February 2, 2015

Does Your Significant Other Like You in Makeup?

Significant Other makeup

Does Your Significant Other Like You in Makeup?

Does your girlfriend, husband, wife, or boyfriend enjoy you in soft makeup? Bold? Or perhaps just a natural look? Or even makeup-less?

How do they prefer you?

Do share!

51 Comments

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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Comments

  • Devz

    Depends actually… If we are going out for a dinner, my husb likes me in makeup as long as it is not too loud or too glittery.
    If its just us, he prefers no makeup as even a simple hug can mean something sticking on to his shirt 🙂
    I think guys generally like to believe that girls can look ‘perfect’ without makeup, even though they prefer a well-set made-up face.
    The threshold limit seems to be over-the-top eye or cheek makeup.
    My husband doesn’t mind most bold lip colors [as long as it is not a yellow or green shade :)], but a glittery eye makeup can make him cry ‘Oh no…not the disco ball’..

  • barbara

    My husband says that he hates makeup. He would prefer me to go around like an ugly old hag. LOL. so this may sound mean but…. I don’t really care if my husband likes my makeup or not. The fact that when we met I wore makeup just like I do now tells me that he liked it then, so don’t expect me to quit just because we are married now. I think that is just a way for them to control you.

    • Krystle

      A lot of men, when they say they don’t like makeup, it sounds to me like they mean that they don’t like heavy makeup: green shimmer to the brow and a pan of highlighter on the cheeks. Throw on a barely-there my-face-but-better look, and they think your face is naked.

      Or they don’t want you to look cute and leave him for the next best thing lol

      • Lacy

        @ Barbara and Krystle… I hear you ladies… My man is the same way… Also comments how pretty I am when I’m completely bare-faced but hassles me when I wear it. Must be a guy thing… But just like you said Barb…. I wore makeup when he met me.. sure as hell not going to give it up just because he thinks I’m pretty without it… sweet yes, but I take pride in my appearance especially at work! And I feel like they should want us to look our best too, especially when out and about together.

  • Dorothy Whelchel

    My hubby does not like me wearing makeup…he never has and we have been together 24 years.

  • Katie

    Mine never says anything along the lines of liking me better without makeup…I think he understands it’s more of a hobby for me than me trying to make myself “prettier”
    I do find that when I know I’ll spend a lot of time with him I don’t wear a lip product due to the lack of kiss proof lippies that are also comfortable. But that’s all me.
    I’m very thankful I’m with someone who doesn’t tell me not to do things. He’s very accepting.

  • Mari

    Mine prefers makeup, but only light make up. Pretty much just eyeliner and mascara. I know that the only type of makeup he doesn’t like is eyeshadow. I’ve noticed that he also thinks my makeup is too heavy if do my eyebrows. He says that I still look pretty without make up and that I should do whatever is most comfortable to me, but he definitely likes it when I wear eyeliner/mascara.

  • Sissi

    That is an interesting question! I think, every time I try a new color my husband thinks it is weird- but if I do it often enough he might give me a compliment on that same “former weird” color. LOL. I think men do not really notice big differences on make up – except if it is a red lipstick or something outrageous! 😉

  • Cathy

    My husband always compliments me when I take the time to do my makeup, since whenever I do my makeup, I put on a full face. But he tells me I don’t NEED makeup and look good without it.

  • Dayna

    Mine prefers me with a little. Some concealer and blush to make me look like I just woke from a good nap. He doesn’t like lipstick because he won’t kiss me if I am wearing it for fear that HE’LL be wearing it. And though he likes it when I get dolled up, he makes fun of me relentlessly for being a collector. He thinks I should invest in the stock market instead of buying ONE MORE eye shadow. 🙂

  • Kimmwc03

    My husband always says he likes me with no makeup at all. But if I get a compliment from him (rarely) it is when I’m wearing light makeup. The only time he really complains about my makeup is when I’m wearing blue eye makeup (what his mom likes to wear almost daily) or sticky lip products. But like most of the above posters have already said, I wear what I want.

  • Eli Caroline

    Love this question! My boyfriend likes when I wear makeup. He’s also really good at noticing when I change something up. The other day I came home and he said “you bought a new lipstick? it looks good.” I think he’d prefer that I’d always wear a 90s makeup look since that’s the time that we both teenagers. Good thing that it has been a trend again. HA!

  • Krystle

    My fiancee compliments me no matter how much or little makeup I wear. He loves it when I wear bright colors; his inner child goes wild. He also loves when I wear very subtle makeup, especially around his mother. He’s always complimenting my technique, even though he still calls eyeshadow “eye paint” lol.

