Blogpost 3: Tween Appropriate

There is really no standard set on how old a girl should start wearing makeup. Some girls are already wearing full makeup starting the age of 10, the probable reason behind this is that some girls copy what they see from older people, our moms and and older sisters are the perfect example. Some girls hit puberty at an early age which makes it a major factor for them to start wearing makeup, because its when they start feeling conscious and they feel mature enough to start doing what older people are doing. Makeup often represents an adolescent girl's eagerness and excitement to become a 'grown up,' and explore her attractiveness to peers, but for parents, it can bring up fear and stress relating to their child maturing and becoming interested in boys.

According to the article "It Starts With Lip Gloss" by Bee-Shyuan Chang, girls follow what they see on what their friends are doing. It is just human nature to copy what looks nice on other people in hopes that it will also look nice on oneself. It is also because of what they see in TV and in magazines. Girls look up to older women like celebrities.  

Chang said, "Defined vaguely as ages 8 to 14, the tween category now has several product lines. GeoGirl , a collection touting natural ingredients like licorice extract, green tea and vitamin E, arrived on the market. Reactions were mixed, with some critics excoriating the line for marketing anti-aging products to children."  this only means that there are some cosmetic lines that are okay for young girls to use instead of using the products that are not age appropriate for them.

 It will be relieving for parents to know that there are these kinds of cosmetics that are fit for their age, this is because some cosmetics that are worn by older women, some of those makeups are not suited for young girl and it might be too harsh for their skin.

According to another article entitled, "Graduating From Lip Smackers" by Douglas Quenqua, the percentage of girls ages 8 to 12 who regularly use mascara and eyeliner nearly doubled to 18 percent from 10 percent for mascara, and to 15 percent from 9 percent for eyeliner. The percentage of them using lipstick also rose, to 15 percent from 10 percent. Women of all other age groups, including teenagers, report using less makeup. Women are cutting back on beauty products to save money and unemployed women feeling less compelled to do their face every morning. So how are tweens getting away with it, mom is the one buying it. When asked to name their primary influence for acquiring and applying makeup, 66 percent of the 365 tween girls polled by NPD pointed to a family member or adult family friend. 

Quenqua said, "Parents may dismiss as a cop-out the excuse that cosmetics companies are only selling what girls are asking for. Mothers who take their 11-year-olds for makeovers are operating under a similar principle: that many tween girls today are sophisticated enough to make at least some of their own beauty decisions."  its actually true, tween girls are feeling mature enough to make decisions not just regarding on their makeup choices but also on other decision making aspects. They feel accountable enough to face these responsibilities because they think they can already handle these tough decisions. 

I have also read an article called " Makeup for tweens and teens: What's appropriate?" by Alene Dawson, according to the article, young girls always puts up a fight with their mom especially when its the back-to-school time once again, arguing about what's school appropriate and not. For parents it should be an opportunity and their responsibility to ensure that their young girls should be educated on the role of beauty in the most responsible way. Parents should teach their daughters that there is a difference in what they see in magazines and what is real.

Dawson said, "There is something inappropriate about young girls painted like grown women. But there's no denying that they watch what adults do and want to experiment.Tweens shouldn't wear a full face of makeup."   I strongly agree to what the author said, basically because some girls doesn't look very nice when they are wearing heavy makeup and its quite deceiving, young girls looks a whole lot better when they are wearing minimal or no makeup at all. For my opinion it is okay for young girls to wear minimal makeup because at least they have an idea on how things should be done properly, and they should know their limit. Sometimes when young girls get carried away they tend to over do their makeup up to the extent that they look like clowns, which are not appealing and suitable. 

Parents should take their time in teaching in daughters on how to apply makeup that is appropriate for their age. They should also be open minded about this matter and not restrict their daughters on wearing makeup because the time will come that when those young girls grow up they will need those skills in real life. Young girls should hone this skill along with parental supervision, to be able to make this an effective tool to be used in the future.