Lipstick what is the reason that women (the old fashioned type) wear it.

[Karensalright]

Just that really

So you are suggesting that women who use make up are not feminist? that they are brained washed to hide their face?

It really is not my personal brand of feminism to criticise women's choices like this...

I sometimes wear lipstick because I enjoy it simple as that.

I do it for myself, not because I am pressured by society or to to attract men.

Really? Would blush be applied to the neck too? I think the neck and chest also look very flushed after sex. 🙈

Quite honestly, I'm getting a bit fed up of threads like this under the guise of "feminism" which don't seem to really be wanting to examine feminist perspectives at all. All I get from them is "why arent people making the same life choices as ME".

I'll tell you why- because they arent "you". Not everyone will make the same choices as you because we are all different. You choose not to wear lipstick- absolutely fine. Others will choose differently- it does not mean they arent feminists or that they are all simpering to men's approval.

What is the exact standard of a "feminist woman"?- is it someone who has a bare face, wears a hessian cloth sack and doesnt wear deodorant? why do you get to define what makes a woman a feminist?

Social convention. Habit. Because they like make-up. Because they don't feel fully dressed without it. Because they like experimenting with colour.

On camera - bright studio lights can make people look bleached out. Even men may have powder to stop too much shine.

"the old fashioned type" !!!!

who are they?

I like wearing makeup and im too old to be shamed about it. I also have a blood vessel on my lip that looks like a bruise and i always get asked about it so a bit of lippy covers it.

If you like to wear nothing - good for you. Dont let what other people do bother you

OP, are you always this inarticulate?

What's an old fashioned type of woman OP? Genuine question

@NonnyMouse1337

I believe high heels, platform shoes were invented and initially worn by wealthy men to not dirty their feet as they stepped on literal shite while walking around dirty streets.

Actually, high heels were developed for riding not walking, to use with stirrups.
https://www.readersdigest.co.uk/lifestyle/fashion-beauty/the-history-of-high-heels

@cherrypieandcoffee Where does OP imply lipstick is unfeminist? Massive overinterpretation when she's mainly expressed curiosity. It's a legitimate question not least from a cultural history POV and on a forum that one assumes represents a wide range of experiences and preferences.

It's a Ricky Gervais quote I believe. Old-fashioned as in women women.

@GrumpyPanda It's a Ricky Gervais quote I believe. Old-fashioned as in women women

Oh I see. I wear lipstick because I'm very pale and look washed out when I don't wear any make up. I think I look better with it on.

I think there are sensible critiques of makeup and the beauty industry in general.

Young women generally don't need makeup as they look great by virtue of their age. I find young women can look very old if they use too much makeup and usually they seem more beautiful before it all goes on.
Those weird big eyebrows and inflated lips are very unattractive to men, so I don't know what some women think they gain by looking like that. But fashion trends have always been bizarre!

Plenty of practices and products can be toxic or hazardous - women can be harming themselves and their health in pursuit of the latest trends or surgical procedures.
Companies don't care about your health or well-being. They want to make money off your insecurities and desires. If women spent less on these kinds of things, they would have more money to invest in their future - save up quicker for that mortgage deposit, go on a nice holiday, save up a nice amount for retirement or a rainy day etc.

At the end of the day, you can explain the pitfalls and problems with things like makeup, but then you have to let women be adults and take personal responsibility for their decisions and preferences - and any consequences that arise from it.

I do my hair and make up (Inc lipstick) and wear heels because I want to. I enjoy spending time on myself getting ready. That's my choice and no-one can take it away from me whether they approve or not. I make my choices, no-one else, particularly not anyone who feels the need to call another person out because its not what they do.

It's interesting that both sexes got tattoos and piercings, but make-up is an almost exclusively female thing. And many women who would never get a tattoo or have anything other than their ears pierced, still wear make-up.

I'm following this thread because I've never understood why women wear make-up. I don't judge anyone who does, I just genuinely don't understand why they do it. To me it seems a complete waste of time and money.

Ah I love these tidbits and insights into history! Thank you 😄

Yes cowboys and horse riders have heels too. Makes sense that it initially helped in riding horses.

I've only previously come across articles that mentioned the power, status and not wanting to get yourself dirty part of wearing high heels.

Meanwhile, the platform style of the “Chopine” is thought to have originated amongst sex workers of Venice looking for an extra height boost, but quickly became adopted by aristocracy as an outdoor shoe that would allow them significant separation between the hem of their lavish outfits and the dirty street below.

I wear it sometimes. Maybe I'm low in iron but my lips are really pale - nearly the same colour as my skin and look more like they exist with just a little colour.

Someone recently commented on here that we do it to make our lips look like vaginas. Hmm...since our vaginas are on the inside I don't think it's that!

I can confirm I was referring to a Ricky Gervais skit when saying “old fashioned women”.

Some people seem to have taken serious offence to my question, don't, know why.

I agree it is a personal choice, and am not being judgy.

I like all the historic tit bits.

My Gran wouldn’t be seen dead in the street without lippy and tights, a post war thing i guess.

Tattoos and piercings didn't used to be socially acceptable, and certainly not for women. Only men like sailors would get them.. or it was associated with some sort of 'uncivilised' tribal custom compared to 'good, Christian values'. Perception of a woman's 'chastity' would be affected if she was found to have tattoos.

Both women and men might struggle with employment if they had tattoos. At least in white collar jobs.

Even things like nipple or genital piercings are still considered a bit wild by most people and usually kept under wraps.

Yes, this is the kind of perspective I come from.

Absolutely every woman has the absolute right to choose how she presents herself to the world.

But there are facts here:

• Make-up costs money
• Make-up can take time
• Learning make-up skills could take even more time
• In some situations, make-up is expected
• In general, men do not do this

So women spend time and money on make-up when men do not.

I think if society changed to more fully reflect that make-up is a choice for both men and women, that would be beneficial for women. I don't think we're there yet, though.

(Then again, when the environmental apocalypse comes, there won't be any make-up and no one will care.)

Lots of interesting information and opinions here (and some weird defensiveness).

It made me wonder why men in our current culture don't wear lipstick - or make-up generally. It's not an eternal or universal thing. Men have worn make-up for all the same reasons as women and more: to hide blemishes, as art, to signify belonging to a tribe, class or profession, as part of a theatrical performance (drag, blackface), or as warpaint.

If Maybelline could sell their wares to 100% of the population then they surely would, so what's stopping them?

Part of it is practical in that men have coarser hairier skin. But mostly, I think it is because the intrinsic objective and effect of make-up is to make a person look less like a man and more like a woman (smooth skin, large eyes, plump lips). Most people (leaving aside androgynous performance fun) want to look like a better version of themselves, not someone completely different.

And, (just in case I missed the point) - I don't wear any make-up. Because I am cheap, and lazy.

Ditched mine at the same time I ditched my bra and stopped shaving. Never looked back.

I wear full make up because I am so pale I look like a remake of the Walking Dead if I don't. As I have become older- and more disabled- I enjoy wearing i even more. Even if Im feeling ill, a bit of colour on my face cheers me up.

Funny how so few men feel tempted to make this "personal choice". Given that it has nothing to do with social conditioning, we can only conclude that preference for lipstick must somehow be innately determined by sex.

Wow @ginandbearit this really got to me.
When I was much younger I spent a few days in hospital with a uti, due to lack of room elsewhere they put me on a ward with post op mastectomy women. Every morning the nurses would chivvy those ladies to get up, get dressed and do hair & makeup. It made such a powerful impact on them💐