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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Exeter chapter.

As girls, we often say that when we dress nicely, wear make-up and get our glam on, it’s for ourselves, and this is true. Nothing is better than feeling like a million bucks just because you know that you are owning that new shade of lipstick or that new bodycon dress you bought last week.  However that doesn’t mean we aren’t interested in knowing what our male counter-parts feel about certain fashion choices we make on a daily basis. On a quest to find this out, HCX conducted a survey, completed by 40 young men from various backgrounds in order to see what they perceived as being attractive in women.  

First-up, how much make-up is preferable on a woman?

Most guys seemed to prefer a little make-up, while 75% of them found it more attractive than wearing nothing at all. Though many still said that they found a fresh face to be very endearing. 

Next up, do guys notice when we are dressed to impress?

A question that we’ve always wanted to know the answer to! And the answer is….YES. A whopping 86% said that they do, so good news if you’re one to make a little extra effort when you know you’re going to run into your crush.

What about girls who show a lot of skin? Are they more or less attractive in a man’s eyes?

Unsurprisingly this one was a little more controversial. More than 60% thought that showing skin doesn’t actually contribute to what makes a girl more appealing. All that we want to say to this, is that you should always be yourself. No opinion should change what you want to wear, look like or show off, because in the end there will always be someone who loves your style (and you) just the way you are.

Moving on from the fashion-related questions, we asked their opinion on perfume: 

The answers were pretty unanimous, as 86% of men love when women wear it. Proving that no matter your gender, a nice scent can always put you in an amazing mood. Our little tip for making perfume last longer; spray it in your hair, right under your ears as the scent lasts longer on hair than skin, and hair can lightly spread it around you when you move around.

Their thoughts on hairstyles:

Natural seems to be the way to go, 84% preferred non-styled hair over ponytails and fancy hair-dos – though it is important to point out that there were takers for every style of hair under the sun.

Finally, we asked what was the one thing a girl might wear which makes her instantly attractive to a man?

The answers were extremely varied. From yoga pants, glasses, earrings, a big jumper, nice underwear, a skirt, a nice smile, a great sense of humour, having an optimistic outlook, a good heart and even confidence….the list was a complete mix of everything. But what we found really interesting was the majority of men found a winning personality to be far more important than either style or looks. This just goes to show true beauty is what’s on the inside. 

So now we finally have a small insight into what guys really look for in girls. But what’s important to remember is that, as cheesy as it sounds, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. No matter how wild or peculiar your style might be, if you feel beautiful then you will be. In the end, what is the most attractive, is being happy, and happiness comes from being honest, accepting and comfortable with yourself.