I love makeup and skincare. It’s shameless. I don’t give a damn. I spend way too much of my coin on it, and then moan that I’m broke at the end of the month. Shock. But I want to address the stigma around anyone other than women wearing makeup. Because when I tell you I’m tired of getting funny looks from people on public transport when touching up my brows, I mean it.
Finally, the world is generally starting to wake up to the fact that not only women are interested in beauty and taking care of their skin. Take Clarins, for example. The company just recently released an entire new foundation range titled ‘Skin Illusions’, and included a male in their visual campaign. I literally screamed with joy when I saw it. And just a few days after that, I saw Fenty Beauty, which is known globally for its inclusive efforts in the beauty sector, include a topless, larger male in one of their videos. Again, I screamed. But that being said, it’s literally only now, recently, in 2018, that I’ve seen this kind of awareness. In my experience, society is still quite far behind on the topic.
I’m normally very confident going out day-to-day with a face of make-up on. Depending on what time my alarm is set for, and what I’m doing that day, I can go out with just some moisturiser and concealer on or a full-beat; highlighter, browscara and all. I have no shame in that whatsoever. But what I hate, is the disapproving looks and double-takes I often get when doing my makeup in public. Recently, I was on a train when I saw out of the corner of my eye two middle-aged, white women pointing and sniggering as I redid my concealer. I couldn’t help but think, why?
Why is it still so unusual for people to see someone other than a female doing their make-up? It’s times like that, when I’m truly thankful for big-name-brands such as Clarins, Lush, The Body Shop and Fenty for including a whole manner of gender, colour, sexuality, size and shape in their campaigns.
Skin care and make-up can be a time-consuming and sometimes expensive interest to hold, but if you invest your time and money wisely, the benefits can be long-lasting and make you feel fab-u-lous, whatever your gender. I truly believe we are in a time of change. Give it another few years, and males wearing makeup and being used in beauty campaigns will be the norm for all, and no-one will bat an eyelid at it. I hope, at least.
Here are my tips for everyone:
-
Know your skin – This is of paramount importance. Everyone’s skin is different – from oily to dry, and combination to problem. But, there are suitable products for each person. For oily skin, use matte. For dry, use dewy. For combination… use whatever feels right.
-
Cleanliness – I cannot stress enough how important it is to keep your skin clean. Wash your face every morning and every night, to help prevent build up of oil, dirt and sebum, which can all cause spots and problem skin.
-
Moisturise & prep – Investing in a really good moisturiser and a decent primer are crucial steps in your routine. Applying make-up to dry, unprimed skin will never work out the way you want it – so it’s a worthwhile investment, trust me.
-
The three Cs – Conceal, correct, contour. None of these products need to be expensive. I use a small palette, which was only £10, with six different coloured products in. Anti-redness, concealer, highlight, contour, etc. It’s a really useful little product to have for covering up any problem skin, and highlighting and contouring just adds that little extra definition to your facial structure.
-
Finishing touches – I always give myself five minutes extra time than I think I need when getting ready, for finishing touches and fixing odd bits. That can include just adding a bit more concealer under my tired eyes, layering on some ‘browscara’ to help define my brows, or adding a little highlight powder along my cheekbones. Whatever it is, just always remember to go back over and then set with a finishing spray, if you fancy.
