# So, who's ready to give up on makeup ?



## Dikkie (Jan 21, 2019)

Makeup-free Month - February

*I'm convinced that people are beautiful without makeup.
People who require you to wear it are not worth watching you.

Which argument suits you the most to spice up a discussion about cosmetics?*

【*】”I’m not buying products from companies who humiliate me.“ The industry wants you to believe you're pretty when you use expensive products, in fact they literally say you’re ugly when you don’t. I think you're pretty by nature.

【*】”Most men want to smell the scent of real natural women, not how Christian Dior smells…” Most men do not want to stay behind with dirty smelly cosmetic gunk on their cheek after being kissed by a woman. People overuse perfume, clean air is what we need!

【*】”The vicious circle: a lot of skin problems are caused by cosmetics”. The industry makes you think you need it to get it cured. So you buy more rubbish to rub on and it will get worse and worse!!

【*】“Cosmetics have harmful effects on the environment.” Go read about chemicals that pollute agricultural soil and threaten fish in our oceans. I thought people nowadays care about their food and planet?

【*】”A lot cosmetics contain toxic ingredients”. They’re linked to a lot of diseases like cancer, hormonal disruption,... don’t let you misinform by articles posted by the industries lobby groups.

【*】”Never let publicity make you feel good with marketing buzzwords to cover chemical substances like ‘organic/natural/biologic’, ‘fragrance free’, ‘hypoallergenic’, ‘paraben free’ or ‘phthalate free’. You’re better off when you do not use cosmetics at all.

【*】”Where are the feminists here?” Are you ok with wrong world images where men ARE accepted not to use makeup to cover uneven skin tones, and women are NOT? You can look good without, whether you're a man/woman.

【*】”You don’t need a mask or a filter.” Show yourself because you’re worth it. I don’t like to talk to people wearing a mask. If you really care about yourself, they should take you for what you are, and not for the mask you wear.

【*】”They’re just bad” They make you consume more and more, make them rich, make the planet worse and leave you in the illusion with a wrong self-image. Stop the waste!


*So tell me, how about your usage and opinions? *


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## Fujidave (Jan 21, 2019)

I stopped using lipstick many years ago if that helps


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## Designer (Jan 21, 2019)

The thing about perfume that many people don't realize is that some people are very allergic to perfume.

We don't attend plays or concerts in auditoriums anymore.  Sure as anything, someone seated nearby has on perfume, cologne, makeup, body powder, and/or hairspray, all of which make my wife start coughing.  She is the one who has to leave her seat, not the people who are offending her.


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## Dikkie (Jan 23, 2019)

So, are you guys in?
It's almost one week until the challenge starts.


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## vintagesnaps (Jan 23, 2019)

Hardly... not based on something posted on social media that is unsubstantiated and seemingly one person's opinion. Some of it seems to be outdated and inaccurate hype.

And I don't know how Christian Dior smells because, you know, he passed away a long time ago... but don't knock the House of Dior! lol (I have allergies too and strong perfumed cleaning supplies are what bother me!)


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## limr (Jan 23, 2019)

No, I am not in, because just as I will not buy into the idea from cosmetic companies that women need to wear make-up, I am also not buying into this idea that I am not a feminist unless I am against make-up. L'Oreal can't tell me what to believe or how to behave, and neither can a random Internet challenge from some dude who doesn't like make-up. I wear it when I feel like it, and don't wear it if I don't feel like it. Done.

And for the record, yes it does bother me that men are belittled for anything they do that is remotely "feminine." If a man wears his hair in a bun, for example, it's just a bun, not a "man bun" and it should not be the object of scorn simply because men are wearing a hairstyle traditionally worn by women.

Let women do whatever the hell they want to do with their appearance, be it make-up or none. Let men do whatever the hell they want with their appearance, too, be it make-up or none.


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## vintagesnaps (Jan 23, 2019)

Seems like the same kind of thing could be said for lots of products; they're advertised and promoted as being good or useful or whatever. So buy them, use them, or don't.


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## petrochemist (Jan 24, 2019)

I've never worn makeup (as far as I can remember anyway - I guess it's possible I played with my mums when a young kid) but I leave my family to decide for them selves if they wish to.



Dikkie said:


> *
> Which argument suits you the most to spice up a discussion about cosmetics?*
> 
> 【*】”The vicious circle: a lot of skin problems are caused by cosmetics”. The industry makes you think you need it to get it cured. So you buy more rubbish to rub on and it will get worse and worse!!
> ...



In Europe there is a general rule that materials containing significant amounts of *toxic* ingredients are not allowed to be sold to the general public. Petrol/Gasoline actually has a special dispensation from this rule!
With todays analytical techniques trace levels of such compounds can be found in most samples (including natural foods/air/water), the level set as significant is based on the risk to users. There may be ingredients that are harmful in other ways, but toxic has specific meanings that you are miss using. My work includes testing of air/water for toxins/chemical pollutants (not in the cosmetics industry).

