Patch #032: Make Up Is Ugly

Patch #032Make Up Is Ugly

"Wearing make-up supports the harmful standard of beauty produced by the cosmetics and advertising industries". After some contention over the meaning here, I feel the need to clarify. Obviously we do not want to condemn women who choose to wear make up. The image does NOT say that women who wear make up are ugly. The sentiment is meant to be more entry level to the idea that women don't need to wear make up to be beautiful. Respectful dialogue is welcome. Yes, there are certainly ways to use make up as an empowering tool and this statement is not an absolute but I think it's an important building block to take things to the next level..


avatar Merri 5/30/2014

What I hate about feminists is that they're really patriarchs in disguise. The "Make Up Culture" is forced on the woman and the woman is bombarded with how much better she SHOULD feel for using it. Supporting this "choice" is patriarchy, not feminism.

Just like being a stay-at-home mom was a "choice", but you will be made fun of in the workplace and suffer for it. Understand the true nature of choice vs expectation to realize what make up does to the culture.

Now full abolishment is too far, yes... but men expect far too much makeup on a woman to claim that you wear it due to CHOICE.

avatar RaggedyJen 10/25/2009

This is stupid ESPECIALLY as a feminist I feel that if someone wants to (MAN OR WOMAN) then go right ahead. What about people who are MTF transgender? They especially feel the need to wear it in order to feel secure with themselves and many for personal comfort as opposed trying to impress anyone by wearing it smae with many others. If you have a problem with the ethics of the make up industry, learn how to make your own!

Meredith 1/18/2009

Man these days I don't feel so hot about my looks most of the time. I look tired and disheveled all the time. But most days it doesn't matter and I don't really think of the way I look and I don't expect it to matter to the people around me. I'm not that hung up on it. But on the days that it does matter, I do wear a little make up. I like to be able to control how I look, and that's what it's about. You control how you look with all the clothes you wear, so why not change your face sometimes?

Sarahjoy 6/6/2008

that's true: I used to wear make-up because that's what I was raised to do; being brought up in a house with my 3 sisters and mother. I find that the more chemicals, or the more products in general, that you feed your body- the more you think you need it. I feel much divided and free now from the expectations of gender, as a female, not wearing make-up as well. Put the money into the environment instead.. go buy a bike or something.

RiotBoy 5/18/2008

I find myself conflicted on this. I agree that make up and advertising for make up perpetuates a harmfull standard, and I find it abhorrent that it is all but a required part of work attire for women; but I also feel that feminism is about choices. Women have spent far too long being told what they have to do to be a good woman--it's wrong no matter what side it comes from.

j 9/5/2007

There is a cosmetics company out there that is trying to bridge the gap, PeaceKeeper Cause-Metics. Their cosmetics are some of the absolute cleanest out there and their business model isn't about profit for rich people but like Paul Newmans, "Newman's Own" gives all profits after taxes to womens human rights needs (like ending sex slavery). The company is owned by a woman and promises never to use sexist advertising or phrases like "anti-aging".

kate 7/27/2007

Although I agree with most comments saying that wearing makeup should be a personal choice, I think it rarely IS a personal choice. I think the influence of makeup is way too strong for it to be considered a simple individual choice. I don't think half of the women who wear makeup today would still be wearing it if it wasn't so heavily influenced. It's the same thing with shaving... People always say it's just a choice or that they're just "enhancing" their beauty instead of hiding themselves. However, I think many of those people who claim that still might feel less attractive without makeup. Also, I think it's bullshit to consider "enhancing" as better than "hiding." We shouldn't feel the need to "enhance" anything. It's the same fucking concept as covering ourselves up.

jessica 7/19/2007

I wear make-up from the Body Shop: not tested on animals and fair trade products. I wear make-up to highlight my good points, not hide behind it. It is ALL bad, people!

le_quash 7/13/2007

wow...more comments on this patch than alot of others i've seen, but i'm glad everyone is responding. i'd worn makeup almost every day for about 7 or 8 years, no matter where i went. in the last year or so i've gradually weened myself from it and have found it's not so scary having people see my face for what it really is. and my always acne-ridden skin has cleared up TREMENDOUSLY since i have ceased the makeup. my skin feels cleaner and able to breathe after so many years of suffocation. i still wear it occasionally, but less and less frequently. i hope that anyone who wears it does so only to enhance the natural beauty in all of us that he/she knows we possess, or to express themselves in whatever way they wish.

