What do you think of this collection of bare-faced celebrities? I think they look fantastic and you probably do, too, in your natural state. Make-up is fun but much more so when it is a want-to rather than a must-do part of your routine.
What’s your relationship with cosmetics: must-do or want-to?
I grabbed the pictograph from The Illusionists Facebook Page and I encourage you to click over and discover the upcoming documentary on the media’s commodification of the human body.
Time for a reality check. Just in case you haven’t seen the well-distributed evidence of Lady Gaga’s photoshopped cover in Vogue (who, by the way, recently agreed to present a healthier body image among models on its pages), here it is.
My daughter brought the issue to my attention. She pointed at the magazine cover while we were in Indigo book shop and stated matter-of-factly: “looks like Photoshop”. I’m pleased about her media savvy but many women and girls will look at that cover photo unaware they are viewing a lie. I’ve heard even Lady Gaga is upset about the adulterated image.
My daughter asked me an interesting question while we were finding the above before and after photo through a Google search: “Do you hate fashion magazines now?” I wasn’t sure what to say. I love fashion but I can’t stand when it is portrayed in such a narrow way, making beauty and style one-dimensional and unattainable.
The more subtle the Photoshop job, the more damaging the image to our psyche because it gets into our subconscious in a way that an obvious or botched attempt at altering an image cannot.
Although it helps to be aware of the lies media tells, most helpful to me has been my understanding of God’s all-encompassing love and that my body’s purpose is not to be admired or judged, especially by myself.
Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)
A first look via the Daily Mail of Angelina Jolie as Maleficent in Sleeping Beauty
My eldest daughter was obsessed with Disney’s Sleeping Beauty when she was about 3 – acting out all the parts and watching many times a day. Now she is 12 – I wonder if she will be able to see this version or if it will be for adults only? Either way, I can’t wait to see Angelina Jolie tackle the role of the evil sorceress Maleficent, through whose perspective the story is told.
From Jackie Kennedy to Kate Middleton. Cocktails and Lace: Iconic Wedding Gowns
I think most women have struggled to love their body at some point during their life. Betty Beguiles: Cultivating a Positive Body Image
My favourite exercise at the gym would probably be judging. Nourishing the Soul: How to tell if your gym is toxic
As a fitness instructor, I am constantly barraged with questions that associate fitness with “thinness,” by people who fail to recognize that the two are by no means connected. Daily Tar Heel: Think about what your body can do, not what it looks like
Weed out the wrong relationships, make room for the right ones, and nurture the people who are most important to you. Marc and Angel Hack Life: 15 Relationship Truths for Tough Times
What a cool shot! Don Draper, 1960s ad man, with an iPhone (via Copyblogger).
My Facebook friend Nicki at Mango Tango Makeup Design posted this Vanity Fair cover shot of Twilight actress Kristen Stewart and asked of the image: “How much of her look is all airbrush, makeup and photoshop?! I kinda think it’s too much.” I’d have to agree, especially considering her audience is largely comprised of teenage girls. That might be the point: to reach a new demographic. But at what cost to our girls? These are the types of images that make them question themselves.
What do you think?
Harry Potter author, J.K. Rowling’s, publisher asked her to use her initials so boy’s would read her books. Empowering Girls to Fly High: Times Have Changed…Right?
For many of us, exercise has been not-so-happily married to the idea of weight loss. Nourishing the Soul: Nine Ways to Love Moving Your Body
Why is it that it is so easy to put our needs on the back-burner? Medicinal Marzipan: A Summer Manifesto
Faking it. Women’s Wear Daily: France Unveils New Anti-counterfeit Ads
Ben Barry’s article on benefits of model diversity received most feedback ever for an article in Elle Canada: Can Using Different Types of Models Benefit Brands?
I love Pinterest, but lately I’ve been shocked with all the pins about fat and weight. Feathers Flights: Body Image
From shirts to make a teen’s chest larger, undergarments to make bottoms more shapely and short shorts, it was all available. Pinole Patch: What Body Image Message Are Girls Getting?
