Maríanna Pálsdóttir, beautician and make-up artist and owner of Snyrtistofa Reykjavíkur, is a columnist for DV. She comes to the door while dressed and writes candid articles about the beauty industry and other things related to it.
See also: Maríanna tells the story of a boy who didn’t get the approval of his in-laws
In this week’s column, Maríanna writes about the demands of society and whether finding the right balance is not possible.
“Are you going to be in Sloggi Stream, so to speak?
Is it a necessity of life that we women are always on top and dressed? Isn’t it just a good thing that we have the freedom to sometimes have frizzy hair, drops of jam on our noses, with eczema on our scalps from walking the shelves of stores with Crocs and fries! It’s not always easy living in Iceland and staying cool in minus 15 degrees!
Have the demands of society become so overwhelming that we can’t think of going to Hagkaup without lipstick and high heels? It’s definitely a definite rule that if you sneak out of the house in your holey sweatpants and the old family reunion t-shirt (which is so comfy!) you’ll meet your childhood crush, yes or the girl who teased you the most in elementary school and it’s going to be a real nightmare!
A friend of mine told me about this recently when her date politely criticized her lack of ambition. She hadn’t replaced the Sloggi brooch with something more exciting, and she hadn’t had time to wear makeup for a daily meeting at home (it wasn’t a gala appointment). These comments all came from him as he stood in the middle of his floor, wearing steel toes and an oiled Samskipa coat.
I might have been more understanding if she had shown up at Sushi-Social with a rag tag, but she was just home on a Tuesday night, having just gone to bed, when the charmer fell through the door. It pleased me beyond words when she added that she had laughed heartily at the man, then politely pointed out to him that if those were the requirements, he should probably look for a wife elsewhere.
I would definitely be out of a job pretty quickly if people suddenly stopped taking care of themselves and grooming themselves. I need hardly affirm the importance of these factors in the existence of each one of us and I always recommend good care and care for ourselves, body and soul.
But can’t we always agree that life is just a comfortable mix of Sloggi and lace for everyone? Yes, I admit I’m on the Sloggi bandwagon and choosing comfort over Adam and Eve’s hard, uncomfortable tights… At least that’s how it is most of the time!
