10 Mar Talking to your daughter about makeup

Recently I had a bit of writer’s block – trying to think of a great makeup related topic to write about. I reached out to friends, my Facebook page, and clients. I received a ton of great ideas and I’m so excited to share some of them with you shortly. One that came up and really hit home with me was, “How do you talk to your daughter about makeup?”
My daughter is 5 and already loves playing with mommy’s suitcases of makeup. I don’t stop her or tell her she shouldn’t. I don’t punish her for putting blush on her eyelids and lipstick on her cheeks. She’s 5 and she’s playing. For her 5th Birthday a friend got her Monster High lip gloss and my daughter is obsessed! It’s HOT PINK and she loves wearing it. Even though I only let her wear it at home we already get comments from my mom: “Jennifer, she’s too young for makeup!!” or my dad: “You’re starting her early, aren’t you?” It’s lip gloss people – not a faux tan and false eyelashes!!!

When did makeup become a BAD thing?

Fast forward only a few short years and these girls will be watching videos on how to contour your face, make your lips seems plumper, eyes bigger, cheeks smaller, neck slimmer and on and on and on. Talk about a conflicting message. We are first, when they’re young, saying makeup is wrong and then when they grow up we’re showing them how to completely alter their face with it??! I mean what the what?!? Not to mention the fact that the one woman they look up to the most – YOU – probably puts on makeup like the rest of us on a daily basis.

Let’s stop shaming makeup and start teaching them that makeup, when used properly, is something to have fun with not hide behind.

After not being allowed any makeup in high school, when I turned 17 I wanted to wear it all the time! I picked the wrong shade of foundation, blush that was too red, put black eyeliner around my ENTIRE eye, and thought I looked fabulous. My mom, who is amazing, didn’t gasp or shudder (like I do when I look back on some of those photos) She calmly asked me if I’d like to see a makeup artist to get some help….and I did. I was 17 and took a couple little courses with a great lady. She showed me how to match my foundation, that my eyeliner didn’t have to go everywhere, and more importantly that LESS WAS MORE. I say again, LESS IS MORE! I learnt at 17 you don’t have to cake on foundation. You don’t need blush with naturally rosy cheeks. One strategically placed little line of black eyeliner, mascara and lip gloss and you were good to go. She showed me that if I put a little bit of purple eyeliner on the top my green eyes would pop and many other little helpful hints. She showed me how I was covering up my natural glowing face (oh to have the skin of a 17 year old again!) with cakey foundation did nobody any favors! Really – she taught me that makeup was a friend.

Teach THIS to your daughters. Instead of saying they can’t or shouldn’t wear makeup go to Jean Coutu with them. Pick out a nice shade of natural pink and a clear mascara. Better that you go with them and encourage them to buy the RIGHT kind of makeup then you tell them they’re not allowed and they go buy stuff that isn’t right.
Times, they have a changed – I was 17! SEVENTEEN people!! 17 when I really started to wear makeup. I teach kids – day in, day out and I see them. I see them at 12…13…14 wearing eyeliner, mascara, lipstick, foundation – they’ve got it all. It’s a different time and girls are starting younger and younger to wear makeup.

So Mommies – teach your daughters that LESS IS MORE.

Start by letting them wear that lip gloss you two picked out together, a little swipe or two of mascara and that’s it. I think by withholding makeup – you’re teaching them it is something wrong – which it isn’t. Makeup doesn’t have to be this bad thing that “hides a woman’s natural beauty” or serves as a “security blanket for insecure” women… it doesn’t. Makeup, like fashion, should be regarded as something that lets a woman express who she is.
Teach them to use makeup to bring out the beauty they ALREADY HAVE. Teach this to your girls.

Teach them that they are beautiful.

They are beautiful inside and out and makeup is just a little somethin’ somethin’  to really SHOWCASE their natural beauty.

“Makeup is not a tool meant to make an ugly thing beautiful. It is meant only to magnify the beauty that already exists.”

As always,