How Old Were You When...

I'm in the 'less is more camp". I have a son that is 11 and he thinks it looks "crazy" on girls his age. Maybe a tinted lip balm? I'd do something with the lips, something there but not there. Very subtle. Good luck!

Ok, so here is what my mom did and if I had a girl I would do the same ... her theory behind it was if you do it all at once what do you have to look forward to?

7th grade BROWN mascara and lip gloss
8th grade Brown mascara, lip gloss and one color on the eye lid
9th grade black/brown (not black or brown the color black/brown) mascara, lip gloss, two colors and powder with concealer over blemishes
10 grade full thing - foundation, powder, eye colors, any color mascara, lipstick or gloss, eye liner, blush etc.I hardly did all of it as a daily routine either only special occasions. I could not get my eye brows waxed but she would help me tweese them. My mom also showed me how to use all of the products properly as well. We often went to make up stores together and got to "play" and it was all coming of age. Bonus - I did not suffer from teen acne and I think the lack of make up was a factor.

I still don't wear much, never did - so this will be "new" to me too (my daughter is only 4..). However, I THINK that when she is interested, I will take her to a make up counter/place and teach her how to apply it. That way she'll do it right and not hide it from me. It's just make up after all - now, tattoos and piercings.... no plans there!!!

I wore makeup when I started high school. My older sister sometimes put some on me when I was in 7th or 8th grade, but nothing more than some blush or eye shadow. I think late 8th grade I started lip gloss. 9th grade I started mascara and coverup.

I don't think allowing your daughter (who is DEFINITELY at the age to start experimenting with this stuff) will make her a bad girl. It is better to let her do it and help her make it look good than to have her sneak around behind your back and do it anyways.

Make it a bonding experience for the both of you. Show her how to put it on lightly so it makes her look prettier, not like a clown. After all, the point of makeup is to make it look like you have none on. Her mother should be the one to show her =)

You clearly have a hard time holding on to your daughter's youth and that's okay, my mom was that way. There was never an age my parents suddenly said, "Today's the day you can wear makeup!" I have always been interested in wearing it, and probably started wearing it consistently when I was 11. Trouble is, I went to a Catholic school so it was against the rules. I was a very good student, a bit of a teacher's pet, so I got away with it. I have an 11 year-old who varies with her interest in makeup. Some of her friends wear it so she will experiment. She sometimes likes mascara or a bit of eyeshadow, I really do not see it it as a big deal. She has been shaving her legs for a year and recently we started getting her eyebrows waxed because she was self-conscious (she dances 5 days a week and has bare legs a lot.) She is a gifted honors student, rises above some of the pre-teen drama, and is a good person. A little makeup does not change who she is. If she is interested in trying something, I say let her experiment at home then set guidelines for what is appropriate for school. If you restrict her completely, she might REALLY want to push because it's taboo. My attitude is, it's only makeup, not a tattoo or facial piercing or anything like that.

I decided early on not to make much of a big deal out of make up and hairstyles. The girls in middle school are learning, they are trying things on for size, so to speak.
For some reason here, when the girls hit 8th grade it is suddenly cool to wear eyeliner. Of course they are young and don't know what they are doing (and won't listen to their mothers lol!) so they put on too much. They look like raccoons!!!
By 9th grade they realize how stupid it is, and I've heard my daughter and her friends comment over their old photos "omg what was I thinking?"
Most of the high school girls wear a reasonable amount of makeup, very natural looking. I think they learned a good lesson in middle school: less IS more!
p.s. girls who are not "allowed" to wear makeup simply put it on at school and wash it off before they get home. I think it's better to tolerate the poor makeup choices than to encourage sneaky behavior :)

I would not personally go to the mailbox without makeup on. Lol. I see absolutely nothing wrong with a young girl wearing make-up especially if it makes them feel even better about themselves. My daughter started wearing make-up in 5th grade. She had severe acne (yes, I know that is really young) but I did not want her self esteem to take a hit when foundation made such a huge difference to her appearance. Her dermatologist agreed. I did teach my daughter that people should not know she is wearing make-up and that she should still look natural. I honestly can not understand why mothers would not allow their daughter's to wear make-up. I was glad my mother let me and I am sure my daughter is grateful too.

