Is Makeup-Shaming Real? NikkieTutorials Thinks So
Nikkie’s most recent video is a makeup tutorial and a call-out to everyone who disses makeup or caked faces, all rolled into one. Now, as someone who loves a Sephora trip, I can definitely see her side of things, but makeup shaming? I don’t believe it’s real. Now, don’t get me wrong. I do think women are shamed for applying makeup, but women are also shamed for going natural. Is natural-shaming a thing, too? Of course not; this is just plain old misogyny.
When women defend their makeup application, it’s usually, “I do it for me,” or as Nikkie put it, “[…] the transformative power of it.” Before I pick her video apart and give criticism, I want to reiterate that I do wear makeup and don’t shame women for doing the same.
What you need to understand about makeup criticism is that no one is born wanting to wear makeup. No one comes out of the womb, grows up, and chooses to cake their face daily for the hell of it. There’s a process; the psychological term for it is socialization. When you grow up in a society where you’re surrounded by women always wearing makeup, from your female family members to the women you see on TV, or out at restaurants, stores, wherever in society, you’re subconsciously associating makeup with women, and acknowledging that makeup is something women wear.
None of this is harmful or negative (yet). Makeup has been around for centuries, throughout all cultures, and used on both men and women. Makeup application isn’t the problem, it’s the cultural association and the results thereof.
Growing up, there came a point in my friends’ lives where they started wearing makeup. They all got complimented, our peers talked about it, and it was something that wasn’t exactly important enough to remember, but important enough that you know you get compliments when you wear makeup. The psychological term for this is positive reinforcement. Yes, the Pavlovian kind that makes dogs drool (from a bell ringing, not makeup).
As teenagers, we’re desperate for approval, whether from our family, our friends, or society in general. It’s nothing to be ashamed of, it’s human. So when you’re getting that approval when you’re wearing makeup, you wear it more often. Now, this isn’t to say that people wear makeup for the approval of others, I’m saying that’s usually how it starts.
When people call makeup art, it’s something you can’t exactly disagree with, because art is subjective. However, I think it’s safe to say there’s a distinct difference from “feminine” makeup (winged eyeliner, contour, lipstick) and makeup that isn’t used for “enhancement” (special effects makeup, abstract makeup, etc.).
Now that we know why we started wearing makeup and why we continued to do so throughout our teen years, why do we still wear it if not for approval? This is the tricky and often offensive part, because it’s hard to admit that others influence our decision making, whether consciously or subconsciously.
Many second-wave feminists have stated that, “makeup is a waste of women’s time, money, and energy,” because of how expensive, time-consuming, and exhausting makeup is. The paradox is, if you don’t wear makeup, you often make lower grades than your peers, and won’t be paid as much at your job compared to your makeup-wearing peers.
Is weaponizing femininity going to intimidate people who shame women for wearing makeup? Of course not; so why do it if not just to make ourselves feel better for having “eyeliner sharp enough to kill a man”? In Nikkie’s video she ended her rose-gold look with “a wing to cut all makeup-shamers in half.” While I am impressed with how thin and sharp her wing was, it’s not going to cut anyone in half, much less anyone’s criticism.
In Nikkie’s video description box, on the very bottom below a surplus of information and links to her other videos, she adds in the disclaimer, “This video is sponsored by MakeupPlus. #SHEUnites is a women empowerment campaign highlighting creators in the digital space that have empowered others through their special projects.”
The definition of empower is “to make (someone) stronger and more confident, especially in controlling their life and claiming their rights,” which has been simplified and taken out of its context by third-wave feminists as “to make someone more confident.” Empowerment isn’t about wearing makeup and confidence, it’s not about what makes you feel good about yourself; empowerment is what you do to keep yourself centered and steady in your life and being confident enough to stand up for yourself and your rights. Admittedly, makeup could be empowering in this context, but in a very unhealthy way (in a way that your whole world would crumble if you suddenly didn’t have access to your eyeliner pen).
Empowerment isn’t meant to be thrown around, and the reason it’s being thrown around today is because of feminist-backlash and anti-feminist advertising, sometimes referred to as “empowertising.” You know the third-wave “I’m not one of those feminists,” slogan? This is where I’m heading. After the second-wave of bra-burning, body hair growing, in-your-face feminism, women 1. got a handful more rights that we previously didn’t have, and 2. wanted to assure their peers that while they believe in equality they also believe in performing femininity, because it “empowers” them. (Think of Barbie, the do-it-all girl. She can wear heels, makeup, skirts, AND be a bread-winner, why not you?)
Nikkie’s video, though well-intended, was a prime example of how feminism today has gone so far off the rails turning anti-feminist arguments into feminist ones. Makeup-shaming is misogynistic in the sense that it’s shaming a predominantly female activity, but let’s not confuse criticism of women wearing makeup with shaming women wearing makeup. One is a feminist analysis and the other isn’t.
In conclusion, no, makeup-shaming isn’t real. The problem here isn’t “makeup-shamers,” and it’s not people who wear makeup; it’s those who will find anything associated with women and degrade it, and it’s also people conflating makeup criticism with makeup shaming.