Le No Makeup Look

As this New York Time's article says, chic French women believe that "too much makeup makes a woman seem older, or even worse, as if she makes a living walking the streets...that it is also the mark of the desperate housewife type who tries too hard...And when you use too much makeup, it means you are hiding from yourself."

Although I am proud to be American, we can learn a lot from the French in terms of fashion and beauty.

I think that there is beauty in every person. I find that American and Asian women wear way too much makeup. Makeup is meant to enhance one's beauty, not change it drastically. I know women who contour their cheeks with blush or bronzer to make it look thinner. Unless you are incredibly pale, blush looks terrible, and no one is being fooled by the contouring, but rather it looks fake. I have even heard some of my Asian female acquaintances say they use eyeshadow and eyeliner to make their eyes look bigger, rounder and more western. It was very surprising because I believe that there is beauty in every culture, and that different ethic features are interesting. Makeup is meant to highlight one's features, not change it.

Some women put on so much makeup daily that it looks like a mask or as if they are going to a photo studio or wedding daily. I also see bright eye-shadows, bright blushes and lipsticks that seem theatrical, even a bit clownish. I think this is because many of us want to hide our true selves from the world, being afraid that we are not enough nor that we meet the standard of pop culture. This is why I avoid most pop beauty and fashion magazines. They want to covertly tell people how one should dress or look, rather than celebrating the beauty and uniqueness in each of us. Sadly, it is done just for marketing purposes and to mostly make money for the companies.

The French idea of the no-makeup look or minimal makeup is a great idea. They tend to highlight one feature in natural colors and leave the rest of the face pale. It allows their natural beauty to shine through.


French women are also a lot less likely than Americans to have cosmetic surgery and injections to make them appear less flawess or younger. I think that it is wonderful that the French celebrate natural female beauty, even as one ages. Frankly, too much makeup not only looks distasteful and as if one is trying too hard, but many makeup products are bad for the skin. Most men I know don't like the fake made up look either. Those who seem attracted to it at first are often disappointed to find that a women is wearing a mask of her beauty and is not as she really looks when the makeup comes off.

Wearing less makeup also saves so much time, and it is quite freeing to celebrate not having to hide behind it with more than 2 products every time you venture out. Personally, I only wear powder to offset shine or blemishes and mascara or eyeshadow on a regular basis. If I am going to an event, especially when photographs will be taken, I will add concealer, eyeliner on my top eyelid only and tinted lipgloss. Even so, the colors and application is very minimal and less than 10 minutes. My daily routine literally takes less than 2 minutes. While I never wore more than 2 products at a time on a regular basis, I didn't always wear natural makeup, as I wore pale foundation, thickly lined eyes and red lipstick in my goth stage before it became popular. However, I realized as I got older that it was just too much and it just makes one look haggard and tired. I also wanted to challenge myself to show the world fearlessly who I am without makeup. It felt a little strange at first, but as I ventured out with barely any makeup, I felt so much freer and confident to be myself. 

So ladies, today, free yourself a little and go out with one less makeup product or better yet, go bare faced. Doing makeup more than a few minutes a day is such a waste of time, time which you could be doing so much more and spending your money or more valuable things than makeup.