My One Make-Up Item

I used to use a lot of make-up... back during my first year of high school when I went from trying to become a lesbian (more on that in a later post) to super feminine. Neither worked well for me so even before I knew the Radical Feminism idea of gender as both learned and personal, potentially harmful, I knew that some things just did not work for me.  Makeup felt like it was suffocating me, weighing me down, choking me up and that might have had something to do with the very intense sensitivity of my skin and high number of things I'm allergic to.

Makeup also made me feel like a fake yet the social pressure to wear it was so strong that I kept wearing some of it.  I used some lipstick for dates or special events and even did up my eyes.  If perfume counts, I also used that but only in the winter because I had enough bugs attracted to me, thank you very much. The last time I wore a lot of makeup was at my wedding when I had a professional do it.  I really dislike my wedding photo close-ups now because I think I look like a whore and definitely not at all like myself. I kept the lipstick and the eye shadows for role-playing after that, using them to enhance a character I was playing.

But every time I used any type of makeup on my face that used a color or a scent that wasn't just a perfume, I broke out, I developed rashes, I felt sick. Several years ago I tossed all of that stuff out keeping only the perfumes, the lip balms, and one more item which is really the only thing I consider make-up.

Nail polish!

I've always been a nail chewer, not biter, chewer, when I got stressed and I'm a high-stressed, easily stressed, woman.  The one thing that helps curb that is putting nail polish on.  It tastes yuck but it looks really pretty, doesn't cause an allergic reaction, and so I don't want to damage it.  I use a base coat and a ridge filler first to help protect my nails when I use it.  I don't always use nail polish, my mood for it comes and goes. Right now I'm in a mood for it so I'm doing about two colors a week since even my best polish seems to only last 3-5 days before it looks ratty.

I do have me some nail polish.  Let me show you.

I keep it in two tins and they aren't well organized though writing this post to share has let me organize a bit more. I went out with two of the other butt-kicking women in May and got a few more bottle so these tins are pretty much full now as you saw above.

My favorite polish are in the browns range

But I also like a lot of greens since I wear greens a lot.

As you can see I have quite a few of those but also a fairly large collection of reds. I believe my Daddy got me my first red nail polish, said every woman needed a red nail polish... my daddy was a bit strange.

I wish I had more yellows frankly, I'll need to keep that in mind if I get more.

Then I have some sparkly or neutral colors.  Some of my other polishes also sparkle but these are more sparkle than a specific color.  I should wear one of these to my convention next weekend -- which one?

Finally a few in the black, blue, grays range... which I primarily put on  my part or if I'm playing a goth character. Just last week I gave a very turquoise polish I had just receive to review to a friend because it was too blue for me.

So are nail polishes makeup?  What's your opinion?