People who have never had to follow a dress code don’t understand just how frustrating it can be.

When I had just transferred to a private school, I assumed that “dress down” days meant I could wear anything. Picture my shock when I was reprimanded because my shorts were against the rules!

So when this user’s workplace mandated they could only use make up that was a “natural color”, she called their bluff by following their rule while still wearing her trademark zany makeup!

Check it out!

natural occurring colors

In the early 2000s, I worked at a Canadian Casino. The place had so many ridiculous rules, including some very particular rules about makeup. The ‘makeup rules’ were as follows :

1. no fake eyelashes
2. no fake fingernails or fingernail extensions
3. no makeup that is not a ‘natural color’

When OP asked for some clarification, her manager was absolutely zero help!

The natural color one confused me. What is deemed natural? Who decides what is and isn’t natural?

I asked my manager for clarification but she couldn’t give me any. “just keep it natural. Use natural occurring colors and you’ll be fine.”

This did not sit well with me. My aunt has her masters in environmental science. I went to her house one evening and picked her brain about natural occurring colors.

She informed me that, scientifically, natural occurring colors are colors that can be found directly in nature.

Like any scientist with their (naturally occurring) salt, OP’s aunt had the evidence to back her claim up!

She even showed me a textbook that directly spoke about natural occurring colors. I borrowed the textbook and highlighted the paragraphs that specified this.

Keep in mind, this was well before you could just google something.

The only way to back up the claim was to carry that 750 page textbook to work with me.

So OP went into her next shift armed with this newfound scientific knowledge at her side…

My next shift, I went all out. Green eyeliner, eggplant colored eye shadow, yellow nail polish on one hand and mango colored on the other hand.

I hit the floor to work and within the first few minutes, I get hauled into my manager’s office.

“OP, what do you think you’re doing? You cannot wear those colors. You know our policy states natural occurring colors only when it comes to makeup.”

“Head to the staff bathroom immediately and remove it”

Wordlessly, I headed to the staff bathroom. But instead of taking the makeup off, I went to my locker, grabbed the textbook and marched back to my managers office.

And now it was the manager’s turn to be schooled, literally!

“Excuse me, manager? I am wearing natural occurring colors. Here, look at this textbook that specifically states what natural occurring are, by definition.”

I watched her face change as she read the book. First she looked annoyed, then worried, and then finally resigned herself to what was happening.

“OP, do you really need to be that type of person??” Me: “the type that follows the rules? I thought that’s what you wanted me to do?”

She asked me to head back to the floor. For the remaining time I was employed there I wore whatever color makeup I wanted and so did almost all of my coworkers.

They tried coming out with new rules but could never get the wording right.

Good for her! And honestly, do the people gambling away all their money really give two hoots about what makeup the workers are wearing?

Reddit rushed to the comments with their own stories of maliciously following poorly-worded instructions!

Or this person whose friend called the school’s bluff by perfectly following their dress code.

Somehow, this user’s dad even turned shoelaces into a form of protest!

And finally, this user shared that strict dress codes can cost workplaces some of their most valued employees!

Natural? Did you mean “neutral”, by any chance?

If you liked this post, check out this story about an employee who got revenge on a co-worker who kept grading their work suspiciously low.