The Makeup Era

Google states that makeup is used to enhance or alter the appearance - cosmetic products range from the simple stuff such as lipstick, mascara, eyeliner to matte and dewy foundations, concealer, contour, highlights and eyeshadows, a form of art used by females and even males now as a creative way of expressing their identity. The history of makeup began with the Egyptians who applied dark eye makeup called mesdement, blush and lipstick formed from animal fat, with the intention of pleasing the gods. In the Victorian era, makeup was especially used by wealthy white women like white powder and pink blush cosmetics to make themselves look paler but flushed, which they felt made them look more beautiful and attractive to men. Makeup trends today in the 21^st century include ‘fleeky’ eyebrows, blended contour and ‘popping’ highlighter – social media like YouTube and Instagram have become huge platforms for aspiring beauty guru’s and influencers to showcase their artistry skills in makeup with their subscribers and followers. Young females now aspire to become successful beauty influencers where they are paid excessive amounts of money to try out new makeup products and share their reviews.

Though makeup is designated “you” time, fun and playful, perhaps the large percentage of females that wear makeup use it because they feel obliged to conform to society’s expectations of how a woman should construct their appearance - they should look presentable and attractive at all times, especially for the male gaze. Makeup has become a daily ritual for the majority of women, applying cosmetics before the start of their day has become a social expectation of a female. Current expectations of women in terms of their physical appearance surely strike feelings of insecurity in a lot of females, they may have skin blemishes or simply not like the way they look because beauty magazines and social media are always insisting that we can and should want to look better, how we are isn’t pretty enough, and this results in females using makeup as more of a complete alteration of their appearance for the pleasure of society rather than something for enhancement and a boost of their confidence.

For me, I started wearing makeup from about 14 years old because I wasn’t happy with the look of my skin, my early teenage years consisted of acne that would improve and then worsen throughout my years of school – foundation was a way for me to cover up these issues and feel confident while completing my studies. Then it got to a stage where I was only ever confident with my foundation on, short trips to the shops couldn’t be done without it, even looking in the mirror naked faced became difficult because I simply didn’t like the look of myself. Although, time, skin care and the ability to love myself more has massively improved my skin to the point where I am comfortable and prefer no makeup days. This is why I believe that makeup comes from a place of insecurity, before coming from a place of expression - that comes afterwards.