RaNDy CHaOs 5/16/2007

wow, im surprised that this even exists. ive been trying to explain this to people for years, but because of the reactions i always get i thought i was the only one that thought that way

it makes me so happy that im not the only one!!!

Duct Tape 4/2/2007

I wear make-up (electric blue eyeliner, ultraviolet mascara, etc), but it's not cos I think it makes me pretty, cos I'm always freakin' awesome. It's to piss off the make-up worshippers. "OMG, that color does NOT compliment your eyes!!!"

Ami 3/26/2007

Some excellent points of view!

Make up, i hope
to all our generations to come,
should be delivered
with a tag
that says;
People! You are what you want to be. Express yourselves!
Now copy and paste for every little item on the market. Yes. We are buying ourselves. But this is pop culture.

Jess 11/27/2006

I have to agree with the patch to an extent. What I will buy (as far as make up goes are unconventional things such as pink hair dye or black nail polish. I used to wear makeup in high school and if I felt like I needed a "boost" but it always took such energy to put on I figured that ten or twenty minutes could be used for prayer for world peace or something useful than putting chemical crap on your face. Hey if they love me, they love my rosacea too dayumit!

Sally 10/22/2006

I think people should wear make-up if they feel like it. Or not. I think make-up has a right to exist, and I don't care who buys it, or doesn't buy it.

I used to not wear make-up. Then when I began to wear it, I noticed that I got a lot more attention from guys. Even guys who knew me back when I didn't wear it. I don't know how I feel about it. On the one hand, I can use it to my advantage when I feel like it. On the other, I am angry at this new attention, because I have not really changed, and yet in some people's eyes I am suddenly worth asking out. It upsets me to think that it all comes down to a little stick of concealer, but I don't know where the blame lies. And part of me likes being able to airbrush myself.

grrrlfriend! 9/17/2006

...i dont think makeup is sexist.
i dont wear it to be socially acceptable.
i think im good enough and i think im beautiful too- with and without it.
im fuckin impressive everyday.
i didnt know there were guidlines. i have self respect and respect for others.
do what you want. artistic or not!
i stand up for myself and all other woman. animals too! i wear makeup AND im stylish!
i wasnt spoon fed this from a magazine or the media. i did it on my own.
i paint on my wall and my body. im confident. im proud. so what?! wahhhh.
wear makeup if ya want! male or female! don't lecture us.

Kevin 9/10/2006

I have a friend who rarely used to wear makeup, but after a big change in her life, found that makeup boosted her self confidence. But, it turns out that self confidence wasn't gained, it was shifted. She then started thinking that she was ugly if she didn't put it on. I don't think this is typical, but it does show the power that such a simple thing can have. micah is right, its not that makeup is bad, but it is the meaning that has problems. I have always had a dislike of makeup, even though some girls do look better with it. I've had quite a bit of difficulty figuring out why I don't like it, and I guess I just feel that women do a lot to try to attract a guy and this is just the one with the worst meaning: a girl needs to change her face in order for her to be a suitable mate. I don't think I'd have a problem with it if men were allowed to wear makeup also. I also don't think I'd have a problem if this was one of a few things that women did that make themselves 'pretty'. Its just that women are becoming more like sex objects everyday, and it does concern me. I can't watch tv without seeing half naked women on it, or even check the weather on the internet and see a group of topless women advertising victoria's secret. Its also hard to find women in pop culture that hasn't shown off their body. I just watched mythbusters and they were showing off Kari, the only female cast member, in her underwear. Makeup might be innocent, but in the overall picture it is part of a bigger problem. The line needs to be drawn somewhere and it shouldn't be around the eyes.

