What Happened When I Went 2+ Weeks Without Makeup

It's been driving me crazy lately how random people online feel free to tell me that I wear too much makeup. STOP there. Why don't I tell them that they have too many tattoos? Or too much facial hair? "Your beard is outta control, seriously just cut it."  I don't tell anyone how they should look or if I have a problem with how they look, it's just that-- MY problem and not something I need to tell them to change to make me happy. Yet, guys (so far, never girls) have told me I should wear less makeup, or not wear makeup at all.

Men of the world: if you like women, hey even just have any respect for self-expression at all, let your personal opinion on makeup not be made known. I didn't ask you? You don't tell me. Simple.

However, a couple of years ago at work, I basically stopped caring what I looked like. I had been at the job for almost three years and had given up. I reached burnout and wanted to quit. They had been scheduling me on the morning shift which was obscure because I always worked the closing shift. I'm a night owl, and I just can't get up at 8:30AM on a daily basis willingly. I can, and did, though. I'd do my makeup in the morning just a little more hurried and a little less, to put it bluntly, well. It wouldn't come out that good, but at least I had a little bit of effort showing and my hyperpigmentation and blemishes mostly covered. They're unsightly, so don't tell me to show my face proudly for every stranger I'm about to meet at work—and for every coworker and higher up who will take me less seriously as I look like a tired zombie. I could be WIDE awake, alert, middle of the afternoon, doesn't matter how many hours I slept, I look tired. It's just my face. I've had bluish-purplish circles under my eyes since I was 12 years old. (I had always kind of prided myself in having a problem girls that age (that I knew anyway) didn't have to worry about. I needed concealer like the adults!) I used $1.99 concealer from Walgreens and it worked just fine. I have very pale skin, being a redhead, so my veins show through my skin easier, I think that's why my circles show. Anyhow, I skipped the concealer on one occasion at school and friends asked me what was wrong, if I was sick, and why I looked so tired. "Are you okay?" became a thematic question whenever I've gone without makeup to work or school. I just look like I haven't slept well and I'm ill. I've always had sleeping problems but I'm not sure where they get the "are you sick?" query from. Perhaps because I'm so very pale, I lack the color to "look healthy"... So, yeah, back to the two weeks without makeup at work...

"Don't care anymore. It's damn early. I'm gonna sleep in instead of getting ready for work..." Sleep > Makeup. To be frank, I no longer gave a fuck what I looked like at work. I treaded on, feet dragging, holiday season in retail in freezing cold temps. My appearance, though I was still semi self conscious, was not a priority anymore. I was in survival mode. Coworkers asked if everything's okay, and why I look so tired. One asked if I was sick. I'd call for help from a different department and suddenly everyone (male coworkers) were too busy to help me anymore. Suuuure...

This carried on for a couple of weeks. I decided to wear some makeup on Black Friday since I was going to be customer-facing SO MANY PEOPLE... I was so tired and out of practice from wearing makeup, I left the house with deep purple lip liner on my brows instead of my usual medium brown. Yup...thank goodness I had bangs, sort of covered it but still went noticed much to my embarrassment. I've had my share of makeup blunders, but I still feel oh-so-much better about myself when I can present my best 'me'.  Cover my blue under-eye circles, cover the painful acne, just see Brittany. I'm not my acne, I'm not my insomnia, I'm me. I deserve to freely express myself with makeup as an artform, to show off my style...to simply look my best self, even if it's just for me. Sometimes I do wear makeup at home, it makes me just feel good. It's pretty. Lipgloss...shiny...ooooo!!! Who would prefer seeing the red bumps on my face? I hate to label and say it's a hippie thing to try to make me go all natural...but that's not true because I follow some self proclaimed hippies online and a number of them wear makeup.

So men everywhere...take it from me...whether she's your friend, girlfriend, sister or other female relation I haven't named, respect her and let her be who she wants without your criticism. Unless she has lipstick on her teeth...then please be of service and tell her.