Day 5: 2-Ethylhexyl Palmitate, 2-Carnauba Wax, 96-Sex

In discussing how I felt on two of the days I concurrently scratched on the surface of two important subjects which I now would like to take time to explore. The first of these would be as Entwistle noted: the feminine body as a sexual body and how red lipstick contributes to that association, if it does at all.
I have consistently been afraid of the associations people would make with the red lipstick, but is it in fact that I would be considered a sex symbol regardless of the red lipstick? Is the red lipstick the sex symbol?


As we have already discovered lipstick was a cosmetic reserved for prostitutes for more than one century, but it became acceptable in the 1900s and yet we still make immediate associations with red lipstick, in particular, to sex.


“…the opening of sex as a subject which could be talked about and drawn attention to in public had the effect, too, of turning female desire into something which could be sold to both men and women. On the one hand, advertising for many products became increasingly associated with sex, in particular, the desirability of the female body.” (Howson, 2004:108)


It should have been obvious that we could accredit the sex association to the media, but it is never safe to make assumptions. So I looked around for lipstick ads and wow, did they make it seem as though red lipstick meant without doubt you were wearing it because you wanted ass! And if you wore red lipstick it is inevitable that you are a sex symbol:

Ad 1: this ad may not scream sex however it does reiterate what the expectation is of the women who may wear this lipstick. Williamson's book on decoding advertisements (as cited in Howson, 2004) confirms that “Advertisements have to translate statements about objects (material) into statements about people – about how people might use the object and about what kinds of people might use the object.”

Ad 2: this ad can be analyzed on more than one level. Firstly the name of the shade, ‘crushed rose.’ My immediate association to this name would be destroying the beauty or innocence of something, but on a more literal level, to be deflowered. This is a common term used to imply that a women’s virginity has been lost. However I do not think this ad is implying that. I do think it likening the women to a rose-beautiful and innocent and by using the verb crushed; it suggests that the man is going to ravage her as a result of wearing the red lipstick. Sexual-I think yes! Secondly the copy, which suggests that the women wanted a man’s sexual attention and therefore is wearing this red lipstick.

Ad 3: “Make-up can also be used as an instrument of power in relation to men, allowing women to assert their sexual attractiveness as power over men.” (O’Shaughnessy, Stadler, 2007: 335)
At the core of me I know what I want, as annoyingly indecisive as I can be, if you put a pair of jeans and a dress in front of me, I will eventually, always, walk away with the dress. Perhaps it is more accurate to say I know exactly what I do not want. I believe if a woman wears make-up, she knows it is because it will accentuate her features and her femininity, giving her confidence and self-worth. The woman in this ad knows what she wants and her choice of lipstick communicates that.




“Furthermore, the products themselves and the images through which they are represented come to define and reinforce a sense not only of self but also of gender.” (Howson, 2004: 106)

Day 4: Could I have some food with the red lipstick please?

It’s Saturday so I decided to keep it literal and simple. Below is a visual representation of brunch:

Water to drink.

Omelete to eat.

A side of red lipstick.

As I have mentioned on day 1, I struggle to not get the red lipstick on everything. This has only become MORE annoying! These 10 days would not be a good time to be hiding as I am leaving a fairly distinct trail. This is the part of the wearing the red lipstick which has been obviously uncomfortable and constantly reminds me that it is something I could not embrace. Simultaneously it makes me marvel at the countless women who DO dress their faces with this cosmetic every day, and for some, it is something they cannot go without.

Something good did come of it though… In the small café at the table across from me sat an elderly, neatly poised woman. I noticed her because of her lips, which were perfectly lined with lip pencil and filled with an equally daring shade. When we eventually made eye contact it was not awkward, instead rewarding. The tone of her expression was that of a proud mother, for at that moment she had acknowledged my statement as one of femininity and power. Lipstick bridged an age gap, and somehow we could relate.

I wore the red lipstick smugly for the remainder of brunch, as if I had just received a merit or gold star from a teacher.

Day 3: He said...

"Self-promotion is not Ramona’s strongest trait. While my viewpoint could well be criticized as being subjective, I feel that on pure talent, intellectual ability and strength of spirit, she is the match of anyone. She possesses a wide spectrum of often concealed capabilities that will doubtless make her successful at whatever she chooses to devote her energy to. She also happens to be beautiful (that’s not subjective) and I know that she hates being categorized on only this single element of what makes her who she is. If she could change one thing about how she is viewed by others she would eradicate the mistaken assumption that good looks cancel out a good brain. Ramona would have her abilities walk into a room before she did." Matthew Cooke

“People talk about my image, like I come in two dimensions, like lipstick is a sign of my declining mind, like what I happen to be wearing the day that someone takes my picture is my new statement for all womankind”  Ani DiFranco

On a lighter note, have a look at this Mercedes Benz Ad which tries to capture that beauty is nothing without brains.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHX2mvFVQMs

Frank?

At the end of today, when I could finally put the siren to rest.

What I find increasingly hard about writing a blog entry everyday is how to be absolutely frank with what I felt and thought. I guess the reoccurring theme of being concerned by what other people are thinking is taking centre stage and this blog is proving to make me as uncomfortable as the red lipstick.

In a discussion with my best friend about my blog, red lips,and me, I realised that perhaps it may take someone else to truly capture how I felt today. And if I am going to try to be frank, I am not big on "feelings." I am guarded and the red lipstick forces introspection and openness. Today I posed a question to myself: why am I this colossal contradiction who feels completely emancipated from the judgement of strangers yet bound by the opinions of those close to me?

R18

“The feminine body, is always, potentially at least, a sexual body and women have not been able to escape this association entirely, despite their challenge to tradition and acquisition, in part, of sexual inequality.” (Entwistle, 2000: 38)

Day 2: Read my lips!

He who does not want to be named: “Looks like you would give a cracking blowjob.”

This was the first comment I received today, which was made without realizing how it supported a stereotype which had been produced ages before. Research showed that lipstick had been around for approximately 5000 years, and during most of this time it was a cosmetic reserved only for prostitutes. In medieval Europe it was banned completely. It was only in the early 1900s that it became acceptable. So my immediate reaction to this statement then was: have we not evolved since a time when men wearing armour, would wake up and plan their conquest of a country? Perhaps not, but once this person knew I wanted to blog about the comment, they immediately protested against being mentioned. So perhaps they have?

There is no harm in our minds making immediate associations with colours, textures, shapes and sizes… but what I became conscious about today was that these associations and generalizations we are prone to, can take our imaginations, creativity, and individuality captive. It is far easier to blend in than to stand out, because we are afraid of what people may think.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show's iconic red lips.

This movie is an epitome of what the medieval society was against... A “sweet transvestite from Transsexual, Transsylvania." There is no irony in these lips being painted red. It is daunting knowing what connotations are attached to red lipstick and I am glad that today I was surrounded by people, who mostly knew me, and were not thinking: Is she trying to attract potential clients?

In the nude.

From a glamorous night, to a casual day and even a romantic date with a hot man.

When I left the house this morning.