EDIT: High quality make-up will not clog pores. My daughter's dermatologist recommended the following: Nuetrogeena, Clinique or Estee Lauder. We went with the Estee Lauder because it matched her skin tone the best and you can not tell my daughter has on foundation only that her skin looks utterly flawless.

One last thing...my daughter's dermatologist said that my daughter will have the best skin when she is in her 40's + because of all the years she protected her skin from the sun. FYI...she uses DML 25 Moisturizing lotion then her foundation has an SPF of 15.

I was actually never allowed. My sister & I used to get makeup from our friends when I was about 12 & she was 11. We used to leave the house with no makeup and at the bus stop we would plaster it on, and on the way home we wiped it off on the bus. As for my daughter shes way too young for makeup now, but Im guessing around 12ish I will let her start wearing it. I figure if I show her ( or have a pro show her) she wont look silly like I did.

I teach elementary school, but just this year I had three 7th grade helpers come back to help in my classroom to earn community service hours for their honor society. ALL of the girls wore makeup - I was shocked! Seriously, I couldn't believe those sweet little 3rd graders (the way I remember them) wore makeup! It was a trip. Anyway... Two of them wore hardly any. They wore mascara and lip gloss, maybe a bit of eye shadow and blush - nothing extreme, very light colors. It was clear that their moms took them and helped them pick things out. The other girl was clearly wearing foundation and eyeliner - plus all of the other things... Yikes! I don't know, maybe it's normal, but it seemed like a lot to me. She wore more makeup than I do. She looked more like I look when I'm going out with my husband.

Personally, I started wearing makeup when I started high school. My mom took me to get makeup at the mall (yikes, a little spendy Ma!) the summer before 9th grade. Before that she'd always let me wear a bit of her blush and sometimes eye shadow for fun if we went out to dinner or something. I also wore lip gloss from early on. I'd say even about 11 or so for the lip gloss. I'm not sure what the answer is here, but I will say that all of the girls that I know wearing makeup have wonderful families and are very good girls, still very innocent and in no way inappropriately mature (I'm sure you're not worried about that, but thought I'd throw it in there). On the other hand, I know I'll have a very rough time with this when my daughter reaches this stage!

Well, my parents were pretty strict so I wasn't allowed to wear makeup until I was sixteen. I was allowed to wear makeup beginning at age fourteen for special occasions only. My daughter had friends in 5th & 6th grades wearing makeup to school! The school policy was that elementary students weren't allowed to wear makeup to school but they didn't enforce that rule. Anyhow, I didn't allow my daughter to wear makeup in middle school (BTW, middle school here is 7th & 8th grades). She will be going into high school in a couple of weeks and will be doing Independent Study (similar to home schooling) so I will allow her to wear makeup then. So age 14 I think is fair. As far as how much makeup, um, I don't know yet but nothing too dark or heavy.

I don't remember exactly...it was at least middle school. I think at least 13 years old. Until then, I was only allowed to wear it in the house, playing around...

I'm trying to remember ... my parents were very conservative ... maybe 14? And very light, just blush, mascara, lip gloss. No eye shadow.

I was a tomboy, so I don't remember my Mom every telling me no. I think I was in H.S. But, I was a middle school teacher and most of those girls would wear eye makeup and lipgloss. I think that if it's done in a tasteful, natural way, it's not a big deal in middle school. (This is coming from a Mother of boys though!)

I have not read the answers.. I know I never wore makeup (except for Ballet recitals, or plays that I was in.). But then again, I never saw my mom wear makeup.

