When the pictures of the girls covering up their under eye circles and parts in glitter went viral, everyone and their cat posted the pictures on my Facebook wall. This tends to happen with anything related to glitter, mermaids, confetti, balloons, etc. I don’t mind it at all, for the record. I think it’s adorable and hilarious.
At face value, I didn’t think there was anything wrong with the whole “use glitter to cover your under eye circles”. There’s an enormous amount of existing products we see in magazines and TV that are for that exact purpose, and this was a cute take on that. You don’t need concealer that matches your complexion! You can be eccentric and cover the darker spots with glitter! Hilarious, right?
I mean, yeah. It’s pretty cute. I can’t not think it’s cute, really. It’s glitter. I’m basically 100% on board with anything glitter-related. (Speaking of which, I’ve been thinking of sending some glitter to Donald Trump…) The thing is, though, that despite this quirky “solution” to under eye concealer we’re actually missing the bigger point:
WHY DO YOU NEED TO COVER YOUR UNDER EYE CIRCLES IN THE FIRST PLACE?!
Quick answer: You Don’t.
I will never tell you what to do with your body. If you want to put concealer or glitter underneath your eyes or inside your belly button, I’m down. It’s your body. I’m not going to tell you that you should cover up under eye circles or that you shouldn’t. That decision remains yours. What I WILL ask you to do is evaluate WHY you’re covering them up.
What do those dark circles represent, anyway? Are they there today because you pulled an all-nighter working passionately towards your dream? Is it because your significant other has an opposite work schedule than you and you missed them immensely and wanted to spend time with them? Is it because you’re a bad ass mom and took care of four kids all day long and it was extra tiring than most days? It’s kind of like a temporary scar. You can use medicine to diminish the aesthetic of the scar or you can let it do what it’s going to do. No matter what, the story of how it got there exists. Your under eye circles are indicative of something you did or didn’t do. Maybe they’re a badge of honor? Or maybe they’re no one’s business.
You might say you cover them up to look appropriate for work. But is “looking tired” inappropriate? Your job can’t tell you to wear (more) make-up, it’s kind of illegal. Your job can still get done no matter how you look. Well, I guess this point is null and void if you’re a model or your job involves your body, but you get my point. If someone asks you if you’re tired you can say a variety of things from “Yes” to “It’s none of your business” to “Fuck you”.
So if you ever want to put glitter on your eyes or any other part of your body, you can. Just know no part of you needs to be covered. It’s all beautiful.
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