How do you feel about make-up?

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Something just occurred to me: I think the "societal pressures" have a lot to do with the culture where one lives, too. For example, in my neck of the woods I would feel almost no pressure to "fix myself up" if I were in Vermont, but if I were in New York City, I almost couldn't do enough (and it would be way, way more than I'm used to in Massachusetts). This "pressure" applies to dress and ... etiquette, too, I think. Local custom, really.

I'm much older than you, so my experiences are different. I never wore foundation, ever, when I was younger, and my skin was awful (my biological father had cystic acne and I take after that side of the family, I was only spared the worst because I'm a girl and girls have less testosterone). I agree with you, makeup just looks ridiculous when applied over poor quality skin.

They had *nothing* to treat bad skin when I was younger, other than oral tetracycline (yes, they actually gave you antibiotics) which didn't really work all that well. Bad skin, we know now, is largely a hormonal thing, which they also dared not regulate in young people. My sister takes after the perfect skin side of the family, and she can count the number of blemishes she had as a kid on one hand (and she wore very heavy makeup all through high school ). Now that we're in our 40's, though, she still has perfect blemish-free skin, but she has wrinkled more quickly than I have around the eyes and mouth (places where you don't put foundation). She's two years younger, but people think she's older than me. Genetics.

Most makeup application, especially if you live in a city with pollution and you expect to be outside for any portion of time, starts with a good moisturizer that's right for your skin type and has a good SPF. Foundation is only applied on top of that, so it's not getting into the pores as much as you might think. Diligent removal of makeup at night is also key, and maybe what you're thinking of is people who don't have that rigor. {If you left hummus on your face all day and night, you'd have a problem, too, but hummus doesn't stick as well. }

All in all, I salute your preference of the fresh-faced look, just know that not everyone is capable of it, and that not all skin issues are "treatable". I didn't have access to Accutane, for example, until I was in my 30's, and even then they make you take BCP because Accutane is toxic to fetuses (so they mess with your hormones when you're trying to treat a skin condition! Ridiculous!). There was no Pro-Activ, etc. Yet we were still held to the same stringent standards, lookswise, that people are today.