Also I firmly believe that people should like me for ME, my feelings, beliefs, attitudes etc. Not my looks. My looks may be a part of me, but it shouldn't be the most important part.

But if she does ask, I suppose give her some leeway. But keep it toned down. She doesn't need to get carried away. Maybe some lipstick, maybe some eyelid stuff. She doesn't need foundation, or mascara. In my opinion.

I have a 13 year old daughter who doesn't wear makeup, hasn't even asked to. On school picture day, etc. she'll wear a little lip gloss but that's it. None of her friends wear any more than that either. I have seen girls her age at school functions though wearing A LOT of makeup, especially eye shadow. It actually doesn't even look nice on them because there is just way too much of it. It seems like so far with the girls at my daughter's school, it is one extreme or the other - either no makeup or too much makeup. I think I was in middle school when I started wearing a little lip gloss & blush so 12/13 is probably the age when that all starts. I actually was thinking of taking my daughter to a Clinique counter when they have the free consultations and letting them show her how to take care of her skin, how to apply makeup, what colors work well on her, etc. We have a good relationship but I think when teenagers are hearing from someone else besides Mom that they don't need to apply makeup like a prostitute to look nice, they are more likely to listen! Good Luck! This is only one of many things we will have to get through with our daughters as they navigate the teen years :)

My aunt is a Mary Kay director and has been for years. Mom had her come over when I was in middle school and she taught us, my sister and I, how to apply it,, how to wash our faces, how not to look like a slut, what colors look best--whether we were Spring, summer, Winter or Falls.
We had a great time and mom let us get some eye shadow and lip colors.

I now don't wear it except for church.
My daughters are 16 and 13 and neither could care less.

For my SD's 13th birthday, I hosted a small mother-daughter skincare and makeup party with a Mary Kay consultant. She really emphasized the basics of using a good balanced cleanser and showed the girls how to tastefully apply make-up. We bought some age-appropriate, light make-up (B. eye liner, nude eye shadow, pale lip liners and almost-colorless lip gloss etc.) and some skin care products. My SD lived with her mom at the time so she still had some crappy, cheap makeup that was too dark (she's pale and blond so black eyeliner and red lipstick look particularly cheap and garish on her) and when she moved in, we just purged the old makeup, leaving her with only the more tasteful stuff. Even with that she can be a bit heavy-handed and I have no problem telling her to go back and remove 90% of what she put on.

BTW she was in 7th grade and about half the girls wear makeup every day and they all wear it to dances and parties.

I remember my mom begging me to at least put on some lipstick when I hit about 10th or 11th grade.

I didn't have any urge to wear it...my mom didn't wear very much.

So I at least started wearing lipstick and some powder to cover shine...but that was it and still pretty much is the same way.

I started wearing it in 7th grade...mainly lipstick. Nothing big, but it didn't seem like such a big thing back then. (I have seen some of these girls your talking about so I understand your fear. I dread this age, my daughters are only going on 6 and 4) I remember 6th -7th grade being a turning point when I was conscious of what I wore and looked like, also was around the time I started shaving...etc. I think at this age, its very important for a person to feel good about themselves, so if a little make up will do this, I think I would be ok with it.

I think I was 13. My mom made me wait until I was a teenager. When it was time she took me to a makeup counter at the mall. She had the lady show me what colors to wear and how to put it on. Also I looked natural and we had the conversation about enhancing not covering.etcetera. hth A.

My daughter wants nothing to do with it unless she is playing, but alot of the 3rd and 4th graders are begging to wear it where I live. Drives me crazy. Let them be little girls for as long as possible!

my mom didnt allow me to start to wear makeup until i was 16, and it was foundation or powder only. only on "special occasions" did she put makeup on me, like for ballet recitals, band concerts etc....i think that if you dont want her to wear makeup then you shouldnt let her.

