“I woke up like this, I woke up like this..” In the world of blogging, I’ve come to realize a picture is actually worth more than a thousand words, and how people woke up is usually not one of their chosen moments to showcase. So, when I got to try out a bunch of new Smashbox beauty products, I was pumped to take a great before and after and share some truth on personal beauty.
I wanted to showcase a “Transformation Tuesday” with my make up free face, because I really don’t think there’re enough photos of real women anywhere in the media. With as much as I hear from women about their insecurities or not feeling pretty enough, it’s no wonder people jump from beauty trend to trend. For the Smashbox look, I wanted to showcase some classics but still remain true to my natural self. I went with a bold lip and brow but otherwise neutral face. This is by far the most dramatic brow or lip look I’ve rocked in a LONG time, but it was fun to try it out.
I’ve always loved Smashbox cosmetics, and I actually have been finding that more and more of my make up arsenal is slowly being taken over by their products. Some of the new, great things I got to try were their Lighting Theory Master Class palette, the Studio Skin foundation, and the eyelid primer. Though I have a few of their Always On liquid lipsticks, the bold red was new to me and proved to be quite a head turner.
When it came time to post my ‘transformation,’ I realized how unheard of it is for women bloggers to post their makeupless faces. I wondered what the reaction would be.
Isn’t it strange how women have such intense pressure placed on them to look good, to take care of ourselves, but not be over done, meanwhile, the dad bod is on the rise and we’re filtering our faces every which way hoping to be beautiful? With all the negativity in the world, should we really be focusing on tearing ourselves down instead of building ourself up?
A popular blogging topic lately has been the “Power of Makeup” and all the ways we use make up to change the appearance of ourselves. I couldn’t help but notice that for most people, make up changes more than just their appearance. It changes the way we feel on the inside too. While inner beauty will always be my biggest priority, I can completely understand why people feel better putting our best face forward. The intermingling of beauty, vanity, self-worth, society, and identity are certainly being exacerbated by social media. It’s no wonder people everywhere struggle more than ever with their own self worth and physical appearance. Obsession over flaws, physical appearances, or just being really really good looking will never be what my life is about, but I definitely learned from this blogging experience the personal process that goes into how we use make up to present ourselves. It’s no one else’s business how we decide to wear, or not wear, our make up, and I feel proud that my makeup-less face is out there on the internet.PRODUCT BREAK DOWN:
face: (all smashbox)
Primer: primer water, classic iconic primer, and 24hr eyeshadow primer
Foundation: Studio Skin in 2.3
Face: Masterclass Palette
Lip:Ruby lip liner
Lip: Always on liquid lip in bang bang
Brows: Brow tech in taupe
Brows: brow tech shaping powder in taupe
Brows: brow tech gloss
Eyes: penny lane eyeliner
Eyes: full exposure mascara, black
Eyeshadow: Masterclass Palette
Contour: Masterclass Palette
Artist: Annalise
Hair: Living Proof and GHD
face: (all smashbox)
Primer: primer water, classic iconic primer, and 24hr eyeshadow primer
Foundation: Studio Skin in 2.3
Face: Masterclass Palette
Lip:Ruby lip liner
Lip: Always on liquid lip in bang bang
Brows: Brow tech in taupe
Brows: brow tech shaping powder in taupe
Brows: brow tech gloss
Eyes: penny lane eyeliner
Eyes: full exposure mascara, black
Eyeshadow: Masterclass Palette
Contour: Masterclass Palette
Artist: Annalise
Hair: Living Proof and GHD
-MC