There have been cosmetics that I've used on medical advise, that have significant improved issues like dry skin, some will also protect against environmental issues such as UV.

In general I think subtly applied makeup can improve the looks of people considerably, paste it on thick & it always looks awful. I'm happy enough with how I look not to make the effort, and don't have issues with women who would rather not bother either.

I'm definitely not a feminist as this is too often a case of sexism. The only places that gender should have any significant relevance is childbirth & sex!


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## Dikkie (Jan 25, 2019)

limr said:


> Let women do whatever the hell they want to do with their appearance, be it make-up or none. Let men do whatever the hell they want with their appearance, too, be it make-up or none.


Of course, everyone can do whatever they want in their lives.  I totally understand. But this challenge is not about thát.
For me personally, I don't want to just live and be indifferent to a lot of side effects of my life.

For example, when I know certain clothes from a specific brand are made by little children in sweatshops in Bangladesh, and I can buy them for a cheap rate, some ethical question arise in my head. I have a choice here, or I can just ignore it and be indifferent.
Human rights? Oh wait, we can do whatever we want. Add-on factors to make your choice:  the product needs to be shipped from the other side of the world, having a much larger footprint, the products is made from resources for where they have to cut the rainforest for, or so many other side effects and factors that involve one simple choice, and so go on.

Of course I can do whatever I want and buy... or I can think about consequences and not buy.
For all small actions you do in your life, there can be lots of aspects to think about. As every step you take in your life changes so many other things.

It's just about making people aware of consequenses. Of course everyone is free of doing anything they want, but it doesn't do any harm to think about what actually changes when you do each small step more consciously.

Same for people who do a challenge to not drink alcohol for one month, or to not eat meat for one month, or trying to commute to work by bicycle instad of a car for a month, or doing a social media detox for a month. 
It's not about restricting people not to do this/that anymore.
Nothing wrong with people doing or not doing that, it's about awareness.
It doesn't only involve alcohol/meat/... in this case, it changes so many other factors when you just change a single step.


So that's the reason why I put it online, not just to make people do a stupid challenge for a month, but to make people conscious about what involves their daily choices, in this case when overusing cosmetics.
And I already had lots of positive reactions about it.


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## limr (Jan 25, 2019)

Well, how nice for you.


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## BananaRepublic (Jan 25, 2019)

Dikkie said:


> limr said:
> 
> 
> > Let women do whatever the hell they want to do with their appearance, be it make-up or none. Let men do whatever the hell they want with their appearance, too, be it make-up or none.
> ...



You know that all the stuff we have in the west like smart phones, all electronics in fact, Diamonds, Bananas, basically everything,  are all soaked in blood. It's very hard for us to avoid products that have been developed and manufactured in ways that don't rape the developing world all so that we in the west can get cheap stuff. 

O and BTW all cosmetics that are white, toothpaste for example most likely contain Titanium dioxide which cause cancer, why, for marketing reasons.


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## Dikkie (Jan 25, 2019)

BananaRepublic said:


> You know that all the stuff we have in the west like smart phones, all electronics in fact, Diamonds, Bananas, basically everything,  are all soaked in blood. It's very hard for us to avoid products that have been developed and manufactured in ways that don't rape the developing world all so that we in the west can get cheap stuff.


Yes, but knowing this doesn't mean we have to ignore it and continue.
We can also start make more people aware of how we live, make consciousness, start thinking about possible solutions, alternatives,... and it certainly doesn't mean we have to get cynical about it.



> O and BTW all cosmetics that are white, toothpaste for example most likely contain Titanium dioxide which cause cancer, why, for marketing reasons.


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## limr (Jan 25, 2019)

Your assumption is that no one else thinks about it and you have to "educate" us. (And by "us" I mean women. You are directing this effort at women.) You think that if someone is thinking about it, they wouldn't wear make-up, so if we are wearing it, we must therefore not be thinking.

This is a flawed conclusion.


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## Dikkie (Jan 25, 2019)

limr said:


> Your assumption is that no one else thinks about it and you have to "educate" us. (And by "us" I mean women. You are directing this effort at women.) You think that if someone is thinking about it, they wouldn't wear make-up, so if we are wearing it, we must therefore not be thinking.
> 
> This is a flawed conclusion.


Not in particular. I didn't assume anything. 
I mostly used the word 'people' in my arguments, as there are a lot of men that use makeup too. So you could aswel assume it was not against women.
Only in 2 cases I see I wrote 'women'... but not as an assumption for generalisation:
In one argument, the focus relied on men. In the other, I broke a lance for women...  But oh, that's not good no. Sorry for that.


