The Empowering Reason Women Are Posting Half Made-Up Makeup Selfies

There’s a misconception about makeup, and an emerging social media campaign is hoping to change that.

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Back in May, beauty guru Nikkie took to her YouTube channel for a powerful PSA of sorts: she would apply her makeup as usual to one side of her face, leaving the rest completely bare to show the effects, while still emphasizing that her love of makeup does not mean she’s abandoning her authentic self.

“I’ve been noticing a lot lately that girls have been ashamed to say that they love makeup because nowadays you say you love makeup, you either do it because you want to look good for boys or you do it because you’re insecure or you do it because you don’t love yourself,” the Netherlands native, who was inspired by an episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race with a similar challenge, said in her video. “It’s almost a crime to love doing your makeup.”

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And now, fans are following suit by posting their own half-made, half-bare selfies on Instagram to show their unapologetic love of makeup, tagging the photos with #ThePowerofMakeup.

A quick scan of #ThePowerofMakeup on both Twitter and Instagram shows a rapidly growing feed of ladies proudly showing off their true selves, both with and without makeup.

One user, Hannah Shaw, captioned her selfie with an empowering statement, writing “Embrace the power of makeup and how good it makes you feel. For you, not for anyone else.”

Do you find these selfies empowering? Have you contributed?

— Grace Gavilanes

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