Going one week without makeup
I used to only feel beautiful with $30 of product painted on my face.
Coming from an all-girls private school, I rarely wore a full face of makeup, let alone brushed my hair. Upon starting college, though, I found myself starting to wear more eyeliner, soon followed by layers of foundation to hide the mountains on my forehead.
Since May 2016, women have been embracing a new look through the #NoMakeup Movement. This movement first gained popularity when singer Alicia Keys wrote an essay for a feminist newsletter, the Lenny Letter, titled “Time to Uncover.” She explained how she had previously used makeup to transform her identity into something she felt would appeal to the entertainment industry. Keys first uncovered her no-makeup look on the season premiere of NBC’s reality TV show “The Voice” in August 2016.
So, what would happen if I tossed my makeup bag to the side and didn’t wear makeup for a week? Would I still feel beautiful? Desired? Comfortable in my own skin?
Bev Cutler, Ph.D., associate director of Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS), explained while self-esteem struggles among college students depend on the individual, it can be heightened in a college setting where students live and attend classes together daily.
“We can’t claim to know an individual’s motives, but we can presume that wearing makeup might make a woman feel more attractive, sexual and appealing,” she said.
The first day without makeup was difficult for me. Despite being able to sleep in an extra 20 minutes, I dreaded leaving my apartment for my morning class. I swore I could feel everyone, from my friends and professors to strangers staring at my completely naked face.
It wasn’t until the fourth day without makeup I began to feel a bit more relaxed and comfortable with my own natural skin. My roommate approached me earlier that day about being in a video and instead of creating an excuse or rushing back to put on foundation, I ended up feeling beautiful being filmed with my naked eyes and slightly blotchy skin.
The rest of the week felt liberating. I could confidently leave my apartment each morning and accomplish my tasks without the looming panic of not looking “my best” interfering with my daily life.
“Self-worth influences every aspect of a person’s life—how they present themselves and relate to the world, how well they accept their limitations and how much they appreciate their strengths,” Cutler said.
While I have not gone more than two days without makeup since my #NoMakeup experiment, I have realized I wear makeup to only enhance my facial features, not because I hate the way I look. Coming to college from high school heightened the way I viewed myself. I began to figure out who I was as a person and who I wanted to become, wanting to (attempt) to look as organized as possible.
“Going to an all-girls high school made it easy for me to not feel pressured to or to choose not to wear makeup,” said Emily Mullen ’18, a graduate of Merion Mercy High School in Merion Station, another all-girls high school. “I didn’t really care that much because I wasn’t there to impress anyone or anything, it was just school.”
Since coming to college, Mullen wears a bit more makeup than she did in high school, and her reasoning behind it reflects the message Alicia Keys vocalized.
“I think it’s just wanting to look more put together,” Mullen said. “It’s just for me. My makeup routine is very laid back, which is a lot like my personality.”
After going a week without makeup, I began to understand how to accept my natural self, and it doesn’t change who I am. I’m a loud, energetic and passionate woman with acne scars and naked eyes, and I love it.
