Waking up after a Wednesday night at the Carleton doesn’t leave you looking your best. Come to think of it, any night out where drinking, dancing and an odd drunken cry occurs will most definitely leave you appearing a little rough around the edges when the alarm clock rings. So for most ladies, we turn to our best friends Mac, Rimmel and Clinique; just three of the many musketeers which help us on our way to shunning the bog eyed look for lectures. But what would happen if we couldn’t hide those drooping eyes with a primer or concealer? Would anyone even notice if we didn’t cover over the dark circles with our daily paint?
For young girls make-up signifies that step into adulthood; with a touch of lip gloss taking that cheeky teenage smile into a sultry pout. From the early high school years of experimenting with multi-coloured eye shadows to those 9am starts where concealer is a must for the sleepy student, make-up has been a universal necessity layered on and off day after day for the majority of women for most of our lives.
I’m not saying that all women are naturally foundation friendly; for those cursed with a stunning face and perfect cheek bones or those completely adverse to the overcomplicated skin tone pallets in Debenhams, make-up is merely something to be used on occasion and sparingly. However, it’s considered that most women don’t feel comfortable without relying on the make-up mask to hide a dodgy mole or a dry patch of skin and use it to instil confidence and comfort in their appearance. But whatever your preferred skin care regime; would you honestly notice if your friend appeared in your seminar early one morning without a touch of tinted moisturiser?
When walking down the spine at 8.45am minus your trusty concealer, a natural worry is that the eyes of many will shift and stare at your blotchy complexion. In reality, everyone is far too preoccupied with keeping awake for their lectures to acknowledge and gasp at your oddly red left cheek. For some, the more layers of foundation applied the happier they feel, with many women suppressing their true appearance with the sweep of a blusher brush for what they believe to be a better, modified version of themselves. When a girl gets up before her boyfriend to touch up her blusher to then lay her head back on the pillow with snow white serenity I doubt that when he wakes up her YSL bronze shimmer will be the first thing on his mind. If I was going to pull an Oprah I’d say beauty must come from within, but with masses of emphasis upon physical appearance and the pressure to look perfect more women seem to be shunning their natural look in favour of a false appearance.
For me, a touched up face in a morning after a heavy night out is helpful to avoid a partial zombie quality. But surely we should be looking for something much less artificial to boost our confidence? Most men just splash their faces with cold water and a bit of soap if we’re lucky and they’re not openly aghast at the thought of being judged for a wayward spot creeping out at the end of their nose. With revision setting in and exams looming, lets brave it and give the face a breather. Crawl out of bed and roll into the library; but if in doubt, at least there are plenty of books to hide behind.
