Make-up...WHY?

[VoltySquirrel]

Make-up does look good on a girl if the coloring is right and if its used in moderation. Besides, make-up is useful. Have a huge zit you wanna cover up? Slap on some of the stuff. But, if its used TOO much, it looks too bad. A girl only looks as good as they do everyday, all the time.

On a side note: Why the hell do GUYS put on make-up? Seriously, eyeliner is not designed for men.

 

[the_tramp]

Wait they have pink mascara these days? wtf ? You should explain then mens eyes are different to women. We see basic shades. Red, pink, green, blue etc. We do not have a colour chart in our brain that tells us the difference between shades.
True its mostly bullshit but it will shut her up for a while while she feels superior yes.

Whenever a girl argues the difference between two shades of a colour I always repeat the same phrase:

Men live in a 16 colour world, 32 if we're lucky.

 

[goater24]

I've been trying to get my head around this for quite some time. Girls/Women, why do you wear it? I don't know a single guy who actually cares, and apparently it's proven that guys only notice it when there is too much on. I for one, don't care what-so-ever. I just don't understand why it is worn. The most common answer I have is:

1) It makes people feel more comfortable with themselves.

This one is NOT TRUE. I mean, if it's only noticed when there is too much and it looks awful, how does that make you feel better?

Please explain to me! I don't understand! I'm crying for help! I need this problem solved. It's been in my head for a loooooooong time.

Well you can't "prove" that guys don't notice because that's just ridiculous. If you use your eyes then you can.

Also of course it can make people feel more comfortable with themselves, some women no doubt look happier if they have "flawless" skin when they look in the mirror.

Then there is stylised make-up: Gothic, Glam etc. which can completely change the look of somebodies face.

I also fail to see how this is a "problem". It's no different from styling your hair, or wearing clothes you like.

Seconded, make up can be used to express yourself as you mentioned. Have a look at the crazy colours that MAC produce and tell me thats not making a statement about yourself? Makeup when applied correctly can turn skin into art and as a guy that loves freedom of expression 'go' those that choose to use it.

Also the fella who said that woman don't feel comfortable wearing makeup is so far of base its untrue. My partner has naturally red cheeks which she is uncomfortable with, so she applies foundation and she feels more confident within herself.

Alot of comments being made on this thread seem to be sweeping statements from men who resent woman who like to dress themselves up abit. Whats wrong with people wanting to make themselves look good, and if you don't agree then you're probably not the people that they were trying to impress in the first place.

 

[Zombie_Fish]

I've heard that it makes women feel more secure about themselves. Something about hiding flaws.

 

[Avatar Roku]

Whilst I've heard the 'if it's applied correctly then they look nicer' argument a million times and for the love of science I still don't see the fascination... even when looking out for it. I think it's the over-dependence that annoys me the most.

I live with a girl who is very very self conscious and no matter what myself or my other all male housemates say she still insists upon it constantly. We live opposite two corner shops and a fish and chip shop and she insists upon putting on makeup just for the 2 minutes that we'll be at any of the three places.

The funny thing is that I look at her sans makeup and then with makeup and I honestly don't know the difference. She's always on about her imperfect face, her blemishes and all of the other crap that 99% of teen/20somethings come out with and I just laugh because she doesn't have any of the problems that she says, I tell her this and she doesn't believe me. Hell, I even tell her that my face is a lot worse (acne + minor scarring as well as several dents from injuries as I've been growing up) but she doesn't believe me. I think she might have maybe... one spot on her face.

I know what you mean. There's a fairly good looking girl I'm friends with who came in one day looking...different. Note she didn't look bad, I actually think she looked better than usual, but I couldn't put my finger on what it was for 15 minutes. And then it struck me: she wasn't wearing makeup. I mentioned to her that I thought she looked better this way, and she didn't believe me. An odd thing I noticed, however, was that her personality was also different; she's usually a center-of-attention type, but on that day, she just quickly went to the back of the room and barely said a word.

 

[tomtom94]

I can sort of understand why women would wear make-up but not why they would pay quite a lot of money for it.
Then again I suppose it's quite similar to wearing deodorant in some ways. I love contradicting myself.

 

[Florion]

1) It makes people feel more comfortable with themselves.

This one is NOT TRUE.

