Another factor: my mom (a successful doctor) has never worn makeup (I’ve worn more makeup in my life than she has) and she has amazing complexion at age 50-some. No wrinkles.
I like to wear a little makeup from time to time, especially nail polish.
Or perhaps some women just don’t like the feel of makeup on their faces.
To me it feels like a mask, and I hate it. Luckily, my husband prefers me without it anyway.
Wow. I guess I’m in the minority here. I wear makeup every day. To me, it’s just another part of getting dressed.
I have sleep disorders, so I always have dark circles under my eyes. I also have some scars, so I use dermablend to cover them both. Can’t go anywhere without a foundation, some transparent powder, and my black liquid eyeliner is a must.
The only eyeshadows I own are all different shades of brown, and match my hair. I use a little bit of that in the crease of my eye to add some depth. Apply some mascara, and I’m done.
I almost never wear lipstick, though, as I find it rather unpleasant. I smoke, so it usually is gone in a short while (and it’s not too nice to get it all over your fingers from the filter) and while I’ve tried those all-day lipsticks, they feel like plaster on your lips and dry out very quickly.
As far as the way my face feels, I feel naked without it.
It takes about 20 - 30 mins in the morning, but then again I don’t ever bother with fixing my hair (really short, so all I have to do is run a comb through it) or painting my nails, or much else by way of beautification.
I enjoy it. I’m an artistic person, and I’ve always loved drawing faces, and putting on makeup is kind of an extension of that. It’s a socially acceptable form of drawing on your face :
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I wear a slight amount of makeup. I look much more alert and a lot less tired with a bit of eyeliner on. I also use light powder and colored lip gloss. My coloring is naturally very pale, so I feel like my features need a little boost to stand out.
I don’t differentiate between friends who wear makeup and those who don’t, although I do notice it. It usually matches personality. I do, however, find caked-on and heavy makeup aesthetically reprehensible… and yet, it seems to be all the rage these days. Tsk tsk.
Funny how things change. I wore a conservative amount of make-up to work daily and juiced it up to go out, until I had kids. After that, I really just couldn’t be bothered. The odd night out with clients is the only exception I can think of right now. I avoid fancy functions like the plague but if forced to attend, I’ll wear nothing more than a touch of concealer if there are dark circles, tiny bit of blush on eyelids and cheeks, two swipes with the mascara wand. Never got the hang of lipstick application without making myself look like a two-dollar whore and my lips are red enough anyhow.
I honestly thought I’d be in the minority when I opened this thread.
When I look in the mirror I think I look fine so I don’t usually wear make-up.
But, I must confess, being a female…I have a weakness for the good stuff!
I also find that people are nicer and more polite when I have a bit on.
XJET, you and my wife have the same philosophy. 
Before we lived together I would have said she wore very little makeup, and compared to some women, she certainly does. But, there’s the foundation and the eyeliner and the mascara and the eye shadow…the real time consuming part is all the cremes and face washes she has. Ugh. The biggest reason I used to think she wore so little makeup is because she rarely wears lipstick. She mostly wears the kind of makeup that’s not supposed to be noticed. And it’s not.
Man speaking up here.
I think everybody - both men and women - should look as good as they’re reasonably able, given the context in which you’re presenting yourself. I wouldn’t expect a woman to put on makeup to get the mail or anything, but humans are visually oriented creatures. When I meet somebody, my first input is their appearance, not their intellect. I can’t see you walking in the hall and say, “gosh, she looks really well-read.”
We form our initial impressions based solely on appearance, and then all further contact refines that impression.
Now, not all women need makeup, just like not all men need ties. My wife, for example, looks gorgeous just out of the shower, with her hair just normal and nothing on her face. But she likes getting her hair done and doing her makeup because it makes her feel more beautiful and confident.
As for taking four hours… Holy cow! that’s crazy. I think the only time Jerseydiamond has taken more than 5 minutes to do her makeup was the day of our wedding (a record-setting 7 minutes, according to the Maid of Honor)!
But there are certainly contexts where both are appropriate. When I’ve had to conduct job interviews, people who looked like they didn’t care about their appearance immediately gave me a poor impression (different requirements depending on the level of job - I wouldn’t expect a business suit, fancy hairdo and makeup for a job at the local Safeway grocery store). But I would recommend at least making sure you look well-groomed for a job interview. And that generally means at least minimal makeup. Yeah, makeup is unnatural, and we should be happy with our natural faces and bodies, but then CLOTHING is also unnatural. But try going out without it and see what happens. Our society has certain expectations regarding appearance.
if done right the makeup will make a girl look a little better.
if done wrong it will make her look a LOT worse 
Fourth possibility is that there is a medical reason. My skin is hypersensitive (for instance, Vaseline Intensive Care hypoallergenic lotion gives me a brilliant red, weepy rash). There are very few things I can wear on my skin and makeup isn’t one of them
I’m not deluded about my looks (all the times I’ve been called “pizza face” and “road rash” have taken care of that), I do care (that’s why the face is bare) and in no way am I a “reglious freak”.
Thanks for all the thoughts and responses.
As far as wearing makeup to the interview, I guess I’ll wear a little–just in case kniz is interviewing me. 
But really, it does make me look more polished, and probably would look appropriate with a suit. But taking into account your comments on doing what makes me feel confident–I won’t wear foundation, concealer, or even powder. I just hate the way it feels. I’m not too shiny. A little mascara does bring out my eyes.
My husband prefers me without makeup, but on the very rare occasions that I do put it on, he always says “ooh! You look great!”
I’m one of those who doesn’t wear makeup because my skin reacts badly. It’s always been sensitive, I tend to break out at times and not sure what sets it off. But no matter how carefully I clean my skin after putting on makeup it only makes the breaking out worse. I would like to wear makeup sometimes, but haven’t found one that doesn’t piss my skin off.
