Pretty. Powerful. Or both.
What does it mean to be pretty powerful to me? I asked myself of this question as one morning, I was sick and in bed and having a really bad day. There were too many things in my plate, I was exhausted beyond normal, I felt like a rubber band stretched to its elastic limits and things were just not happening. As if that wasn't enough, a friend kept on ranting in my ears complaining about the most mundane of things and I had so badly wanted to retort back that the world did not revolve around her and people everywhere had other, more pressing matters to attend to but I held back.
This was a battle I chose not to fight. It triggered me to look at my archives, to find some sort of inspiration, to will me back to my old confident self and one of the links brought me to a related campaign: Pretty Powerful.
Back then, I defined beauty as: It was only until then that I had learned that I found people who were most comfortable with their own skin the most beautiful. Comfort in one's skin, no matter how bad it is. What I would give to be back there sometimes.
Tara Cabullo | circa Feb 2011 | Photo by Sasha Manuel
Maybe it is age, or the accumulation of experiences that redefined my view of being pretty or powerful or its conjugation. Control, that is. To be in control of one's life, to be in control of one's emotions when life throws curveballs after another --- that, to me, is pretty, powerful or both.
This was my Pretty Powerful face last Thursday {yes, with eye bags LOL}:
House of Obagi Clenziderm Line
VMV Armada Face SPF 45
Max Factor Age Elixir in Beige
MAC Studio Fix Foundation in NC30
MAC Studio Fix Concealer in NC30
Benefit Blush in Sugarbomb
Benefit High Beam highlighter
shiseido brow pencil in brown
MAC brow set in Girl Boy
The Body Shop Golden Beige eyeshadow
Maybelline eyeshadow in Steel Gray
Fanny Serrano dark green eyeshadow
The Body Shop yellow eyeshadow for the mid-lash
Maybelline Liquid Eyeliner
Maybelline Volum Express Cat Eyes Mascara
Kiehl's Lip Balm #1 in Mango
MAC Lipstick in Please Me
And sometimes, in a girl's life, the only thing she can control is her makeup and outfit. At least for that day, I could say I was pretty powerful.
Here are some snaps from the Pretty Powerful by Bobbi Brown brunch and book launch:
Atty. Margarita Gonzales shared how she came to be the pretty powerful lawyer slash model that she is now.
Loved Kai's demo on Bobbi Brown day and night looks cos he was so candid! xx
The pretty interns of Bobbi Brown who were Kai's models for night (left) and day (right).
LBD: Forever 21
Scarf: Zara
Pumps: Promod
Belt: H&M
That, my friends, is the Oyster and Caviar Palette for the Holiday 2012 collection. That Ballet Pink blush is the most gorgeous thing ever.
So this was my takeaway: that one is her prettiest and most powerful when she has the grasp of her heart and her mind, when she controls her own ship and her emotions when things don't go her way. That she is her prettiest when the Universe hands her not too nice circumstances but can manage the direction to which her lips go, or the flow of her thoughts, or her words and the battles she will fight or ignore. That is prettiest and most powerful to me.
What does it mean to be pretty powerful to you? Share with me in the comments section!
xx
*Pretty Powerful by Bobbi Brown is available at all National Book Stores, Fully Booked and Powerbooks branches.