September 20-27, 2010 is No Make-Up Week. You may wonder, why do we need a week off from cosmetics? No, it’s not for all the harsh, toxic ingredients in cosmetics, it’s to celebrate our natural beauty!
Rabbit Write explains:
The philosophy is this. Make-up is great. It is a powerful tool, a way to express yourself, your mood and interior life. But, when you can’t go without something, it loses it’s spark.
A study online claims that 8 out of 10 women prefer their female colleagues to wear makeup and the same number of women said they would rather employ a woman who wore makeup than one who didn’t. Because of these expectations, I think it’s hard for any woman to have a good relationship to make-up.
So, I am taking on the experiment to go a week without make-up, to explore my fears and beliefs around make-up and my natural face.
This is an easy one for me, as every week is No Make-Up Week, unless there is a wedding to attend. I do use Dr. Hauschka Toned Day Cream to even out my skin tone, but that’s the closest I come to cosmetics on a daily basis since the seventh grade.
I support No Make-Up Week for our daughters, as they need to learn to accept their natural beauty and celebrate it. My nine-year-old has not discovered make-up yet, but I know the day will come in junior high when we will approach that subject. Will I impose my no make-up philosophy on her, or will I allow her to experiment with natural cosmetics and find her own way? The answer probably lies a little bit in both options.
Rabbit Write continues:
It’s not about taking a week off because make-up is somehow bad or because not wearing it is better. It’s that by taking a week off, I should be able to understand my relationship to cosmetics more clearly. Why do I feel I need to sketch on eyebrow pencil before going to the grocery? To shellac my face before seeing a friend? And if I am going to a networking event or party, can I feel comfortable in anything less than contoured cheeks and caked on lashes?
When we start unraveling the threads, we see a lot of issues are embedded. There is the input of our families and friends–we all have a history with make-up, some not as pretty as others. There is the feminist question of why and for who? Who are we trying to impress? And in many offices, it’s scary to consider, what the reaction would be if one showed up sans-make-up. There is also the issue of toxins in our make-up. Carcinogens that are laced into many mainstream products.
I guess I’ll skip my toned day cream this week.
I admit it. I’m addicted to cosmetics. Going to Sephora is a great treat. A year ago, I found out that I was using so many different creams and products on my face that I am now allergic to Paraben – a preservative that is in everything I was using (even Cetaphil, Jergens, etc). The only saving grace was that my makeup, Bare Minerals, is safe. It was honestly a huge sigh of relief for me. I’ve changed all my creams and products to natural, paraben-free but for the makeup, I admit it, I’m addicted.
If you want to quit cosmetics, move to Colorado. Nobody wears them here, unless you just moved in from Texas.
If you see the population of India, maximum women uses cosmetics to make their skin shine and make them attractive. But in real their skin is tan. Similarly, US stars also uses cosmetics to hide some spots on the faces, hides old looks from it and looks marvelous.