Why I Love Makeup

Despite what this blog might have you think, I haven't always loved makeup as much as I have. Don't get me wrong, it's not like I ever hated it, but my first true love was always books. I grew up as a voracious reader, frequenting the library multiple times a week. By the time I was in first grade, I was reading at a fourth grade level. Since then, I've probably read upwards of at least 200 books a year. As I get older, I find I don't have as much time, but because I am able to read so quickly, I can still read 2-3 books a week (as opposed to 5 or 6).

 

As a young child, I always loved getting my face painted. Shoulda known then!

I remember one of my first makeup purchases--I was in 6th grade and figured it was time to wear some makeup, so I bought a couple of NYC products at Target. I thought it was cute to wear purple eyeshadow all the way up to my brow bone (lord no). After that, I spent the next few years wearing a basic routine of a single wash of shadow, bottom eyeliner (super heavy black in middle school), and mascara. In high school, I pretty much kept to the same routine. I would buy something at Sephora or the drugstore if a cool product caught my eye, but I never really scoured the shelves for anything. High school was okay, but my biggest thing was not having a hobby or something I was truly passionate about. I did softball freshman year (needless to say that didn't pan out) and theater since middle school. I liked theater and it was something fun to do, with a group of friends, but it still didn't feel like something I was super passionate about. 

Enter my first year of college, with a bit more makeup, but still nothing to brag about. I randomly stumbled onto a beauty vlogger's page after looking up a hair tutorial, and continued to sporadically watch her videos throughout the year. Through her, I found more. I was hooked on their videos. I felt like this was something I could get into. By the middle of sophomore year, it hit me. This was what I loved. I was subscribed to quite a few channels. I had started out the year with a single small three drawer plastic container of makeup, and my collection was rapidly growing. 

I've wanted to work in marketing for a while, but didn't really know what I wanted to do with it until a year and a half ago. I realized I loved these bloggers and vloggers because their unique voices and reviews could easily persuade me to buy or try a product. Why can they do it while others can't? Why am I so intrigued with their lives and spend hours a day watching their videos? Through answering these questions, I know why I love makeup and want to share this love with other people.

Now, I'm not a super fancy makeup artist who can do amazing eye looks like you see on Pintrest. And I still struggle with winged liner. But I do consider myself somewhat of a walking makeup encyclopedia. I spend so much time reading blogs, watching youtubers, and researching products that I do have some pretty vast knowledge. But the makeup world is constantly changing and evolving, so there's always something new to keep me on my toes. Makeup is a form of art and expression; one day I may feel like rocking a sultry smoky eye, while the next I might just want to wear one cream shadow. It's not permanent, so you can change it even many times a day.

I'm not saying by any means that you need makeup to look beautiful. I strongly believe everyone looks perfectly fine without makeup, myself included. But I use makeup as a tool to enhance what you already have, and perhaps show you what was missing (it's amazing what filling in brows can do for someone's face). I choose to spend loads of money on products because this is my hobby, my passion, and I know once I graduate I want to enter the beauty marketing world. I view it as an investment and something that's important to me. Not everyone may feel that way, and there are plenty of good products at the drugstore. Nothing makes me happier than recommending a product to someone and knowing that they love it.

Sorry for this post being so long and rambly, but I hope you all enjoy these type of heart-to-heart posts occasionally. I've loved blogging the past year and here's to many more posts and reviews and recommendations to come.