As each day passes, we are greeted with more sunlight, growing puddles and the unmistakable sense of hope that spring is finally coming. We’ve written about the art of spring cleaning for your beauty supplies before (find it here), so this year in honour of the changing season and fresh starts, we wanted to focus on the ties that bind us to the products we should have let go of years ago. As much as we live in a culture that encourages “out with the old, in with the new”, there’s something holding us back from letting go of certain pieces of make-up and we wanted to share our views on that emotional attachment with you.
After talking to a number of our LUX ladies there were two main threads that attributed to the emotional hoarding of make-up; remaining rooted to our past, and looking forward to the future. Both are tied fiercely to the perception of self – they hold dear the value placed on that make-up carves out your identity.
Make-Up as Who We Were
“Makeup is more than just something to put on to give an extra bit of confidence when I go out the door. Makeup is a whole sensory experience and memories become attached to products making them almost impossible to let go of. I may not wear that certain lip gloss anymore but the flavor brings me back to that fun night out. I might not “dig” JLo glow anymore but the scent reminds me of summer nights when I was 16.” -Alia
“My own make-up memory stretches back to applying bright pink blush to my cheeks dressed in my grandmas old dresses as a young girl. I loved to feel ladylike. As I got older I craved something bolder: bright blue eyeshadow. I still remember wearing it to my first Jr. High dance and how thrilled I was, how exciting it was to finally feel like an adult. For me, maturity is forever adorned in blue eyeshadow.” -Marielle
“These products go beyond their use and become little symbols of time gone by. It is hard to give up these things because it feels like you are giving up part of your past.” -A
Make-Up as Who We Will Be
“The item I just can’t let go happens to be red lipstick (and believe me I’ve tried), but to me it’s more then slapping on some lipstick before I leave the house. I think of growing up thinking Gwen Stefani was the coolest, and sneaking a look at photos of Dita Von Teese when I was twelve years old. And my big sister with her love of Marilyn Monroe. The women that rocked the world in high heels and red lipstick, those are my girls! And that’s who I want to be. So I’ll be wearing red lipstick to my grave.” -Brittany
“With make-up my routine is always on this roller coaster; I experiment like crazy for a while, then go back to the tried and true basics. I have a bunch of products from past discovery phases that don’t fall into my everyday look that sit untouched. They will always linger in my cabinet though, as an “In Case of Emergency” product for whenever the inspiration to be different strikes again in the future.” -Katryna
Without a doubt, there seems to be an emotional attachment to keeping products that have long since seen the light of day, and there in lies the question: why are we still clinging onto them? As a team we loved exploring this, but would love to hear your story. How has make-up carved your identity? And what can you simply not let go of?