Whether it's with a classic cat eyeliner, a ravishing red lipstick, or Instagram's latest trend, the rainbow highlighter, it seems that the makeup industry has dominated in the millennial demographic for the past decade. With big-name markets like Sephora and Ulta being located in (what feels like) every local mall in America, it's easier than ever for young, fresh faces to pick up a palette and try their hand at the art..Truly, the popularity of highlighting and contouring, smokey eyes, and Youtube-based makeup "gurus" has exploded onto Generation Y, making it seem almost mandatory to throw on pounds and pounds of cosmetics onto a blank canvas of a face.
Recommended for you
And if we're looking at the statistics, Millennial Marketing reports that the makeup industry brought in a collective $38,1 billion in 2014. That's a lot of mascara.
For most of my teenage life, my morning routine was simply a light concealer and some mascara; maybe a little eyeliner if I felt compelled to add some. It was not until this past Spring that I decided to actually build on my laughable collection of a few products. Three shopping trips and about $150 later, I had found myself sporting a large, angrily red rash, making its way down my left cheekbone. After a little deduction, I had come to the conclusion that the unsightly mark was an allergic reaction to the new, rather pricey foundation that I had just splurged on. Disappointed and frustrated (as well as $50 poorer), I decided enough was enough. I tossed the product, made a phone call to the company, and decided to completely ignore my arsenal of cosmetics, stashed in my vanity, until my face was back to normal.
This week was by far the most challenging and rewarding time for my skin, at the exact same time. At first, I felt bare and vulnerable without any kind of cover-up or foundation to hide my under-eye circles or sun freckles. I struggled with keeping myself from putting some foundation powder on to achieve that "no makeup" makeup look. I questioned how anyone would even feel confident about themselves with a bare face. However, I found that I was very,very wrong. There were four key things that I learned about myself, and about the makeup industry, while making this drastic change to my daily routine.
1. My skin has never been clearer.
I cannot make this up. Even my harshest, most stubborn cystic acne scars went away. It felt as if I had just taken a pencil eraser and made every blemish I had ever stressed over or tried so desperately to cover up disappear. It made me really consider how many harmful chemicals we put on our faces everyday because the magazines and cosmetic companies tell us it'll make us more "beautiful". Once I dropped the artificial stuff, my skin followed suit.
2. I've been wasting insane amounts of money that I could spend on food (and books, I guess).
Real talk: some makeup costs an outrageous amount of money for something that you take off at the end of the day. I've always been a drugstore kinda gal, but I have friends that literally pay hundreds of dollars a year just on lip products alone. If you really think about how much these products cost to lift, tighten, cover, and extenuate your face, it's pretty absurd. On top of that, makeup companies will go to whatever lengths necessary to convince you, the target consumer, that you need this product. Well, no. Nobody needs to spend $50 on foundation (yes, I'm still a little bitter).
3. I had nothing to scrub off at the end of the day and it felt glorious.
Being lazy, one of the biggest struggles I face on a daily basis is gaining the energy to actually remove my makeup and wash my face (see my article "20 Thoughts Every Lazy Girl Has At The Gym" to fully appreciate the lazy girl life). That being said, not wearing makeup that I would eventually need to do just about everything except chisel, peel, and blow-torch off is easier than any other option.
4. I felt like it looked much worse than it actually did, and I blame the makeup industry for that.
I found this to be the biggest discovery of my week-long makeup purge. When I saw this reaction on my face, my first concern was how it was going to look. I saw commercials and print ads of models with flawless, smooth skin and, when compared to mine, they looked better. Instead of recommending that I lay off the foundation for a while, every website and beauty video I watched told me to just cover it up with whatever new miracle product was on the market. It irked me that a company would play off of insecurities just to make a quick dollar off of me. So, I cut them off from my finances, altogether.
Overall, I would encourage everyone to skip the cosmetics for a week and see how different they feel. Quite honestly, I've never felt more confident or healthy in my own skin. So this summer, skip the blush and throw away the brushes. You, your skin, and your wallet deserve a break.
