Wearing Makeup

[madmusician]

Tell her you'll wear makeup for him when he wears leopard print thongs and a James Brown sequined cape for you.

You owe me a new keyboard, Auntie Venom!

[Brentwood]

Tell her you'll wear makeup for him when he wears leopard print thongs and a James Brown sequined cape for you.

You owe me a new keyboard, Auntie Venom!

I was worried about what you'd do if he took you up on that suggestion. LOL!

[madmusician]

OH YAY OH YAY I'M A FULL MEMBER NOW!!!!!!!!!

If he took me up on that I think I might have to throw myself off a cliff. Really bad mental pictures....oh, my....

[Clara Bow]

Love is calling your man "Soul Brother Number One"....that's all I'm saying.

[scotcat]

I have never figured out just WHY we need to paint our faces up.  Guys don't have to do it to be accepted.

But then Mom never wore makeup.  Your face is your face. Treat it your way.  I would rather see a "naked" face then one that you could scrape your name in.

Makeup just feels so phony on my face.  Like, that's not who I am.

I have it worked out in my case, I wear it so that people stop saying are you o.k., you look so pale. My Mum only ever wore lipstick, and a dab of powder on for that reason too.

I think it is more disrepectful to turn up to a formal occasion like a wedding, funeral, christening or job interview dressed as if you just fell out of bed. If you present a neat appearence, make-up doesn't matter.

[Stjarni]

I think your mother is way out with this.

Makeup is for the person who is wearing it, not for other people. I chose to wear makeup because *I* like it. Not because some other person say that I have to.

[Stjarni]

No it's not rude. You don't owe him makeup.

I find the insinuation that a woman is only complete with makeup ridiculous. I never wear makeup and my hair is very low maintainance. I figured my fiance will see me without makeup so why shock him the first time I woke up next to him bare-faced? One of the saddest things I ever heard was an aquaintance mentioning how scary his girlfriend looked without her makeup in the morning.

Besides, if you rarely wear makeup it's a lot easier to go all out when you have the occasion to.

-Ulla

I'm scary in the morning, makeup or not! 

[Stjarni]

I look better with makeup on too, but sometimes I'm lazy. I never do the full shebang when I'm not going anywhere, because I don't want to waste it, but I usually do put on my Bare Minerals foundation because it makes me feel better. For just basic daytime running around - school, groceries, whatever - I wear Bare Minerals foundation, some mascara, and some lipstick. I always feel more "dressed" with lipstick.

I did do the school run with my hair in a ponytail and baseball cap today, though...

I use mineral makeup too. I really love the foundation, easy and fast!

I LOVE makeup! There is so many options, so many colors. I usually match my makeup with the mood I'm currently in.
/today is baseball cap and mascara day.

[Cellardoor14]

My mom is one of the always-wear-make-up squad..... she will not step out of the house with at least eyeliner and lipstick.

(she is also of the belief that once a woman is past 40 her hair shouldn't be past her shoulders. But that's another topic)

I get tons of schtick about not wearing make-up everyday. single. day.

(I do wear on occasion but it takes too much time to do it properly.  And with my features I go from respectable to drag queen very easily)

I've learned to just zone her out when she starts the make-up speech.

[freakyfemme]

My mom is one of the always-wear-make-up squad..... she will not step out of the house with at least eyeliner and lipstick.

(she is also of the belief that once a woman is past 40 her hair shouldn't be past her shoulders. But that's another topic)

I get tons of schtick about not wearing make-up everyday. single. day.

(I do wear on occasion but it takes too much time to do it properly.  And with my features I go from respectable to drag queen very easily)

I've learned to just zone her out when she starts the make-up speech.

Well, no wonder.....judging by the looks of your adorable son, you must be beautiful too.  You probably don't need make-up.

[ClaireC79]

I very rarely wear makeup, I will if we're going out but that's about it.
Last year I did decide to wear make up every day for my New Year resolution (figured at 27 I should maybe act like a grown up and wear make up) - I think I got to the 4th and gave up.

