French Elle’s No Makeup Issue Celebrates Natural Beauty

The most recent issue of French Elle magazine hit shelves earlier this week with an interesting (and might I say, refreshing) twist: all the cover models were photographed without any makeup or photo re-touching.

Most of the time when I see “Stars Without Makeup!” on a magazine cover, it’s on the front of some tabloid surrounded by unattractive candid shots of gorgeous stars like Jennifer Lopez in an effort to “humanize” them and make it seem like they’re more like us “regular” folk.  And I don’t know about all of you, but these sort of pictures always scare me a little–if  celebrities look this bad without their makeup, what hope do the rest of us have?  I know that I can’t ever leave the house with at least eyeliner or mascara on without feeling like I look sick.

So when I first heard about French Elle‘s “Stars Sans Fards” (literally meaning “without makeup”, but also suggests a sort of “openness”), I was a little scared and also surprised–it definitely doesn’t sound like something I’d expect to see in a magazine like Elle.

Once I saw the pictures, though, I was completely awed.

The women on the cover don’t look like what I’ve come to expect from those paparazzi no-makeup shots: they look absolutely beautiful. Why don’t I look that good without makeup on?  I love the idea of the “au natural” look, but I’ve never been brave enough to try it myself. I know what I look like before a swipe of cover up and a touch of blush – no one else needs to see that. Read More »