make down 9/1/2006

I used to feel extremley unattractive w/ out make up and I ended up in a position where wearing make-up wasn't plausible, since then I have tried to wear it and it makes me feel ugly, I like myself much better w/ out it now.

sidney 6/26/2006

i think make up is a personal battle everywoman faces, especially here in america. I do wear it, I have fun with it, I don't wear it to be attractive what so ever. Also, I love men in make up and I really think that masculine
barrier should be abolished, that one that says make up is for the women , to make them more appealing, don't wear it , it's inferior"..=) My younger brothers love it, I hate the day when they are told fag , ew that is for "girls". make up in alot of ways is like shaving...." do what makes you feel comfortable ,but don't try to look "good" or "acceptable" doing it.

- 4/18/2006

I think it's best for everyone to feel comfortable with themselves. If they need make up to do that, then go for it. do whatever you want to feel good, as long as you aren't harming anyone else in the process. I think telling people not to wear make up is just as controlling as people silently telling each other to wear it. Let's just all make our own decisions, eh?

Vonnsky 4/9/2006

I wear eyeliner, but I do not feel that I need it to look pretty. I actually seldom wear it anymore. I do not always feel so sure of my beauty but I am not the kind of woman who wants to wear makeup to impress a guy. I think a real person will like you better w/ out makeup anyways. It's the same fundamental as getting breast implants or cosmetic surgery (stoopid); people are trying to fight old age, or keep trying to look better and better, but, eventually, the shit wears out and you will look worse.
Stop trying to run away from death and accept it!

anonymous 3/18/2006

I wake up every morning and put eye-liner on, its basically my daily routine. There are people who have never seen my without eye-liner. I am actually a very individual person but I feel extremely ugly and unattractive without it. Its easy for people who are comfortable with their attractivness to say one shouldnt wear make-up. But I am just extremely scared of how people would react when I leave the house without make-up. I have improved a little and just met people who visited me without make-up but the looks on their faces werent very encouraging. I really want to be like fuck it if you dont like how I look like you are not worth me talking to you, but it is very hard. Especially if guys make you feel ugly and dont pay any attention to you. But im working on it. I hate being a victim of a perfect vision of myself. Hope this helps anyone who feels the same way.

Stacey 2/27/2006

I wear practically no makeup. A little lip gloss for my chapped lips, maybe a little concealer under my eyes if I haven't slept well. I'm 21 years old. I find it ridiculous how women will whine for equal rights and an end to gender discrimination but call each other sluts for satisfying their natural urges and will cake on layers of powder and slip into tiny black dresses in order to feel "self confident". How about not adorning yourself like voiceless dolls and reinforing the very sexist ideology you despise? How about beginning to celebrate your true worth, ladies? We many times are our own worst enemies. Women of the world: Cast down your wrinkle-fighting foundation and triple-curl mascara. Lift up your voices against this injustice.

valerie solonas 10/18/2005

right on scum!

ScUm (A//F) 9/8/2005

Personally I hate the idea of make-up with a passion. Mainly women only wear make-up, and that fact expresses the sexism in it right there. Why don't men feel like they need to "enhance" their beauty? Because they've victimized women, that's why. They have the media to make you feel like you aren't good enough, and then they have the make-up waiting for you when you decide that you need to put chemicals on your face to comform into their beauty standards. Make-up is just another thing that exploits the female body to make profit. Even stealing it doesn't erase the evil in it in my opinion. You'd still be giving into the cosmetic industry by submitting to them and letting them convince you that you even need that piece of shit. Instead of stealing cosmetics you could be stealing a meal for a homeless person. Society molds women to care too much about how they look in men's eyes. It's another way society puts us down as people and suggests that we're here just for sex. If a woman cares so much about how she looks and expresses that to the people around her by covering her face in that shit, how can she expect those around her to treat her equally with men and based on her inner-beauty, when she can't even give that respect to herself? If women want to ban beauty standards and the subliminal doctrine that we're here just for sex, we need to first express that in our own actions and stop supporting all of the shit we've been fed! It's all so vain. As aus-rotten said "Spending countless hours enhancing a look instead of self respect." In my eyes not wearing make-up is a way of standing up for myself and other women against the shit society feeds us from birth. I'm tired of seeing women be so insecure and negative about themselves and their bodies. Wearing make-up just makes it worse because whenever they see themselves with out it they think "Fuck I look horrible I need to put this shit on!" If make-up is a form of art, then what a depressing form of art it is. I'll paint a picture on a wall instead of on my face.