... you would know this, because you wear make-up? If you're self-conscious about yourself and concerned with beauty, then maybe you just don't want to see all the pimples whenever you look in the mirror. ("you" in the colloquial "one" sense, here.)

In a more extreme example, I get anxiety attacks if I go out in public and the scars on my wrist aren't covered up, either by sleeves or make-up. If you don't see it, you don't worry about it. Make-up may not even be about beauty, but flaws (a brilliant marketing plan, given almost everybody sees flaws in themselves.).

 

[Lukirre]

Females aren't the only ones who like to "look better" with make up.

Spoiler

If people can make themselves look more appealing by taking a few moments to apply some creams, then it's most likely that they will.
It doesn't all have to do with attracting mates.
Perhaps it's just because they enjoy the way they look with it on.

Though, what Hypothetical Fact said about dressing a certain way to get attention is very true.

I personally don't care whether or not someone has make up on, I just dislike it when they wear too much.

Edit: I wasn't using Tuomas as an example of something negative.
How could I?
*cough*

 

[Trivun]

Anyone who says women are just as good looking without makeup obviously does not live with 4 of them.

Actually, I do, in fact I live with 5 girls, and I reckon they all look just as good without makeup as they do with. In fact, that pretty much goes for every attractive girl I know...

 

[Fairee]

Anyone who says women are just as good looking without makeup obviously does not live with 4 of them.

Actually, I do, in fact I live with 5 girls, and I reckon they all look just as good without makeup as they do with. In fact, that pretty much goes for every attractive girl I know...

Emphasis there on the attractive. Those of us who are absolutely un-attractive consider it very useful.

Although this kinda goes against my last sentence, I don't really wear make-up, mainly because I'd rather spend that time on here. But yeah, make-up is good and makes some of us feel more confident about ourselves.

And anyone who says, you are attractive, is lying and will be shot.

 

[Trivun]

And anyone who says, you are attractive, is lying and will be shot.

You don't really have much self confidence, do you? Believe in yourself!

God, I'm so cliched. It's true though, and I feel a strange need to defy your comment there...

 

[Azhrarn-101]

Anyone who says women are just as good looking without makeup obviously does not live with 4 of them.

Actually, I do, in fact I live with 5 girls, and I reckon they all look just as good without makeup as they do with. In fact, that pretty much goes for every attractive girl I know...

Emphasis there on the attractive. Those of us who are absolutely un-attractive consider it very useful.

Although this kinda goes against my last sentence, I don't really wear make-up, mainly because I'd rather spend that time on here. But yeah, make-up is good and makes some of us feel more confident about ourselves.

And anyone who says, you are attractive, is lying and will be shot.

You may consider yourself unattractive, however you can pretty much guarantee someone does find you attractive, even without make-up.

 

[BonsaiK]

There are many reasons why women wear makeup, here are some:

(warning: rather unfunny but highly informative tl;dr ahead)

1. Confidence issues. Women are far more scrutinised for their appearance than men are, both by potential partners and also just culturally, in general it's traditionally been the woman's role to "be pretty". Of course, not all women think they are that pretty... hence, makeup. How attractive they actually are is besides the point (and highly subjective, anyway). Some women are better at resisting the cultural conditioning than others, just like some men are better at resisting peer pressure to be or do certain things than others. Women who refuse to wear make-up are thus often more inclined to be confident and individualistic. Once again, this has nothing to do with "attractiveness" or lack thereof.

2. A rite of passage. When growing up, wearing makeup is seen as something that women do as they approach adulthood, like wearing a bra, or like men's voices breaking. It's a defining marker of adulthood. Women who wish to "grow up faster" may wear makeup at an earlier age as an aesthetic signifier - in other words they're saying "I'm not a little girl anymore, I am a woman, I have a mature outlook". (Whether they actually do or not is besides the point.) It can be a way to fit into the "grown up world", but if no-one else is wearing any in the immediate social scene it can also be a way to assert individuality. Which leads nicely to...

3. Flirting/attention. Whether men actually find it attractive or not doesn't matter, heavy lipstick, enhanced eyelashes etc still sends out a message that someone is "out to impress" and may be open to (the right kind of) offers. Heavy makeup can be a way to stand out from the competition and get noticed in dating but also elsewhere. That's why musicians of both sexes tend to use it very heavily. Do they look great? Sometimes they do, sometimes they look downright ugly. But you notice them, therefore mission accomplished.

