Sorry, a true glamour girl hates a last-minute invitation
Yes, it's true - a beauty routine takes time
Not to be the bearer of bad news (again), but it's still 2020. Also, we had the nerve to set our clocks back an hour to give it more time. That was wild to me! This year, I'm sure many people learned how [un]important time is.
Before all this started, an hour of my time meant many things. It was a weekly phone call with my best friend, the time it took to prepare my favorite meal, or the time I underestimated for getting dressed! To my last point, you may expect me to have a better command of time. Yet, since the pandemic, it seems that getting dressed for a grocery store run is still a task. That's why I’m here to answer the most controversial topic - can a woman get ready (and look great) in five minutes?!
No matter where I’m going, if I know that I want to wear makeup and style my hair, I allow myself an hour to do all that. My body, skincare, and makeup routines include:
- A 10-minute shower. The shower can be 15-20 minutes if I have to shave or wet my hair.
- Brushing my teeth, flossing, and rinsing for 5 minutes.
- Applying my skincare products for 5 minutes.
- Putting lotion on my body from head to toe (as my mother instructed) for 7 minutes.
- Setting primer on my face, then checking my phone for a minute (read: five minutes) as the primer dries.
- Applying my makeup for 15 minutes.
- With anywhere from 3-10 minutes left, I rush to style my hair, iron, then put on my clothes and jewelry!
That last step usually takes another 20-30 minutes, but who’s counting? By this account, it may appear that the average woman cannot get ready in an instant. Then again, am I even average? That’s the real question here. The amount of time that a woman takes to get ready is contingent on many factors. Before jumping to conclusions, let's take a few factors into account. Keep reading to learn:
5 factors that affect a woman’s ability to get ready
1. Does she live alone or with others
If a woman lives alone (i.e. is single), then she has a greater chance of managing her time better. Living with others can lead to many things that inhibit that process. Distracting conversations, chores, and unexpected events are a few things that may arise. If you live in a home where you share a bathroom or even a vehicle, that can affect your ability to get dressed on time. That is not to say that none of these things happen when a woman lives alone, either.
2. How much lead time she has to show up
Last-minute invites are cute in your late teens and early twenties. Why? Because your priorities are out of whack, and spontaneity is most thrilling then. After 30, last-minute invites can be inconvenient and borderline insulting. Seriously. If you invite me out at the last minute because you broke up with your boyfriend, fine, I get it. But, if you invite me to an event as an afterthought or because you needed a tagalong, I may or may not show up. Again, I’m 30-something, and it’s a global pandemic. Show some decency about yourself and watch where/how you invite me places.
3. The time of the event
Have you ever noticed that women (and adults in general) are more likely to show up on time for early morning events? The later in the day, the less inclined we are to arrive on time. So, if you want to ensure a glamour girl arrives on time, invite her for something that starts at noon. If she is perpetually late, tell her that the event begins at 11 AM to be on the safe side.
4. Whether she's a glamour girl
Speaking of a glamour girl, we are serious about our skincare and makeup routines! This means that we need time and rushing us is unacceptable! As I mentioned earlier, my imaginary one-hour process is 90 minutes long. My toxic trait is to lie to myself about this process so that I can feel like a master of my time. I know women who can take up to three hours to get dressed even while moving at a brisk pace. Some women take as long because they enjoy the process of getting dressed. For a glamour girl, getting dressed in an instant is 30 minutes. Take it or leave it.
5. Where the woman will be going
This is the most important factor for me. If I’m going somewhere that I want to make an impression, it can take me 2.5 hours to get dressed. I spend more time in the shower, add more products to my skincare routine, and allow more time for my makeup to set. For special occasions, I want to look like I didn’t spend all that time getting dressed. The best way to appear effortless is to put more effort. Yes, that sounds strange, but it's a lifestyle, hun.
So I guess the answer to the elusive question of how long it takes a woman to get ready is this - it depends. Beauty is pain; good things take time. No one should judge how much time it takes a woman to get dressed. Why? If a woman looks good, there’s a high chance that she feels good. And if a woman feels good, well, everyone around her will know it and feel good too!
I want to hear from you. How long does it take for you to get dressed? Do you follow a specific skincare routine? Leave a comment below with your story!