Confession: I never leave the house without makeup. Unless I'm going to sweat my butt off at hot yoga or something like that, I always at least wear tinted moisturizer and mascara. And sometimes I even buy waterproof mascara so that I actually can wear it to yoga!
Why go to such extremes? It's not that I'm supremely self-conscious or that I always wear a ton of makeup–it's just that I feel so naked without a little something on my face. Plus, I grew up listening to my old-fashioned abuelita call my mom and aunts "palidas" whenever they didn't wear blush.
Well, apparently my abuela and I aren't the only ones who feel this way. A recent study by the Renfrew Center Foundation found that nearly half of women in the U.S. said they felt unnatractive when they weren't wearing makeup. 14 percent also said that (like me!) they felt naked without makeup and 25 percent started wearing makeup between the ages of eleven and thirteen.
The findings have inspired the foundation to start a national campaign called "Barefaced & Beautiful, Without & Within," part of which entails encouraging women to post barefaced pictures of themselves on Facebook.
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Given my own experiences, I'm not really surprised by these results but I do think they raise a lot of questions. Why do females feel so pressured to look good all the time? And why are some women more affected than others? One thing's for sure–the only time eleven-year-olds should feel compelled to wear makeup is on Halloween. I mean, even though I'm a fan now, I didn't start wearing cosmetics until I was in high school!
Plus, it's not just us ordinary gals who feel tied to our makeup. Celebrities who dare to step out with bare faces often get criticized and "celebs without makeup" photos normally gain a ton of traffic on websites that feature them.
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It's a fixation that is extremely indicative of the emphasis our society places on appearanc –and one that many, including myself, need to work on. So ladies, join me in daring to bare those naturally beautiful faces! It might be hard but I think it'll be worth it if only to set a good example for the future generation of young girls…and to put all those shallow criticizers in their place.
Are you an avid makeup wearer or do you prefer to be cosmetic-free?
Image via Escuela Superior de Artes y Espectáculos TAI/flickr
