How I Wear It + My Two Cents: The Power of Makeup

Hello everyone, and hello to my first post of 2016!

Last year, I vowed to solely focus on myself because I lost sight of myself. I didn't recognize who I was, and I absolutely hated that feeling. Through an incredible year of self-discovery and a lot of self-love, I found a sense of confidence that brought me to this point.

"The Power of Makeup" is not a new concept. I have always wanted to share this post, but I was scared. In fact, I am still scared. For me, going out makeup-less is equivalent to going out naked. For a so-called fashion and beauty blogger, exposing my natural face totally discredits me. However, this blog was created with the intentions of being completely raw, so here I am with all of the confidence in my 5'1" body to lay it all out as I share these untouched photos.

I have shared my relationship with my face/skin on this blog numerous times. To reiterate, I have been battling against acne since I was in middle school. Before then, I had a lot of bizarre kinds of scarring. I have used all sorts of tropical creams. I have used both traditional and modern medicine. I have seen a dermatologist for all of my conditions. I have taken birth control pills for the sole purpose of controlling my hormones. I have experienced glimpses of hope followed by despair.

I may have initially used makeup for all of the wrong reason of masking my face, but it has given me the strength to walk into a room of people without feeling anxious. Makeup has given me the opportunity to be treated equally without the hindrance of my flawed skin. Makeup has given me the power to be more than just a face of inflamed cysts.

With this face of mine, I have been shamed for both wearing and not wearing makeup. When wearing makeup, I am supposedly trying too hard or I am supposedly asking for it. When not wearing makeup, I supposedly do not care about myself or I am supposedly dirty. Either way, I am supposedly not good enough.

Sadly, after being told that you are not good enough for so long, you end up believing it. After being bullied for years, I ended up being my own bully. I would beat myself over the way I looked. Not only did acne hurt me physically, but it also hurt me mentally.

The purpose of this post was to state the obvious: I am the exact same person with or without makeup.

My Ten Cents #49: Before you quickly judge someone solely based on his or her face, remember that there is so much more to a person than his or her face.

There is so much negativity in this world; let's not add to that. Please be kind.