    • Eli Caroline

      Krystle,
      Eye paint – that’s hilarious! makeup terminology is funny. BF is usually around when I watch Youtube tutorials and reviews – he’ll sometimes randomly ask if my makeup is “finely milled”, “buttery”, or “highly pigmented”. HA!

      • Isabella Muse

        for whatever reason my x boyfriend found “highly pigmented” absolutely hysterical when I used it to describe makeup…*shrugs* lol!

  • Donna

    Mine likes me in makeup, though he had years with me without wearing makeup with no complaints. Now that I got into makeup on my own, and have shown him various eye looks, etc, he said he was tired of neutral eye shadow looks and encouraged me to get colors. I bought the UD Vice Ltd, and he’s been loving the looks I’ve created with it. I joke with him that he prefers a girl with made-up looks straight out of an 80s video, and he agrees that he’s an 80s boy. 🙂

  • mary brenner

    I dont wear makeup for my husband therefore i dont care if he likes it or not. It is something i do for myself and he has never voiced an opinion about it. I do not believe in a man telling a woman what they can or cannot do. I am far to independent for that and thankfully my husband likes an independent woman 🙂

    • Isabella Muse

      i’m not really saying men or anyone should dictate what you wear mary, merely asking does he or she like you what makeup or no makeup or a soft look or a bold one. I’m not saying they should tell you how to look 🙂

  • Natalie

    My guy says I don’t need to wear makeup which I take as big compliment. I don’t think I’d want to be with anyone who said they would prefer me to wear makeup.

    • Andie

      Totally agree with you 🙂 Now to answer Muse’s question: my fiance says I don’t need makeup but sometimes when I’m wearing it, he’ll tell me how nice I look. But again, he does tell me I’m beautiful without it… so I don’t think he really cares tbh.

      Once, we had a “substantive” talk about it and he said he doesn’t understand lipstick (I have SOO many! lol and he knows I’ll wear it anyway) but he thinks that my “eye paints” are kinda cool.

  • Lisa S.

    Really my husband likes when I wear makeup, because he knows how much fun I have with it. About the only thing he doesn’t like is bright red lips. Weirdly enough a really dark red gothy looking lip is cool with him though. I still wear a red lip at work during the week and on the weekends when we go out I don’t. But then again he has a couple shirts I don’t like and he does the same thing with those as I do with the bright red lips. So we compromise. We’ll be married 30 years in May, so I guess we’re doing something right! :0)

  • Akira

    My girlfriend often pays me compliments about my make-up despite not really being into it as I am, abut at the same time she tells me I’m beautiful when I’m ranting that I look ugly without any make-up on XD She usually don’t give any preference and let me do whatever I like!

  • Phyrra

    Ray would prefer me to wear black, purple or red all the time. He’s less happy if I’m wearing pink. It’s funny that he’s so specific about color.

  • Ari

    My non-corporeal boyfriend likes me in blue lipstick and green blush 😉
    JK, as an eternal bachelorette still living at home, I only tend to get comments on makeup from my family. Dad is polite but generally doesn’t get it (along the lines of saying “wow, you really put on a lot of makeup today” when I happen to wear non-neutral eyeshadow)and my brother flat up tells me that I wear too much makeup and he hates it. My mom loves my makeup though…even if I wander around looking like a gothy little ghoul with tons of smudgy black eyeliner and red lips. Which I generally do :)At least one person has my back!

  • Littlecreek

    My hubby wants me to be happy so lets me do whatever. I know he prefers a natural look as he always compliments me more when I do a neutral taupe eye. Luckily I LOVE taupe and look great in it so it works. The only bad thing is that he is Red/Green colorblind. So a bold red lip is out. It would just look like I painted my lips gray. 🙁

  • Lacy

    Mine prefers me without makeup. He constantly tells me on the reg that I do not need it and I am beautiful without it. And the funny thing is I get more compliments on him about how pretty I look when I’ve got a bare face! So weird to me… When I wear it he constantly tells me I wear too much and don’t need it. If I go with anything past just concealer he thinks I get too dolled up even if I take the my face but better/natural approach. He even finds mascara over the top and thinks it looks like I have fake lashes on, even though I don’t!

    But despite what he says I still get “dolled up” for work. I like playing with make up, I like how I look with it more than I like doing the au natural thing. Plus I take pride in my outward appearance.

  • Hazel

    My boyfriend doesn’t mind either way. He likes it when I feel comfortable enough to be in public without makeup, but he doesn’t complain if I go a little heavy on the makeup either. He loves date night because it usually means red lipstick.

  • Ashley

    My boyfriend always says he just wants me to be comfortable. He thinks I look great either way. I like natural makeup, so a bb cream, brown mascara, pink lips and a little bronzer goes a long way.

