Why “One Size Fits All” Beauty is missing the point

That world renown philosopher of the present-day Miss Britney Spears once said “There’s only two types of people in the world, the ones that entertain and the ones that observe” and I have to agree, kind of!

Beauty #1 The ones that entertain.

Think “look at me” beauty, think feathers,  fashionistas,  frilly frocks and fun.  Think trend-setters, boundary-pushers and retro chic.

Then think the girls and guys who always look “comfortable”, always look like they feel right.  The ones that you just have to get to know better but you are not quite sure why.

These guys and girls just ooze charisma, personality and self-confidence. They either want you to notice or really couldn’ care less whether you spied them or not. They are beautiful on their terms and while some of them may look like the fashion models of the glossy magazines many of them, minus the garb look no different from me or you until you notice that twinkle in their eyes!

Beauty # 2 The ones that Observe.

This group sits and watches it all unfold.  In the beauty world they are the Workers and not the queen bees, the flock rather than the shepherd, the trend-getters rather than the trend-setters. They are the audience, the viewers and the masses. For many, that is OK.

So if there are two types of people in the world, why are we consistently fed one view of beauty?

For those of us living in Sydney it has been hard to miss the “Jennifer Hawkins un-airbrushed” body-image story that has done the rounds.  Even un-photoshopped she was deamed by many to be ‘too perfect’ to be an ambassador for ‘body image’ , (I just thought that it wasn’t very news-worthy but here I am, adding my two pennies worth). Then along came other, more voluptuous celebrities to show that those of us with ‘killer curves’ and squishy bits can also be beautiful and that’s true. BUT it is still very one-dimensional.

The point?

There may only be two types of people in the world but those  two types contain a million different versions of true beauty. Our relationship with our body stems from one fundamental truth, self-confidence and without that no amount of naked, un-airbrushed celebrities will help those that need help  feel better.  For some, confidence is just part of their aura while for others it has to be learned, sculpted and constantly worked at.  It is our (the beauty industry) job to push the boundaries, to rebel, to challenge and to have fun playing with beauty.   We are artists, craft men and women, sculptors and engineers and as such should NEVER opt for a ‘one size fits all’ version of the truth.  

We all love to be entertained so come on Beauty Industry, entertain us!

And so to another famous philosopher of the nineties “Confidence is a preference for the habitual voyeur of what is known as parklife”,  Daman Alban, Blur.  So, while we work out what that means, go get your funk on and enjoy being beautiful!