<p>When did you last go make-up free? Last week, when Hillary Clinton delivered her first post-election speech apparently sans mascara, sans foundation, sans everything, she was praised and pilloried in equal measure. <br /><br /></p>.<p>After battling Donald Trump in one of the most heated, and petty, election cycles in history, you'd think she might be forgiven for giving the blusher a miss for a day. But some slammed the former US secretary of state for looking tired and frail. <br /><br />But in ditching the war paint, Hillary tapped into a growing backlash against make-up. Because sometimes, women’s time is better placed than getting the perfect eyeliner flick.<br />What will people think?<br /><br />Yesterday, Drew Barrymore, along with Cameron Diaz, Gwyneth Paltrow and Nicole Richie, snapped themselves on a hike, bare-faced and beautiful. Earlier this year, Alicia Keys wrote candidly about her decision to give up make-up. <br /><br />Explaining her decision, on Lena Dunham’s newsletter, she said: “Every time I left the house, I would be worried if I didn’t put on make-up: What if someone wanted a picture?? What if they POSTED it??? These were the insecure, superficial, but honest thoughts I was thinking. And all of it, one way or another, was based too much on what other people thought of me.<br /><br />“I don’t want to cover up anymore. Not my face, not my mind, not my soul, not my thoughts, not my dreams, not my struggles, not my emotional growth. Nothing.”<br /><br />Social conditioning<br /><br />The make-up-free movement has gained considerable traction, with more than 12.8 million #nomake-up posts on Instagram alone, typically accompanied by a bare-faced selfie.<br /><br />Beth Meadows, 21, stopped wearing make-up four years ago, having caked it on every day before.<br /><br />“I guess I was just socially conditioned into thinking that a lot of make-up was the most attractive thing, so I was scared not to wear it,” she says. “I used to be genuinely terrified to leave the house without a full face, but now I couldn’t imagine anything more unnatural."<br /><br />After abandoning her make-up on a year abroad, Beth, a third-year History student at the University of Liverpool, now only wears make-up on special occasions.<br /><br />“I feel so much more comfortable and myself without make-up,” she adds. “It’s ridiculous that women feel pressured to wear it in order to be socially accepted. On the rare occasion I do wear make-up, it is for me and no one else — I shouldn't have to justify either.”<br /><br />Think, who is it for?<br /><br />A recent poll by SheSpeaks found that 30% of American women would skip make-up for an extended period of time, with a further 20% saying they rarely/never wear make-up. This, compared to 9% who refused to go out of the house without make-up, shows a change in mood.<br /><br />Mia Delve, 23, first stopped wearing make-up to “spend more time in bed” before realising that she preferred her appearance without it.<br /><br />“I felt like I was only wearing make-up for other people,” the artist and filmmaker says. “But there is so much less hassle without it, my skin looks better and I feel better.<br /><br />“People should be more mindful of wearing make-up, instead of just putting it on as a routine, consider why they are doing it — it should only be for you.”<br /><br />Even when women are wearing makeup, there is an appetite for a more natural look. Recent research by market analysts NPD found that 50 % of UK make-up sales fall into the face category — foundation, concealer, moisturiser and brushes — while sales of the more visible lipstick and eyeshadow were down.<br /><br />“People are seeking a more natural effect that suits their face shape,” senior account manager of NPD UK Beauty, Teresa Fisher, said of the results.<br /><br />The choice is yours<br /><br />But surely if you want to wear make-up, you should be able to? This weekend, Lindsay Lohan publicly shamed Ariana Grande on Instagram for wearing ‘too much makeup’, and was criticised for being anti-feminist.<br /><br />“I don't think there's a problem if women do want to wear make-up, as long as they feel empowered by it either way," Beth adds.<br /><br />And she’s right. Being comfortable with the way you look is empowering, whether that’s wearing no make-up, lots of make-up or copying David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust lightning bolt across one eye — it’s about choosing your image, free from pressure and judgement.<br />Pin-up model and blogger, KirstyMyDear, puts it perfectly. More accustomed to wearing a full face of 1950s style make-up, she posted a bare-faced selfie and said:<br /><br />“Make-up, no make-up — still the same person inside. All that matters is that we each get to express ourselves how we choose to. Your face = your rules. Just like my face, my rules.”<br /><br /></p>
