Today I wanted to write a post to address an issue that is causing a pretty big divide between both makeup artists and non-makeup artists alike. Instaglam! If you haven’t heard the term ‘Instaglam’ before, it’s the word coined to describe the heavily contoured and very full makeup looks that are currently doing the rounds on Instagram. Think of the likes of Nikki Tutorials, Amrezy, Paige Louise Makeup Academy and the like. Commonly referred to as ‘drag style’ makeup, this makeup is very full on and uses a range of makeup techniques in abundance.
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Naturally enhancing makeup by Rachael Divers Makeup Artistry | Instaglam vs Natural Beauty: Why the makeup bashing has to stop
So, why is it dividing opinion? Well, some positively love the look, and some hate it with a passion. In fact, opinions are so strong that I’ve seen long threads full of random girls and guys arguing the toss up with each other and even resorting to personal insults sprinkled in-between whilst stating their points. So, with that in mind, I wanted to put my opinion to the forefront. And my opinion is this; makeup should be whatever the hell you want it to be.
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Heavy Glam Makeup by Paige Louise Makeup Academy | Instaglam vs Natural Beauty: Why the makeup bashing has to stop
I’m a big believer in natural makeup and natural beauty, but I’m also a fan of the heavier makeup looks too. I love makeup in all its glory; whether a gorgeously natural base that lets those beautiful freckles and natural skin show through, right over to full coverage foundations and a Miss Fame-esque queen-worthy eye. The beauty about makeup is this: it washes off.
Whilst working for Illamasqua, we were taught to both be respectful and creative as artists. Take this for example, a 70-year-old lady wants to wear a glittery, shimmery eyeshadow. As trained makeup artists, we know that this will accentuate the inevitable lid creases that come naturally with maturity and be unflattering compared to a matte shade, but who are we to tell anybody that they ‘can’t wear that makeup anymore’ because they’re older? Nobody, that’s who. Yes, we can educate our clients and suggest what we might deem to be a more suitable match, but at the end of the day, our client is paying us to carry out a service and ultimately, that’s what we create. If we can provide both of these kinds of looks as artists, we’re on the right path. Yes, no self-respecting artist would let their client walk away with a dark orange face, terribly obvious contour and lashes that would provoke taking flight upon blinking, but when makeup is applied heavily but artistically and in the right situation, I don’t see why it’s such a huge problem.
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Instaglam favourite Amrezy |Instaglam vs Natural Beauty: Why the makeup bashing has to stop
What really gets to me most of all about the whole Instaglam vs Natural debate is the amount of hate comments that I see flying around on social media on a daily basis. As makeup artists as a collective, we should be building each other up and sharing our advice, working together to share our successes and learning from our failures. And as women, we should be empowering one another rather than tearing each other down. Of course, everybody is entitled to an opinion, but when it’s downright mean, it’s a completely different ball game.
Everybody has different tastes, from the makeup artists that are advocates of beautifully natural looks like Bobbi Brown and Lisa Eldridge to the artists that love to amp up the drama. And that’s totally okay. There is nothing ‘wrong’ with wearing a heavy highlight and contour if that’s how you like to wear your makeup, and there’s nothing wrong with wearing only a tinted moisturiser either. What’s important to remember is that we should never feel like we HAVE to cover our faces up and change our features, but to know that if we want to have fun and play around with makeup, then that’s totally okay too. Although it’s extremely important, in my opinion, to educate young girls, teens and women that their makeup is here to enhance their beautiful features, we should also remind them that makeup is also about personal expression and can be worn how they want to wear it.
As an artist, I fall in-between the two categories and I love that I have the knowledge and have had the training to be able to apply both of these different looks to suit different clients needs and expectations. I have some clients who would be extremely unhappy if I applied a natural makeup look to them, and I have some that would be shellshocked if I applied full glam; it’s all about supply and demand.
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Heavier makeup with a stronger contour | Instaglam vs Natural Beauty: Why the makeup bashing has to stop
Makeup is there to enhance our features, inspire creativity and most of all, to inspire us to have a little fun.
Whatever your preferred look, wear it with pride!
© This post is copyright of Rachael Divers 2017.