Wendyl Nissen: Barefaced cheeks can fix the world

Wendyl Nissen has much in common with Hillary Clinton.

I once knew a woman who was so concerned about her appearance that she went to bed wearing makeup so her boyfriend wouldn't die of fright at the sheer ugliness of her in the morning.

Tell that to Hillary Clinton who turned up in Bangladesh recently without a skerrick of foundation or mascara, a bare smear of lipstick, lank hair and wearing glasses.

Fortunately no one died of fright at the sight of the US Secretary of State bare-faced but, so far, 81 million references to the subject have come up on Google.

I would like to think that Hillary had just had a big night which meant locking in contact lenses, blow drying the hair and patting on make-up was just too hard as she downed four painkillers and a strong coffee to deal with the hangover.

But something tells me that she was just a bit worn out. At 64 she spends her days dealing with such global issues as Iran's nuclear plans and violent unrest in Syria.

And, according to the Sunday Times, her recent trip to China, India and Bangladesh took her tally to 22 countries this year and a total of 1,252,322km travelled since taking office in 2009.

I can relate to that. I too am so busy that most mornings I can barely take the time to brush my teeth. I would rather spend the 30 minutes it would take to pile on the makeup ploughing through my hectic schedule.

Hillary explained her appearance as being a matter of priorities. "You know, at some point, it's just not something that deserves a lot of time and attention," she said.

"I'm relieved to be at the stage I'm at in my life right now," she added. "If others want to worry about it, I let them do the worrying for a change."

Some people call this "letting yourself go". The inference being that as you age you can no longer be bothered covering the grey hairs or putting on your slap. Why? Well obviously because we are no longer sexy young things with an eye on the main chance. We have headed south. We have no interest in preening to impress others.

If this is the case I "let myself go" years ago.

Makeup is something that, if applied well, can make you look years younger. The problem is, not many of us know how to do that and insist on applying the same makeup the same way we did when we were in our 20s. So I just stopped wearing it, and the less I wore the better I felt.

"I love this no-makeup thing," I said to a friend who is a makeup artist. "It's just such an easy way to live."

She looked at me in the mirror and suggested sternly that it wouldn't hurt to at least put on a bit of lippy and mascara occasionally. "Especially at your age."

Which I do if I actually have to leave the house. Sometimes I have to meet people about things so I will put on a bit of makeup, change out of my jeans and T-shirt, have the meeting then rush home and wipe off all the makeup and get back into my jeans. Some days I've done this three times making me feel a bit like an actor in a one-woman play requiring several costume changes.

What Hillary and I obviously agree on, with our busy schedules, is that we just don't give a toss. Love me or leave me, take me as you find me. I've got far better things to worry about like world peace (in her case) and where the hens have hidden their eggs (in my case).