Empathetic Beauty Movement
“Reducing Harm” Excerpts
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“The Empathetic Beauty Movement is not the norm yet. Almost anyone reading this has had some not-so-empathetic beauty experiences. Pressure to be accepted and a want to form meaningful connections, led a lot of us to adopt some harsh beauty practices as we blossomed into the adult world. Take a look at your beauty regimen and think about how you can take better care of yourself now. Look at the lists of ingredients on your commonly used products. Are there multi-syllabic chemicals you are unfamiliar with? We have the internet now, look them up! Any given chemical isn’t necessarily bad, but you should know what you’re putting into and onto that beautiful body of yours!”
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“You are not the beauty police! No one is! That’s part of the point here.
If you see someone expressing themselves in a way that you do not find beautiful, shut up about it. Seriously! Not a word. You keep that negativity to yourself.
We’re trying to change a guilty, policing, beauty culture here. Remember, anything that brings joy has value, lovelies. Let’s take an example, yes?
In the moment at which this is being written, there is a beauty trend on TikTok (a social app where users share short videos) in which young people in their teens and twenties are creating dark circles under their eyes with makeup. Now, some of us have spent years finding the perfect solution to the problem of dark under-eye circles. What do we do in light of this trend?
Keep our opinions to ourselves and let these sweet young people go about their damn business, that’s what. Feeling defensive about this? Why? Maybe it’s time to stop covering those trendy, god-given dark circles you’ve been hiding for years. Or not.
Do what you want, and let others do the same, free of your judgement. We’re aiming to build a movement in which beauty and judgement are so thoroughly divorced that they’re living on different continents. So, if you find yourself judging someone else’s visual joy, take a deep breath, keep your mouth shut, and think. Why does this upset you? Does it go against some beauty rule you’ve enacted? Where did that rule come from: you or society? Keep thinking, dears. Stop judging. Look forward to a world where you won’t be judged.”
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“In addition to what products you use, how much you use and how you dispose of them are also places to think empathetically. Reduce, reuse, recycle. We’ve all heard the phrase, but now’s the time to really think about it in terms of our beauty routine.
How can you reduce, or use less? Will one higher quality product take the place of several in your routine? Maybe you can choose products that come in plastic-free packaging, like bar shampoo and conditioner or magnetic compacts. If you like experimenting with makeup, consider purchasing trial sizes to reduce waste.
How can you practice reuse? If you find that you are simply not using a beauty purchase, can you give it to someone else? In the vein of reuse, we also touch on slow fashion. Fast fashion has been the norm for too long. How can you reuse your clothes? You could donate an item every time you purchase a new one. You could make sure your t-shirts are made from recycled fabric. You could create a capsule wardrobe of high-quality, timeless pieces you love. You could keep the diverse wardrobe you love, but commit to buying vintage and second-hand when you feel like shopping.”