Just A Small Town Girl…

Girls and makeup go hand in hand, like boys and football, fish and chips, England and rain… Miley Cyrus and scandal! From an early age, we all observed our mothers getting ready in front of their bedside mirrors before a party/function. An assortment of cosmetic products spread out before her like multi-coloured wrapped candies. The array of lipsticks, eyeshadows, eyeliner pencils, blushers and bronzers would catch the light; glittering, sparkling and reflecting in our widened guileless eyes. Sitting on our knees patiently in the corner, we’d observe every little skilled flick and turn of her makeup brush. Often our legs would go numb, but our concentration would not falter.

A while later, the transformation was finally complete. She would rotate full circle, bathing herself in the artificial light so that we could regard her properly in her new form, a look of awe eclipsing our faces. From the naturally beautiful woman that we unknowingly idolised every day since birth, she had become a strikingly attractive lady, who now possessed an air of sophistication and elegance. My mother: the movie star!

We would give anything to feel that soft lipstick brush our childish lips and to experience the powdery feel of eyeshadow in the creases of our inexperienced bright eyes. We wanted to be transformed by magic too! In spite of our fascination however, we were always cautioned with the statement, ‘You can look… But not touch…you’re far too young for all this yet!’ And of course, we knew this to be true. So our temporary consolation prizes were nail polishes and flowery butterfly clips. These were the only types of solace for us back then and they had to do. For we knew that we had to patiently bide our time and wait until we were big girls. That day would eventually come… and then, just like our mothers, we would be beautiful too.