greeted the world with fully made-up faces and perfectly styled hair. The Memphis humidity made this an even more impressive achievement.
Aside from the fact I wasn’t a native Memphian, I wasn’t one of those women, and didn’t think it likely that I would become one. There were aspects of my life that just didn’t encourage it, including a pretty casual workplace – literally, it was a zoo – and a husband who made no secret of his preference for a makeup-free face, to the extent of seeming disappointed when I did wear it (even if he otherwise complimented my appearance).
I no longer live in Memphis (or with a makeup-averse spouse). And it occurred to me not long ago, as I was applying eyeliner and mascara and putting on some lip stain, that I have become one of “those women” who almost never leaves the house without putting on makeup. Heck, some days I put it on even if I’m not leaving the house. How did this happen?
…The answer to that question can be found in the rest of this post on the Los Angeles Moms Blog.
I don't put make-up on (what little I wear) for others. I just do it for me. I feel more pulled together if I have lipstick on. It's the one thing that I have to have besides sunscreen.
I go through phases of wearing makeup all the time to not wearing it at all. I'm a bit weird.
This is a great post! I go through periods when I'll wear makeup every day and then I won't wear etc. If you're wearing it because you want and it makes you feel good, good for you. I think I look better, more awake, more fresh when I wear a little blusher, mascara and some gloss. I just get lazy about it occasionally. But if I lived where it was humid much of the time I don't think I would bother!
Ti – I feel more like I wasn't wearing it for someone else 🙂 – now I don't worry about it, and I wear what I like.
Serena – I'm starting to think I should dial it back a little. I like wearing it, but don't like looking "made up."
Amy – Don't you live in Brooklyn? It's not exactly a desert climate 🙂 – but it's not the Southeast, either, where everything just melts, and it really is hardly worth the trouble!
I don't typically wear makeup. I have a hard time finding a brand that doesn't bother sensitive skin.
Janelle (Brimful Curiosities) – I can imagine that would complicate things. My skin is problematic at times, and I ease off on the makeup when it is.
I never wear make-up if I can help it but I do put a small amount on for big events like weddings. I just don't like the feel of it, the worry about it potentially smearing if I do something like rub my eye, and the hassle of taking it off at night when I could be curled in bed reading already. So basically my lack of make-up is purely a bone laziness. Oh, and the fact that I was a swimmer for 15 years and there was no point in putting it on only to have it all wash away might have imprinted me early on. 😉
Kristen – I feel like I'm not properly dressed up for a special occasion if my face isn't "dressed" too, I guess :-). But yeah, there are definitely times – like swimming – when it's totally beside the point.