Throwing Away the Makeup

Last week I threw out my makeup. The mascara, the eyeshadow – all of it went right in the trash. I hadn't worn it in months, and as I threw it away, I knew it was my final declaration.

When I was in middle school I gravitated toward the stuff. I wanted to be grown up. I had visions of maturity and beauty in it. My best friend taught me to apply eyeliner and my mother showed me how to put mascara on. I loved bright green eyeshadow and pale lipstick.

The last time I wore makeup it was snowing. I kept pulling out a pocket mirror to inspect my eyes to be sure my mascara wasn't running. I wore it for the play I watched that night and for the guy in it. That was last winter. I haven't worn makeup since.

Today I've come to a number of conclusions. Makeup is unhealthy for the skin. Makeup distorts genuine beauty and real confidence. Makeup is a product of a consumer society. Makeup is sexist.

What's in makeup? By reading a few labels you'll find preservatives like BHT, chemicals, artificial colors, and if you're lucky, some natural things like oat flour or zinc. Most of the ingredients, the average person cannot pronounce. Every time you put it on your face, your skin is absorbing it.

Makeup has a way of distorting what is truly beautiful. In my eyes, everyone is beautiful. It's when a person covers herself with products that I find it difficult to see that beauty. Beauty is something natural. It has to do with the way a person sees and interacts with the world. It's the way he or she blends with nature, the urban environment, and what is real. Makeup simply covers up and distorts the beauty of being human. It's stepping into the world with a mask on, whether you consciously see it as one or not. Logically speaking, no one would spend so much money on something to cover her face unless she truly believed, either consciously or unconsciously, that beauty could be gained from it. By trying to be beautiful, women cover their true beauty.

Makeup is the product of a consumer society. We buy and buy and buy. Makeup doesn't last long. When it runs out, the packing is thrown away and more is bought and consumed. It's a cycle that goes on and on, but where is the end? Women buy an overpriced product as if it's something they require to be part of this culture. Maybe it is. Women are told: you're better, you're more mature, you're more competent if you wear makeup.

Makeup is sexist. Most women in high paying and professional jobs wear makeup. It seems to be expected. Nobody says, “You must wear makeup,” but it's the social norm. Take a look at your female teachers, politicians, and those working in any job that requires a suit. The majority wear makeup. Why aren't the men expected to wear makeup too?

You're laughing at that statement. Why aren't men expected to wear makeup? Well, because men don't wear makeup. That's the logical answer. Yes, there are products for men, but only a limited number touch them. Welcome to inequality in the workplace. Makeup makes the professional woman.

I say let's scrap makeup! Leave it to actresses and actors who are playing a role. Leave it to the news anchor who doesn't want you to be distracted by a glare on his or her face from the lights.

Throwing away the makeup is a statement that says “I care about my health. I'm beautiful no matter how ‘pretty' I am. I am not a victim of a consumer society. I am equal.” Those are all things I can say about myself.