  • Q

    Both of my partners can usually gauge how I’m feeling based on how much or how little make up I’m wearing. When I’m not feeling well, I tend to wear a lot less, as it takes energy to put it on. When I’m having a low pain day, I wear make up and put effort into my appearance. As for whether they like it or not, one doesn’t really notice, the other loves when I wear make up. He’s definitely more into it than the other one, haha. My other partner, he doesn’t comment on my appearance much at all, it took him a month to notice my hair was green a few years ago. Meanwhile, if I wear my eyeliner different, or a different blush, the other one notices right off the bat. Ah, men. Strange creatures.

  • Faye

    My boyfriend rarely comments. I noticed almost any eye makeup is something he doesn’t comment on, and sometimes likes. Like the first time I did a full shadow and liner look he batted his eyes at me and smiled, and you could tell he thought that was cute. Once he came home and I had been experimenting with Revlon’s Cherries in the Snow. I remmeber he was like, “WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU??” LOL He’s not big on very bright full on lip colors. I think it shocked him the first time he saw it. 😉

  • Jane

    My bf keeps telling me that I don’t need makeup and look great without it, but I noticed that I receive more compliments from him, when I actually wear quite a lot of makeup! Conclusion – he is sweetheart, but has no idea about makeup 🙂 P.S. I once asked his opinion about the eyeshadow color – I put violet on one and copper on another eyelid and asked which color looks better – violet or copper. After a careful examination of my closed eyes, he asked me on which side is violet because he couldn’t see any difference 🙂

  • cora

    muse, I love love love this question- it’s so much fun to read everyone’s responses! My boyfriend always says that he prefers natural makeup, but he goes absolutely wild when I do green eyeliner and a ton of mascara. *shrug*. My dad, however, pays a lot of attention to my mom and I’s makeup. He always notices when we wear new products, and will tell us stuff like “that bronzer looks great on you!” I guess he has no choice, living with all girls! ha!

    • Isabella Muse

      aw glad you like it cora and thanks for adding in your comment 🙂 your dad sounds sweet, that’s really nice that he pays such close attention to what your mom wears 🙂

  • reen

    my husband likes minimal makeup, and always prefers no makeup to too much makeup!

    what he fears most if heavy smokey eyes, he calls it “raccoon eyes” and hates that look!

  • Britt C.

    Love this question! My husband (10 yrs married, 20 years together) prefers no makeup to light makeup. I just recently became a makeup junkie (at 40!) and never wore foundation before last year. It took some getting used to for him but the funniest thing is: he tells me
    Which foundations “work” and which ones “get into my fine lines” and make me look like I’m wearing too much/look older. He is hysterical! He loves a red lip but doesn’t like dark, heavy or smoky eye makeup. I’ve noticed the more makeup I get and the better I’m getting at application, the more compliments I’m getting. Even if he doesn’t like a particular color/look, he knows how much I enjoy it so he’s happy I’m happy. As long as women feel good, and wear what their significant others like once in awhile, they should do what they want! 💋❤️

  • devon

    the boyfriend loves when i do up the eyes, but is very vocal about how he hates when women wear too much on their faces. he also doesn’t like bold lips (just because of the possibility of transfer onto him). he understands that i have a lot and play around a lot with all of my ‘makeups’–that’s what he calls it. ‘you know, you have a lot of makeups. where did you get all of these makeups?”when are you done putting on your makeups?’ i’m glad he gets my hobby :]

  • Genevieve

    My husband (of 35 years) has always loved me wearing makeup and will comment positively on it. I have always tried to wear makeup that suits me. Not until I was reading these blogs did I realise that my foundation shade was wrong. I started getting heavily into different eyeshadows and better quality ones in the past few years. He thinks that is really good. He loves red lipsticks and bright colours on me. No problem there. I have always loved wearing makeup.

  • Pamela

    My husband always says makeup is overrated yet he tells me every day I’m beautiful. Every single day. I love makeup but once in a while at home I don’t put any on. He will say you look so beautiful and I’ll say YIKES, I do NOT, I don’t have any makeup on!

    He even puts up with glitter stuff.

    But I know many women who’s husband loved them with their full makeup and as soon as they were committed, all of a sudden they were asking or TELLING the woman they would prefer no makeup! What he heck?!! They are either controlling, or else they are insecure and are afraid some other men will notice their girlfriend too much. Yeesh!

    Excuse typos, I am typing in a hurry.

  • Nadia

    My significant other loves me both ways, but he’s happy when I wear makeup because he knows it makes me happy. He’s very supportive and encouraging of my obsession, and even comments every time I try something bolder or intricate. He makes me feel better about it really, since I come from a conservative family who doesn’t approve of too much makeup.