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## BananaRepublic (Jan 25, 2019)

Dikkie said:


> BananaRepublic said:
> 
> 
> > You know that all the stuff we have in the west like smart phones, all electronics in fact, Diamonds, Bananas, basically everything,  are all soaked in blood. It's very hard for us to avoid products that have been developed and manufactured in ways that don't rape the developing world all so that we in the west can get cheap stuff.
> ...



Its not cynicism its just the reality.


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## BananaRepublic (Jan 25, 2019)

Dikkie said:


> limr said:
> 
> 
> > Your assumption is that no one else thinks about it and you have to "educate" us. (And by "us" I mean women. You are directing this effort at women.) You think that if someone is thinking about it, they wouldn't wear make-up, so if we are wearing it, we must therefore not be thinking.
> ...





petrochemist said:


> I've never worn makeup (as far as I can remember anyway - I guess it's possible I played with my mums when a young kid) but I leave my family to decide for them selves if they wish to.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Check out senseadyne toothpaste, contains Titanium doxide. Also sunscreens labeled as nanotechnology


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## Dikkie (Jan 25, 2019)

BananaRepublic said:


> Its not cynicism its just the reality.


Reality, alas...  

That's the way I thought when I was younger too... but since I've got kids, I must think about their future, a future for next generations on this planet, and keep having 'hope', ... utopia doesn't exist, but we're not going anywhere by just ignoring everything.
All small steps can help, and if 7 billion people do one small step each day...

Oh well...


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## vintagesnaps (Jan 25, 2019)

So read labels and choose products you feel are good for you and your family, good for the enviroment, etc. Why pass along this info. that is unbased (who knows where this came from) and is geared primarily to women? I don't think giving up something for a month means much; it would be better to be more aware with _all_ products.


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## BananaRepublic (Jan 26, 2019)

Dikkie said:


> BananaRepublic said:
> 
> 
> > Its not cynicism its just the reality.
> ...



Yes think of the children in the Congo who are forced down mines in search of conflict minerals for our phones


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## limr (Jan 26, 2019)

BananaRepublic said:


> Dikkie said:
> 
> 
> > BananaRepublic said:
> ...



Keep it on topic.


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## Dikkie (Jan 26, 2019)

limr said:


> Keep it on topic.


I think BananaRepublic's post is quite relevant to the discussion. 
If you read the arguments in the first post, you'll notice that his points have a lot in common.

The thing is that inviting people for a challenge always lets people bring up excuses first. It's always easier not to go for it and start arguing about why that particular challenge is stupid.
I once started a Social Media free month too... same problem:
[october] Social Media Free Month

That wasn't about making people aware of children forced to work in mines for conflict minerals for phones, that time... it was a total different purpose, about addictions and social media. Where people have to reduce their internet usage on their phone and obsessive compulsive behavior.
On different places where I started the idea, people came up with the excuses not to do it, because they claimed not to be addicted, or needed it for work, or that it was too easy not to feel challenged, etc...


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## limr (Jan 26, 2019)

Dikkie said:


> The thing is that inviting people for a challenge always lets people bring up excuses first. It's always easier not to go for it and start arguing about why that particular challenge is stupid.
> I once started a Social Media free month too... same problem:
> [october] Social Media Free Month



Or people could just disagree with you. You don't get to just call everyone else lazy because they don't like your challenge.

If comments start moving towards political topics, they will be deleted or the thread will be closed.


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## johngpt (Jan 29, 2019)

Wouldn't it be funny if Good Morning America, the Today show, the View and then all the evening news programs decided to go makeup free in February?
I'm imagining all the shiny faces.
And the fashion shoots! What would the stylists do?

Okay, I'm being silly. I know the original poster was thinking more of the regular person.
I have to say I feel very much as Leonore in her first response. Let each person decide for himself/herself what is appropriate, and not be swayed by rampant commercialism or by internet memes.

I'm allergic to many fragrances and use fragrance free hygiene products. Before retirement I would request my patients not wear fragrances (especially hairsprays) to their appointments. Mostly they were understanding. When not or if forgotten, I would wear a mask and gloves while working with them. I'd wear a hospital gown to avoid transference to my clothing.


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## Dikkie (Feb 3, 2019)

johngpt said:


> Wouldn't it be funny if Good Morning America, the Today show, the View and then all the evening news programs decided to go makeup free in February?
> I'm imagining all the shiny faces.
> And the fashion shoots! What would the stylists do?


Great idea 

At total shutdown in the makeup rooms.

Anyway, I'm already 2 days suffering not wearing makeup now


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## Sabber (Apr 22, 2019)

My girlfriend tries to visit the beautician more often and practically does not use cosmetics, but she uses many creams, masks and other things so that she has an even tone of face.


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