I've been browsing on Tumblr for a little bit today, looking under the beauty influencer and the beauty guru tags just to see what other people were saying. Little did I know this would help with inspiration because some time later after having reblogged some well rounded thoughts, my best friend Dorothy (who is a writer here on The Odyssey, that you check out here) said I should talk about some of these posts. It also helps my inspiration that I'm reading a book called: "F*ck Feelings" (legitimate title, by Michael I. Bennett, MD and Sarah Bennett), and it goes along with these ideas.
A post stuck out to me about how these kids nowadays ("kids" being around 12 in this post) use so many different high end brands in makeup tutorials in order to make themselves look like a beauty guru. I've seen those short instagram videos of those kids and it always nagged at me for being kind of depressing but I couldn't put into words why it felt wrong without sounding like a jerk or a baby boomer (damn these kids and their makeup skills!). Listen, these kids have talent, but at the end of the day, they're kids but they don't look like a kid... you know?
I started thinking and typing, and like a typical writer, struggled to like what I was trying to say; nothing seemed to come out right or my opening hook wasn't all that catchy. I want my articles to mean something, whether it's silly or my passionate rants or something else - which often leads to my frustrations in writing - but these ideas still hold value and need to be said, so maybe what'll work better is my just saying what I want to say in short sentences in a list form.
Here are ten things it's okay to be, for people of any age that needs to hear it (but mostly for the youth):
1. It's okay to be an average person.
2. It's also okay to not hold yourself to a conventional beauty standard.
3. It's okay to use drug store makeup when you're first learning to do makeup... and to still enjoy it as you age. It's good stuff!
4. It's okay to not put full coverage foundation then full coverage concealer and heavy powders on your face... save your skin. And money.
5. It's okay to find a makeup routine that works for you, even if the beauty gurus don't do it.
6. It's okay to still be learning! Even if you're new, or even if you've been doing this for years! Makeup is for all levels of talent!
7. It's okay to not buy every product that's new and out there; I know you feel the pressure from all the marketing, but don't forget about all your other products in your arsenal. They love you and wish to be used. And they were here first.
8. It's okay to like high end brands, and it's okay to like drug store brands, and it's okay to like both.
9. It's okay to be young and experiment with your looks... but don't put too much pressure in having to have the 'right' brands.
10. It's okay to have bad skin... to have acne, rosacea, eczema, psoriasis, or other skin diseases. They don't have to be beautiful, but they are a part of life, and no matter what anyone says, it's okay to have them and for them to be visible.
This article was inspired mainly by Idea Number 9; as a little kid I loved playing with my mom's blush and putting it all over my cheeks to get them extra rosy. Let kids have fun and see what they like; that's no trouble. But what is a problem is when little kids are trying to project onto themselves a beauty standard that is typically seen on adults, such as the long false lashes, the dark smokey eyes, and heavy face coverage. We're not letting kids be kids and just play... nowadays they 'need' to have high end brands such as Too Faced and Urban Decay; we aren't letting children look like children anymore. But I'm 22 years old, what do I know?
It's not to dictate what a young, impressionable mind can do with their bodies. It doesn't matter what your age is; we all feel a pressure to fit in due to our desire to be a part of a crowd. With that being said, it's time to alleviate this pressure and learn to accept that we are who we are as individuals and we look the way that we do, and that is good enough.
