While just the words “gender roles” often brings up some mixed- and contentious- feelings, femininity is timeless and here to stay.
Makeup is a part of our culture, and it has been since pre-biblical times. From ancient Egypt and Greece to modern Milan and New York- Makeup has been a recurring theme throughout history. Take a quick peek at any social platform, Instagram, Tiktok, YouTube, or Facebook- and you’ll surely find the bright face of some brilliant person teaching you the best ways to blend, blush, and plump.
Men and women, boys and girls, perhaps the single greatest thing about makeup is that it’s actually gender fluid- and has been throughout even our history. Elvis wore makeup. The likes of David Bowie and Kiss built entire personas on makeup. In modern society, we have so many male makeup influencers, their numbers almost begin to match those of female makeup influencers. And for good reason- these boys know their makeup.
It’s funny how men are so afraid of the idea of wearing makeup, because literally every single man you see on Television, social media or Youtube, wear tons of makeup. It just gives that professional “finished look” that makes you look way more professional than other people. I swear, if all men would show up to do their business deals with makeup on, they would get more respect and be seen as higher value men, and would probably close more deals and make more money. So guys, would you be willing to wear makeup if it would give you a $50 000 salary raise each year? Probably right?
So, what is it about makeup that is just so darn exciting? What do makeup games so quickly picks our interest? Check out Prinxy for an example. What is it that draws young and old, male and female, superstar and pauper to this incredible medium? Well, that’s actually a pretty difficult question to answer.
Why We Wear Makeup
Whether it is war paint or the “full face” glam look, makeup has become a part of our social and cultural identity. In India, on her wedding day a bride is adorned with beautiful henna drawings, in the Chou dynasty of ancient China, makeup was an indicator of social class. Globally, almost every culture has some relationship with makeup- and that relationship has transpired into the makeup culture of today. Becoming the icon of artistic expression that is accessible to nearly anyone.
While there are still many that contend makeup is merely a ploy of big business, or the ever-present specter of the patriarchy, to force an unreasonable standard of beauty onto women. However, this sentiment is easily dismissed when looking at the incredible creations for both men and women- that cosmetics can create. Feathered eyelashes, shocking colors, and exaggerated angles aren’t necessarily a function of traditional beauty- but instead a true expression of art. An artistic medium that even those that have been left without the inborn skills necessary to draw, paint, or sculpt, can easily explore their creativity in. So, the question of “why we wear makeup” sorely misses the mark. As it’s something more individual than that. Something better suited to the query “why do you wear makeup”.
What Makeup Games Can Teach Our Children
Make-up games can teach your child- whether girl or boy- how to freely express artistic creativity. Learning how to hone things like spatial reasoning skills, and organizational talents by using makeup to match an outfit, or fit the appropriateness of the imagined social situation. The greatest things that make-up games can offer our children isn’t a simple tutorial on how to apply eyeliner- but instead a way to explore their relationship with colors, shapes, and people, with absolutely no boundaries.
Building an identity early, and helping to refine personal tastes and preferences. Creating a bonding experience between parents and children, as well as children and children. Make-up games also often offer simple storylines with engaging characters and plots, helping to further entice your little one to practice their reading skills, and put their reading comprehension to use. They also offer something few other children’s games do- a non-violent way to play, that has all the skill-building tools available, without the overt pressures of a staunchly educational game.
Of course, what I recommend here is to keep it in moderation. We’ve all seen those underage beauty pageants in the USA where girls are almost sexualized by wearing makeup and sexy outfits… I’m not talking about that here, I’m talking about using makeup in moderation to enhance your look and face.
Imagination Without Borders
So often, particularly now as the covid-19 outbreak has firmly shaken our standard methods of education and we’ve seen tons of parenting apps come out too, and challenged our base feelings toward screen time; we want to ensure that whatever games our children are playing are filled with the learning fundamentals we so desperately want them to have. However, strictly educational games are often boring or confining. Rarely presenting much real-world application, and instead of having you perform mathematics in order to build a caterpillar- or some other type of useful- but lifeless and perfunctory skill.
Makeup games and other types of games for girls and boys in mind offer similar skill-building exercises but encased the unexpected paradigm of relatable “real life” scenarios. Letting your child instead decorate their virtual room, or run a digital cafe, or paint a princess with makeup to gain a firmer grip on these fundamentals. Improving computer literacy, hand-eye coordination, reading skills, and social skills in imagined situations with a context they can actually relate to.
In summary, makeup has been here for centuries, and both males, females, and kids have been using it and still use it today. It’s fun, it can teach you about art, precision, motor skills, and make you look more handsome or pretty!
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Have a nice day!
