Over lunch the other day, a couple of other mothers were musing with me about possible column topics. One of the ideas raised was the hardy annual: Why do teenagers wear so much makeup?
Undoubtedly, our mothers and grandmothers asked the same thing.
Holidays seemed a good time to check out the appearance of young women freed of school uniform and attendant grooming regulations. Down at the mall, most of them had stepped straight out of their regulation skirts into their casual uniform of skinny jeans and puffer jackets with Vans or Converse. A fair few had layered up the mascara and a handful were dabbling in bold lipstick, but for the most part the prevailing beauty look was as standardised as their wardrobe. Long hair, worn loose and often straightened, with a little glossy lip balm.
Nothing here to scare parents and grandparents, of whom, truth be told, a number suffer from selective memory syndrome. Seems to me, it's a relatively small subset of today's teens who slap on too much makeup. I was once part of that subset. In fact, I wore more makeup and considerably more hair product than the average teenager does these days. Good to get it out of your system before your get a proper job, is how I rationalise it.
The biggest change since I was growing up is the alarming sight of littlies encouraged to play real-life dolly by mothers whose mental age must be questioned. Maybe that's why by the time these little girls turn into teenagers, they are less bothered with face paint than we were. For those teenagers who do want to wear makeup, it's now readily available without societal censure and this combined with endless print and internet tutorials ensures their look is usually pretty presentable. But if yours is one of those teenagers who applies foundation and powder like a kabuki mask, remember this will pass, along with the often near-invisible spots they seek to disguise. Telling them to let their skin breathe may be sound advice, but it won't sink in, so just stock up on cleansing wipes. Celebrate that they are experimenting and subtly provide guidance rather than censure.
