Faking it: How much is too much?

Though I had every intention of my first official blog post to be light, and foray into the world of de-humidifying hair products-something else is on my mind...  Vancouver is diverse, with people from many corners of the world calling the city home.  While sometimes the divide feels deep, there's a common thread running through all of us.  We're faking something.  Whether it's our hair, eye, or skin color, the knock off bag, or leased luxury vehicle-it's not really ours.  Maybe it's more inconspicuous that that-maybe what's being faked is the smile all day at work, or the salad at lunch followed by a Big Mac for dinner.

When did faking it become so natural?

Open any magazine, and you'll find it featuring beautiful men and women who have been faked. Retouched to no end, the models are flawless shadows of their real selves.  I stumbled across an interesting post by a fellow blogger.  Lola Seicento is a blogger hailing from Los Angeles, and she wrote about Demi Moore's campaign for Helena Rubinstein. Specficially, Seicento touched on the scandal which followed once the images were released.  Demi had been almost unrecognizably re-touched, and resembled her twenty-three year old daughter more than her own self.

Lola's Secret Beauty Blog - Demi Moore for Helena Rubinstein

The beauty industry isn't known for being transparent.  From ingredients to benefits (or lack thereof), much is concealed from purchasers.  Almost every image displayed in the media has been altered somehow.  The question lately is how much is acceptable in terms of digital altering-and what impact does this have on society?

With eating disorders at an all time high, the quest for "perfection" is always just out of reach.  When as a society, will be start holding people or corporations accountable?  I appreciate beautiful artwork, people, fashion just as much as the next beauty junkie out there.  My Vogues hold a special place in my heart-and on my coffee table.  I don't expect complete transparency when I open a magazine, or see an ad with a beautiful model gracing the page.  I do expect some level of accountability-and realism.  Tools such as Photoshop are fantastic for cleaning up hairlines, brightening eyes, etc... What needs to stop is slimming down thighs of size two models, elongating necks, and contorting face shapes.

A fantastic video which has been circulating for some time was put together by Dove.  This video shows just how much effort goes into creating the beautiful models we see in ad campaigns, and the tweaking of the images once they're shot.

Dove Evolution Video

Should I have higher expectations when it comes to what I see in magazines?  Will beauty campaigns ever feature real untouched beauty?  Only time will tell.

Xo

T