Hey ladies, who do you put on make up for?

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02 August

Hey ladies, who do you put on make up for?

Hey ladies, who do you put on make up for?

Blogher conference made me look deep inside myself. Being around a few hundred smart and pretty women for a couple of days inspires one to ask questions about one’s own feminine nature, one’s identity and sexuality. I was looking at all the pretty women around me, checking out their fashionable handbags, looking at their colorful outfits and cute little shoes when it occurred to me. Women dress up for each other far more than they do for the men.

I asked Ponzi, my fashion and beauty muse the next day as we were walking to lunch: who do you put on make up for? She laughed at me as if to hint I was asking her the obvious: “other women, of course,” she said. “Men take me as I am and won’t even notice the color of the nail polish, or the new trendy hand bag or the expensive custom jewelry that I am wearing. Women always take notice though and complement or criticize.”

I had to agree with her. Women, even the geeky ones, care far more about fashion and shopping than men. Robert never noticed the butterflies I had painted on my toes or the Coach backpack I was wearing at the conference. None of the men did. Nicole Simon, however, took pictures of my toes and many others commented on them, and Beth even took a picture of my backpack. Let’s face it ladies, we dress up and put on make up to impress each other not the men. So who do you put on make up for?

10:53 | Blog it

Comments (12)

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	maryam ghaemmaghami Scoblewrote: K.P. great attitude. love it. 10 Aug.
	K.P. wrote: I put it on for myself. My honey always tells me how pretty that I am without make up. Since we live in the south, it is quite hot here, in the summers especially. It would be a waste of time to put anything on. ;-) I enjoy the "alone time" of getting ready sometimes. An ipod, glass of wine, etc. i have my own "gettting ready mix." It isn't to impress anyone else, it is to make myself feel good. I of course love it when he comments on the different things that I may change - colors, styles, etc. I am not looking for him to "notice", but it really stands out when he does. I then do a note to self on what he really likes. 10 Aug.
	maryam ghaemmaghami Scoblewrote: It was great meeting you Beth and you looked wonderful. 9 Aug.
	Beth Kanterwrote: From Beth at http://beth.typepad.com Hmm .. I don't put make up on for anyone .. but I do notice nice purses, backpacks, and clothes 9 Aug.
	maryam ghaemmaghami Scoblewrote: :) 4 Aug.
	John C. Welch wrote: Heh...thanks! Like Jack Sparrow, I tell the truth quite often, but no one ever believes me :-P 4 Aug.
	maryam ghaemmaghami Scoblewrote: Alfred, You are so sweet. You can commet on my shoes anytime! Teresa, You are too beautiful to need any make up, and with or without you always look great! MiniMage, You'd be surprised at how much more you know about fashion and beauty than the average man :) I know what you mean about comfort though. I always wear sensible shoes ;) Evan, I have to think of other topics to make you commnet now :) I love comments! I agree with John too. John, You are pretty funny, but the points you bring up are true and give me an insight to the male psyche. Thanks! 3 Aug.
	Alfred Thompsonwrote: I heard recently (I think it was a line in a movie or a TV show) that women like it if you notice and say something nice about their shoes. This is hard to a lot of men to understand. I recently went on vacation with my wife and noticed that she brought alone about 6 pairs of shoes. I don't have and never have had 6 pairs of shoes. A pair of dress shoes, work/casual shoes and sneakers (total 7 pair) is enough for most men. Maybe add a pair of work boots and all bases are covered. A fancy guy who wears a lot of suits might have two pair of dress shoes (black and brown). So it is surprising that we don't usually notice shoes on women? Of course no days I look and occasionally comment. That gets me some really strange looks from women. But I figured out that women dress for other women more than for men years ago. I am not sure that it matters as men are wired to find women attractive and to see beyond what they are wearing. We're not as shallow as some women think we are. 3 Aug.
	Teresa Valdez Klein wrote: I tend to put on makeup for myself. But I agree with you, men don't really notice specifically whether we're wearing makeup or not. But women sure as hell do. 2 Aug.
	MiniMage wrote: I don't dress up or wear makeup. I prefer comfort, and that doesn't allow for itchy pantyhose, painful hard shoes or goo that I can feel covering my face and lips. One of the reasons that I became a PC tech is because my friends were techies and got to wear jeans to work. Because I chose to work for a health care institution, I only get to do that on Fridays, but one day I might find some place that understands that dressing up to crawl under people's desks is rather inane. In the meantime, I am enjoying wearing my geek polos. 2 Aug.
	Evan Erwin wrote: "Women dress up for each other far more than they do for the men." First time I"ve been compelled to comment. And it has to be said. DUH. But you still rock :) As for Mr. John C, he nails it in that we -may- notice, but actually commenting or caring is something differently entirely. 2 Aug.
	John C. Welch wrote: Oh lord, women still think men don't notice and comment about that stuff? If you think that, i have some oceanfront property in Topeka for you. We most certainly DO notice, but what we do with that information is different. We're not going to comment on everything you wear or paint on extraneous hard coverings unless there's a need to. We're not real proactive with it. Unless we're single and trying to get laid. Then EVERY guy is able to suddenly become a fashion GENIUS if need be. We're real focused like that. We notice this stuff and we do judge on it. But probably a little different than women do. A lot of guys will look at painted toenails and fingernails and think "Dear god, going anywhere with her would take hours of prep...'be worth it, but oy, forget about just going somewhere". Simple, comfortable, quality clothes that hang well impress because it shows an eye for wearing what looks good on you without excessive worries about brand names. We really DON'T care whose name is stiched across your keister. Unless it's ours. Then we care. Do you take care of yourself, do you look good? Now, that's not the same as "are you following the tenants of heroin chic." But do you take the responsiblity to maintain a healthy lifestyle. If not, then crap, that's drama. If you're overly fussy about what you eat and constantly diet...oh crap, even MORE drama. Guys tend to dislike drama. Not always, but it's a tendency. What a lot of women don't get is that for a lot of men, makeup and the rest are what you wear for the world. It's what you look like when it's just US that matters most. But yes, we do notice the color of the nail polish. It's just not important enough to comment on. 2 Aug.

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