I love make up. I have ever since I was little and got into my teen sisters lipstick. It was extremely pale pink and very frosted. The best part was that it smelled like peppermint. I did learn that it defiantly did not taste like peppermint. I don't know why she got so mad. She was saved from waisting it on some boy. There was that, and the fact that I used her fancy Kleenex box as a bed for Barbie. As a youngster I had very strong color in my face. My lips were dark and I also had perpetually rosie cheeks. I would often get sent to the principal off in grade school for wearing makeup. Someone would spit on a handkerchief and rub it on my face. Nothing would come off but I would have a redder face where they had rubbed. I was not allowed to wear or even play with make up. Happily for me my best friend across the street was allowed to play with her Avon Lady mothers kit. What fun. other then paint our faces, we conducted experiments, mixing lotions, creams and perfumes together to see what would happen. Unfortunately the smell usually got us thrown out of the house, to go play outside.
For my 14th birthday I was finally grown up enough for makeup of my own. My gift that year was a little kit of three shiny blue eye shadows and a tube of mascara. I put that on and felt so grown up, so glamorous, so groovy! When my sister, who was married by then, pulled up in front of the house I ran out to show her. She took one look at me and said "You better get inside and wash that off before Mommy sees you." Not the reaction I had hoped for. I guess I hoped for admiration, I was sure she would want to sit down and share make up tips. The eye make up did me well for quite a while. My lips were dark, this disappointed me because the dark color showed through the pale lipsticks that were popular. The natural look came in and calmed things down with brown eye shadows. Then in the glorious 80s the days of Mary Kay and bold colors and big hair and big shoulders. What fun. I remember my favorite pattern was grass green shadow on my eyelid, sky blue on the crease and sunny yellow under my brow. With false lashes and lots of Mascara. I' was ready to boogie oogie oogie.
I could have kept Maybelline in business myself in the quest for fabulous lashes. Something I have noticed is how much importance is put on eyelashes. Every women's magazine is filled with page after page of ads for mascara that promises lush, thick, long, sexy lashes. On TV there is commercial after commercial with supermodels or celebrities smiling then doing close ups of their professionally applied lash enhancements. We, of course, can copy this ourselves at home in the time it takes to get ready to go out. And that is a good thing because we know by what they are telling us men can not resists a sexy pair of lashes. Right? Having the right mascara, or if you don't have enough lashes a doctor can give you a prescribed liquid to brush on to grow more, is the way to get a man. I'm sure men stand at a bar or locker room or wherever they gather and say "Wow, did you see the lashes on that babe?" Right? They do that don't they? Isn't that what the cosmetic companies what us to believe. Eye lashes are the be all and end all of feminine beauty. I have asked a few men I know what they think or a womans eye lashes and mascara. Most of the time I get a blank look as if this is something that has never crossed their minds. One guy friend of mine said "It that the black goop that gets into the corners of her eyes and looks like hell?" Yeah, that is the stuff. Am I protesting the wearing of war paint? No way! Don't come between me and my little pink tube of Maybelline Great Lash.
There is a psychological theory that they used to use to gage a woman's self esteem. They felt that if a woman felt good about herself she would wear make up. They called this the "Max Factor factor". To me it seems possible that a woman with low self esteem could hide behind make up and a woman with great self esteem could go bare faced out into the world. As for me I will happily keep decorating my eyes and painting my nails (Oh, don't get me started.)
Peace, Joy Love and Happiness to you all.
For my 14th birthday I was finally grown up enough for makeup of my own. My gift that year was a little kit of three shiny blue eye shadows and a tube of mascara. I put that on and felt so grown up, so glamorous, so groovy! When my sister, who was married by then, pulled up in front of the house I ran out to show her. She took one look at me and said "You better get inside and wash that off before Mommy sees you." Not the reaction I had hoped for. I guess I hoped for admiration, I was sure she would want to sit down and share make up tips. The eye make up did me well for quite a while. My lips were dark, this disappointed me because the dark color showed through the pale lipsticks that were popular. The natural look came in and calmed things down with brown eye shadows. Then in the glorious 80s the days of Mary Kay and bold colors and big hair and big shoulders. What fun. I remember my favorite pattern was grass green shadow on my eyelid, sky blue on the crease and sunny yellow under my brow. With false lashes and lots of Mascara. I' was ready to boogie oogie oogie.
I could have kept Maybelline in business myself in the quest for fabulous lashes. Something I have noticed is how much importance is put on eyelashes. Every women's magazine is filled with page after page of ads for mascara that promises lush, thick, long, sexy lashes. On TV there is commercial after commercial with supermodels or celebrities smiling then doing close ups of their professionally applied lash enhancements. We, of course, can copy this ourselves at home in the time it takes to get ready to go out. And that is a good thing because we know by what they are telling us men can not resists a sexy pair of lashes. Right? Having the right mascara, or if you don't have enough lashes a doctor can give you a prescribed liquid to brush on to grow more, is the way to get a man. I'm sure men stand at a bar or locker room or wherever they gather and say "Wow, did you see the lashes on that babe?" Right? They do that don't they? Isn't that what the cosmetic companies what us to believe. Eye lashes are the be all and end all of feminine beauty. I have asked a few men I know what they think or a womans eye lashes and mascara. Most of the time I get a blank look as if this is something that has never crossed their minds. One guy friend of mine said "It that the black goop that gets into the corners of her eyes and looks like hell?" Yeah, that is the stuff. Am I protesting the wearing of war paint? No way! Don't come between me and my little pink tube of Maybelline Great Lash.
There is a psychological theory that they used to use to gage a woman's self esteem. They felt that if a woman felt good about herself she would wear make up. They called this the "Max Factor factor". To me it seems possible that a woman with low self esteem could hide behind make up and a woman with great self esteem could go bare faced out into the world. As for me I will happily keep decorating my eyes and painting my nails (Oh, don't get me started.)
Peace, Joy Love and Happiness to you all.
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