[Xanthia, Maker of fine Tin-foil hats since 2007]

Once I started working in a back office where I never see people, I stopped wearing makeup to work because it was irritating my skin.  I have always been one to wear "natural" looking makeup unless for special occasions.

As a teen, I was probably one of a handful of people who had their parents telling them that they needed a "little more color" and to up the blush or lipstick.  My mom used to get on me for not "dolling up" all the time, until I finally broke and told her "You know, it really sucks when your own mother thinks you are so hideous that you have to cover up your face with toxic chemicals just to go out in public and not scare small children"  of course, that is not what she meant, but she got the point.

I am simultaneously told what beautiful skin I have, and that I should wear a little more make up/make up would bring out my eyes.  Hey, I have nice skin because I do not wear makeup everyday!  Jellybean prefers me not to wear much if any make up, he says "You look just like you, but in unnatural colors" and hates lipstick the worse.

It is not rude to be well groomed and not wear something that would have had you marked as a Harlot not that long ago 

[Venus193]

As a teen, I was probably one of a handful of people who had their parents telling them that they needed a "little more color" and to up the blush or lipstick.

That's the entire point of what makeup means to most people who use it.  We humans have color perception capabilities many other species don't have and are therefore attracted to strong colors.  When you read romance novels, the most popular color combination for the hero is black hair with green or blue eyes (James Bond, like Superman, is supposed to have black hair and blue eyes).  This is just as important as the right features.

One morning I saw a man on the subway whom I decided had to be a model; he was tall, in great shape, and had eyes that I usually describe as Fabio Blue (same color as a Siamese cat's).  While he had a handsome face -- like an Armani model's -- his eyes were so distinctive I was glad to be wearing dark glasses so he couldn't notice I was staring.  Another time I saw a similar guy who was also very well-dressed and had blond hair.  I asked him whether he worked in soap operas.  When he said "No, I don't" I told him "You should."  Made his day.  He looked like your classic Young Soap Opera Doctor.

Historically, men have used makeup to enhance their features or add color where it was "washed out"; think of ancient Egypt and the 18th Century.  What I can't figure out is how cosmetics became exclusively female.

[ShadesOfGrey]

wow, all this time I have felt rather unprofessional because I dont wear makeup on a regular basis - it is good to know that many people are so ok with not wearing it. 

[Emmy]

I am fair skinned and have fine hair which makes my eyebrows and eyelashes looks sparse.  Without make-up I feel like my features are undefined and I look void of color.  I don't wear make-up all the time, I work in a small casual place where I certainly don't have to impress anybody and don't feel I have to take an extra 10 minutes and put it on to go work, the supermarket, or the gym.  When I go out anywhere that is not supercasual, I usually wear make-up.  Make-up makes me look polished, so I personally think I would not look right if I was dressed up and wearing no make-up.  Same thing with job hunting, I felt make-up helped me look more professional.  I prefer neutral colors that emphasize my features and usually will wear foundation, eyeshadow and liner, mascara, blush, and either a lip gloss or lipstick.  I also will out my eyebrows with some brown shadow which makes a lot of difference.  

In college I used to wear it all the time because I feel better wearing it.  One day I chose not to for an early class and I had several people ask me if I was ill  .

However, I feel make-up is for the person wearing the make-up and not everybody else so it is crazy to say it is rude not to wear make-up.  This goes for anybody, even if they are pale, have scars, blemishes, ect., they are not obligated to wear make-up.  If it doesn't bother the OP's boyfriend, I fail to see how it should bother her mother.  If the OP's mother considered not wearing make-up rude, would she consider the following decisions about somebody's personal appearance rude to their SO: wearing a tee and jeans or other casual attire, being overweight, not fixing teeth that are a little crooked, or dying hair to cover up gray, ect. be considered rude??  I feel the extent of etiquette of personal appearance having good hygiene.