  • Heather F.

    Whenever I ask my husband what he thinks of a new makeup look, he first asks “How does it make YOU feel?” For awhile I thought it was because he didn’t want to give the wrong answer (that would have been brilliant, right?), but I soon realized he was trying to make me understand that the most important thing to him was how I felt, not how my face looked.

    That said, the only time he has had any negative feedback is when I was showing him swatches of a very, very neon pink lipstick and asked if he liked it. His response? “It’s very bright. I’m not a huge fan. But if anyone could make it look good, I think you could.” He also knows better than to kiss me if my lips are glossed or lipsticked. He’s not a fan of sticky and not a fan of color transfer, even if he’s a fan of the overall look. 😉

    He’ll often be sweetly surprised when I tell him I need to put on makeup before going outside (“I thought you already did! Your skin looks amazing!”) or when I grumble about having to go wash off a “natural” look at the end of the day (“You’re wearing makeup? Wow. You did a great job applying it, I guess, because I couldn’t even tell.”). He’s also the first to champion a new look (teal smoky eye or a bright red lip) when I’m shy about wearing it out of the house. Before I married him I wore makeup because I thought I had to (spotty skin, blonde lashes, pasty coloring); now, I wear it because I enjoy it.

    Basically, he is perfect.

  • Heather F.

    On a related note–

    Two of my friends’ husbands asked them to change their makeup and fashion routines after marriage, which felt odd to me. (Both husbands wanted them to dress more traditionally feminine and wear more makeup. For the record, both girls are lovely in their own right.)

    Is that a normal spouse thing? Do any of you know SO’s who have outright requested their wives/girlfriends wear *more* makeup? I mean, I guess I’ve told my husband which of his clothes prompt me to think delightfully libidinous thoughts versus which I think he just looks plain good in, but I don’t ask him to change his whole wardrobe.

  • JJ24

    My boyfriend doesn’t really care one way or the other however he tends to compliment me the most when I have a natural(bronzy) smokey eye.

  • Janessa

    I wish I would have seen this post when it came out. What a fun question! I mused this out loud to my Mr. Wonderful and he replied “You’re always beautiful, even on days your face smells like fish bait…” Funny story – While I’m not a huge fan of the bare skin foundation from BE, it does make my skin look wonderful and it became my goto light winter weekend makeup. Probably because that crap is so oily and I get dry in the cold weather. However, every single time I wore it and my guy would go to kiss my forehead (which is a daily thing) he would comment “your makeup tastes like that neon fish bait stuff”, then go in for another sniff of my face and say “yup, fish bait”. Apparently when this oxidizes after a bit, it has a smell and lucky me that smell is fish bait. Any who – he’s amazing and I can basically slap whatever I want on my face and he is all for it. He even surprised me one day with the ENTIRE Urban Decay Pulp Fiction collection after I made a comment about “needing” the lipstick. (and it has since become his favorite lippie on me 🙂 )

    • Isabella Muse

      hahahahahahaah Janessa oh no! I never noticed that about it! Now I have to go have by BF sniff my face lol!

  • Heather F.

    Haha! Now I want to go sniff all my makeup…

    Also, super cute about the UD Pulp Fiction collection. 🙂 I’m so glad your husband is supporting no matter what you wear!

  • Stephanie L.

    My husband tells me that I am beautiful when I wake up make up free, and he always tells me that he likes my makeup looks (well except red lipstick, he does not like that). I know that he is into me no matter what, but he definitely appreciates a good face of makeup. I am glad he is not ashamed to admit it. It does not mean that he thinks less of me without makeup like some other ladies have implied.

  • Stephanie L.

    Oh, and when I say, “not ashamed to admit it,” I mean that he knows that I will take it as a compliment; the way he means it. I will not get offended and assume that he MUST not like me without makeup.

  • shannon

    My girlfriend loves my makeup :D. we’re currently long distance thanks to school, but she loves to watch me put it on over skype or in person. haha. I’m a fan of purple lips, and she loves them 🙂

  • Carla

    So happy I came across this entry … I JUST had this conversation with my BF in the car at lunch time… I’ve been noticing my new Kiko foundation may be causing dry skin patches (probably the formula which doesn’t sit well with my skin) anyhow, during my rant he says “Well babe, you don’t need to be wearing makeup to work anyways) but I just don’t feel myself when I don’t have lipstick, eyeliner or foundation on! Maybe I should take up his advice just on a lesser scale? I mean who am I impressing at work anyway, right? I do love how much he loves my natural beauty though. 🙂