How to Look Beautiful Without Makeup

I know, I know. You're probably thinking "Yeah, right. Makeup is the only way I look good enough to leave my place of refuge."

But what if I told you that what I am about to say is NOT a bunch of cheesy BS or advice that never works?

So if you're willing to hear me out, here is a list of 8 things that make me feel beautiful without a bit of makeup on. These are things that work for ME. They may not work for everyone, but I like to think that there's someone out there that can benefit from these things like I have.

SMILE!

This may sound like a no-brainer, but people seem to forget that we all look our best when we are smiling and happy. Studies have shown that smiling improves our mood and reduces stress levels. Which makes us, what? Happy! And happy people are beautiful people. Really. Just smile more. Smile at yourself in the mirror when you wake up in the morning. Smile at your cup of coffee. Smile at your dog. (You get the idea.)

DO SOMETHING YOU LOVE

I don't know about you, but I feel incredibly happy when I am doing something I love. Consequently, I feel beautiful as well. When we engage in activities or hobbies that bring our hearts joy, it increases our happiness levels. And as I mentioned above, when we are happy we look more beautiful. (I mean, who looks beautiful with a grimace on their face?)

So do something you genuinely enjoy. Go for a bike ride. Rock climb. Read a book. Hang out with friends or family. Knit. Bake something delicious. Go for a hike. Make art. Play an instrument. Take a swim. Whatever is your vibe, your jam, your cup of tea. Do that.

TAKE A SHOWER

I admit, this is a weird suggestion. You might be thinking "Of course I shower. Who needs to be reminded to shower?" Thank you for stating the obvious, Carol. For the majority of us, personal hygiene is something that comes easily and we don't need to be reminded to take care of our bodies. But there are some days when your hair is a bit more oily than you'd like, you have some breakouts, or you just feel BLEH. Solution? Take a shower!

There are times when I know I need to take a shower but I try to put it off until the next day because I feel I'm too busy to fit one in. What I have learned in my 26 years of living: JUST. TAKE. A. FREAKING. SHOWER. I feel SO much better afterwards! I also feel renewed and beautiful again. (Is that strange?) It's like all the ugly washed down the drain and I can keep on being my beautiful, clean self.

PAMPER YOURSELF

This one is self-explanatory. Pamper yourself if you have the means to. Give yourself a clay facial. Soak in an Epsom salt bath. Paint your toenails. (Or if you can afford it, get a pedicure.) Eat some dark chocolate. Give yourself an intensive hair treatment. Whatever it is you do to show yourself some extra lovin', make time for it at least once a week. You deserve it!

LAUGH

I can't reiterate this enough. When we FEEL happy, we look and feel beautiful as well. Laughter is the best medicine. It is also the key to beauty and a long life. So, seek out opportunities for laughter. Joke around with friends. Watch a quality comedy. Play board or card games that facilitate laughter. What elicits laughing-so-much-it-hurts laughs for you?

GET ENOUGH SLEEP

When we look exhausted, we don't look or feel our best. We get circles under our eyes, we often get grouchy, irritable, or impatient with others. We essentially become the Grinch no matter what time of year it is. Inadequate sleep also leads to premature signs of aging. Aim for at least 8 hours of sleep every night.

I, for one, ALWAYS have circles under my eyes no matter how much sleep I get due to my fair skin and prominent blue veins under my eyes. I look a lot better in the summer when I get some sun. Let's just say winter isn't when I look my best without makeup. If you don't have this problem and you look like a goddess after a good night's sleep, consider yourself blessed.

DO SOMETHING NICE FOR SOMEONE ELSE

Now we are going to focus outside of ourselves. There's no denying that helping others makes us feel good. Some of us thrive on serving others. When I do something kind for someone else, it makes me incredibly happy. (And remember: happy = beautiful) Whether that is helping an elderly woman load groceries into her car, or paying for a stranger's coffee at Starbucks, or baking cookies for a lonely family member or friend, it makes me feel SO GOOD that I made someone else's day.

Focusing OUTSIDE of yourself and doing acts of kindness for others will bring you joy and make you think less about your own problems. As a result, you will feel like a beautiful person. You may not realize it, but our inner feelings have an impact on our outward appearance -- positive and negative. Feeling beautiful on the inside will inevitably manifest on the outside.

EMBRACE YOUR FACE

I love that this one rhymes! Embrace your face. None of us are super models and we are most definitely imperfect. Remember my chronic under eye circles? I have learned to embrace it because it's who I am. I can't change it. On the days where I have to look put together or professional, I put on some undereye concealer. But with or without it, I still feel beautiful. And that's what truly matters.

Unfortunately, many of us compare ourselves to celebrities or those we follow on social media. They appear to look flawless every hour of the day and lead these perfect lives of perfection. If this causes you to feel ugly or bad about yourself, unfollow, block, unsubscribe, and stop looking at that shit. Excuse my language, but I am dead serious. Stop consuming media that causes you to think negative thoughts about yourself. Not only is comparison the thief of joy, but it breeds discontent and ugliness.

You are unique. Embrace your face. Flaws and all. Beauty and all. Embrace it. Besides, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. It's subjective.

I'll let you in on a little secret........

You don't have to live up to society's standards of beauty. Besides, these standards are often unattainable or downright ridiculous.

Embrace your gorgeous freckles that create constellations across your skin. Embrace your beautiful birthmark wherever it may be. Embrace your pale skin. Your olive skin. Your dark skin. Your untamable, lioness hair. Your fiery red hair. Your thick, powerful thighs. Unruly brows. Scars. Beauty marks. Any characteristic or feature that makes you YOU. Embrace it. Once you embrace yourself and stop wishing you could change the things you hate about your appearance, you become not only beautiful in your own eyes, but beautiful to others as well.

True beauty comes from embracing who you are. It doesn't come from makeup or fancy clothes. I am in no way saying these things are inherently bad. I am saying that relying on these things to make us beautiful will only leave us feeling empty and ugly.

I hope that you will be able to take the advice I have given you and apply it to your life. Share the knowledge with others. Now go be a beautiful, happy, badass human. Shine on.

<3