4. Enjoyment. Some women who don't buy into the whole "all women must look a certain way to be beautiful" bullshit that our society revolves around still apply makeup simply because they enjoy it. They enjoy experimenting with different looks, seeing what works and what doesn't, etc. They treat their face like an artist treats a canvas - a space in which to be creative and have fun.

So it's a mistake to assume that a girl with lots of makeup just wants to pick up guys or thinks she's ugly and is hiding behind it or whatever. Sure, that MAY be the reason for it, but there are also other reasons why people do it.

Having said all that, I'm a guy and I don't really like the way women look with makeup on. I prefer none. My current girlfriend tends to not wear any makeup at all and I'm pretty damn happy with that.

 

[Nomz]

I'm a girl and I hate make-up. I know someone who doesn't go anywhere without it. She even puts it on before she goes downstairs. It's insane.

 

[yeah_so_no]

I don't wear make-up because I hate the way it feels on my face, and my complexion is good enough that I don't need to (in, fact, when I go to try clothes on, the clerks always try to give me covers to put on to make sure my make-up won't get on the clothes, and are shocked when I say I'm not wearing in. I lucked out skin-wise and I know it). I used to wear make up in junior high, then decided I'd rather spend that time in the morning sleeping and I read a book called "The Mismeasure of Woman" that looked at a lot of the little discriminations women faced, and one of which was the cost of make-up some women have to wear for work but we have to pay for, even though we tend to get lower salaries than men. I was like, "Yeah, no," and that was the end of me wearing make-up.

But a lot of my friends do wear make-up, and it's because they want to make themselves look better. A small amount of make-up that's applied well can make a big difference--the few times I bother with lipstick and eyeliner, it does make a big difference.

Women are taught from day one that we have to be pretty. We're constantly being measured and measuring ourselves against the photoshopped and flawless women on TV and in magazines. We look in the mirror and we only see our flaws, not because we're neurotic but because we have it shoved down our throats that our value in is our looking pretty and we're conditioned to think we have to make ourselves look pretty for men.

Also, in professional situations, we're expected to wear it--some companies insist that women wear make-up. Ditto with heels.

And some of y'all saying women are weird and off and whatever because we wear heels and makeup despite all the harm it does to our bodies...yeah, and look at how a lot of men respond to women who DON'T make themselves look pretty and cute and do that girly stuff. She gets looked down on as "not hot" and as someone who doesn't take care of herself.

Oh, and men in eyeliner are hot.

 

[Washboard]

I've been trying to get my head around this for quite some time. Girls/Women, why do you wear it? I don't know a single guy who actually cares, and apparently it's proven that guys only notice it when there is too much on. I for one, don't care what-so-ever. I just don't understand why it is worn. The most common answer I have is:

1) It makes people feel more comfortable with themselves.

This one is NOT TRUE. I mean, if it's only noticed when there is too much and it looks awful, how does that make you feel better?

Please explain to me! I don't understand! I'm crying for help! I need this problem solved. It's been in my head for a loooooooong time.

the answer is simple....it gives us guys something to buy them

 

[FallenRainbows]

Easily taken care of my friend.
Example: 1 [http://www.girlshealth.gov/teenguide/images/beforeafter.jpg] 2 [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tK2ULykdFg4] 3 [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8BJguv0Y90]

Yes I am fully aware there is probably a little photoshop added as well but well. A relative of mine is a "model" and trust me. Before and after make up is a huge freaking deal.

I think he just won the entire internet.

 

[Flap Jack452]

My friend at school puts on two different colors of eye liner, its really cool, but thats all the make up she puts on. Too much is just unattractive.

 

[NeoDeath90]

Apparently it's like the attracting mates thing that animals do. But really, there's not too much of a point. If they do, great, if they don;t great. Doesn't really matter to me unless I'm dating Bozo the Clown.

This is why I'm glad I found my girlfriend. She never wears makeup because she can't. She's allergic to almost every makeup there is and it really messes with her skin, so whenever I see her, she's always in her natural beauty ^^

 

[ace_of_something]

The idea of makeup that you don't know it's being worn. If you can TELL she is wearing makeup it's too much. My fiance told me that and she's French so I trust her on this topic.