"A recent British study found that 70% of women wouldn't leave the house without their makeup tools--half of those said they wore makeup 24/7, and 40% said they'd be embarrassed to be seen without makeup in front of friends and coworkers. Ugh!"
Indeed, ugh!! To be that attached to make-up is troubling since cosmetics are known to contain some incredibly non-natural and even downright dangerous stuff. We doubt that anyone actually wears make-up 24/7 -- who wears it to bed?? -- but if we're talking about cosmetics, then yes, many people do wear night creams and other "beauty aids," which means we're indeed sporting chemicals on our bodies every hour of every day.
But the women behind No More Dirty Looks are on to the cosmetics industry. Revealing what's safe and what's not is the mission behind their book and daily activism.
The rules: No mascara, no lipstick, no blush, no foundation, no nothing. But we're making a small exception for a little concealer if you have a zit or two you want to hide.
Instructions: Send your picture to nomodirtylooks (at) gmail (dot) com, with NO MAKEUP in the subject line. Please include your first name, city of origin, and usual makeup routine if you feel like sharing. We need all pictures by end of day, Sunday, September 27th. We will post the results on our site next week, as well as on our Facebook page.
We know it's a bit scary, but you'll be surprised--it's kinda liberating, and may make you rethink how you apply makeup. For example, we're loving the bold lip on the bare, no-mascara face these days... And once you've ditched it all, that kind of experiment won't be so intimidating.
"I work from home most days, so I often don't wear anything. But if I do leave the house? Hells ya. Even a little trip to the grocery store has me putting on a face. Nothing too heavy, but definitely some concealer and a quick smudge of color on my lips and cheeks."
Apparently giving up concealer might take it a step too far.
Anyway, the results from the challenge were posted on No More Dirty Looks today and it just goes to show that we can be gorgeous without the goop.