Going beyond the call of beauty
It’s not just about visual content as beauty vloggers share powerful messages of hope to millions of viewers.
YOU wouldn’t think there’s money to be made from having other people watch how you apply make- up on your face. But ... OMG! I learnt a couple of things recently. So OK, I may be a bit of a dinosaur when it comes to tech terms or social media- speak. I can imagine my kids laughing hysterically at me in the background: “You mean you didn’t know?”
Yeah, well, better later than never, they say.
I found out that a person who video blogs is called a “vlogger”. I figured what it meant instantly when I saw the word, but I confess it wasn’t the first thing that popped up in my vocabulary. Then again, how many people actually know where the word “blog” came from?
The term “weblog” was coined by Jorn Barger in December 1997, and it just meant updated components of common websites then. Later that year, Ian Ring started out with an “e- journal” and made claims to have invented “blogging”. The word was shortened to blog by Peter Merholz in 1999.
Five years later, Steve Garfield supposedly declared that year to be “the year of the video blog” and as vlogging became increasingly popular, it became an accepted term in English dictionaries in 2005. Bet you didn’t know all that! And here’s another bit of information that might stop you in your tracks. Apparently, top beauty vloggers can earn millions, and even B- listers don’t do too badly as they can make at least half of that in a year.
One of the industry pioneers, Michelle Phan, started out with YouTube’s partner programmes, making just 50 cents a day, reported Fashionista. com. Eventually, she quit her day job to focus full- time on vlogging, and is today considered a brand herself.
The first to hit one billion views on YouTube, she went from growing up on food stamps to owning a nearly US$ 100mil ( RM423mil) empire, reported ABC News.
The America- born Vietnamese has eight million followers and her “how to” make- up videos led to her own L’oreal make- up line and the book, Make Up: Your Life Guide To Beauty, Style, and Success - Online and Off, among other things.
I’m wondering, have I wasted my years writing about beauty and whatnot when I could have been behind the video lens making big bucks? I’ll never know.
What’s even more mind- boggling is that some of the top vloggers are barely 18!
Other popular beauty- vloggers include Bethany Mota, 18, who vlogs under the name Macbarbie07 and began when she was 13; Allie Marie Evens ( Glassslipperbeauty), 17 and already a fashion news anchor during New York Fashion week and featured in TeenVogue; Gracie Francesca ( The Ugly Face of Beauty), 24, fashion and beauty blogger; and Briton Anna May Fox ( Anna vs Life), just 18, and also a writer, blogger and musician.
What these smart cookies have in common is the business sense to monetise their vlogs and tie up with brands. Apparently, the aesthetic quality of the video itself isn’t crucial as viewers are more concerned about the subject matter and originality, writes fashionista. com.
These young women are changing the landscape of make- up and beauty as we know it, and they are the real influencers of our time as they don’t only vlog about beauty – personal opinions, messages of hope, awareness and even despair, are communicated across as well.
You only hope that the younger generation are looking up the right ones and getting the right advice.
Fox, for instance, gives her own unique take on life while Francesca talks about tackling body issues.
One beauty vlogger that has emerged to be a true inspiration is Jordan Bone, 25, from Norfolk, Britain, who was paralysed from chest down after a traumatic car crash when she was 15. Rising above her circumstances to become a successful vlogger and businesswoman, she also campaigns with social action charity Fixers, which gives young people motivated by personal experience a chance to make positive change for others.
Even if you don’t care for beauty tutorials anyway, here’s a sobering video clip which everyone should watch: https:// www. youtube. com/ watch? v=- MhbULUd- KE
It begins easily enough as 18- year- old Reshma Quereshi teaches you how to apply the perfect red lip: exfoliate, moisturise, line lips, then apply lipstick.
What catches your eye isn’t the colour of the lipstick or some sales pitch; it’s her face that speaks a thousand words.
The real message at the end is more powerful: as easy as it is to buy red lipstick, it is just as easy to get a bottle of acid and cause harm. A public service announcement led by Indian acid- attack survivors called Make Love Not Scars, the video is linked to a petition urging the Indian Prime Minister to ban acid sales to the public.
More than 75% of victims are women and by raising awareness, Reshma hopes to make a difference.
Patsy thinks the real influencers on social media are those who can affect positive change. Send your feedback to star2@ thestar. com. my TO get you in the mood for the Rugby World Cup 2015, Bulgari teamed up with the All Blacks New Zealand rugby team to introduce two limited editions EDP for men under the Bulgari Man All Blacks 2015 editions: Bulgari Man In Black and Bulgari Man Extreme. The Bulgari Man In Black is characterised by a sensual neo- Oriental signature, while the Bulgari Man Extreme radiates masculinity and encapsulates the virile essence of the modern man. To top it off, the traditional Maori “moko” facial tattoo, a symbol of vitality and strength, is lacquered on each of the flacons. Price: RM409 each. Available at Bulgari counters at Sogo KL, Parkson ( selected), Isetan, Aeon, Metrojaya and Pacific stores nationwide. SAY hello to brighter mornings! Bliss’ two professional grade skincare, the Transluminous Intensive Clarifying Treatment and Transluminous Pigment Correcting Serum work together or alone to give you clearer skin. The Intensive Clarifying Treatment, to be used in the evenings only, delivers time- released and concentrated level of 25% vitamin C to battle hyperpigmentation as you sleep, while the Correcting Serum’s Illumiscin complex addresses skin discoloration. Both include arbutin, an effective alternative to hydroquinone that inhibits melanin production promoting a more even skin tone and texture. Price: RM425 to RM435. Available at all Sephora stores except Imago Shopping Mall, Kota Kinabalu.