Article by BR Natalie
There are no ugly women, only lazy ones - Helena Rubenstein
Cosmetics tycoon Helena Rubinstein was born poor in Krakow, Poland in 1872. Her family was large and debt ridden. The eight Rubinstein daughters were raised taking care of their looks - for the simple reason their father would never be able to pay a dowry. Back in those days a woman's aim in life was to find a solvent and preferably likeable husband. That was all.
No matter how busy her day, how tired she felt, Rubinstein always took the time to follow her mother's beauty routine. She brushed her hair 100 times to make it shine, used fresh cold water to cleanse her face and used her favourite moisturiser.
Helena Rubinstein ended up leaving her poverty stricken life and moving to America, where she single-handedly built a billion dollar cosmetics empire. She was a workaholic, who could never be accused of idleness. And despite not being a 'conventional beauty' men were enchanted by her.
She sold the idea that any woman could be beautiful with discipline. And that beauty could be bought. When any woman uses the right cosmetic her natural beauty can be enhanced dramatically. And it is a woman's duty, to herself, to be as beautiful as she can.
Old fashioned people may protest and bewail the modern preoccupation in the cultivation of beauty as a manifestation of the laxness of the times. But I shall continue to regard it as a duty, and a virtue, as well as a distinct pleasure.The Art of Feminine Beauty - Helena Rubinstein. 1930.
You might be wondering where I'm going with article. Those of you who are familiar with the Beauty Crew will know we are huge believers in natural beauty. Every woman is beautiful and every woman should feel beautiful. We're also very accepting of the fact that beauty products are there to help us look and feel more beautiful. We know that some women are completely comfortable in their looks and do not enjoy nor feel the need to use, beauty products and that's wonderful. However, we remain unapologetic of our love of beauty products.
There are no ugly women, only lazy ones.
Perhaps the biggest issue feminists have with this quote is the word ugly. Calling someone ugly is cruel and demeaning. But here's the thing - at some point all women will feel ugly and it doesn't take someone saying 'you are ugly' to make them feel that way. Don't read this quote as someone pointing the finger - that woman is ugly, she must be lazy. It's more personal than that. I feel ugly, why do I feel ugly?
I don't think I've ever been called ugly. But I know for a fact I've felt it. A lot. Looking in the mirror and hating my dull skin. My sallow eyes. My lack-lustre hair. So I put the time in, be it spending 10 minutes on my skincare routine, taking the time to detangle my hair gently instead of raking the brush through it or actually taking the time to get more sleep, and the majority of the time, I feel good about myself.
When we ask questions like 'tell us why you'd like a spot on this trial' we hear things like, "I'm a busy mum and I don't have time to spend on myself, I want to feel pretty again" or "I can never be bothered to take my makeup off at night so my skin is awful, I hate it"
The solution to their feelings and concerns is already in their answers - like any negative feeling, you need to spend time addressing it.
Personally what I don't understand is women who complain they're unhappy with their appearance but choose not to do anything about it. What gets my goat are women who choose to call people who do take the time to spend on their beauty routines vain, attention seeking, or even selfish.
I'm a busy mama. My day ends at midnight and begins at 5am. I work full time (some might say I'm a workaholic, I just love my job). I keep my house (and the husband) clean and tidy. I raise my bestest buddy (who is the reason I'm out of bed at that ungodly hour). Yet I am seldom unkempt. I should say I'm not talking about a full face of makeup, my attitude to makeup is generally 'as little as I can get away with' . Yes I have lazy days, where I might wear no make up or tie my hair back in a messy bun - but my hair is clean, my face is washed and moisturised. Why? Because it's important to me. I don't like feeling down about my appearance so I make the time everyday to feel good about myself. This doesn't make me vain. It certainly doesn't make me selfish or a bad mother. It makes me feel good therefore I approach my day and anything I encounter feeling positive and strong within myself.
Of course, I'm still not 100% happy with every part of me. I despise my feet. Luckily I can cover them up, until I motivate myself to spend some time on them! But I know the fate of my feet is in my hands. I'm choosing not to make the time to beautify them, knowing full well, they won't do it themselves!
So I guess the point of this article is if you feel ugly - firstly know that you are not. Secondly, spend some time on yourself so that you can put a lid on your insecurities and feel good about yourself. Are you a busy mum, feeling fed up of smelling like baby spit up? Don't grab 'a quick shower', feeling you must be back to mummy duties asap. Let your hubby, sister or friend sit with the baby and give yourself permission to shower for as long as you need to. Wash your hair, condition your hair, cleanse your face, exfoliate your body. Trust me, you might not feel you have an extra 10 minutes to spare, but take it anyway. The rest of your day will feel much easier when you approach it feeling great.
Can't be bothered to take off your makeup at night? Do it anyway. Staying up an extra 5 minutes isn't going to do you any harm, whereas the cycle of sleeping in your makeup, waking up with blemishes and breakouts, feeling bad about them and trying to treat them is emotion and time wasted.
Feeling drab? Don't leave the house in your pjs or slippers. Run a brush through your hair. Moisturise your face. Put on some mascara. Curb the lazy route and you'll soon feel great.
And now, like always, we want to hear your thoughts. Did Madame Rubinstein hit the nail on the head, however uncomfortable it may be to agree with her words? Do you think laziness has a part to play in women feeling ugly? Are you so busy you have no time for yourself, or if you really look at it, does laziness play a part?
Get chatting below!
I interpret this statement somewhat differently. I feel what is being said here is that all women are beautiful, some of us just need to work a little harder at making that beauty shine. I totally agree with that. We don't often have full control over our skin type, whether our skin is flawless or our pores are the right size. But with a little bit of help, our natural beauty can shine through. For me personally, my skin is dry and sallow, I still have acne scars that don't want to go away, a few freckles on one cheek, my eyebrows grow out way too fast, and so does my upper lip, my hair is frizztastic, and super dry and I often have weird fly aways. But give me 20-30 minutes every morning and I walk out of that bathroom feeling like a star. Nothing a bit of effort doesn't fix... :)