Is Natural Not Beautiful Anymore?
By: Aniyah Smith
The definition of beauty in our society has been confused.
Because of social media, movies, magazines, etc, girls today have more pressure on them than ever to reach that “perfect” standard. They are told that they have to “beat their faces” in order to be seen as beautiful.
Many of the women who wear makeup don't know the many harmful chemicals that are used or the side effects of them. A lot of makeup brands use fragrances, synthetic colors, parabens, and even sodium lauryl sulfate. According to Vanessa Cunningham, from Huffington Post, these few things can lead to breast cancer, growth of bacterias, and skin and lung irritation.
Women today are pushed to recreate themselves to society’s ridiculous standards. Social media plays a big role in this. Many Instagram pages post the women they think are “the most beautiful.” They are all wearing a face full of makeup. These pages drive girls to believe that they cannot be beautiful without wearing these possibly harmful products.
Some people like Beyoncé or Zendaya look beautiful with makeup on, but women shouldn’t feel it is necessary to wear.
A majority of girls feel they need to impress other people with their appearance. Some feel they won’t be liked as much if they don't wear makeup.
These type of things lower girls’ self esteem and make them lose their confidence in themselves. All girls are beautiful and unique in their own way and never need to try and change who they really are for anyone.
Fakeup or Makeup?
By: Kiley Dellinger
Wearing makeup does not mean someone is fake.
Everyday women get judged for deciding to put on a full face of makeup because they enjoy it. They get labeled as insecure, an attention seeker, or they’re just doing it for the boys. I don’t see it that way.
According to theguardian.com women receive better treatment when they are wearing makeup and people actually prefer it. Even though it’s preferred, they are criticized for wearing the products that enhance their natural beauty, but then treat them bad when they’re not.
People believe women wear makeup to impress other people when they really do it for themselves. Women get a sense of satisfaction and confidence when they look in the mirror and see all their natural beauty amplified to its fullest extent.
Makeup can even be your job, it’s a source of income and an art form to people such as: makeup artists, beauty YouTubers, and various makeup brands. Certain makeup products also have vitamins that are proven to promote healthy skin such as, Vitamins A, D, E, and K.
I would certainly never tell someone they need to put makeup on, but people still tell others to take it off or not use it at all. At the end of the day it’s being hateful and could possibly make them insecure about themselves.
I’m not saying women need makeup, all women are beautiful without the use of cosmetics, I’m just saying that if we want to wear makeup because it makes us happy, then that’s all that should matter.
Stay confident.
Artwork: Shaharah Torres (drawing); Kiley Dellinger (photo)