Challenge 9: Bare-Faced

This week I decided to attempt a challenge that is definitely out of my comfort zone, but something that I’ve always wanted to do to see if it is beneficial in any way.  I challenged myself to not wear makeup for the week.  This may be something that a lot of people do anyway, but I’ve always been insecure about the imperfections and acne on my face that I’ve had since middle school, so I tend to throw on at least a little bit of makeup most of the time.  My routine is pretty simple; B.B. cream, bronzer, blush, and mascara, but it still consumes some time in the morning that I could be using elsewhere.  Another reason I wanted to try this challenge is because I was curious if laying off the face makeup for a bit would help my acne and therefore make me feel more comfortable about wearing no makeup more often.

Day 1:  Today I had work before class, and normally I’m rushing out the door to get to work because I overslept and have to get dressed and do my makeup.  However, today I got dressed, brushed my hair and teeth, and was ready in an impressive amount of time.  Taking makeup out of the equation gave me time to actually relax for 5 minutes and grab some breakfast before leaving the house.  Since I work at a salon, there are mirrors everywhere, and it felt weird to keep getting a glance at my bare face.  I seriously felt like a naked mole rat.  I know it’s something I need to work on, but makeup makes me feel so much more confident when around other people, and being at work without it felt like I just wasn’t myself.

Day 2:  Like I said, most of the time I throw on a little bit of makeup in the morning, especially if I have a pimple that looks like it could actually speak (which is a lot of the time), but there are some times where I’m just too lazy to, especially if it’s just to go to class.  All I had to do today was go to one class, so I slept until noon, rolled out of bed and got changed, and got on the bus.  The major plus side to not wearing makeup is how quick it seems to get ready before leaving the house.  Although my little makeup routine doesn’t take longer than 5 minutes, it still is a process and sometimes feels like forever when I’m in a groggy state and have no motivation to go to work or class.  While sitting in class without makeup, I looked around and realized that A LOT of girls weren’t wearing makeup either, and although their skin wasn’t perfect and their lashes weren’t 8 miles long, they still had smiles on their faces and wore cute outfits and looked super pretty.  I wondered if anyone thought the same about me.  Then I realized I was in sweatpants and a huge sweatshirt and looked like the grim reaper so… prob not.

Day 3:  Today is my first day home from break, and also Thanksgiving Eve, which means it’s time to see a lot of people from high school that I’d rather gauge my eyes out than come in contact with, but for some reason force myself to do it anyway.  In my town there is a big Thanksgiving Reunion at a local tavern the night before Thanksgiving, and EVERYONE goes.  So you can probably understand why I want to cry at the fact that I can’t wear any makeup.  Deep down we all want to come home from school and show everybody how well we’re doing and how good we look, especially because my ex was going to be there and ya know.  But I stuck with my challenge and didn’t wear makeup, which again decreased my getting ready time to like, 3 minutes, which was nice.  When we got there, everyone honestly treated and looked at me like they normally would, I didn’t notice any weird looks or comments like I expected to.  I’m sure some people thought to themselves, oof she really let herself go.  But hey, I had a lot of fun regardless and didn’t have to worry about my makeup sliding off my face halfway through the night.  I also wore a cute outfit and did my hair, which definitely are confidence boosts that help when you’re feeling a little doubtful about your face.

Day 4:  Now Thanksgiving is already a day where most of us feel pretty gross, because if you’re doing it right you have a food baby an hour into the family gathering, and usually bury your face in a pillow immediately after dinner and mess up your hair and face anyway.  So I wasn’t really opposed to the whole no makeup thing, especially because it’s just family and they have seen me at my most horrifying looking.  So I took full advantage of getting ready quicker than the rest of my family, and patiently waiting to go have a good time with my loved ones and not give a shit about how I looked.  When we got to my uncles and saw all my cousins looking all pretty I kinda realized I’m an idiot because now I’d feel like a toad if we took any pictures.  This challenge taught me that I should wear makeup whenever I feel comfortable, and made me question if taking 5 minutes in the morning was really a huge cost to pay if it made me feel more confident and ready to take on the day.  I can definitely do without wearing makeup to class, but when I’m going out, I’d rather take the time to throw on some makeup, because when you look your best you definitely feel your best and it can turn a bad day into a not so bad one.