#brown girls are beautiful too

[paloma-ascends-into-hellfire]

on beauty standards and internalized racism

my great grandmother- my bisabuela- was beautiful, according to everyone. i have no pictures of her. i don’t even know her name. but i do know that she was my abuela’s dad’s mistress, and had a bunch of kids out of wedlock. and the most important thing: her eyes were blue.

in el salvador in the 50s, blue eyes were the epitome of beauty. they still are, actually. growing up, people would say to my mother, “it’s a shame you didn’t have blue eyes like your grandma. she was so beautiful.” my mom’s self esteem, unsurprisingly, took a hit.

i don’t remember the first time i heard this story, or the first time i realized that my family did not meet the beauty standards. i do remember being four and begging my tía to straighten my hair. i remember being five and creating a character named alison who had pale skin, dark, straight hair, and piercing blue eyes. i remember being six and colouring myself with “skin colour”- crayola’s apricot. i remember being seven when i stopped speaking spanish because i didn’t want to be seen as weird. i remember being seven and praying to god that i would wake up with light skin and straight hair, preferably red. i remember being eight and girls floofing my ponytail and playing with my hair, giggling, “it’s so soft!”. i remember being nine, and when i told my blonde friend i wished i looked like her, she replied “no offence, but i’m glad i don’t look like you.” i remember being ten and learning for the first time about what el salvador’s history was truly like. i remember being eleven and being told i was aggressive and too loud and opinionated by my teacher. i remember being twelve and begging my parents to let me straighten my hair. i remember being thirteen and, when the boys played smash or pass, hearing sounds of disgust when my name was mentioned. i remember being fourteen and wishing my hair would stay straight when i straighten it, wondering idly what my life would be like if i was white.

i have had one brown teacher, my eighth grade math teacher. she had a strong tamil accent and dark skin, and loopy handwriting reminiscent of tamil. she was the victim of many cruel jokes and imitations of her accent, and when she began to cry because she missed her daughter in another province, she was met with mockery. even my friends complained that they couldn’t understand her, that she was too strict. but how else was she supposed to handle these white boys who were bigger, stronger, more respected than her?

that is not the teacher i remember. i remember how she gave me a piece of chocolate when i was feeling faint from not eating. i remember how she gently corrected me when i added instead of multiplying: “careless mistakes. read your work over.”

so even though i grew up in the progressive 2010s, i grew up in a rural, mostly white town. no one i knew looked like me, spoke spanish, or really cared about my culture. i grew up believing i was ugly because my hair was curly and my skin was darker than almost everyone i knew (i’m not even that dark). so i disappeared, tried to be like them. even though i don’t remember the exact moment i realized i was not the beauty standard, but the words that still sting are, “i’m glad i don’t look like you” and the jeers from boys playing smash or pass.

at seven, i refused to wear pants. when i wore dresses - which was often - i was called a snobby city girl. when i didn’t, i was mistaken for a boy. i was met with several crude “you’re such a girly girl” insults. but at that age, i would have rather been called a girly girl than a boy.

i watched my friends shift from their pink phases to their anything but pink ones. i watched my idea of femininity come crashing down. and then i turned thirteen.

i realized that maybe i wasn’t a girl. i began to use she/they pronouns and discovered the term demigirl. but something still felt wrong.

one day, i saw a post about how black and brown women aren’t considered feminine. my mind was blown and i started to wonder if i thought that. i wondered if i was actually a demigirl or if my sense of what it was to be a girl has been fucked up by my town and society. i still don’t know.

this is why representation is so important. i have a myriad of issues thanks to this rigorous belief that brown women, and therefore me, are not pretty. this is not recent. just look back at my bisabuela. my brown eyed mother, my indian math teacher, and me - we were, are, and will continue to be victims of this shadow of white supremacy, most likely for as long as we live.

i can’t change this single handedly with a tumblr rant. but the first step is realizing how much the small things add up, how many of our thoughts are influenced by this.

thank you for reading if you’ve read this far.

[expulence]

💎💄Luxury Makeup 𝐍𝐄𝐄𝐃𝐒 for a Flawless Look💄💎

With the popularity of skincare these past few years came the desire to achieve a more natural 'your-skin-but-better' makeup look.

♡...Enter the 𝓒𝓵𝓮𝓪𝓷 𝓖𝓲𝓻𝓵 makeup look...♡

It was characterised by minimal use of makeup and an emphasis on enhancing your natural beauty. The foundation needs to look like skin, and the lipstick like natural healthy and plump lips. As simple as this all sounds, it is quite an art form.

So where do you start?

Well, when it comes to achieving a flawless makeup look, quality products can make all the difference. Investing in luxury makeup can elevate your beauty routine and give you a professional finish. Furthermore as high-end products are concerned, a little goes a long way.

Here's a curated list of essential luxury makeup products that you might need in your collection:

𝕮𝖔𝖒𝖕𝖑𝖊𝖝𝖎𝖔𝖓:

A high-quality foundation is the key to a flawless base. Look for a luxury foundation that matches your skin tone perfectly and provides a smooth, even coverage. Brands like Dior and Giorgio Armani offer a range of luxurious foundations that blend seamlessly into the skin, giving you a natural yet polished finish. A good quality concealer can make stubborn blemishes vanish without a thick and unnatural finish.

How to Use:

Apply the foundation using a beauty blender or a foundation brush, starting from the center of your face and blending outwards. Make sure to blend well into your jawline and neck for a seamless look. Start with a light layer and be sure to spot conceal any visible blemishes. This creates a flawless base without the cakey look of layered foundation.

