I am a mother to twin teenage daughters and I am in a constant dilemma as to the appropriate age to use make -up. What is the right age? Will early usage translate into an unhealthy obsession with appearance? Or will usage cause damage to their skin?  One of them is blessed with flawless skin and the other suffers from regular bouts of acne. All through their growing years we as a family have stressed on the need to accept and be comfortable with their imperfections always reiterating we love them as they are.  They looked fairly similar though not identical but comparisons from acquaintances and strangers are the norm. Some insensitive souls blatantly drawing attention to the acne and giving unsolicited advice. Every time that happens the demand to buy concealer grows.

My mother is my go to person when I need sound advice. She had sensed my predicament. Without me having to go into the details of the girls’ reactions she explained that MAKE UP IS ART, BEAUTY IS SPIRIT. She explained that if concealing the acne scars helped the child up her confidence then so be it. Very matter of factly she concluded. One would use it for special occasions to feel all dressed up the other will use it to hide a few blemishes and I could use it to cover the fast spreading wrinkles.” Mom, I love the confidence that make up gives me” Is what they both said. Shopping for make-up now has become a threesome experience. A lot of fun I must admit.

There is however one thing I have always insisted upon. No compromise on the quality of the make up and also of the application tools. The quality of the make-up brushes is as important as the make-up itself. Shopping for the different applicator brushes were a task. So many types available! each having a different function. So, we decided to get ourselves each a 24 -pc Make-up Brush set. Beautifully arranged in a case it gave us the resource to brush, contour, highlight whichever feature we desired. We had the eyes, cheeks and lips covered in just one purchase.

I admire the creativity the girls exhibit as they experiment with their look. I often seek their help to apply make-up too. I am convinced that make-up is not meant to make the ugly beautiful but to magnify the beauty that already exists. Giving yourself, attention is very important for the complete ME.