Wednesday 27 August 2014

• Do beauty bloggers have to be beautiful? •

Photo - The Telegraph

When Claire and Nic from Agent Smyth wrote a post discussing whether beauty bloggers had to be beautiful, I just knew 
I had to share my opinions on this, too.

Because although I feel as though I was rather late to the party of vloggers and bloggers, I've been watching/reading them for long enough to know what I really think about the whole 'beauty' situation. It seems as though many of the 'bigger' bloggers are all beautiful, all have this wonderful life that resides around blogging, being sent free products and eating out, and it's easy to forget that they have normal, every day lives, too. It's just that they're absolutely stunning alongside this. But there are also many successful bloggers that are slightly older, or don't have picture-perfect skin, or teeth that aren't pearly white and super straight, and that's okay, too. So I guess what I'm trying to say is; I read blogs by all women and men of all ages, backgrounds, skin types and what can only be called 'physical attractiveness'. But do I favour those that I deem more beautiful? No. Not in the slightest.

It's difficult to write a post about successful bloggers and not mention the name 'Zoella'. It's very obvious that Zoe is incredibly beautiful and, props to her, very successful. But do these go hand in hand? In my opinion, no. I started reading her blog a few years ago and I remember that the very first post I read did not include a photo of her, and I can remember thinking 'where is that follow button?!'. I enjoyed reading her blog for her. I liked the way she wrote, her choice of topic and her blog layout. When I finally saw her (I think I found her on YouTube shortly after) I was, not ashamedly, taken aback by quite how beautiful she is. But that was not the reason I kept going back to her blog. Some psychological theorist may tell me that it subconsciously made me return to Zoella.co.uk, but I honestly do not think that my reading enjoyment had much to do with her beauty.

I don't feel comfortable mentioning any more names - Zoe has kept her success very public so I feel happy enough to chat about her - but there are other bigger bloggers that are beautiful that I keep up with, too. However, if they were beautiful but wrote badly written posts, I would be the first to unfollow them. Whats the point of reading someone's blog when they haven't put in the effort to write it well, or have terribly edited photos? No matter how beautiful someone is, if I want to read about something, I want to read it in a quality blog post.

But there are also bloggers that I wouldn't know if I saw them in the street. These are the ones that don't often, if ever, show their face in their blog or social media - however, I absolutely trust their opinion, wholeheartedly, just as much as I would do if they had a 'beautiful face'. Clair and Nic mentioned this in their post and it's something that I really found myself nodding my head to when I read it. Again, without mentioning names, there is a particular blogger who never ever shows her face, but she is the first thing I type into my web address bar when I turn my laptop on. Her reviews are well written, quick to the point with fantastic photography. She inspires me to be a better blogger. I've never seen what she looks like, but I don't care, either. I just friggin' love her blog.

What I do feel I need to do is address this idea of 'beauty'. It is very much true that the idea of beauty is so subjective and it really is down to personal preference. An example of this is that I personally love tattoos and think they're beautiful, so if I see someone with a tattoo, I think they're good looking, whether they be male or female. I know that some of my friends detest tattoos and wouldn't dream of getting one, let alone thinking another person is attractive. The point I'm trying to make (in a very long-winded way) is that there is no way that we, as a human race, can collectively have the same idea of beauty. There are too many of us to all decide on one trend, or look, or size, or shape, or eye colour, hair colour and so on. It would be bloody boring if we all thought beauty was the same thing; all aspired to be 'beautiful'. We would literally all look exactly the same, be attracted to each other and frankly that would just be weird.

So I use the title of this post loosely. And the answer to the question is most definitely no. I'm a person that likes faces, all types of faces, but when I'm reading blogs, I really don't care what the writer looks like. When you read a book, you don't necessarily know what the author looks like, do you? If you're reading a romance novel, only to find out that the author is not 'beautiful' or what you'd imagine them to look like, would you then scrap the book and claim it's badly written? No. Well, I don't think you would, anyway. So why should we do this to bloggers?

Please leave your views, I'd love to read them.
A bit of a controversial post for me, but I felt the need to express my opinion.
It's jumbled, I know, but I write things as I think them - whether that's a good thing or not, I don't know. 
But at least my posts are always genuine, I guess! :)
Daniela xo
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22 comments :

  1. This is so interesting! I totally agree with you. I read blogs based on their content and writing style ( total writing/reading geek ) so the face behind it never really comes to my attention. I will admit to being taken aback by some of their beauty though and often scroll through Instagram for hours soaking in all the pretty pictures. The only that I don't like about some beauty bloggers is their endless pointless selfies with no caption or tag or anything

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    1. I think its such an interesting topic. I'm also a writing/reading geek so I will only read blogs if I love their writing style. I also scroll through instagram and get miffed with no-caption selfies, but it's hard to get away from the fact that we're all drawn to beautiful faces! Daniela xo

