Whether it was sitting in a nail salon waiting for my turn, or sitting in the open chair next to my mom as she got her hair done, I was surrounded by beauty and fashion magazines. Before I had a phone I would sit and flip through whatever copy of Vogue, Elle or Marie Claire I could get my hands on. Turning each page was exciting. Each page contained pieces of art and I could not get enough of it: the clothes, the shoes, the makeup spoke to me like nothing else ever had. And I haven’t been able to shake the beauty bug that bit me ever since.
Growing up loving fashion and design was awesome, but what wasn’t, and I didn’t realize this until recently, was that nobody in those magazines looked like me. All the models were skin and bones and the clothes were made for that type of body. Not my body. I dance, I have big thighs and a small chest. I’m not particularly curvy, and I am certainly not skin and bones. Seeing only thin girls on those pages and on social media began to hurt my self confidence. Overtime those confidence issues led to body dysmorphia and disordered eating.
As I’ve gotten older and matured, the body positivity movement has taken off and changed the fashion world forever. Now, I see people of all shapes, sizes, colors and genders in magazines. It’s beautiful. Still though, it’s no secret that skinny women are more sought after in the world of fashion than any other body type.
That’s why I got into makeup; it doesn’t discriminate against size. All people, big, small, short and tall can wear any kind of makeup and it will always “fit”. There are no set rules with makeup, as there are no set rules in art. Bright colored eyeshadow, sparkling highlight or dark lipstick, whatever the look there’s something for everyone, and you can make it whatever you want. Giving young girls and boys the idea that they are beautiful no matter what, is so important, because doing makeup to cover up what people look like should not be what’s important. It should be used to highlight people's looks and let people express themselves, not hide the beauty that every individual possesses.