anon 6/27/2005

blue. when women start actively "sharking" the men then they will begin to wear makeup (ever heard of "metrosexuals"?). At the moment women wear makeup to look attractive, and men don't because they know that they cannot attain attraction without being a sports-star, actor or millionaire.

Number 4/19/2005

'anonymous'--stealing does not support the "Supply and Demand system of Capitalism". there is a simple way to tell whether you are supporting "the capitalist system" or not. Is it legal? or is it illegal? Y'see, things that subvert "The Capitalist System" tend to be illegal, and things that support it tend to be legal, and encouraged. Y'see, actions have to be polarized in this society-- good, bad; legal, illegal; mandatory, prohibited--so that we know how to act. Long story short, if we all went out and stole makeup, "The Capitalists" would not be sitting in their offices laughing because we've been tricked again into supporting their "System of Supply and Demand".

anonymous 4/4/2005

Women: do any of you remember being a teenage girl? Guys, I'm just going to assume you don't know exactly what that's like, but have gone through similar experiences. Our youth and our life is spent trying to fit in, to be better. Make up is just depressing because it supports a perfectionist society into which no one can really fit. Maybe you are able to use make up as a tool of creativity and expression, but other women are trapped in the idea of perfecting beauty, even if it means hiding the truth. So yea, its the idea of makeup. but the idea sucks, isn't that enough to make people protest?

claire 3/9/2005

I wear loads of makeup. I feel that when I wake up and 'Put my face on' I am taking on a character. Make up is essential in order to explore and toy with gender roles. Who says that wearing make up isnt just a method to make a satirical comment on the fallacy of beauty?

blue 12/26/2004

Men should wear the make-up. They are the ones that should have to try to attract a mate.

micah 12/21/2004

The problem is not makeup itself. It is the fact that most women in our society feel that they have to wear makeup, because if they don't, they're ugly. There is nothing oppressive about makeup by itself--it's the societal norms and expectations that are oppressive.

sasquatch 12/12/2004

I agree with zack... make up is a personal choice. One can choose for or against. I just hope people research their choices either way and choose integrity over convenience....

john 12/4/2004

Anyone who wants to wear or endorse makeup should be familiar with how it is tested on animals..

anonymous 11/23/2004

stealing it still supports the supply and demand system of capitalism. can you be freegan and dumpster make up? why not!

Zack 11/20/2004

Makeup is various chemicals in various proportions. How can it be inherently beautiful or ugly? If you want to wear makeup, do it. If you don't want to, then don't. What is truly ugly is women being taught to wear makeup to impress others rather than impressing themselves.

Phoebe Moulthrop 11/18/2004

Makeup often sends the messege that your face needs to be covered with something to be beautiful. Aren't we all beautiful how we are? Yes. However, makeup can also be used as an artistic expression of the wearer. We choose and modify our clothes to express ourselves and look good, and makeup can be used in the same way. It's a personal choice, but make sure you are doing things for the right reasons.

Sorcha 11/17/2004

How about stealing it? If you feel makeup is opressive, dont wear it. Purist guilt-tripping somebody's gender expression is also opressive. Hi-femme is genderfucking too. No more guilt.

Shelley 11/6/2004

Make-up is extremely sexist. It's stupid that in order to be socially acceptable, women should wear it.

anonymous 10/21/2004

dudes, come on.