Beauty from the inside-out!

HI!!! Ciao bellas!!! First off, thank you for visiting my website and for checking out my blog. I am pretty excited to be finally share my thoughts, tips, tricks and beauty advice in a way that is accessible to women everywhere. :)

In the 12 years that I have been in this industry, it has been so interesting to see how technology has impacted not just the formulas of beauty products (shall we talk about the tons of incredible anti-aging products on the market for instance? Helloooo J.Lo goals in a bottle!) but also how it's impacted the individual on a much more personal level. Technology of course is a wonderful thing, but with the rise of Pinterest, Instagram and Youtube (etc..), TRUE beauty has been both celebrated and SADLY criticized.

I guess that's the unfortunate thing about having an open platform....people have no qualms about expressing themselves when their opinion was not even asked for. The good thing however is that on the opposite spectrum there are so many women that are able to inspire one another to be proud of their unique features, personal beauty choices and bodies.

Those women who put themselves out there and hold their heads up high regardless of the haters are women I truly admire! Here's the message I get from their confidence -BEING YOURSELF IS TRUE BEAUTY. I think only now in my early 30s am I starting to be truly comfortable in my own skin. Odd that it has taken me so long to appreciate myself - flaws and all! I, for many years have hid behind the makeup, the lashes, the extensions.....never truly allowing my real self to shine. I was afraid. Even though it has been my job for so long to make women feel beautiful, it was ironic that I couldn't make MYSELF feel that way. Looking back, I am glad that I had to take the long road to loving myself. To be honest, every time I would have someone in my chair and they would walk away feeling gorgeous, it definitely helped build my self-esteem. That indescribable feeling of helping my fellow woman to feel pretty would somehow rub off on me and validated my desire to be a beauty expert. I loved seeing the beauty of these women from within truly radiate. It was the kind of beauty that my skills couldn't even bring out - or anyone else's for that matter.

I guess the point of my story here is to say that even though makeup can be FABULOUS, FUN, EXCITING, (and sometimes WEIRD), it really is what is underneath that matters. Women all around the world have become infatuated with "social media makeup" (the kind where a woman doesn't even look like herself- a SERIOUS beat every single day!!) that I think they are forgetting that makeup not what makes you truly beautiful but it's whats on the inside. It's fun on big occasions to have a dramatic look (hello - I would be out of work if this wasn't a thing!) but I guess I am just hoping that in time we can get back to the basics. The basics of being who we REALLY are. Finding the beauty and peace inside so that we can radiate that happiness....and nothing makes makeup look better than a genuine smile and a happy glow (the kind that no manmade highlighter can give you!)

*What makes you feel beautiful everyday?? What is your favorite "beauty" routine that makes you radiate from within?

Would love to hear from you!!

Stay beautiful,

Melissa