# Mrs Money Mustache: Eliminating Lady Temptations

## By Mr. Money Mustache

## Sun, 05 Jun 2011 14:39:27 +0000

Eliminating Lady Temptations
An Indefinite, Ongoing Series by Mrs. Money Mustache

Being a Lady myself, I’ve fallen prey to lady spending in the past and occasionally find myself suddenly “needing” lady things out of the blue. Such as cute shoes, for instance. I have also witnessed many seemingly normal and intelligent women declare that they need to go in for a manicure ASAP because their nails simply look horrific! Egads!

It seems that ladies like to spend money on products and services that help them achieve a sense of belonging or importance in society. Things that make them look good and feel good. Things other women have.

I can understand the feeling.. but these usually end up being short-lived “feel good” purchases that are later regretted and could have been replaced by something else that is totally free. Moreover, women often compliment each other on these purchases, therefore reinforcing these beliefs more and more. Why do we do this to ourselves?

Case in point: I have quite a few gray hairs that I have chosen not to color. I have had many, many women tell me that I need to get these taken care of pronto! But yet I have had an equal number of men compliment me on my gray and tell me they think it is beautiful. I think the men may have it right, for once.

And what about the children? Yes, the children! As mothers, what are we teaching our children? In my opinion, we are teaching them something that is potentially very destructive: that we place a lot of value on how we look, that we will pay to look a certain way, and that we reward ourselves with services or products that help us look or feel good. We are teaching our children to become consumers and that their very happiness depends on it! The existence of spas for little girls is proof enough that we have a serious epidemic going on here (look it up, they really do exist).

In this series, we will be discussing several tactics for eliminating lady temptations from our lives. These lady temptations include, but are not limited to: spending on shoes, clothing, make-up, books, manicures/pedicures, massages, fancy outings, etc.

Before we start, let’s begin by addressing the original source of modern Lady Temptations: The Shopping Mall.

The best and easiest way to start your recovery from the Temptations is to NEVER, EVER go shopping just for fun… EVER. If you are a recreational shopper, please stop immediately. There is no such thing as “Retail Therapy”. Go for a walk, pick some flowers, hug your family. Get your groceries from a Grocery Store or a Farmer’s Market (not Target). If you’re going to buy shoes (after establishing a definite need), go in and get the hell out. Be efficient.

And now on to today’s lesson: make-up.

Step 1: Eliminate your need for make-up

I’m the first to admit that I don’t know as much as some ladies about this substance. I do know that some women love to buy it — often very expensive stuff that promises to reverse aging and turn you into the most beautiful woman in the world. In fact, the plethora of available products for your skin and hair is mind-boggling.

But doesn’t make-up usually make you look older? And, wouldn’t putting a bunch of chemicals on your face actually be bad for your skin and potentially age it prematurely? What about wearing a hat when it’s sunny? Wouldn’t that work better?

I have heard that make-up can help make a person feel good, but it is really just a mask that women wear. Sure, I can understand wanting to hide a giant zit under some skin colored product, but even then, one tiny bottle of a product could last you a year or two, couldn’t it? I once purchased a bottle of foundation in high school that lasted until I graduated college. You make-up purists out there will yell at me and tell me that “foundation doesn’t last more than 6 months at room temperature!” Well, I’ve just proven you wrong.

What about blush? Doesn’t everyone want a nice rosy glow? Well, how about going for a run or doing a few push-ups before going out instead? That’ll do the trick every time. Do you want bright glowing eyes? Get some sleep. Red lips? Give them a little nibble and you’ll be just fine. Want to radiate from the inside out? Smile!

The funny thing is that most women buy make-up in order to feel and/or look better. Personally, I feel like a fool when I wear make-up. The only thing that makes me feel and look good is being clean and healthy. Nothing makes you feel better than biking around town and getting a natural glow, washing your face, exercising, smiling, drinking lots of water, eating organic apples. Try it.

Take inventory of your make-up right now. You may have a lot more than you thought. Tomorrow when you wake up, try not wearing any at all. Go out for a brisk morning walk after a full 7-8 hours of beauty sleep. Take a shower. Drop and give me 20. Smile. Then, take a deep breath and just go. Leave your mask behind. Write in and tell me how you did.