What does “beauty” mean to Kelly…

Beauty to me is not necessarily the way I look but a feeling. I am 46 and don’t want to look 25 but I do want to look and feel comfortable with who I am. I have never been one to feel that I was pretty or beautiful. I’m not unhappy with the way I look but beautiful would not be a word I used to describe myself.

I was raised as a pastor’s daughter and was held to a standard of what other people thought. I couldn’t be messy or dirty. I couldn’t have wrinkles in my clothes or a hair out-of-place. The pastor’s family is on display and even though those days are long behind me I still don’t leave the house without make up or my hair not done. Beauty to me wasn’t something I felt but looking my best was an expectation. The first words when meeting someone were typically about the way I looked “oh aren’t you pretty!” rather than “it’s so nice to meet you.” Beauty was expected.

Not too long ago during a conversation with a friend, I was pointing out some of my flaws and my friend stopped me and said “Don’t you know you are gorgeous?” I was caught off guard because that wasn’t the way I viewed myself. My friend went on to list things off, that to me, were ordinary. My eyes, my smile, my hands, the muscles on my arms and calves. The way when I smiled my eyes sparkled and when I listened to others that my compassion was evident in my face and body language. It was my hair when I let it be messy and the curve of my waist. My friend captured and described things I had never thought of as beautiful, they were either expected or just regular. What has stayed with me about that experience was that I felt beautiful. Not because my make up was perfect or my clothes were exactly right but I could see those things described through my friend’s eyes, more importantly I felt them. Even better… I still do. Some times it is true, you have to see things through another’s eyes gain a new perspective. Beauty to me is a feeling, I can use all the tools I have in my arsenal from flat irons, to Botox to concealers (and I do!) but honestly those tools only enhance what you have, the feeling that you have inside of you about yourself is really what is beautiful. So when someone tells you that you are beautiful, believe them and not only believe them but allow yourself, give yourself permission to feel it. Beauty is not always in the eyes of the beholder, it is right there inside of you.

Ashley Evert and Her Thoughts on “Beauty”

Beauty isn’t as simple as a shade of lipstick, a certain hair style or an expensive pair of shoes.  It is not an overly photoshopped unrealistic

“ideal woman”

on the front page of a magazine.

As a beautician, I see people’s “befores” and they expect me to be able to create an “after” that reflects the way they feel about themselves on the inside. For me, beauty is being able to outwardly portray the way you feel about yourself.  

For me, that means a full face of makeup (lipstick, false eyelashes, the whole nine yards), rich crimson colored hair, and a wardrobe inspired by clothes from the 1940’s and 50’s.

 The star sports athlete grinning with a medal around his or her neck, showing off the physique they worked hard to get is beauty.  

A women who struggled with body confidence issues modeling in clothes she feels sexy in is beauty.  Ladies who choose to go “au natural” because they feel more comfortable without makeup on is beauty.

Beauty is recognizing that everyone should feel comfortable in his or her own skin.  

True beauty is achieved when we stop judging each other for how we each choose to portray how we feel about ourselves to the world. 

Katie Hughes Believes That Beauty Is……

 Beauty is confidence. Beauty is waking up In the morning and walking out the door without makeup.

Beauty is having the confidence to rock those new shoes that no one else has yet to wear.

I believe that confidence stems from fully embracing who you are. Confidence is embracing every part of your body and loving who you are and what you do. Beauty is not about wearing the latest trends or the most expensive makeup. It’s about loving yourself.

Your scars.

Your birthmarks.

Your awkward baby hairs.

Beauty is embracing all of these imperfections. To me the most beautiful people hold the biggest scars, have experienced tremendous loss but are confident in who they are as an individual. In my opinion there is nothing more beautiful then meeting people who are confident in there own skin. Always remember confidence is contagious!

What “beauty” means to Michelle…

My idea of beauty has evolved tremendously over the years. I remember growing up thinking that beauty was simply something you could see and touch or feel. A cute boy, a new dress, a great body, perfect long, thick, wavy hair. And of course love.Things to desire and obtain. The problem with this is that often these things are not obtainable…and if you are lucky enough to get them, they almost never last. The boy dumps you, the dress goes out of style, the body sags and scars, and the hair grays, thins, and may never hold that curl that you burned your forehead and deleted part of the ozone in trying to obtain. And what about love? Sure, in its greatest form it can be considered beautiful. But it can also be messy, painful, dangerous, and end in 10 pounds and puffy eyes.

I can now see and define beauty in Creation. The act combining thoughts, care, passion, materials, ideas, emotions into something significant. It is not the thing, but the process that is beautiful. Gods creation of a sunset, a photographers finding just the right moment and light, forming a lump of mud into a vessel to hold flowers or coffee, giving life to a child, making a piece of jewelry knowing it will give a smile. Creation is full of possibilities. Creation is filled with trials, learning moments, success, disappointment, all of those things that very single person experiences. And the creation of love? It is about giving, accepting, working through the hard stuff, not giving up, being vulnerable, sharing ideas, emotions, and experiences. Supporting and fighting for those you hold dear. It is the creation of friendships, partnerships and bonds that carry us through this world until the end. To me, this is beauty, and it is never-ending. 🙂

What does “beauty” mean to you? 1

Beauty is imperfect. It is always changing always flowing. It is faith that who you are is okay so that you tell other people who they are is ok. It is not about six-pack abs, chiseled backs, round shoulders, or perfect biceps. A beautiful woman has no perfect body. We are all different and all women I am attracted to are attractive because of their differences, subtleties, and uniqueness. Not in spite of them.

The most beautiful humans are the ones who live by admittance they are imperfect and can relax and have fun. After all, in a game of monopoly, you can take all the money and property, but it all goes back in the box, so you may as well have fun before it does. A beautiful human has faith other people will want to join them in that fun.

The light that shines through can be seen and felt by all. What we look like doesn’t matter and what we say doesn’t matter but how we behave and make people feel is all that does. Love is the greatest human currency, so it’s the most beautiful thing a human can have.

Justin Wisor