<p>When did you last go make-up free? Last week, when Hillary Clinton delivered her first post-election speech apparently sans mascara, sans foundation, sans everything, she was praised and pilloried in equal measure. <br /><br /></p>.<p>After battling Donald Trump in one of the most heated, and petty, election cycles in history, you'd think she might be forgiven for giving the blusher a miss for a day. But some slammed the former US secretary of state for looking tired and frail. <br /><br />But in ditching the war paint, Hillary tapped into a growing backlash against make-up. Because sometimes, women’s time is better placed than getting the perfect eyeliner flick.<br />What will people think?<br /><br />Yesterday, Drew Barrymore, along with Cameron Diaz, Gwyneth Paltrow and Nicole Richie, snapped themselves on a hike, bare-faced and beautiful. Earlier this year, Alicia Keys wrote candidly about her decision to give up make-up. <br /><br />Explaining her decision, on Lena Dunham’s newsletter, she said: “Every time I left the house, I would be worried if I didn’t put on make-up: What if someone wanted a picture?? What if they POSTED it??? These were the insecure, superficial, but honest thoughts I was thinking. And all of it, one way or another, was based too much on what other people thought of me.<br /><br />“I don’t want to cover up anymore. Not my face, not my mind, not my soul, not my thoughts, not my dreams, not my struggles, not my emotional growth. Nothing.”<br /><br />Social conditioning<br /><br />The make-up-free movement has gained considerable traction, with more than 12.8 million #nomake-up posts on Instagram alone, typically accompanied by a bare-faced selfie.<br /><br />Beth Meadows, 21, stopped wearing make-up four years ago, having caked it on every day before.<br /><br />“I guess I was just socially conditioned into thinking that a lot of make-up was the most attractive thing, so I was scared not to wear it,” she says. “I used to be genuinely terrified to leave the house without a full face, but now I couldn’t imagine anything more unnatural."<br /><br />After abandoning her make-up on a year abroad, Beth, a third-year History student at the University of Liverpool, now only wears make-up on special occasions.<br /><br />“I feel so much more comfortable and myself without make-up,” she adds. “It’s ridiculous that women feel pressured to wear it in order to be socially accepted. On the rare occasion I do wear make-up, it is for me and no one else — I shouldn't have to justify either.”<br /><br />Think, who is it for?<br /><br />A recent poll by SheSpeaks found that 30% of American women would skip make-up for an extended period of time, with a further 20% saying they rarely/never wear make-up. This, compared to 9% who refused to go out of the house without make-up, shows a change in mood.<br /><br />Mia Delve, 23, first stopped wearing make-up to “spend more time in bed” before realising that she preferred her appearance without it.<br /><br />“I felt like I was only wearing make-up for other people,” the artist and filmmaker says. “But there is so much less hassle without it, my skin looks better and I feel better.<br /><br />“People should be more mindful of wearing make-up, instead of just putting it on as a routine, consider why they are doing it — it should only be for you.”<br /><br />Even when women are wearing makeup, there is an appetite for a more natural look. Recent research by market analysts NPD found that 50 % of UK make-up sales fall into the face category — foundation, concealer, moisturiser and brushes — while sales of the more visible lipstick and eyeshadow were down.<br /><br />“People are seeking a more natural effect that suits their face shape,” senior account manager of NPD UK Beauty, Teresa Fisher, said of the results.<br /><br />The choice is yours<br /><br />But surely if you want to wear make-up, you should be able to? This weekend, Lindsay Lohan publicly shamed Ariana Grande on Instagram for wearing ‘too much makeup’, and was criticised for being anti-feminist.<br /><br />“I don't think there's a problem if women do want to wear make-up, as long as they feel empowered by it either way," Beth adds.<br /><br />And she’s right. Being comfortable with the way you look is empowering, whether that’s wearing no make-up, lots of make-up or copying David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust lightning bolt across one eye — it’s about choosing your image, free from pressure and judgement.<br />Pin-up model and blogger, KirstyMyDear, puts it perfectly. More accustomed to wearing a full face of 1950s style make-up, she posted a bare-faced selfie and said:<br /><br />“Make-up, no make-up — still the same person inside. All that matters is that we each get to express ourselves how we choose to. Your face = your rules. Just like my face, my rules.”<br /><br /></p>