Prepare To Be Stunned: Men Prefer When Women Don't Wear Too Much Makeup

Filed Under: Beauty Buzz Agyness Deyn Leighton Meester

We don't find this particularly surprising.

Skincare company St. Ives conducted a survey of 2,000 men to see how they felt about their partners' makeup routine, and the result is pretty much what we would have expected. According to the study, 1 in 5 men thinks his partner wears too much makeup, while one in ten prefers women who wear no makeup at all.

Given the way some women cake on the foundation and bronzer these days (ahem-Snooki) we hardly find this groundbreaking news.

The study also found that men were generally turned off by fake eyelashes, bright lipstick, winged eyeliner, dark lipliner, and penciled in brows.

We'll admit, false eyelashes is slightly surprising, but we have a feeling that the average straight dude doesn't know they're falsies when they're done right.

A spokesman for St. Ives said,

"For many guys, makeup can act as a barrier between them and their partner, and it seems they simply prefer women to go natural…. This seems to be a bigger issue between the genders as may women also admitted they weren't happy with their skin condition. So it would appear that women are wearing makeup to hide bad skin, not simply to impress the opposite sex. If women felt more confident that their skin was in good condition, they wouldn't need to wear so much makeup to cover up."

Okay, we get what they're saying in terms of concealer, foundation, and bronzer. With those products, subtlety is always key. But here's the thing - we think that the assumption that women only wear makeup to attract men is kind of insulting to women.

Don't get us wrong, we're not saying that notion has nothing to do with it. But if a girl wears bold eyeshadow or bright lips (like, say, Leighton Meester), there's a good chance it's not some attempt to lure in the fellas, but rather gain the admiration of other people with an appreciation for fashion forward beauty. Or for themselves!

For instance, when Agyness Deyn rocked those funky lashes, we're pretty sure it's because she's confident in her style and likes to push the limits, not because she wanted men to fall at her feet.

But what do we know.

What do you think? Are you shocked to learn that men like girls to look naturally pretty? And will this keep you from rocking funky face paint?

[Image via WENN.]

Posted: January 5, 2010 at 7:30 pm