...thoughts on beauty journalism and how it's changed, women making time for skincare, the gender getting ready gap, and my French supermarket fancies...
Loved this post! I can’t remember if we’ve talked about this before, but the shift from being a journalist to having to be an influencer is the main reason I left it and went brand side.
I admire those who have transitioned over to be/do both, but I couldn’t do it. I’d always been so grateful to be working in beauty despite feeling I didn’t look the part, but as it changed I felt like I stood out like a sore thumb because I wasn’t camera-friendly. It’s also so competitive, and it seemed you’d only be hired for the bigger jobs if you were part writer, part model. I miss journalism dearly but I’m so much happier working on brands because I don’t have that constant comparison anymore! I’m also grateful for your advice when I was freelancing to not fall into the trap of being the story.
That said I get why it’s needed because that’s how people are consuming media these days. I’m just glad I got the chance to do it as a career for a bit before it evolved!
I didn’t know that that was the main reason you’d left. I’m so sorry but selfishly am glad it’s not just me who’s seeing this. Am really glad you’ve found a way to stay within the industry in a way that makes you happier.
Love Le Petit Marseillais - I came across the little tubes of hand cream by chance when our last visit and love! I think it’s the almond one. I also adore grabbing the classic eau fraiches/colognes in the giant bottles for a couple of euros. Sidenote: listening to my inbox on audio this morning, and you might find it fun – amusing to listen to the beautifully pronounced French names and prices on the text voice translation!
Just hit the play button top right in the app of any Substack post – some make this function only available to paid subs but it’s especially cool listening to, say, the French words as here! (Pardonnez-moi if you already knew this!) Loved all of this, too.
One of the key reasons I stepped away from journalism: the fact that I was increasingly expected to be photographed / share my personal experiences / become the story (often in a way that would be shaped to fit an agenda - even more uncomfortable). Like you, it's not why I went in to it - it's because I was curious and interested in exploring stories in more depth and bringing information to a wider audience. I have no desire to put myself out there in that way - in either the mainstream or social media. It's a shame because that means many of us walk away when we still have something valuable to contribute.
Damn, it’s journalism’s loss. I suppose the bit that I didn’t explore was the demand side of it. Newspapers / websites are products that want to sell and they’ll shapeshift to become what the readers want. I get the curiosity about people’s lives but not to the exclusion of everything else. But maybe I’m a bit idealistic and the world (and journalism) has moved on from what we value…?
Hard relate on the time thing. I am a menopausal woman with young kids and I find that the amount of time I'm expected to hang around while Stuff Soaks In is absolutely impossible. Every morning I used to use The Ordinary serum, moisturiser and sunblock but it just took so long I found I was leaving off the sunblock which is obviously the most important bit!
I know, I try to time it so I wash face and apply one thing, brush teeth and apply another, get dressed and slap on SPF then do my make up in about 10 seconds flat after I’ve given the kids a cup of milk. It’s just not sustainable. Klira say their sun protection contains all you need in terms of antioxidants and actives so you can do it in just one step but I’m not 100% convinced
Loved this post! I can’t remember if we’ve talked about this before, but the shift from being a journalist to having to be an influencer is the main reason I left it and went brand side.
I admire those who have transitioned over to be/do both, but I couldn’t do it. I’d always been so grateful to be working in beauty despite feeling I didn’t look the part, but as it changed I felt like I stood out like a sore thumb because I wasn’t camera-friendly. It’s also so competitive, and it seemed you’d only be hired for the bigger jobs if you were part writer, part model. I miss journalism dearly but I’m so much happier working on brands because I don’t have that constant comparison anymore! I’m also grateful for your advice when I was freelancing to not fall into the trap of being the story.
That said I get why it’s needed because that’s how people are consuming media these days. I’m just glad I got the chance to do it as a career for a bit before it evolved!
I didn’t know that that was the main reason you’d left. I’m so sorry but selfishly am glad it’s not just me who’s seeing this. Am really glad you’ve found a way to stay within the industry in a way that makes you happier.
Love Le Petit Marseillais - I came across the little tubes of hand cream by chance when our last visit and love! I think it’s the almond one. I also adore grabbing the classic eau fraiches/colognes in the giant bottles for a couple of euros. Sidenote: listening to my inbox on audio this morning, and you might find it fun – amusing to listen to the beautifully pronounced French names and prices on the text voice translation!
You can *listen* to your inbox?! Zut alors (as I don’t think anyone French says these days ever) modern life is wild. I should try this.
Just hit the play button top right in the app of any Substack post – some make this function only available to paid subs but it’s especially cool listening to, say, the French words as here! (Pardonnez-moi if you already knew this!) Loved all of this, too.
One of the key reasons I stepped away from journalism: the fact that I was increasingly expected to be photographed / share my personal experiences / become the story (often in a way that would be shaped to fit an agenda - even more uncomfortable). Like you, it's not why I went in to it - it's because I was curious and interested in exploring stories in more depth and bringing information to a wider audience. I have no desire to put myself out there in that way - in either the mainstream or social media. It's a shame because that means many of us walk away when we still have something valuable to contribute.
Damn, it’s journalism’s loss. I suppose the bit that I didn’t explore was the demand side of it. Newspapers / websites are products that want to sell and they’ll shapeshift to become what the readers want. I get the curiosity about people’s lives but not to the exclusion of everything else. But maybe I’m a bit idealistic and the world (and journalism) has moved on from what we value…?
I love your posts. They are always so intelligent and interesting
Oh Lara, thank you! That’s such a lovely compliment. Especially on one like this which felt very exposing.
Hard relate on the time thing. I am a menopausal woman with young kids and I find that the amount of time I'm expected to hang around while Stuff Soaks In is absolutely impossible. Every morning I used to use The Ordinary serum, moisturiser and sunblock but it just took so long I found I was leaving off the sunblock which is obviously the most important bit!
I know, I try to time it so I wash face and apply one thing, brush teeth and apply another, get dressed and slap on SPF then do my make up in about 10 seconds flat after I’ve given the kids a cup of milk. It’s just not sustainable. Klira say their sun protection contains all you need in terms of antioxidants and actives so you can do it in just one step but I’m not 100% convinced
interesting - I just bought Cerave moisturiser with Factor 50 and was hoping I could get away with it!