Her Life is Colourful
[Author's Note: This is purely fictional and based on the obsession of buying cosmetics that I have observed online. Any names or situation similar to real life is purely coincidental.]
Claire loved to use makeup every time she went out. If there ever was a time when she couldn’t use any, she felt vulnerable and naked. Makeup was part of her and her source for life. She would spend hours scouring the M.A.C, Loreal, Revlon and any makeup stores that she saw or heard of.
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It got to the point of buying virtually every cosmetic that caught her eye and spending all of her pay on cosmetics alone. Her mother was in despair as the bedroom was taken up by the jars and bottles of cosmetics that would never be finished before their expiry dates.
Claire refused to listen to her mother’s advice to stop buying until she finished the bottles. She went online and found out about mineral makeup from an online spree girlfriend who used it and felt that it was better for the skin. Excited, she checked out the sites that offered mineral makeup, some with free samples, others with affordable prices for the samples.
Her first order was at Pure Luxe Cosmetics. The wide range of eye shadow colours made her heart thumped faster. Her current collection of cosmetics didn’t have the Kaleidoscope Collection where the eye shadow would change shades at different angles from the light. She bought all the colours. Obsessed with perfection, she bought 2 colour correctors and eraser that would minimise the pores. Satisfied with the purchase, she completed the transaction.
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Curious about Coastal Scents, she went to check it out and bought all the pink series of Kabuki brushes as her friend said mineral makeup needs to use Kabuki brushes for better applications. Finally, she decided to order the foundations and mixing bowls from Everyday Minerals.
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When the orders arrived about 9 days later, her mother freaked out. They had a shouting match after the postman left. Claire felt that it was her money and her mother shouldn’t fuss about it. Her mother felt that her roomful of half-used and little-used cosmetics were gathering dust and there was no way she could pass or sell them off since it was unhygienic.
Angry, Claire stomped off to her room and locked the door. She never ventured out for the rest of the day. When the last two orders arrived, mother and daughter never said a word. Claire ate only when her mother wasn’t in the kitchen. Neither spoke for 2 weeks.
Her father was at a loss on how to settle the dispute. He knew Claire was spending too much money on cosmetics. Her room was filled to the brim and she wasn’t using half of them even when she slathers on every day.
“Claire, what do you intend to do with the bottles that you aren’t using anymore?” he asked her on day pointing to the bottles that were gathering dust. She turned to where he was pointing to and shrug. She had no idea what to do with them since she felt the colours weren’t suitable.
“Claire, this is getting out of hand. If you aren’t going to use those bottles and jars, putting them in your room doesn’t help. I’m sure your friends would be able to use them.” he looked at her.
“You think so, Daddy?” she turned to him after ensuring that her eyebrow was drawn to perfection. He nodded. Her eyes lit up and she smiled widely. An idea was forming in her head. Four days later, she was packing her bottles into different sizes of packages with names. Her friends agreed to buy the used cosmetics at a cheaper rate.
The transactions went on smoothly. “Hey, Claire, thanks, babe. I have always restrained myself from buying too much as I don’t have much space in my room. These sample sizes ought to help me.” Julia hugged her.
“No problem. I’m happy since these won’t go to waste. I thought you always wanted to have a bigger room.”
“Yes, but I have to think of my baby who is coming in the next few months.” Julia patted her slightly bulging stomach lightly. Speechless, Claire bade her friend goodbye and went home. She had never thought much about her future and her friend was already planning for the future.
Cosmetics had been part of her life and she couldn’t imagine life without them. She loved to put on the various shades for different looks and buying them at an alarming amount was something that she didn’t hesitate with.
She had experimented with Gothic, neutral, night, bridal and many other looks depending on her moods. It brought her immerse satisfaction when she completed a look that she had in mind. Playing with colours was her life. That was when she realised that she could try her hand at being a makeup artiste whereby she could play with all the colours that wanted.
The next day, she signed up for a makeup course that would make her a certified makeup artiste. Her relationship with her mother improved over time. When she became a full time makeup artiste, her first customer was her mother as she was to attend a wedding dinner.
Her mother returned home and said everyone at the dinner commented on how beautiful and younger she looked. Happy, Claire hugged her mother. Mother and daughter had come to understanding each other more. Her life was more colourful now.
