i am displeased.

last week ST featured a group of promising talents in the fashion industry. well and dandy, kudos to all of you. except of course, the lament was that singapore girls are really dress down, take their inspiration from magazines, and worse of all horrors, leave the house without a stitch of makeup on. today, there's a feature about teens who spend a lot of money on making themselves look good.

one thing i don't understand is the emphasis on makeup. why resort to something so artificial when in the end, you may frighten the poor boy away when one day you don't put any makeup on? actually given that cosmetics is a multi-billion industry in litigious america i am frankly surprised that no girl's been sued yet for "appearing different" from what she normally looks like, not having "the goods" so to speak. (the same goes for breast augmentations too and all that) surely it's not essential to put makeup on for something as simple as a jaunt around the neighbourhood, or even orchard? and since when did well groomed meant being well made up too?

i understand the need for makeup, and i know that makeup can work wonders. that is why i have some myself. but i resist any attempts to make me wear it more than i deem necessary, it's a tool to complement not to subsume. personally i find that as long as one is hygienic, smells good and is healthy, no one is that unattractive to need makeup on all the time. i much rather spend money on a good skin-care and fitness regime than something as ephemeral (i think the word was developed specially to describe made-up beauty) as makeup. really, if you're lucky, it will last you till the time you intend it, that is, 9pm, beyond which you probably will contend with panda eyes and smudgy lips. another horror to contemplate surely.

having said all that, i totally understand the feeling of wanting to look good. i have days when i feel like buying that waistcoat, getting that perm and manicure, and generally wanting to make myself up in the prettiest way i think i can. but in the end, i dismiss those ideas, partly because i am lazy, i know i cannot upkeep such habits, but more importantly because i don't want to be reliant on something that will ultimately destroy my confidence in my own physical features.