What is Beauty? Well Google defines it as follows:
1. A combination of qualities, such as shape, color, or form, that pleases the aesthetic senses, especially the sight.
2. A beautiful woman. (Insert side eye emoji)
I mean.. At least Merriam-Webster had the sense to put “person” instead of “woman”, but we will leave that discussion for another time. For now I would just like to completely erase those definitions of beauty when it comes to humans (the first works for inanimate objects) and give you mine.
To me, beauty means that you have so much self-confidence and self-love that you radiate it outward and evoke a visceral reaction from your onlookers. You make other people take notice, just by you owning your shit. That’s beauty. Shine bright like a Frankie. That’s HOT!
So this weekend I was asked to be the master of ceremonies at Beautyscape in Austin as a precursor to South by Southwest by e.l.f. Cosmetics… and it got me thinking, what helps me feel confident and strong and love myself, now, other then the YEARS of Kabbalah and meditation and therapy and being raised by the fiercest woman on the planet and going to the gym and eating healthy and living life to the fullest. There was another thing… MAKEUP!
Makeup makes me feel confident, powerful, untouchable, and… beautiful! And I LOVE myself even more when my face looks on point. I mean, give me a little mascara, concealer, bronzer and highlighter and I could take over the world… let's not even START WITH GLITTER!!!! Cause then I'd literally become superman. Because it makes me happy. Because I am an artist, and makeup is art on your face. I love a geometric eye, or a sparkly lid, or neon lips because not only do I feel more confident but it allows me to share even more of my personality with the world at a glance. My rose colored hair shines so bright and makes such a bold statement and I couldn’t be happier, because it’s me. And you’d think right away, that guy is confident AF, and you’d be right, also I’m beautiful AF, so take that GOOGLE!
You will NEVER see me embrace #NoMakeupMonday. Nope. NEVER a #FreshFaceFriday.. and god forbid #NoFilter… AHHHHHH!!!!! Please it’s like my biggest nightmare. Now I know there
are those of you out there who don’t wear makeup and are beautiful, but again I believe it’s because that even without makeup you feel confident and love yourself. For me, I do love myself always, as you all know, but I love myself MOST when I am in full face! It just makes me feel so badass and strong and GOD I LOVE MAKEUP! #SorryNotSorry. Also, here comes the biology/theatre/dance triple major brain again… makeup is now made to actually help improve your skin… as it covers: it enhances. Makeup now acts as sunscreen, a hydrator, a plumper, it delivers essential nutrients to your skin all day long. I mean it is the ultimate science project meets artistic masterpiece.
So you do you, but if makeup is something that makes you feel beautiful, gurl you beat that face! If you wanna go to work looking like you're ready to shoot a Vogue cover, DO IT! If you wanna go to the gym looking like you are ready for a date, do it… you might end up getting one… HA! And if you don’t, don’t. Just be yourself, and that’s beautiful.
In closing I will leave you with some of my favorite lyrics from La Cage aux Folles that resonated with me deeply when I saw it, written the year I was born by the incomparable Harvey Fierstein:
So whenever I feel that my place in the world is beginning to crash,
I apply one great stroke of mascara to my rather limp upper lash.
And I can cope again, Good God!
There’s hope again!
When life is a real bitch again, and my old sense of humor has up and gone
It’s time for the big switch again, I put a little more Mascara on.
‘Cause when I feel glamorous, elegant, beautiful,
The world that I’m looking at’s beautiful too!