I could probably just leave the post with that as a title and get y’all thinking and talking. There are few things in the world that people have well-defined, strong positions on, and makeup is certainly one of them.
Boys, don’t think you’re getting out of this one. I know some of you wear foundation. And some of the rest of you boys are cringing in horror at the suggestion that you not only could, but should wear foundation.
Here’s the thing: I’m getting older. Yay! Older! WOOHOO! But as I get older, I’d like to be taken more seriously in the workplace. I’m going to be doing beaucoup job interviews, and the first thing they look at when they look at you is your face.
(Unless you’re wearing a really low-cut top, which ain’t terribly professional in the first place.)
Makeup is considered part of a professional appearance in Western society. But here I come at it from a Christian Minimalist attitude– Okay, no, really, I’m coming at it more from a I-Love-Me-Some-Sleep-and-I-Work-Hard-For-My-Money attitude. Why should I get up 20 minutes early to paint up my face with ridiculously expensive stuff when it’s either going to sweat off in the next hour or be washed down the drain? But then again, the I-Work-Hard-For-My-Money bit goes hand-in-hand with Christian Nimimalisim, especially when you need to buy a cleanser and a scrub and a serum and a calmer and a moisturizer and a primer and a concealer and a foundation and a powder and and and OH MY GOD ALL I WANT IS TO NOT LOOK SO BLOTCY AND RED AND PASTY IN THE WINTER!
(If you don’t believe me that all this stuff is considered ‘basic’ by the cosmetics industry, you’ve never been accosted by a Mary Kay lady.)
And then we get into the drama of if’n we’re gonna wear the makeup, which makeup is more ethical and has the fewest chemicals and won’t feel like I’ve stuck my face in a bucket of mud and how exactly do I teach myself to put this stuff on about 15 years later than most women start ’cause I really, really don’t want to look like Amy Winehouse when I grow up…
Oy gevalt. I think only a blogging Christian could make this much drama out of a bit of eyeliner and concealer.
Order of Santa Ignora 
Why not just get an eyeliner tattoo? No muss, no fuss. I jest, of course.
But I might possibly have an interview coming up where I know one of the members of the interviewers is gay. I’d never wear a low cut top, but wearing a tight shirt is starting to look more reasonable. I jest, of course. I think.
Hmm. Makeup. Tricky.
Nice makeup is a vice of mine. Sephora is my toy store. But I haven’t always worn it. I didn’t really bother until my skin decided to have an acne breakdown when I was 23, after 23 years of being nice and calm. I had to wear foundation every day (no primer or other nonsense, thank you) and from there as long as I was sitting in front of a mirror painting myself, I decided I might as well add other things, too.
I’ve heard good things about what Bare Essentials does for the skin. It’s expensive, but goes on as a powder and feels light and easily ignorable.
Er, Bare Minerals, I think it’s called. I’ve never used it myself, but I know a lot of fans.
I haven’t worn makeup since 1989. I hated it, so I quit. I’ve gotten many jobs and held them, and my skin actually got better when I quit pasting allergens onto it. My entire skin care regime is: put warm water on washcloth, wash face, let face dry.
Works for most of the men I know. Works for me.
As long as there are books to buy, I will not buy makeup again.