Why I Wear Red Lipstick

The internet really annoyed me yesterday.  To be more precise, this blog post really annoyed me.

If you don't have the patience for the whole thing (and I can't blame you for choosing not to read it), she basically proclaims that she dresses solely to please men because she is a woman and that is what women should do. Oh, and don't forget that:

• men don't like top knots
• men don't like red lipstick
• men don't like cardigans
• men don't like feminists

I'm trying to give her the benefit of the doubt on this and hope she's expressing herself really badly, especially on that last point where she seems to be under the impression that feminism equals being a ranty bag lady who thinks it lowering to dress nicely. The alternative is that she actually does believe what she's typed out and that's a really scary thought.

I have no problem with a woman picking an outfit to please a man. I have no problem with a woman picking an outfit to please a woman (I don't necessarily mean in this in an attraction way - half the outfits in blogland are probably chosen with the hope of getting positive comments from other [female] bloggers). It's only natural to want to look nice and receive compliments and it's a rare person who genuinely doesn't give a crap about what other people think of their appearance. I'm not one of those people - I spend ages worrying about what others think of me - but I can safely say that the vast majority of the time I dress for me, according to what takes my fancy.  The prospect of only ever dressing to please someone else is horrifying.

Can I take a quick moment to laugh at her assertions? A quick poll on Twitter has revealed that y'know what, most men have no problem whatsoever with top knots, cardigans or red lipstick. In fact, the last two seem to be really rather popular.  I'm sure there are plenty of men who don't like them: each to their own and all that jazz, but even if they were universally unpopular it wouldn't stop me wearing them if I liked them. 

As it stands, I have actual proof that at least one man likes these things - I got a very charming "You look gorgeous" whilst walking through town tonight and that never happens.  I was topknotted.  I was wearing a cardigan.  I had red lipstick on.  She definitely wouldn't approve of me.  Do I care?  Not a jot.  

And on that final point of hers, if there are men out there that don't like the oh-so-shocking notion that women deserve to be treated as equal human beings (because that's all that feminism is), well the fact that they aren't attracted to me is, quite frankly, the least of my worries. I'm more likely to be concerned about the fact that those attitudes still exist in 2012.

I'm proud to call myself a feminist and, for what it's worth, I wear red lipstick for no other reason than because I want to.

No 7/Poppy King in History.