In an interview, I always want to come across as polished. Polished professionally, polished in the way I dress and speak.
I wear makeup professionally on occation. Meetings with exec’s and, back in my consulting days, clients. When I need to do public speaking. And, on occation, just because I want to. Sometimes, when I’m not feeling 100% (but am feeling good enough to work), mascara, blush, lipstick and pressed powder keep me from having people comment “Do you feel ok?” all day long.
I got away with the “no makeup” thing until I was about 35. Then I began to show rosacea symptoms. Now I’m forced to wear it in public or risk gathering the type of ugly comments which Broomstick mentioned.
Here in the south, traditionally a lady isn’t considered properly dressed unless she’s wearing a modicum of makeup. It’s changing as we speak. If I were ** Green Bean ** or another one of you lucky gals with good skin, I prob would be very minimal with it for interview.
I don’t wear makeup. I did for my wedding, as I was informed I ‘had to’ for the pictures. I did so under protest but goldarn it those are the best photos of me I have ever seen! So I might do so in the future if having my photo taken.
Were I you, I would go to the interview with a plain face unless you are certain you are putting the stuff on looking right. Sometimes when you see a friend who never wears makeup wearing some it is obvious they’ve not put it on since high school and they end up looking like a clown.
My two cents. Good luck in the job search.
Nice to hear from everybody,
I’ll weigh in with I LOVE MAKEUP!!! Yes, I usually wear it every day- I have a 4 minute routine that involves 2 in 1 powder, blush, eye liner and lipstick (okay, 4 minutes is a generous estimate, but 2 sounds like I have some sort of super power.)
I wear it to work, and on weekends most of the time, and it’s not because I don’t think I look fab without it. It’s because it is mad fun! I was blessed with good skin that doesn’t react badly to almost anything. I can get away with el cheap-o drugstore make-up or Clinique…(I like Clinique better) I’m willing to expiriment with warm tones, cool tones, obnoxious '80’s colors, and all of it (including the liquid chrome eyeliner I just found for $1.97) is fun!
Someone mentioned that it is very much the grown up version of coloring on your face. I agree, and although most of the women in my life have never worn makeup, and look fabulous, I’ve always been secretly pleased that as a woman I’m allowed to wear makeup in this society…
Granted, going to work I can’t have as much fun with it as I’d like, but I’m not made of time people, and I thoroughly sympathize with people who think it’s a waste of time and money.
I feel a lot of negative reactions to makeup in this thread (with the notable exception of kniz. I’d just like to point out that along with all its “we’re such a shallow society, why don’t men have to wear it all the time” qualities, if you don’t take it too seriously it can be a lot of fun.
I’ve never worn makeup. I wouldn’t know what to do with it. I was told to wear it at my wedding for the pictures, but I didn’t and I looked fine. I don’t think it’s necessary to wear makeup to look “polished.” Professional clothes, a neat hairstyle and a dignified demeanor is all that’s necessary.
Green Bean, I saw you before one of your interviews, and you looked fine to me. I have no idea whether you were wearing makeup or not. I don’t ever notice makeup unless it’s way too much. I didn’t wear makeup at any of my job interviews–and I got a job anyway.
I’m a guy who grew up when women burned their makeup kits. In the late 1970’s they started wearing eye shadow again, and it was a shock. Those red lips! Those enticing eyes! That fake eyebrow!
I confess – makeup gets me engorged. It is hot. I am helpless against my biological responses. Thank god I’m not an orangutan.
Whether it’s subtle and elegant, or trailer-trash cheapslut, I love it all, but pretend not to notice. That’s part of the game, isn’t it?
As a general rule I don’t wear makeup, for many reasons, including:
- Time. It takes too long (I can’t get away with 2-in-1 powder. To do it “right” it adds an extra 15 minutes to my morning that I’d rather not spend in front of a mirror. See reason 3) And then it takes too much time to take off.
- Money. With the exception of eyeliner, mascara, and very occasionally eyeshadow, I can’t buy drugstore makeup. It looks like crap on me. The last time I bought foundation, it cost $85. Admittedly, that was over 4 years ago, but I’m willing to bet the price has gone up. To me, that’s a deterrent.
- General insecurity issues. The exact opposite of what kniz said earlier, I have no delusions about my looks. And not infrequently, I think “Why bother, all the makeup in the world isn’t going to fix that,” or that if I were to wear makeup, people will look at me and think “silk purse out of a sow’s ear” and that I’m deluded into thinking makeup will improve how I look. Also, spending time looking at myself is not fun and rather depressing. I try to avoid it.
Well, I wear what is by most standards a lot of makeup. I don’t wear a terribly heavy foundation and light powder (I have fairly nice skin to begin with), but I am rather heavy-handed with the eye makeup and I usually wear a medium-coloured lipstick. I have very light brown hair, brown eyes and I keep things in natural tones. All my makeup is black and shades of brown, with a kind of mocha-coloured lipstick.
It takes me about 15 minutes to put all of it on.
Now, naturally, I have very light eyelashes, lightish eyebrows and I’m very pale. I am a very animated person and it feels unnatural to me to be without my face paint. I am a bit of a performer. My makeup not only emphasises what I look like but it lets me express things better by giving me more control over what I look like. (i.e. when I narrow my eyes and make a ‘face’ it is much more pronounced and dramatic than if I were without the dark black eyeliner.) I don’t believe that my ‘natural’ face suits my personality. (Maybe some aspects of it, but not overal.) I do wear a lot, but I have never received anything but compliments over it. It seems very natural on me and I haven’t noticed anyone dwelling on it.
I love it, I will not go out in public without it, and I would not stop wearing it for anyone.