No matter where you go there are pictures, ads, commercials, magazines, you name it; featuring women wearing makeup. Staring us in the face waiting in line to check out at almost every store are gossip magazines with entire spreads dedicated to ranking celebrities’ makeup and outfits from best to worst. In New York City, there are plenty of billboards for makeup companies advertising their products, not to mention a Sephora on what seems to be every corner. Even while browsing the Internet, there are ads for makeup products. Entire magazines, Twitter accounts and countless makeup blogs dedicated to advertising the best products, “must have” products, and of course the products J-Lo, and countless others “swear by.”

The makeup industry is by far one of the most successful industries. It's almost as if they are making a profit off of making women in some way, feel bad about themselves. Constantly having beauty ads shoved down our throats is subconsciously making us feel bad about ourselves. Why? Well for one, every single model in those ads and commercials and on the magazine covers are gorgeous. Of course, a little Photoshop and retouching can make anyone look good, but this is all we see. When was the last time you saw an ad for anything, where the women were not wearing makeup, even if it was the men not wearing foundation? When was the last time you saw a commercial for a nude/ natural eye shadow pallet? Rarely, if not never. Most of the ads are for smoky eye pallets; volumizing mascara and long-lasting liquid eyeliner that will give you the absolute best cat eye. There’s a lot of pressure from these makeup companies for women to always wear makeup. There are thousands of shades of lipsticks, eye shadows, foundations and concealers from an even wider variety of companies.

As a young woman, sometimes it’s hard to feel like I don’t have to put makeup on every day, or at all for that matter. Even if it is just a little concealer to cover up the fact I got little to no sleep the previous night, or to fill in my eyebrows because they look scarce, or to wear a little mascara and eyeliner just to fool people into thinking I put a lot of effort into my makeup routine that day. However, it's not just young women who are being targeted, but adults and older women as well. There are countless anti-aging and wrinkle-be-gone creams and serums. There are day creams and night creams and sunscreens and moisturizers. Every trip to CVS or the mall is secretly a makeup run, there’s no fooling myself anymore. Even if I didn’t go in for makeup, I come out with makeup.

I love experimenting with different looks and shadows as much as the next girl, don’t get me wrong. I have tons of makeup, I’m not bashing women for wearing makeup. It’s a form of expression, just like fashion, music or writing is. But think about it, there are millions of women who are being brainwashed by the constant ads of these beautiful women; who by the way, have had their makeup done by a professional makeup artist. For us normal people, we have to rely on youtube videos and makeup bloggers to show us how it's done. Which is not something to feel bad about, we all have to start somewhere. But what I’m saying is that women should feel confident about themselves even when not wearing makeup. Women come in all skin tones, eye colors, eyebrow shapes and body types. It's not something to be ashamed of, it's something to be proud of. Whether you wear makeup every day, occasionally, or never, you are beautiful just the way you are. It’s important to recognize that even some celebrities go make up free sometimes. Of course getting all dolled up for the red carpet is exciting and there is so much variety in terms of makeup looks and clothes, but they are people too. At the end of the day, they take off their makeup and are still the same person they have always been. People are so quick to judge celebrities for not wearing makeup and making nasty comments about how they look gross or unattractive. Some of the biggest stars have gone makeup free. For example at the VMAs, just this past weekend Alicia Keys went completely natural, not wearing a stitch of makeup. The backlash she got was unbelievably cruel, hurtful and unnecessary. Adele, British singer, and worldwide pop sensation, recently posted a video not only makeup free but also having a cold on Instagram, explaining she had to cancel one of her shows. Demi Lovato, one of the best vocalists of this generation has launched her own skin care line complete with a moisturizer, face wash, acne spot cream and many more products designed to leave your skin feeling refreshed and clean. On top of a skin care line, each Monday she posts a #NMM selfie, which is a selfie each Monday wearing no makeup. Countless female celebrities embrace their beauty and are just as confident and beautiful without makeup. This movement needs more attention because there are millions of women who have self-esteem and body issues that can be directly related to constantly having beauty ads shoved in their faces. Every woman deserves to feel confident, beautiful and lives without feeling like they have to conform to beauty standards.