The XX Factor: What women really think.

Step Away From the Blush

I'm no cosmetics expert—it's a high-maintenance day if I bother with mascara and face powder—but whoever did Palin's makeup should be fired. That contouring along her cheekbones made her look awful. During the debate, one Slate parent said his daughter noted, "Her face looks like a skull."

The makeup artist credited last year with improving Hillary Clinton's look is probably available.