Investing In Your Appearance
Like many things, there is a lot of rhetoric around appearance and beauty that is centered around “quick fixes” and “easy solutions.” Well…
“If it was easy, everyone would do it”… so clearly there is a lie miscommunication about beauty solutions
Instead of always seeking easy fixes and a lazy approach to your appearance, I would like to offer a mentality and perspective regarding upgrading your physical beauty. I normally resent any comparison of women to inanimate objects, but I find this particular metaphor clever so you’ll have to just bear with me 😘
Think of your appearance as your home. The structural components of the house are your bone structure, the raw materials of the house are your skin and other natural beauty, the furniture are the more “fluid” aspects of your appearance (eyebrows, etc.), and the extra and more temporary decorations are the equivalent of makeup.
Too much modern beauty advice is from that surface level of makeup. Companies are trying to sell you the key to beauty and appearance as make-up. Like excess house decor, it’s a cheap sell. Sure, it modifies the room from a surface level, but doesn’t really ADD or INVEST in beauty. It’s a cheap fix for a real problem. For some critical thinking: why do companies want girls to believe the secret to beauty is in makeup? Because it’s the quickest and most visible fix! You don’t need to apply a new lipstick more than once to immediately see results. Companies know they have to market short term fixes bc most girls are too impatient… the average person isn’t willing to invest time and effort into long-term results. Companies know this, which is why they want people to believe the overall key to beauty is purely makeup. They are wrong. While makeup, is important component, it’s not a true investment in yourself. Remember this throughout any level-up or investment in your appearance.
The basic structural components.
Let’s get right to the heart of beauty then, shall we? The basic structural components. My main opinion of it all, is you are born with a face meant for you - your home. You may not like the structural components of your house, but it has the capacity for beauty, even if its not the type of beauty you wish it was, or as “trendy” of a house as you want. Ultimately, your plan needs to be formulated around your basic house structure. Don’t force a modern sleek NYC loft look on a country cottage house… don’t push a “insta baddie look” on a classic Greecian beauty structure. Accept your face and work WITH your features.
If you do choose to modify your basic structural components…. do so mindfully of the entire house. If you change one side of the room entirely, it runs the risk of looking out of place, if not stupid in the context of the rest of the room. Similarly, slapping a thin nose on an otherwise bold-featured face is going to look out of place and bizarre. Just be mindful, while you can do deep structural remolding… don’t go overboard and keep any modifications with the rest of the house in mind. Oh… and if you really see a solution as to modify the entire house? Just know it has the real possibility to still look make-shift and disorganized. I always recommend sincerely trying to work with what you have.
After the basic structure, you then look at the more raw materials aspect of your house. The walls, flooring, and other more difficult things to modify. A house is only well kept if you actively maintain these features. You must apply fresh paint, a regular cleaning routine, and maintenance as needed. Unfortunately, a lot of the work towards maintaining raw components is costly and can temporarily detract from your appearance. A sanding down and refinishing of the walls makes your house ugly and in-construction for a week or so… similarly, a derma-planning facial hurts and makes you look red/puffy for a week… but at the end of it all? The results are glowing and long term improvement.
Make sure you are doing that deep-level investment into your face. It will be more costly, and it will not provide immediate results. Overall, it’s imperative for the long term upkeep and investment into your beauty. Get regular facials, electrolysis on your body hair, and other investments that will give you a better foundation of beauty. Like I said… a cheap rug doesn’t cover up a grungy floor, similar to how foundation cannot hide dry and poorly taken care of skin.
Furniture and More Fluid Aspects
So it’s kind of difficult to differentiate within appearance as well as a home, the difference between more solid aspects (walls and flooring) vs more fluid components of a home (furniture). Overall, its more a matter of what can be changed faster. In terms of appearance, I see it as eyebrows, lashes, and more easy surface level things that AREN’T makeup.
Keeping yourself well groomed is important. Beyond deep facials and other more intense procedures and upkeep, you need to have a daily routine that maintains your features otherwise. Fluff up the pillow on the coach - similar to how you brush out your eyebrows. You may not deep clean your apartment floors everyday, but you should sweep them off daily - you may not deep clean your pores and skin, but you can keep them relatively clean and healthy. Everyday does not always require specialized decorations (makeup) but general presentability is still important (cleanliness and basic hygiene).
Ways to invest in the more fluid aspects of your beauty can include lip fillers, eyelash extensions, hair treatments, etc. They will create that more surface level of beauty, without being fully qualified as “makeup.”
Extra and More Temporary Decorations
Finally, makeup! Ok, so this post may overall seem like I’m against makeup, which COULD NOT BE FARTHER FROM THE TRUTH!!!! I’m really more about not being RELIANT on makeup to be beautiful, in truth, it can and SHOULD enhance your beauty!
Imagine you’re throwing a party at your house - you would want all your structural components, raw materials, and basic furniture to be all nice and presentable! It would be embarrassing to not have a well prepped location! But from there, you would still want to grab a few extra decorations to fully maximize the appearance! Maybe a vase of flowers, some streamers, a cute centerpiece - all of these are important to overall appearance! However, if you were only doing the decorations without any work towards ACTUALLY having a nice home, it would be obvious and apparent, if not detracting from the beauty of your house. Same thing with makeup - you need a good foundation (and no, not the makeup foundation, the real appearance-based foundation 😂)
Like home decorations, make up should be applied sparingly and in a way designed to specifically work with your features. Again, you wouldn’t decorate your home as if it were a apartment if it’s really a castle - don’t try to transform your face with makeup into something it’s not. Highlight your favorite parts, and find a style that works best for you AND makes you happy to look at. Have fun with makeup! It’s the exciting part and most fluid aspect of appearance, but don’t have it be the ONLY way you’re investing in your appearance!