Makeup For Dudes

by Jessica

They’re pregnant. They’re wearing pantyhose. Soon, will men be borrowing your mascara, too?

If a UK drugstore is successful, maybe they will! Superdrug on High Street in London will begin selling Taxi Man cosmetics, including mascara and a chunky eye-liner (er, guyliner) pencil.

A Taxi Man rep insists it’s “subtle makeup,” rather than a “drag queen look” — but for a lot of folks, there’s nothing subtle (or sexy) about dudes in Kabuki. (Exhibit A: Jezebel’s “What It Feels Like For a Girl” NSFW video where a blogger puts eyeliner on some dude.)

Of course, dudes in makeup who are straight girl sex symbols are nothing new: think Dr. Frank-N-Furter from Rocky Horror Picture Show, Pete Wentz, Robbie Williams, etc. Artsy girls usually have one (or two) Hot Topic shoppin’ guys in our past who painted their fingernails black or wore guyliner. I even dated one who wore glitter around his eyes! (He played in an electronica band, natch.)

But even though metrosexuality sunk its teeth into our culture, we think Queer Eye’s work here was done — tamely, cautiously — years ago. Man makeup will never take off beyond the punk and pseudo-punk (make that pseudo-pseudo-punk) scene in the U.S. because America’s just too damn obsessed with being “manly”!

Does your dude wear makeup? Would you like it if he did? In the mean time, enjoy Maybelline Men.