Sorry Men, Birthday Makeup Is Here To Stay & We'll Tell You Why

Birthdays are a time of celebration, so when it's your day to shine, you should absolutely pull out all the stops for your glam. Unfortunately, the term "birthday makeup," which once meant a stunning beat for one's special day, has been twisted into a negative phrase that implies one is simply wearing too much makeup — regardless of the day. For instance, a user on X, formerly known as Twitter, posted a video back in 2019 of makeup that they deemed particularly harsh with the caption, "This is how guys see birthday makeup." The phrase has since become used to make fun of anyone who dared to rock false lashes and full-coverage foundation.

Telling women not to wear too much makeup — or any at all — is steeped in misogyny. In fact, one Instagram user shared that she wasn't "allowed" to wear makeup by her former partner. "I wasn't 'allowed' to spend money on makeup. I wasn't 'allowed' to try to make myself feel pretty before leaving the house," she wrote in her post's caption. Men seem to be the biggest opponents of birthday makeup. One TikTok user made a video of himself shaking his head with a text overlay reading, "When the 10/10 walks out in her birthday makeup." He added in the caption, "I just feel like its too much." But who is he to tell women how much makeup they should wear? We're not about to forego our extensive makeup repertoire just to please others, and frankly, we think that the backlash over birthday makeup is more of a them problem.

It's interesting that men who — at least in these judgmental cases — don't wear makeup are here to tell women how much to put on. Jared "JP" Pierce from "Love is Blind" Season 5 told his costar and former partner Taylor Rue "fake" for wearing a full face of makeup. Thankfully, she dumped him before he could tell her more things she shouldn't do to her own face. We're here to reclaim birthday makeup as a positive viewpoint rather than something to be reviled. Just like how we dress for ourselves, what we put on our faces isn't meant for anyone else. So, whether we want to apply heavy contour or layer on lip color, we will do whatever the dang well we please.

What's more, birthday makeup isn't just reserved for celebrating another trip around the sun. Our definition also includes special occasions or, heck, even your typical Tuesday. Do you feel like going to the grocery store in full '80s glam? Or how about rocking a Morticia Addams-inspired goth look just because? You do you! We don't need a reason for wanting to doll ourselves up, and under no circumstances should we have to make excuses for not wanting to adhere to a less-is-more aesthetic.

Some men assume that we wear makeup to look attractive to them, but if we don't wear any at all, we get bombarded with unsolicited comments that we look tired or sick. But when we go full glam with birthday makeup, they make fun of us on TikTok. Opponents of birthday makeup claim they like a less-is-more approach to cosmetics, but what they think is a "natural" look actually requires quite a few products — but they wouldn't know that because they don't take an interest in our interests. If men who have never worn anything more than moisturizer (if that) attempted a full face of makeup, they might appreciate the time and effort it takes for us to doll ourselves up. They might even realize that, hey, having fun with your beauty routine can give you joy and dopamine! 

Ultimately, birthday makeup isn't that different from everyday makeup in many cases, with many reaction videos depicting disdain for what many women wear daily. If some are going to judge regardless, those of us who enjoy birthday makeup should use platforms like TikTok for inspiration instead of watching men slam it. We can use the search bar to our advantage to find makeup-positive tutorials and, of course, shine on with a freshly painted mug.