Why do women wear makeup?
It is estimated that 44% of American women do not like to leave the house without makeup on. Studies show that women wear makeup for two main reasons.
Disguise - Women who are anxious and insecure tend to use makeup to make themselves look less noticeable.
Seduction - Women who want to be visibly more attractive tend to use makeup to make themselves more confident, sociable and assertive.
These 44% of women believe that they would not be able to accomplish either of these things and would be treated differently if they showed their natural, untouched faces. As it turns out, there is some science to support the fears that drive them to wear makeup every day.
Women are taught from an early age that to be successful at everything from dating to job interviews to building friendships with other popular girls, they need to look pretty, and that foundation is not exactly cultural. It may not be fair, but according to the Association for Psychological Science, attractive people are treated more favorable in all areas of life, from dating to work to criminal trials.
How can women use makeup to be more attractive?
Before we move on, I want to point out that this article does not take into account the beautiful diversity of who uses makeup and why. The current research on this issue focuses on straight men and women and is based on the assumption that only women wear makeup. This is not to say that these tips don't apply if you don't fit into that particular group, but current research on multiple groups is limited.
What Biology Says About Attractive Female Faces
Researchers have found that there are two general characteristics that contribute to the attractiveness of a woman's face.
The amount of color contrast around the eyes and lips
Women naturally tend to have darker lips and skin around the eyes. As a result, our brains subconsciously notice this as a sign of femininity. The greater the color contrast between a woman's eyes and lips and her skin tone, the more feminine she is - and therefore the more evolutionarily attractive she is. Lipstick and eye shadow are makeup staples because they enhance these features.
Note: Enhancing the external color of the eyes and lips has the greatest impact on straight men because they are biologically attracted to feminine looking, fertile women.
How symmetrical and even her face is
The Association for Psychological Science explains that we also like symmetrical faces, even if we can't perceive symmetry. You may not realize it, but most people's faces are slightly asymmetrical-either one side will be wider than the other, there will be subtle differences in the shape of the eyes, one cheekbone may be less pronounced, and so on. And the less of these variations a face has, the more attractive it will look. Makeup can even out skin tone and contour, and eyeliner and lip liner can make these features look more symmetrical.
Makeup is an effective tool for making a person look more biologically attractive. The question is how do you get the most out of it?
Research shows this is the most important makeup tip
If makeup is simply not your thing, or some mornings you wake up and don't feel like you have the time or energy to do it, follow this one tip if you're going somewhere where other people's impressions of you are important.
Apply concealer/foundation
Studies have shown that foundation is the makeup that has the greatest impact on a woman's impression. This is especially important at work, as studies show that women who wear makeup have higher earning and promotion potential. Discolored skin tones, tired eye bags and blemishes can make you look tired or sickly.
If you have acne scars or other blemishes, you may already be aware that a foundation mask may not cover them completely. This means that even with foundation, your skin tone is not completely even and you won't yield the full benefits of makeup. To avoid this, apply enough concealer before applying foundation to make your blemishes disappear.
Likewise, oily skin can reduce the evenness of your skin. Eliminate distracting shine by applying powder over your foundation. Keep a powder in your bag so that you can reapply as needed throughout the day.