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  2. I agree, I read blog because I like what they write and what they post about or their stunning photography not because of what they like. I will to admit that some are stunning and I trawl through their Instagram pages as well. Not everyone is a super model its about being a real person and I prefer that to be honest rather than every blogger being fit for a magazine and making me feel like I don't fit in. xx
    LemonaidLies - Lifestyle & Beauty Blog

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    1. You summed that up perfectly! I think the nice thing about the internet is that everyone, no matter what you look like, can start up a blog and make it their own. There isn't a 'quota' to fit or an initiation to do and it's nice that there are so many of us that are totally different! Daniela xo

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  3. I agree with you here, I read blogs that have interesting content and are well written not if I think someone is ''beautiful'' everyone is beautiful in their own way and like you wrote it is a completely subjective thing. Bloggers are real people voicing their real opinions on topics they choose to write about and that's what I love to read :)

    www.lifeinthefashionlanee.blogspot.co.uk

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    1. Me too, I totally love the fact that anyone, no matter what you look like, can create a blog and express their own opinions without having to fit a 'quota' or criteria in order to fit in! Daniela xo

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  4. It was really interesting reading this post! I completely agree that I don't need the see the bloggers face in order to carry on reading their blog. Often I find that their personality comes out through their writing and sometimes that helps me get an idea of the person and what we have in common. Also everyone is unique, and beauty isn't just skin deep, you can find beauty in their personality, their kindness etc. :) xx

    Velvet Blush

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    1. I'm glad you enjoyed reading it :) Personality definitely comes through in writing style. That's what I love about reading blogs - you can find out so much about a person just by reading one post! Daniela xo

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  5. This is such an interesting post! I've always been very self-conscious and was hesitant on even starting a beauty blog let alone telling people about it, because I didn't think I was beautiful enough to be taken seriously! After a few harsh words from my boyfriend telling me I was being ridiculous I set up my blog and have never looked back. I personally don't care at all on what a blogger looks like. I care about their content and their personality. If I like the person I will read every post they write regardless on what they look like!

    Emily
    www.bambisbeautyblogs.com

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    1. Thank you lovely, glad you enjoyed reading it! I was too, but you have to remember that everyone is different and beauty is subjective. You are beautiful and you deserve to allow yourself to express your creativity in blog form! Your boyfriend was right and I'm glad you took his advice :) Daniela xo

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  6. This was interesting to read, I'd never seen Zoella's face and I googled her and she is stunning! I don't read blogs based on how beautiful someone is, you can't read someones face! I have to admit, I'll follow instagram accounts if I think someone is gorgeous but that's because I like to torture myself with pretty people :)

    India / Touchscreens & Beautyqueens

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    1. She is beautiful isn't she, but I love her writing most of all! I also follow MUA's on Instagram purely to admire their work, but I don't automatically think they're great writers just because they're beautiful - if that makes sense? Daniela xo

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  7. Interesting post. I'm totally agree with you that the main reason I like Zoe isn't her beauty but her personality. I also like many blogs that I don't even know the writer but I love the effort that they put on each post and the content on their blog.

    Kiss me Sunday // Bloglovin

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    1. Thank you lovely, glad you enjoyed reading it. I also just like her personality and the way she comes across in her writing, but I, like you, really appreciate a well-written, well-thought out blog post. Daniela xo

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  8. Very well said! I agree with you, content, personality, and writing style are much more important than the way a person looks xx

    http://bethht.blogspot.co.uk/

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    1. Thanks lovely! And I totally agree with that statement :) Daniela xo

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  9. Such a good post! I totally agree, content is much more important!!

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  10. This makes a great read! I was just talking about a similar subject with my friend yesterday, I'm a MUA and I always feel that if I was blessed with one of those faces that have incredible features that carry off all kinds of make up then I would post pics of my own make up more often. As it is I prefer to post pics of make up that I do on other people. But I do notice that mua's that have a huge following do tend to be incredibly beautiful...
    www.rinadeb.co.uk
    xx

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    1. I'm glad you enjoyed reading it, so thank you. I'm not blessed with that type of face either but I am blessed with other, more important things - friends, family - I hope you are, too :) Daniela xo

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  11. Loved reading this post, it really got me thinking ! I love blogging but it took me ages to get started because I am so self-conscious and didn't think anyone would want to read a blog written by someone who looked like me, not pretty and not very skinny. Then I realized that when I go to follow a blog I don't follow someone because they are pretty, I follow and read their posts because I like what they write about and the way they write. Wish I started sooner now!

    Distant Dreamer

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    1. Thanks lovely, glad you enjoyed reading it! :) Exactly, it's all about the writing! PS. You are beautiful! Daniela xo

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