Friday Find: Why I Do My Makeup Most Days

Five minute makeup- for me, the difference between feeling good or feeling not so good today.

What’s the point of caring about fashion and beauty?

This article isn’t about looking good in any traditional sense of the term. It’s not about fitting any kind of cultural mold when it comes to style or beauty. It’s about looking good to yourself. Your opinion of how you look is what matters in feeling good.

Some people might think that the things I write about, fashion and beauty, are shallow, inconsequential topics. Yes, in the grand scheme of things, I guess they are. But in the day to day of life, five minutes of doing my makeup and a few minutes of making an effort about what I’m going to wear can mean the difference between having more confidence about myself, or less and being more productive throughout my day, or less. Something seemingly insignificant as this can have a huge impact on my day. It’s the difference of having that little extra pep in my step. It’s the difference between me feeling like I can walk into a crowded room with my head held high or cowering over wanting to look invisible.

The psychology of style and beauty: it affects us more than we realize especially when it comes to feeling good

If this topic has piqued your interest, or you’re still not convinced that how you look affects how you feel,  I’d highly recommend listening to this podcast where New York-based psychologist Dr. Samantha Boardman helps us to better understand and appreciate the hardwired, chemical connection between looking good and feeling good.

The point is to get to know yourself better

It’s not that you have to wear makeup or dress up to feel good. The point is that it’s important to know yourself. What clothes make you feel your best? Do you feel most confident bare faced? Freshly showered? Your hair blown out? When do you feel most like the best version of yourself in terms of how you look? These are great questions to think about.

When I feel my best

When it comes to makeup-

For example, I feel the best when I have at least a little bit of concealer under my eyes and a little bit of eye liner on. I can’t live without this concealer and this liquid liner.  It hides my dark under eye circles and the liner makes me look more alert and awake. I feel 100% more put together if I do this and add a little bit of brow powder to fill in my sparse brows.

I don’t really feel any different when I’m wearing lipstick or not. Maybe for others, that’s their go to quick pick me up. A bright lip. Not me. Maybe still another person might feel most confident with a brush of bronzer all over or a few coats of mascara.

When it comes to hair-

For my hair, I feel the best when it is freshly blown out and curled or at the very least I have dry shampoo on my roots and they aren’t oily. I don’t feel great when my hair is limp and flat.

When it comes to style-

For clothes, I feel best when I’m highlighting my best body feature, which are my legs. I feel less confident showing my arms.

What makes you look your best?

Do you know what minimal things beauty and fashion-wise make you feel your best? Get to know yourself, and when you do find out the answers to these questions,  treat yourself every day (or most days) to these things that make you look your best, and I promise, you’ll also feel better.

What keeps people from making an effort on their appearance

Some people are so hard on themselves. They don’t feel worthy of all this attention on themselves and don’t feel they deserve to make an effort on themselves because they aren’t their perfect weight or size.  They aren’t living in their perfect body or they don’t have perfect skin or hair.

Here’s the truth

Maybe it will be comforting to know this–

You’re never going to be perfect, so might as well do the best with what you have now.

Perfection isn’t the goal. No one can ever attain it. If you let yourself off the hook and realize no one will ever be in their perfect anything, it frees you to focus on yourself and what you have going on for your right now. In this very moment, without changing your wardrobe, skin, or body, you have the power to do better for yourself just by getting to know yourself and giving yourself that extra little bit of attention every day when you get ready. It’s a practical way to show self care and love.

Want to read more ideas on the idea of beauty?

My friend who hates makeup had three revelations that made all the difference.

Dressing for sex or dressing for yourself. Some wise words from Miuccia Prada.

When it comes to makeup, sometimes women look better with less. Yay! Save us some time.

As a woman, beauty is your birthright. 

When do you look and feel your best? I’d love to know.