Teen Vogue has a great article out about Australian supermodel Mirander Kerr, who has just finished writing a book on self esteem and health advice for young girls. I had no idea about this, but I think it’s awesome! I know some might think; what does she know about self-esteem … look at her! However, she might know what she’s talking about – she studied psychology, naturopathy and nutrition at school. And like I say over and over, doesn’t matter if you’re a young student, the president or a supermodel – everyone deals with self esteem issues.
Here’s an excerpt of the article:
“I love to read! I’ve come to consider some of my favorite books as trusted friends I can always depend on,” she says. Her love of the written word is exactly why she recently completed her latest project, a book called Treasure Yourself.
“Your teen years are when you create a foundation for the rest of your life, from habits to ideas of who you think you are and what you believe you are able to accomplish. A confident teen is more likely to set out to achieve what she dreams of simply because she thinks she can. I want to contribute to that.”
And her signature positive attitude has served this 26-year-old well, from her gig as a Victoria’s Secret Angel to her multiple magazine covers.
“One thing I tell girls who want to break in to the industry is that there’s no such thing as ‘looking’ like a model. There are so many different shapes and sizes, and everyone has things they want to change: freckles in odd places, dimples where they might not want them, and hair where it shouldn’t be. Just remember that picture-perfect doesn’t exist — perfection is you, just the way you are.“
What do you think? Would you take advice on a supermodel and buy this book? I’d love to read it, if anyone knows anything on release dates, do let me know! :)
Supermodel Cindy Crawford did a Q&A with The Guardian recently and I thought she said some really great things:
Your look was athletic. After you it was about waifs. Did models become too thin?
The girls who are models now, that’s just their body. Did fashion celebrate thinness more? That’s a different question. You can’t fault the models for that – they were just thin girls. Kate Moss, she eats. I’ve seen her eat, and she’s just thin. Fashion is all about extremes, and it’s constantly in flux. It’s just fashion.
Fashion gets blamed for encouraging eating disorders.
That’s a little bit of a stretch. I don’t know that much about eating disorders, but I’m certainly not one of the people they’ve blamed, because I’m not super-skinny. I think people want to find something to blame. An eating disorder is way more than a girl looking at a magazine and seeing a picture of a skinny model. Maybe that’s one tiny piece of the puzzle, but I think it’s a lot more about self-esteem and self-love and control, so it’s too simplistic to just blame it on models who are skinny.
What does being in the fashion world do to a woman’s self-image?
It’s good and bad. If you end up being able to work as a model, in some ways it’s a seal of approval, but it also puts a lot of pressure on you. I used to feel like I needed two hours of hair and makeup to look good – that was in the late 80s, early 90s, when hair was big and makeup was like full drag. Being at a runway show and changing backstage with 30 incredibly beautiful women brings out all your insecurities too.
Does the fashion industry like women?
We as the consumers, we as the women, have the power. If you don’t like something, don’t buy it. Don’t buy the magazine if you don’t like what it says. If you don’t like the image a brand is putting out, don’t buy it. What I really don’t agree with is people who complain about it but still support it. You’re giving your power away. If people don’t want skinny models, stop buying the magazine with the skinny model, and believe me those magazines will change fast. It’s business.
You can read the rest of the interview here.
You know what; I didn’t know much about her when she was a supermodel because I was too young, but I have to say I like her! She seems pretty smart (I love her last quote) and I like that she celebrated the way she was, even in the crazy, demanding and superficial fashion world. (For example I heard in the beginning some wanted her to remove her trademark mole! Can you imagine?!) Do you have any thoughts on this interview? :)
Gwen Stefani has her sexy red lips. Avril Lavigne has smokey eyes and stick straight hair. Angelina Jolie loves her cat eyes, and – of course – her full, plump pout. In other words, these ladies all have some ‘beauty’ trademark that not only works for them and their ‘image’ but suits them perfectly – I think these beauty trademarks all make them!
I can say I have some beauty trademarks. Since I was young I’ve always worn my hair up – I think that’s the only hairstyle that will suit my large head! Since then I’ve tried all kind of styles, but I found my true love a few years ago: the messy bun.
Also: smudgy black eyeliner … Always! I love dark eyes, it would defintely be my beauty trademark too. I’ve started to experiment with really bright lip colors too, so bright lips are also fast becoming my beauty trademarks.
So I guess my beauty trademark would be messy tied-up hair and eyeliner! What are your beauty trademark? Or if you don’t have one, do you have a favorite makeup or hairstyle that you wear often? Do share! :D
Has anyone ever pointed out a physical feature and assume something about you? I remember being told never to trust a man with thin lips because they are cunning and manipulative – is that ridiculous or does it actually hold some truth?
Physiognomy (I can’t say it either), or face reading is pretty popular here – there are centers where you can get your face read to discover your ‘inner self’ or something along those lines. I’m pretty curious so I did my research and it’s extremely interesting… Let me know what you think!
Where this study came from is unknown (some say Greece, India, and China), and in the 19th Century Victorian times, face reading was practiced by criminologists with the assumption that certain facial features on someone may make them more prone to breaking the law! According to physiognomy, different parts of your face reveal different aspects of your character and personality. Some also believe any ‘complications’ that you are having on the face could show what’s going on internally, like the image above.
