Let’s Talk Beauty, Self-Care, and Finding a Safe Place for Self-expression

You’re not alone if  you think the words," self-care” and “self-love” seem to be overused, and well, very cliché. Since the COVID-19 pandemic  has changed the way we conduct our everyday lives many of us have had to find other ways to de-stress while the doors to our relaxing ritual hubs were closed for business and have begun to slowly re-open. During the lockdown, trips to  hairdressers, nail salons, and spas have left us doing these routines ourselves and have made us Jacks-of-all trades when it comes to beauty and self-care.

Thanks to, YouTube and other social media outlets, we can look at our favorite influencers and learn how to master a perfect cut -crease eyeshadow look or an easy smokey eye with our favorite eyeshadows, or even going a step further by learning how to make diy skincare products, and home goods, like candles and soaps! 

There’s no doubt we’re grateful for having the opportunity and time to explore and learn about how much hard work and dedication goes into creating these products/services we enjoy, but there’s another aspect of beauty and self-care that we often don’t pay much attention to; what’s under the makeup. Yes, skin, but much more than skin - us, ourselves, our moles, freckles, age spots, wrinkles, uneven skin tone, and everything that we want to hide from others because we desire to be perfect. 

When we talk about beauty, it’s often -  if not always in terms of being flawless and if we are honest with ourselves - no one’s perfect and obsessing over perfection can leave us feeling pretty inadequate. We need to do better and not create stereotypes that leave ourselves and others feeling less than, or that we/they simply don’t belong. 

Despite the glaring disconnect between loving our imperfections and the lofty beauty standards that exist, we’ve made decent but not enough progress when it comes to looking at beauty from different perspectives. Society has gradually adopted a more inclusive approach to beauty, creating an environment where all races, cultures, and genders can have a voice and a platform showing us that beauty transcends the one dimensional ideology we as a society were taught as children.

According to the founder of Calizade Beauty, “It always amazes me to see that the word beauty has such a linear definition that pertains mostly to a small number of people in the world! I believe beauty is what we experience from others, it’s the way people interact with others, the energy, confidence, kindness, compassion, thoughtfulness, and quirkiness they exude. Beauty can be expressed in so many different ways, and it’s what really makes people uniquely beautiful. Physical appeal is superficial, yet humans put so much emphasis on it. We need to encourage and advance the conversation on what beauty really is.”

Calizade’s founder goes on to say, “We want people to have fun with our makeup! Self-expression is so important, and it’s amazing how something like makeup can have such a positive and powerful impact on so many people. I love seeing how makeup brings people together from all walks of life. It's exciting to see how people who are as different as night and day can love the same color lipsticks and eyeshadows or a particular makeup look! I also love seeing the engagement and excitement on social media among everyone, as they talk about what they love about a particular product.

 One of the things that we see live and well in the makeup community is a lot of positivity, respect, and support among our audience. It’s safe to say that many of us are aware of the need to be ourselves and to be respectful, and a source of encouragement to others. It’s such a pleasure to work with these people who are comfortable in their own skin, so to speak, because in turn they are creating a space where people are free to express themselves respectfully, without the fear of being judged, and this is both fun, and very cathartic.   

As a beauty brand, we aim to empower and inspire all people, and we are deeply satisfied to have created a diverse, small, but thriving community of like minded, empowered individuals who are confident and talented, and are taking their makeup game to the next level.”

Let us know what you think about this article and your views on the progress beauty standards have made in the recent years.

Written by: Sophie L. Osborne, beauty contributor and novelist.