with no armour

I often wonder at the more outlandish make-up tips. While columns bleat about the "sexiness" of the "smoky-eyed/rock chick" look, I wonder why someone would want to look as if they'd gotten into a fist fight and lost. And according to this how-to video, the key to perfect blusher is a combination of highlighter + bronzer + blusher + countour powder. Forgive me, but I had thought the road to the perfect blusher was Just. Blusher. Hadley Freeman in her amazing book The Meaning of Sunglasses, writes "...perhaps we need to reconsider some of our concepts of beauty because there is some make-up that makes neither hide nor hair of sense. Coloured eyelids, anyone? Just who decided that neon-coloured eyelids were the surest way to a man's heart, or just a fast track to a party look in general?"

I do enjoy makeup. I have a vast collection of very similarly coloured apricot lipglosses. I have spent many lunch hours at the Stila counter. But you have to draw the line somewhere. And I draw it at the point where I think people are just making stuff up and labelling them as "essential". The April issue of French Elle where a swathe of gorgeous women appear on the cover and inside sans makeup is a step in the right direction. And I follow suit with my post for today - no make-up. Just moisturiser, a clever photographer, and some good ol' natural light.

♥ Jacket from Zara ♥ Top from Farmers ♥ Necklace from the Philippines ♥ Pants from Glassons ♥ Flats from Witchery ♥