Men and women have been using cosmetics for thousands of years. The earliest records date back to 10,000 BCE when oils and ointments were used to take care of the skin. In 4,000 BCE, the first traces of makeup use are found in ancient Egyptian women, who would put bright green paste on their face for beauty while, in 3,000 BCE, Grecian women would paint their faces and wear fake eyebrows made from oxen hair. This timeline of cosmetic usage continues on until present day with the current obsession with contouring, highlighting and making sure your eyebrows are “on point.” Unfortunately, it is more commonly accepted for women to take advantage of makeup artistry than it is for men.
As an avid fan of makeup, I am constantly trying new products to make myself feel more confident. It has nothing to do with trying to impress others, I just love how empowering makeup makes me feel. Yet, I have to wonder why guys are so against making themselves feel better with cosmetics.
Men can be just as insecure, if not more, than women. Insecurity and self-consciousness have no limitations and affect everyone. I have heard so many of my male friends complain about oily skin or breakouts, but, when I suggest that they try a product to help, I typically get the response, “No, people will think I’m gay.” Marketing teams for cosmetic companies are extremely gender-specific. Things like makeup, facial products and many other commodities are specifically branded for women. Even products like razors, deodorant and toothpaste have gender-specific marketing including the “for men” label. Therefore, if one chooses to use a product that differs from what the target audience is for the product, you’re immediately demasculinized or declared “gay.”
At the surface level, it seems obvious that the problem starts with marketing teams. However, the issue is much deeper than that. The idea that makeup simply isn’t for boys is embedded into our ideas of gender roles. It’s a “boys wear blue and girls wear pink” ordeal. Boys are typically raised to have reserved emotions and to withhold their insecurities. They are expected to be strong, masculine and to not care about their appearance. This leads to insecurities that are just as significant as the ones women feel constantly.
It seems as if there is a soap box speech given every day about how the women in magazines are heavily edited and should not be looked up to, but what about the men in magazines and the men reading those magazines? It hurts to have one’s image edited because it means that one’s appearance didn’t live up to expectations. It also hurts to look at those doctored images and then look at one’s own appearance, feeling unnatural for not matching the edited photo’s faked perfection. Women are given the opportunity to make themselves feel better every single day, but men are immediately stereotyped if they even attempt to put concealer over a pimple.
Fortunately, there are more and more breakthrough male makeup artists in the industry now than ever before. Names like Jeffree Star, Manny MUA and PatrickStarrr are among some of the more popular, all three of which have their own makeup product lines. All three artists are some of my favorites because they all give testimonials about how it is perfectly okay for men to wear makeup and to feel good doing so. If women have been using cosmetics for thousands of years, there is no reason men shouldn’t be able to do the same.
