The Eye of the Beholder

Okay, it's time for all my female readers to roll their eyes at me as I take on a topic I have discussed in this space before - feminine beauty.

I thought about this yesterday, while running some errands at a local shopping mall. I usually enter this particular mall through Bloomingdale's and pass through the cosmetics department on my way to the mall proper. There are some very beautiful ladies who work in this department...until you get close and discover that they look, well, too perfect.

Their skin is absolutely smooth and featureless, cheeks shaded and rouged, eyebrows carefully shaped, lips glossy and perfectly outlined, and eyes defined by layers of colors and highlighted by heavily-mascara'ed lashes. To me, they don't look real...they look like mannequins on display. I'd be afraid to kiss one of these ladies for fear of ruining her carefully-crafted makeup, or hug her and risk ending up with smears of makeup and lipstick over my face and clothes.

Now, I understand that every woman wants to look her best. But does that mean covering her face with layers of makeup that hide all the things that give a face character? The answer is, evidently, yes. Clearly, if a woman has serious skin problems or blemishes, she'll want to do something to minimize them...but the artificial, perfectly-crafted look doesn't emphasize her individuality and personal beauty. Well-applied makeup should enhance a woman's features, rather than cover them up.

I feel the same way about the tendency for many ladies to wax or shave away every vestige of body hair. I've always thought that hairy arms on a woman are very sexy, but the prevailing fashion seems to be that hair on the arms needs to go the way of hair on the legs or underarms...ruthlessly plucked, shaved, waxed, or lasered away. And I think that's too bad, because it removes yet another aspect of individual beauty.

I guess I'm just old-fashioned and out of step with current trends. But I would always rather see a lady who looks real, who dresses well and makes the most of her features, rather than hiding or changing them until you wouldn't recognize the original person under the makeup.

It is, of course, your body and you can decorate it as you wish. But don't feel like you have to do it just for me. And for pete's sake, stay away from the tattoos!

Have a good day. More thoughts tomorrow.

Bilbo