As a mother, I now understand the true magic behind makeup. I realize that this makes me sound a little bit superficial, but it honestly couldn’t be further from that.
I adore natural beauty and think it’s amazing when people can feel confident in their own skin, but I also love wearing makeup. I don’t wear makeup for about 80% of the week but when I do wear it, I feel a greater sense of confidence.
It gives me a spring in my step and helps me to feel like I don’t quite look as sleep-deprived as I feel. Perhaps that is a bad thing but it’s how I feel. I think makeup has a place and it really is a very individual thing.
Some people never wear makeup while others cannot leave the house without it in the morning. To each their own in my opinion. I would fall into the middle-ground which I think a lot of people relate to.
It has its place in my life and I am glad it exists. I wouldn’t dream of wearing makeup on the everyday school run but I equally wouldn’t feel confident at a meeting, event or in a restaurant without some form of a “face” on.
So, when should we be allowing our children to wear makeup and what kind of boundaries should we be creating around the whole thing? When it comes to school, for example, it is usually a straightforward no in a lot of homes.
The main reason for this is the fact that schools generally prohibit the use of makeup during school hours. And yet even that arena is not straight forward because how do you say no to a crying teenager who is experiencing a skin flare up and feels they cannot face their peers without concealer or makeup that day?
That is a very difficult situation for any parent to be faced with.
For many children, makeup is a bit of a right of passage. They are watching TV shows, music videos and advertisements which show young people wearing makeup and it is exciting to them. In the same way, many children grow up with an instilled sense of excitement around all things “dress up”.
From a young age, they may have been enjoying experimenting with different clothes, accessories and even makeup and now that they are preteens it is suddenly a big issue, and this may be very confusing for them.
As a parent, I want my children to grow up feeling confident in their appearance. I want them to know that they do not have to look a certain way and to be able to celebrate their natural complexion and shape.
I want them to know that they do not have to look a certain way.
At the same time, I am acutely aware that my children will see my applying makeup and appearing giddy when I purchase a new lipstick or mascara. I don’t want to be a hypocrite.
Like all things parenting, I feel this one is about balance. For example, perhaps a little makeup for a party or social occasion is no harm but at school, it has disciplinary repercussions and is therefore not up for debate.
There is no one rule that fits all though and for this reason, it might just be a case of taking it as it comes.
They don’t teach us this part in the parenting books, do they?
