My Life in Cosmetics
When I turned 12, my mother took me on a special outing to the Clinique counter at the mall so that I could learn about skin care. We bought soap, toner, moisturizer and a lip gloss in acknowledgment of what would be the beginning of my life with cosmetics. After all, I was about to be a teenager, and for the most part, teenage girls and makeup go hand in hand.
I already had a slew of products picked up from the drug store, but those bright blue eye shadows and hot pink lip colors were for inside the house and "play' time only. I could actually go to school in my new Clinique lip gloss, and it was thrilling.
As I approach the milestone of my thirtieth birthday, I started thinking about my life in cosmetics. (I know that 30 is "the new 20," but I still find myself thinking about this birthday a little more than others.) I even came up with a brief history of my makeup usage:
Age 12: Lip gloss.
Age 15: Powder, mascara, lip gloss.
Age 18: Concealer, powder, blush, eye shadow, eye liner, mascara, lip liner, lipstick.
Age 21: Body glitter and mascara. (Body glitter was very popular then, I swear. And, back then, my skin just seemed to glow with youth and possibility. Or, maybe it was just over-confidence and naivety.)
Age 25: Foundation, powder, eye shadow, mascara, lipstick.
Around the age of 25, I realized $3 foundation wasn't going to cut it anymore. At 20, my foundation cost $5 and my eye shadow cost $25. Now, my foundation costs $35 and my eye shadow costs $5.
But, what's most interesting to me is the change in my "no makeup" face. Now, I don't know about you, but I just assume that anyone who looks decent and says they "don't have a stitch of makeup on" is lying. "Women who don't wear makeup" are just wearing very little makeup. I mean, my mom gave me some great genes, but if I don't slap on some concealer, even a blind man would know it.
And I can tell you with no shame whatsoever that if I say I'm not wearing makeup, I'm full of it. (Unless, of course, we run into each other at the hospital or the liquor store. And, in those moments, you won't say "Your skin looks great. Do you have anything on?" At those times, you'll say, "Are you OK?" or "Trouble sleeping lately?".)
At 21, my "no makeup" face required concealer and mascara. Today, my "no makeup" face is a careful balance of foundation, powder, eye base, eye brightener, bronzer, mascara, eyebrow filler and nude lipstick. (You can now see why I didn't type out my Age 29 makeup routine. I lost count after the tenth product.)
I only hope my income bracket can keep up with my growing need for cosmetics. (Sigh.) And, while I know that the alternative to aging is death--and in that scenario, I'll always take aging, I do wish my ever-expanding makeup case wasn't such a persistent sign of my deepening "maturity."