High-end Foundatation/Base Recomendations:

Dior Face and Body Foundation

Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation

NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer

𝕷𝖆𝖘𝖍𝖊𝖘:

No makeup look is complete without mascara. A luxury mascara can add volume, length, and definition to your lashes, instantly opening up your eyes and making them pop. Choose a higher-end mascara from brands like Too Faced or Yves Saint Laurent for a smoother application, intense pigmentation and long-lasting wear.

How to Use:

Start by curling your lashes with an eyelash curler, then apply the mascara from the roots to the tips in a gentle zig-zag motion. Build up layers for added volume and intensity.

High-end Mascara Recomendations:

Too Face Better Than Sex Mascara

MAC Extended Play Lash

𝕷𝖎𝖕𝖘:

A swipe of luxury lipstick can instantly elevate your look and add a touch of glamour. Opt for a smooth that compliments your skintone from brands like Tom Ford or Charlotte Tilbury for a creamy, long-lasting formula that feels comfortable on the lips. Some sheer lipgloss further elevates the look and adds to the glowy final product.

How to Use:

Start by outlining your lips with a lip liner for precision, then fill in the lips with the subdued lipstick shade of your choice. Ad a layer of clear, light pink of peachy lip gloss for an extra glow.

High-end Lipstick/Lipgloss Recomendations:

Bobbi Brown Luxe Lip Color

LANEIGE Lip Glowy Balm

𝕰𝖞𝖊𝖘 𝖆𝖓𝖉 𝕭𝖗𝖔𝖜𝖘:

A versatile eyeshadow palette is a must-have for creating a variety of eye looks, from subtle daytime glam to sultry evening styles. Invest in a luxury palette from brands like Natasha Denona or Pat McGrath for a range of pigmented shades and buttery textures. A single decent brow pencil can last you ages and carry you through various looks too.

How to use:

Start by applying an eyeshadow primer and choosing neutral shades that complement your skin tone. Apply a transition shade in the crease, followed by a light shimmer shade on the eyelid. Blend the edges for a seamless gradient and define the lash line with a dark eyeshadow powde. For your brows, brush them in the direction of hair growth, fill in the soparc3 areas gently with a brow pencil or powder for a more natural look.

High-end Eyeshadow/Brow Recomendations:

LAURA GELLER NEW YORK The Delectables Earthy Essentials Baked Eyeshadow Palette

Anastasia Beverly Hills - Brow Wiz

By incorporating these luxury makeup must-haves into your beauty routine, you can achieve a flawless look that exudes sophistication and elegance. Experiment with different shades and techniques to discover what works best for you, and enjoy the transformative power of high-quality makeup products.

But never forget..

💰𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐲💰

[superficialcore]

I'm a Scorpio... of course, I like to bake, bronze & highlight 🦂🎀

Mine×꒰🎀꒱

[maulfucker]

a handful of oc concepts

[mahoutoons]

characters whose fandoms i'm not in and i know nothing about the shows they're from but i DO know that men hate them so i have to support them

[evansbby]

bro now it’s actually pizsing me off the hate this poor young woman is getting for playing Juliet in some random play in London like not even a Hollywood movie but a random play 😭😭

[champagnexowishes]

[justanisabelakinnie]

WHAT?!?!?!

BLACK GIRL AURIANA?!?!?! DEADASS??!?!?!!!!!

NOOOOO LOLIROCK WHY WOULD YOU TAKE THIS FROM ME?!?!?!

WE COULDA HAD IT ALL!!!

WE COULDA HAD A BUBBLY PERKY BLACK GIRL JUST LIKE STARFIRE!!!

WE COULDA HAD AN AFRO

WE COULDA HAD MEPHISTO BE DOWN BAD FOR A BLACK GIRL WITH AN AFRO

WHY LOLIROCK JUST WHYYYYYYY

[wowthatscheyenne]

fine . ig @ cheyenneiam_

[acourtofquestions]

Dont be angry, Finnula said. Be smart.

[1roentgen]

.

[silverselfshippingchaos]

I'm sooo in love with my OC adriana.. I wrote so much fanfic for her today and wow. I adore her

[goldmoufprincessz]

🧁🏹

[amandayetagain]

living the seemingly universal experience of having yet another friend thirst over a mid brown-haired guy who pays her no attention

[snekdood]

its wild to me how western european beauty standards even effected me as a child. my blonde, blue-eyed ass. i'd tan and come inside to look at my skin and it was "darker" in a way thats not conventionally understood as beautiful, I thought I was "supposed" to have more red and orange pigment when I tanned

like this

but instead it was more like

this and it always made me feel insecure on a subconscious level, like i wasnt the "right type of tan" or something :/

anyways, everyone with olive skin is beautiful and fuck them other color undertones sdjkhbvsfgdvghsdfhgvdfshvgfdgshv

[womenstruation]

I just saw this video on tiktok and I’m devastated. She was fourteen when her mother paid and consented for her to have laser hair removal of her underarms. Fourteen.

Imagine going through puberty, feeling lost and confused, growing up racialised as a brown woman, facing all the sexism and racism that comes with that, then looking to your mother to guide you and instead she validates all the abuse you’ve endured.

She tells you they are right. That you are, in your natural state, wrong and disgusting. She shows you that even with age and time, you will not be free from this misogyny and racism. You will internalise this message so much that you will one day look at your own daughter and instead of seeing her worth, you just see things that need to be fixed.