Drama in our lives is not an attribute of a well-lived life. The Simply Luxurious Life: Why Not…Eliminate the Drama
Thinking about using what is a very sacred and private act to get ahead at work doesn’t feel empowering. The Gloss: I’m Embarrassed to Admit I Think Prostitution is Immoral
Because we cannot love others, help others, or support others if we hate ourselves. Already Pretty: Why Body Image Matters
Everywhere we look, we are surrounded by unrealistic, unattainable and often fabricated images of the human body – usually the young female body, usually being used to sell something. Women’s Views on News: Beauty, Body Image and the Media
Anna Wintour and Tavi two of Fashionsta's women of substance
Fat talk is really hard to get rid of. It takes conscious and constant work to make it happen. But this list can help you think about new ways of looking at yourself and your body. Girls Guide To: 10 Steps to a Positive Body Image
Changing your life can feel incredibly difficult and overwhelming. Giving up goals is one way Leo Babauta changed his. Daily Good: How I Changed My Life, In Four Lines
A new study has identified five factors that promote positive body image in women. Family support is #1. Opposing Views: 5 Things Help Women Have Positive Body Image
I’ve always believed fashion and brains can coincide. Indeed, it could be argued that only a thinking person would be interested in fashion. Fashionista: Style and Substance: 10 Women Who Have Proven You Can Have Both
Fit bodies come in all shapes and sizes. Fitness is about health and well-being not a cut physique. Times Live: ‘Fitspo is the new ‘thinspo’
This post is about the mess we are in around male sexuality. I am here to name it and simply put it in the open for all of us to see. The Good Men Project: What Happens When We Don’t Teach Our Boys About Sex
Naming, shaming and blaming people for their weight, shape and size doesn’t work with anorexia and won’t work with obesity either. The Guardian: There’s No Point Shaming People About Their Body Shape
Mothers have the privilege of helping their daughters achieve a healthy body image. Women’s Health.gov: Body Image and Your Kids
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Peter Shankman posted the hilarious mock cover of Cosmopolitan on his Facebook page featuring Mad Men’s Christina Hendricks. I love the way the image skewers the often ridiculous topics the hyper-sexualized fashion and lifestyle magazine covers. My favourite faux headline is “I Had to Pay for My Own Drink: One Woman’s Horror”. What’s yours?
Indian actress Aishwaraya Rai with American director Steven Soderbergh
“A truly strong person does not need the approval of others any more than a lion needs the approval of sheep.” Marc and Angel Hack Life: 9 Reason Why You Should No Longer Care About People’s Approval
Ben Barry has devoted his life to promoting diversity in fashion imagery. Here, he tells why women have greater purchase intentions when models resemble them. Elle Canada: Can Using Different Types of Models Benefit Brands?
The key to happiness might be letting go. Psych Central Weightless: Body Image Booster
The ultimate Pay It Forward: bookmark it and return when you need inspiration or a smile. Marc and Angel Hack Life: 75 Day-Brightening Stories of Generosity
Did you know Size Zero was only invented in the mid-90s? (Thanks to designer Breeyn McCarney who posted the info on my Facebook Page.) Huffington Post: Tyra Banks’ Open Letter Praises Vogue Ban on Too Skinny Models
Why do we women neglect to divulge our age? Glamour Body Image: Why Experts Are Encouraging Women To Stop Feeling Guilty About Their Age.
When the simplest kindness means the world. Help Others.org: A Cab Ride I’ll Never Forget
To receive a great love, you have to love yourself first. Marc and Angel Hack Life: 7 Ways to Live Happier Through Love
I say Yes! Daily Good: Can Positive Thoughts Help Heal Another Person?
Body image woes may be hurting the economy! Daily Mail: More than 90% of Women Doubt Their Looks – and some admit calling in sick on a ‘fat day’
I would love to see the end of counterfeit designer goods! Fashionista: Knockoff Crackdown Continues: Burberry Wins $100 Million in Counterfeit Case
Now ‘the most beautiful woman in the world’ is “fat”! (Amazing that the fact women give life can be overshadowed by a little baby weight.) Christian Science Monitor: Aishwarya Rai called fat: Are the West’s Body image ideals spreading?
Many things – such as loving, going to sleep, or behaving unaffectedly – are done worst when we try hardest to do them. -C.S. Lewis Daily Good: Internal Time: The Science of Social Jet Lag (If you don’t have time to read, skip to the short video)
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