Does What's Inside Really Count?
December 13th 2007 12:24
The fashion industry is often accused of focusing on the superficial. It’s all about exteriors - how thin, how fabulous, how avant-garde someone is. We are told from a very young age that beauty is only skin deep, and what really counts is inner beauty. But when the fashion industry is as revered and profitable as it is, it would seem we don’t really buy into the mantra. Or do we?
The thing about both exterior and interior beauty is that to a great extent, we don’t have a choice in how it all turns out naturally. How we came out of that womb is often it. Love it or hate it, your genetics dictate your face and figure fate, and to a certain extent, your personality. Personality of course we are capable of changing ourselves, although I’m not suggesting it’s easy. Inner beauty is just that – being a good person, but again, it is tricky to determine what defines this. I think we have all encountered a person we deemed to be a total bitch who actually has friends, and we can’t help but wonder how that’s possible if she’s so awful. Maybe there are packs of totally mean girls who only associate with each other, or maybe we all have our own ideas of what constitutes internal beauty, as well as external fabulousness.
For many people, working on the outer beauty is a lot easier than working on the inner, and that’s where the beauty and fashion industries come in. From push up bras to anti-wrinkle cream, cellulite treatments to corsets and a myriad of cosmetics options to $600 jeans, if you want to look a certain way, the only limit is your bank account. Fashion and beauty can enhance, emphasise or even change whatever it is you want to focus on.
The ability to change how you look is what makes the fashion industry one that transcends almost all boundaries. People who can’t afford couture will often tune in to the fashion shows so they can at least buy into the fantasy. Vogue acts as a fashion bible for many, and even if your income doesn’t allow for the latest Dior accessories, it gives you an idea of what’s hot and then you can find alternative (and more affordable) substitutes. It is through fashion that we are able to look taller, thinner, more glamorous, more fabulous, more conservative or more outrageous. Fashion is a form of expression like no other, and is one of the few ways you speak to the world about who you are. In that sense, fashion and personality are intrinsically linked, and at this point the interior and exterior meld.
Despite this, at the end of the day our mummies are right, and no matter how beautiful you are on the outside, if you make people feel bad about themselves, you’re still not going to be fabulous. So beauty and the beast can actually be one and the same. In fact, we probably all know one. On the same note, no matter how pretty you look, if you don’t feel pretty on the inside, you will probably stop thinking you’re pretty too. Although we love to hate the most beautiful people on the planet, most of us still prefer to hear that someone as beautiful as Megan Gale is actually a down to earth, lovable person, and that’s essentially what we’re all striving for - to like the way we look, but be liked for who we are.
There is nothing wrong with making the most of what you have, but make sure that means making the most of what you have as a person as well as what you have on the exterior. Inner beauty really does shine through, and then you can just help it along with a little bit of Mac.
The thing about both exterior and interior beauty is that to a great extent, we don’t have a choice in how it all turns out naturally. How we came out of that womb is often it. Love it or hate it, your genetics dictate your face and figure fate, and to a certain extent, your personality. Personality of course we are capable of changing ourselves, although I’m not suggesting it’s easy. Inner beauty is just that – being a good person, but again, it is tricky to determine what defines this. I think we have all encountered a person we deemed to be a total bitch who actually has friends, and we can’t help but wonder how that’s possible if she’s so awful. Maybe there are packs of totally mean girls who only associate with each other, or maybe we all have our own ideas of what constitutes internal beauty, as well as external fabulousness.
For many people, working on the outer beauty is a lot easier than working on the inner, and that’s where the beauty and fashion industries come in. From push up bras to anti-wrinkle cream, cellulite treatments to corsets and a myriad of cosmetics options to $600 jeans, if you want to look a certain way, the only limit is your bank account. Fashion and beauty can enhance, emphasise or even change whatever it is you want to focus on.
The ability to change how you look is what makes the fashion industry one that transcends almost all boundaries. People who can’t afford couture will often tune in to the fashion shows so they can at least buy into the fantasy. Vogue acts as a fashion bible for many, and even if your income doesn’t allow for the latest Dior accessories, it gives you an idea of what’s hot and then you can find alternative (and more affordable) substitutes. It is through fashion that we are able to look taller, thinner, more glamorous, more fabulous, more conservative or more outrageous. Fashion is a form of expression like no other, and is one of the few ways you speak to the world about who you are. In that sense, fashion and personality are intrinsically linked, and at this point the interior and exterior meld.
Despite this, at the end of the day our mummies are right, and no matter how beautiful you are on the outside, if you make people feel bad about themselves, you’re still not going to be fabulous. So beauty and the beast can actually be one and the same. In fact, we probably all know one. On the same note, no matter how pretty you look, if you don’t feel pretty on the inside, you will probably stop thinking you’re pretty too. Although we love to hate the most beautiful people on the planet, most of us still prefer to hear that someone as beautiful as Megan Gale is actually a down to earth, lovable person, and that’s essentially what we’re all striving for - to like the way we look, but be liked for who we are.
There is nothing wrong with making the most of what you have, but make sure that means making the most of what you have as a person as well as what you have on the exterior. Inner beauty really does shine through, and then you can just help it along with a little bit of Mac.
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