Fashion

Lancôme Asks Instagram to Bare it All

by Alyssa Shapiro

We've established that the "selfie" is a thing now. Generally I roll my eyes when I scroll down to one on Instagram, no matter how fondly I think of the friend who took the liberty of thinking we'd all be interested in viewing her image. And yes, I'm guilty of taking one to check my lipstick when a compact isn't available, and I've strongly considered one when I ended up loving my haircut (thanks Cecilia!) But I'd like to point out that I have, to this point, refrained.

Lancôme, however, made me reconsider. In a recent social media campaign, the beauty company asked their followers to post a #BareSelfie — a photo without a stitch of makeup. Of course, it's more for the benefit of the person posting than the viewer, (confidence!) and it's all meant to sell their new DreamTone product, a serum that claims to even skin tone and cast a general glow on the customer. I do love the initiative Lancôme took to promote beauty as a natural state, as opposed to one that only exists with the help of cosmetics.

The #BareSelfie ladies of Lancôme:

@lancomeusa on Instagram

I've always known that for me, feeling confident played more of a role in how others would perceive me than the makeup I put on my face, because if I feel good, I'm less likely to worry about a misplaced hair or blotchy skin. After all that's said and done, once you walk out the door, confident in your appearance, you can focus on the more important things. Which is why I'm a huge proponent of the experience of making yourself feel good, and in turn, look good.

If it comes from taking the time to pat on a serum, then more power to you.

I like it Lancôme. (Get it?)

Images: Artem Varnitsin/Fotolia, @lancomeusa on Instagram