- Forehead: Your way of thinking
- Eyes: Shows insight on how open you are to life experiences
- Nose: Work and how you deal with money
- Mouth: How expressive you are
- Lips: How sensual you are
- Chin: Your level of assertiveness
- Ears: How you interact with others
Believe it or not – those with cosmetic surgery can count their ‘new’ feature as their own, as cosmetic surgery is believed to change your luck.
If I’m being very honest, with all due respect, I find this a bit silly, but none the less it is quite interesting and some are eerily correct! Grab a photo of yourself that is a frontal face shot (or look in the mirror as you read this) and see what your features tell you about yourself. They differ for men and women, so I have also added face reading for men so you can go an analyze your boyfriends too. :-P
Hair
- Said to be the measure of physical insulation and strength.
- Delicate, thin, silky hair shows a person who is sensitive in nature.
- Thick, coarse, wild hair shows a person who has physical and mental strength, and great resilience in life.
Head
- If the front part is straight, you are lucky.
- If it’s curved, you are lucky and will lead a very comfortable life.
- A round head shows a very unlucky person.
Forehead
- A wide forehead shows intelligence and practicality.
- A narrow forehead usually belongs to a worrier who needs to think things through many times over before coming to a conclusion.
- A high, rounded and deep forehead shows someone who places emphasis on friendships.
- A flat forehead shows a person who’s pragmatic by nature.
- An exagerrated forehead shows a dreamer.
- A long, broad forehead shows unluckiness.
- A high forehead shows good luck.
Ears
- Long, soft ears shows someone who will have a good, lucky, and comfortable life.
- Crooked, big, unequal and thin in size show unluckiness.
Eyebrows
- Bow-shaped brows with hair that is dark yet neither thin nor bushy shows a person of good luck and strong character.
- Straight eyebrows shows a person who is unlucky.
- Dark eyebrows that are curved over the eyelids shows a person who is lucky in life.
Eyes
- Large, extended eyes that shine show a woman who is lucky, domineering in nature, highly respected, and a leader.
- Small eyes that are dull, glommy, gray colore, round and slightly bent shows a woman who is shrewd and is not likely to rise in life.
- Dark and round shows a sexy woman.
- Drowsy, sleepy eyes shows a woman who loves men and has loose morals.
Mouth
- Lips tell us how we deal with relationships too.
- A mouth with a thinner upper lip than her lower lip shows an inability to reciprocate in relationships.
- A thinner lower lip than the upper lip shows someone who tends to give too much in a relationship.
- Small, tightly pursued lips are telling of a mean, self-centered person.
- Narrow lips shows an unemotional character.
- Large, full lips shows a person who is expressive, generous, and has a taste for all things rich and luxurious.
Nose
- A straight nose indicates a woman who is wise, witty and diligent.
- A small nose shows a cunning, shrewd, mischeivious and lustful.
- Wide, flaring nostrils show a woman who is lazy, strong headed, proud and found of a life of pleasure.
- A hook nose indicates a person of good nature who will enjoy some fame in life.
[read more…]
Operation Beautiful and its founder, Caitlin, gives me some hope in humanity – especially where girls are involved. In a time where cattiness, jealously, competition and low self-esteem is so apparent (at least where I am!), it’s nice to know there is someone making such a great difference. Operation Beautiful is a website that encourages us all to post anonymous Post-its telling other women that they are beautiful; just the way they are.
Can you imagine having a crap day and seeing a Post-it like those above? Promoting self-love, happiness with oneself and a healthy body image (as Caitlin says, ‘ending the Fat Talk’), Operation Beautiful wants to tell girls that ‘You are enough, just the way you are.’
I urge you all to spread the love! I will be doing this once school starts and will be forcing all my friends to do so as well. :)
It’s said that your mother can greatly influence your thoughts on your body, appearance and self-esteem in general – especially with mother-daughter relationships (we’re all girls here though, right?). For some, unfortunately, negativity and critism to their looks growing up can create some deep issues when a girl goes into adulthood.
How has your mother influenced your thoughts on your self image? Was it positive or negative? I’m very blessed; I’m very close to my mom and has positively influenced the way I perceive myself. I’d love to hear your stories though, you know how much I love to talk about self image topics. ;)
Happy October! This month, I want everyone to forget the idea that you’re arrogant, self-centered or just plain narcissistic if there are certain qualities you love and like to celebrate about yourself. So, I want to ask you, what do you love about yourself?
Please do share! If you’re a blogger and want to do a post on your own blog about this, do leave a link in the comments too so we can all check it out! I also think keeping a list like this somewhere special will be a great pick-me-up on days when you’re not feeling too good and things are getting you down. Write as much as you can, and they can be as serious or silly as you want! I’ll start things off …
What I Love About Myself
- I love that I’m an only child.
- I love that I have more than a handful of friends that are the ‘fly-half-way-across-the-world-to-bail-you-out-of-jail’ type friends. Not that I’ve ever been in jail, though.
- I love that I have survived some very challenging times in my life and I am still smiling today.
- I love my height. Thanks, Dad.
- I love that I have standards and morals I live up to, and I’m even more happy that everyone around me seems to respect it.
- I love my handwriting! (All 8 of them.)
I look forward to reading your list, let’s celebrate ourselves! :)
Hello and welcome! I'm Renee and I created this site to combine my love for writing, the web, and of course all things beautiful. ;) You can find out more 