I went through a stage where I really wanted to wear make-up. I think from about 12-15 I really wanted to wear lipstick and all that stuff, and my mom just told me that I need to make it look natural and not look like a clown. :-) I remember having a couple of fights with my dad, who demanded that I wash my face before I left the house. Then I got bored with it and stopped wearing it altogether. At 16, when I went to get my driver's license, he said "Don't you want to go and put some lipstick on or something?" WHAT?? My dad really thinks he's funny.

Anyway, now I still don't wear any make-up, so I'm wondering how my daughter will be at that age (she's 8 right now). I wouldn't want her wearing anything (or very, very little) until she's at least 15, but we'll see what happens when the time comes. I agree with you, though; 12 seems way to young to be using that much make-up.

I was in middle school when I started wearing make-up. I think I wore brown mascara and lip gloss. At home I was allowed to experiment with my mother's makeup, however I was not allowed to go out with such crazy amounts on. And if I did go out with more than just the basic lip gloss, it was just a short trip to the market, and my mother was always with me. I felt like a grown up, but to others it definitely looked like a little girl playing dress up. When my younger sister started wearing makeup, she used the glitter makeup that was geared toward tweens. She wore that until she became a little too into it, and at that point she was told to wash it off.

I think that it is totally normal for a girl that age to start becoming curious about things like makeup, however you are her mother and need to set the rules and show her how far you are willing to let her go. If she does ask about it, you can ask her what she would like and then go from there. I would recommend shopping with her, that way, she can pick out a color and you can decide if it is age appropriate. I only wore very pale pink lip gloss and it smelled like bubblegum. This was a product that was intended for younger girls, and as an adult I would never wear it, which is why I did not look like I was older than I was. I also know that there are tinted lip balms which might be a good way to go.

Good luck on a soon to be teenage daughter!

My mom said I could wear it when I was 12 too. I just wore mascara and lip gloss. Then I quit after a few weeks cuz I hated getting raccoon eyes. I didnt really start wearing makeup till I was a senior in highschool and it was still just mascara and lipgloss. I only wear cover up now because I'm old and my skin looks crappy.... dammit.

My mom wouldn't allow me to wear makeup so I snuck it in 7th grade.
Most of my friends were allowed to wear some. I went to a Catholic school and now that I look back.....I can't believe they allowed us to wear it at all.
So I snuck it for a year or two (washing it off before she picked me up). Then when high school began, I just wore it. I said heck with it I'm older now I'm going to wear makeup. Poor mom.

I told my girls age 14. I was 14 when I started wearing make-up so I thought that was a good age. My daughter woke up on her 14th birthday and immediately put on make-up. =)

Girls started wearing make up when I was in 5th grade.
My mom did go ahead and let me get a very light colored blush and at the time there was Bonne Bell brand cosmetics I believe ( this was a long time back) and they had a line for girls that was very light pastels and neutral colors, so I know I had a little eye shadow and of course lip gloss, but nothing dark or garish.
I know I started wearing mascara when I was in middle school and that seemed like a big deal to me, but I was 16 before I started wearing what I called Real make up...I have always been into a more natural look.
I know my daughter will be in 5th grade this year and she has ZERO desire to wear anything beyond lip gloss and that makes me so happy = )

I got to wear a small amount of makeup - blush, powder, light eye shadow and lip gloss when I started 7th grade. It was all very natural looking. I wanted to before then. Once I got to HS, I just wanted sleep rather than makeup and I am still that same girl. I am 32 and rarely wear makeup...fortunately I still look nice without it, but don't go all out when I do wear it. Foundation is only 2-3 times a year. Be balanced about when you let her do it, and it sounds like she will be balanced too. :) That's fantastic that you have such a wonderful relationship.

I was 13 when my parents allowed me too. I used to put on minimal amount at home, then SLATHER it on at at friends house before going to the mall or wherever. One day a friends mother told me I looked like a Street Walker :-( WOW that hurt, but I got what she was saying. Never wore 'That much' again ~ Till I was Much Older of course :-)