Blog Post 2
On choosing to study ‘Make-up Breakdown’ for my project, I had prior knowledge on the industry as I study Hair, Make-up, and Prosthetics. However, I was keen to learn more about the fashion side of make-up and take it back to basics, learning that even the simplest of concepts can help to get a wider message across. Make-up can often be viewed as a coverup of our natural selves causing lots of people, particularly women to be nervous about wearing make-up as it could be viewed as ‘clownish’ or ‘too much’. On the other hand, many people feel they need make-up to feel themselves due to insecurity and low self-esteem. In my opinion, make-up is an art form used in a lot of people’s daily lives and holds tremendous power in expression of personality.
The better lives theme ‘Diversity’ plays a large part in the make-up industry, in the way that the possibilities of make-up looks are endless and there are numerous brands and variations of products available. While many brands champion inclusivity, there have been many scandals where shade ranges do not include enough darker tones, unfairly restricting people of colour in the make-up they can wear. For example, in 2017 Yves Saint Laurent were criticised for the poor shade range in their ‘All Hours’ foundation, with 22 shades in total, only two being suitable for darker skin. They later updated their shade range, which is currently 35 shades, however it is still heavily dominated by lighter shades.
I think from a highly successful brand like them they should be able to provide a balanced, inclusive shade range. In my future practise I will ensure my kit is suitable for all skin tones and I will use brands I know are inclusive such as Revolution Pro. I also feel that ‘Social Responsibility’ comes into play here in the fact that this issue alienates lots of people and brands to have a responsibility to make their products suitable for everybody.
In terms of ‘Sustainability’, the make-up industry is hygiene crazy as you cannot cross contaminate between clients. As a result, an enormous amount of single use disposable items such as cotton wool pads, cotton buds, tissues and wipes are used. In my practise I will try to use as few of these as possible and use alternatives. For instance, Primark recently brought out microfibre cloths which remove make-up just by adding water. Once used you can put them in the wash and use them over and over. I think this is a great way to reduce the use of make-up wipes and cotton wool, I use them myself every day and love them!
Instagram.com. 2010. YSL Beauty Official (@yslbeauty) • Instagram Photos And Videos. [online] Available at: <https://www.instagram.com/ysl/> [Accessed 22 April 2020].
Sephora.fr. 2020. YVES SAINT LAURENT | Encre De Peau All Hours Foundation – Fond De Teint Haute Couvrance Longue Tenue. [online] Available at: <https://www.sephora.fr/p/encre-de-peau-all-hours-foundation—fond-de-teint-haute-couvrance-longue-tenue-P3056010.html> [Accessed 22 April 2020].