It's been eight years since I graduated from college, and like many people I know, I retain fond memories of that time. Oh sure, while I was living it, I was convinced I was living an incredibly angsty, intense and depressed existence-forever moping around in shabby black clothes, a cigarette in hand and a painful expression plastered on my face. Oh, how I miss the kind of glorious suffering only an eighteen-year old can indulge in!
College particularly sticks out in my memory because it remains the only period in my life when I did not wear makeup. Whereas high school was all about piling on the baby-blue eyeshadow and choosing which frosted lipstick to wear each day, my well-stocked supply of beauty treatments and hair products were frowned upon by my college roommates. College beauty, I soon learned, was about looking good without looking made-up. My bohemian friends soon schooled me in proper collegiate dressing: Uncombed hair, flannel shirts and clunky Oxfords were de rigueur, while my fluorescent t-shirt, faux riding boots, Fergie bows and avid use of L.A. Looks hair gel were definitely out.
As someone who had worn foundation every day since the age of thirteen, going without makeup was both liberating and frightening. Sauntering around Cover Girl-free was simply anathema to my pressed-powder psyche. Nevertheless, I went au naturel at the suggestion of my makeup-free friends. And since the personal is also political-so it goes with cosmetics. As a non-makeup wearer, I soon acquired the classic smart-girl book collection to go with my new spartan style: Backlash, The Beauty Myth, and Our Bodies, Ourselves. The last book is the one that I still turn to, especially since this month is all about bodycare.
Our Bodies, Ourselves is a great book. If you have never owned it, I urge you to go out and buy a copy now. It is a guide to a woman's life through a woman's body -- every scary STD question is answered, every breast bump fear discussed -- there's even a chapter on "alternative lifestyles". We live in an age where sixteen year olds are getting breast implants and twenty-five year olds are clamoring for their Botox injections-but taking care of your body and keeping it beautiful is more than just the latest surgical techniques. (There's salt scrubs and seaweed wraps and Fekkai haircuts, too -- just kidding!) Of course, nothing beats a healthy diet, exercise and simply feeling good about yourself. I know I'll feel much better about myself this fall in equestrian gear -- maybe it's time to bring those faux riding boots out of the closet (at least Michael Kors seems to think so).
As for my au naturel look, needless to say that phase is long over. When I arrived home that summer, my mother cringed. "You look so... messy," she said, meaning: not polished, not done, not complete. I have since returned to the bottle, and have discovered the joys of custom foundation. She was right -- I look much better made-up.
This month, I'm obsessed with facial moisturizers (I own more than a dozen) and lipsticks (frost, matte, gloss, whatever). A beauty tip: You can never have too many moisturizers or lipsticks. Another beauty tip: Always listen to your mother.
It's been eight years since I graduated from college, and like many people I know, I retain fond memories of that time. Oh sure, while I was living it, I was convinced I was living an incredibly angsty, intense and depressed existence-forever moping around in shabby black clothes, a cigarette in hand and a painful expression plastered on my face. Oh, how I miss the kind of glorious suffering only an eighteen-year old can indulge in!
