I Think I Took Concealer a Little Too Literally

I was obsessed with my mum's makeup long before I was old enough to wear it.

Somewhere along the way, I learned to see my face as a paint-by-numbers canvas: strategically highlight the good bits, carefully conceal the "bad" ones, and whatever you do, don't colour outside the lines.

My school's no-makeup policy meant I had no armour going into what felt like war. High school.

An emotional battlefield of angsty teenagers trying to figure out who they were, all while being squeezed into neat little academic boxes with glass walls so everyone else could judge, berate and torment them along the way.

Sounds fun, right?