Photography: Stephanie Silva (@stephaniesilva_photo)
I was going to open this blog post with a punchy statement such as this; gone are the days of thick layers of foundation, perfect winged liner, chiseled contour and blah blah blah. You get the idea. Beauty has begun to change, but not in the way we may think. Like fashion, beauty has evolved from being an industry driven by trends to something becoming more and more abstract as the days go by. With so many rivaling aesthetics it's much too difficult to flip flop from trend to trend, trying to accomplish today's beauty standard. I think it's safe to say that for the most part, the modern beauty industry is a community where any thing goes. That seems quite optimistic but that can be extremely vast and intimidating for someone just dipping their toe into beauty, unsure of what the water is like. Or for someone like me, who is constantly trying to find my "look". Am I grunge, posh, chic, polished, graphic, colourful, minimalist or bold? Do I have to pick just one in order to truly know who I am? It seems almost silly to put so much pressure on something as simple as how one essentially puts goo on their face in the morning, but if I don't know how I want to look and henceforth portray myself to the world, then do I know who I am? Am I a chameleon, or someone who sticks to what they know?
What I've realized over the course of 2017 is that my fear of not fitting into a specific beauty box was holding me back from what was once a wonderful source of daily creativity. I used to look forward to waking up, taking a seat in front of my dressing table, and asking myself who I wanted to become. This is, of course, the same question I ask myself when standing in front of my closet, though with makeup the question felt more difficult. No matter what you wear on your body, your face will always be the most interesting, captivating part of you. This fact has circulated in my mind leading me to question how I want to be seen.
You can probably tell I've done a fair bit of contemplating recently regarding beauty and what it represents. Though I'm not remotely close to any sort of answer, I am sure of one thing. Beauty gives every individual the opportunity to be exactly who they want to be. If I want to play a new character every single day, I have that freedom. This is the constant fact within the beauty industry that makes me love it as much as I do, though I can easily forget this fact. As an individual who happens to be studying marketing, I'm constantly noticing the campaigns and gimmicks used to invoke insecurity in consumers. These messages are hidden beneath inspirational statements and images we're meant to aspire to achieve. I want to believe the industry is shifting in a more accepting, progressive direction but I'm not always so sure. That could easily be an entirely different discussion for a different blog post (let me know if you would be interested in that), but for now I want to revert back to my original question. How do you determine where you lie in the vast beauty world? Is it socially acceptable for me to leave my house with a smudgy black smokey eye in broad daylight, wear exclusively a bold shade of purple lipstick or not put on any makeup at all? I want to believe the answer to this question is simply yes. If it was, however, would I have to ask it in the first place?
Sometimes I notice brands trying to portray an idea of individuality and creative freedom. Brands such as Milk Makeup do this extremely well. But this is much more difficult to find than it should be. I understand the need to target niche markets, but I believe every brand and influencer in this industry needs to take not only one step, but a leap outside their comfort zone in order to show their audiences that we as young, creative individuals need to be chameleons. We need to adjust to our ever changing surroundings and we need to realize that we can be everything and anyone we want to be.
Thanks for reading.
- Emily
What I've realized over the course of 2017 is that my fear of not fitting into a specific beauty box was holding me back from what was once a wonderful source of daily creativity. I used to look forward to waking up, taking a seat in front of my dressing table, and asking myself who I wanted to become. This is, of course, the same question I ask myself when standing in front of my closet, though with makeup the question felt more difficult. No matter what you wear on your body, your face will always be the most interesting, captivating part of you. This fact has circulated in my mind leading me to question how I want to be seen.
You can probably tell I've done a fair bit of contemplating recently regarding beauty and what it represents. Though I'm not remotely close to any sort of answer, I am sure of one thing. Beauty gives every individual the opportunity to be exactly who they want to be. If I want to play a new character every single day, I have that freedom. This is the constant fact within the beauty industry that makes me love it as much as I do, though I can easily forget this fact. As an individual who happens to be studying marketing, I'm constantly noticing the campaigns and gimmicks used to invoke insecurity in consumers. These messages are hidden beneath inspirational statements and images we're meant to aspire to achieve. I want to believe the industry is shifting in a more accepting, progressive direction but I'm not always so sure. That could easily be an entirely different discussion for a different blog post (let me know if you would be interested in that), but for now I want to revert back to my original question. How do you determine where you lie in the vast beauty world? Is it socially acceptable for me to leave my house with a smudgy black smokey eye in broad daylight, wear exclusively a bold shade of purple lipstick or not put on any makeup at all? I want to believe the answer to this question is simply yes. If it was, however, would I have to ask it in the first place?
Sometimes I notice brands trying to portray an idea of individuality and creative freedom. Brands such as Milk Makeup do this extremely well. But this is much more difficult to find than it should be. I understand the need to target niche markets, but I believe every brand and influencer in this industry needs to take not only one step, but a leap outside their comfort zone in order to show their audiences that we as young, creative individuals need to be chameleons. We need to adjust to our ever changing surroundings and we need to realize that we can be everything and anyone we want to be.
Thanks for reading.
- Emily
No comments
Post a Comment