Thursday, July 14, 2011

the power of makeup

Ever since I was a little girl I've loved makeup. I relished the power to transform my face into something completely different with the swipe of a brush or a wand or a tube. I also remember the first time I ever (sneakingly) wore mascara. I was in 7th grade and I remember how different it made my face look. (Those of you who don't have blond eyelashes wouldn't understand the transformative power of a little mascara.) I even remember one of my teachers telling me how pretty I looked that day. From then on, it was ON! I'd do whatever I could to get my hands on some mascara and believe me, I got in trouble for it. I remember my mother getting mad at me for wearing mascara to school, because at this point, I wasn't allowed to wear makeup.

[Side note: This was back in the days when mothers were more like...um...parents. I couldn't wear makeup regularly until I was 14, unless it was for special events or Halloween.]

Anywho, soon after my mascara affinity came my love for lipstick. Both of these are my makeup staples to this day. But don't let me fool you with my love for classic makeup staples. I have attempted to be trendy with makeup before. Thankfully, this was mostly in middle/high school and I have since learned from my transgressions. For example, I remember jumping on the ridiculously colored makeup bandwagon (with Irish green nail polish) and then again with silver, yes I said SILVER lipstick.

Stop. Take a look at the picture of me on the top of my blog. I am about at pale as they come and I wore straight up SILVER lipstick. For one day. I nixed it after my friends and teachers kept asking me if I was feeling okay. No lie.

Thankfully after these and a few more minor makeup transgressions (um, lime green eye shadow, glitter and silver mascara) I carved out my way in the world of cosmetics.

These days I leave the trendy to the runway models and stick with my basics: foundation, bronzer or blush, mascara, eyeliner and lipstick. If I'm feeling extra motivated, I may slap on a bit of eyeshadow for contour, but it's almost always some variation of brown, gray or bronze. This might even seem a bit boring compared to my adventures of yore, but I'm a fan of sticking with what works, you know? It's a big compliment when people (well, mostly men because they are generally clueless unless you have on bright blue eyeshadow) act surprised that I wear makeup because they tell me it looks natural. Natural? Sure, I'll take it. Natural beats "are you feeling sick" ANYDAY.

What about you? Any previous makeup mishaps? What are your cosmetic staples?

An example of a current staple: Mary Kay Creme Lipstick in Pink Shimmer.

5 comments:

  1. Tinted moisturizer, pressed powder, mascara (all Cover Girl) and Burt's Bees tinted lip gloss. Occasionally some eye shadow (I tend to prefer shades of mauve).

    I was allowed to start wearing makeup at 13. My mom scheduled a private session with a Mary Kay rep so that I could learn about proper skin care and makeup application. She also bought me all the products I needed to start:)

    In high school I went through a phase where I wanted all of my products to be natural. Baking soda skin scrub, egg face mask, etc. I tried using daffodil pollen as eye shadow! My eyes were swollen for 24 hours.

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  2. Selah, the daffodil pollen story is AMAZING! It made me laugh out loud!!

    I think your mom had the right idea with taking you to get your makeup done by a professional and then buying you your basics. I guess I just assumed I knew what I was doing and what looked good because I'd watched my mom do her makeup ever since I was little. :)

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  4. I spent a considerable amount of time watching the most beautiful women in my young life apply make-up: my mom, grandmother, and aunt, and thus never felt the need for any professional training. I also had a little practice from theater and ballet. Basically, even though I never wear make-up, I love the way I look it it--and my make-up icon is Snow White--red nail polish, rosey cheeks, very red lipstick, mascara, and blue eye shadow. I have no idea how ridiculous this might look now as I have not worn make-up in 13 years, but this is what I think of when I think about wearing it. Great post!

    p.s. Of course, I tend to tan, but I gave Snow White a pass on that since she was a Victorian.
    ~

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  5. I am a no-frills kind of girl when it comes to make-up. Powder, eye shadow, mascara, and a quick sweep of blush. But I have no problem with going without.

    My mom let me start out with a little blush. Then it got crazy when she let me move to mascara...only it had to be clear mascara. Boo!

    I am not a fan of lipstick. It is so sticky! But you will never catch me without Chapstick!

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