Our final guest blogger in the 4-part What is Beauty? series hosted by Olay Total Effects 7-in-1 Advanced Anti-Aging Body Wash is from Valerie Rowekamp (next week I opine). She adds her voice to those of Lindsay Ferrier and Danielle Smith on body image, motherhood and more.
I only know Valerie “virtually”–she’s the Editor of Charmed Valerie. We’ve shared comment back and forth and I follow her blog. I’m inspired by her energy and honesty–she is always willing to share. And I’m also interested in her youthful take on beauty–she’s a decade+ younger (sigh) than I so I’m always keen to see what the next generation is up to. This mom is one to watch–I predict big things in her future.
When do you feel best about your body?I feel best about my body when I’m moving it. I love to dance, play, walk, bike, hike, and just move. Lucky for me, I have a toddler boy who keeps me in motion.
Absolutely but these days it’s in more of a constructive way than a critical one. I try to focus on the positive and not call much attention to the less favorable. After seeing the amazing things my body is capable of (creating and nourishing a human), I look at it through a different lens.
Yes. Before having a child, I never weighed myself because I was always the same size. Now, I have to be more aware because I learned pretty quickly that those extra pounds are a lot sneakier than they used to be. For me, it’s like checking my bank statement to see how things are adding up.
When I take the time to take care of myself. I actually enjoy my beauty regimen and it is an odd form of meditation for me. My shower time is like a 10 minute spa visit and in applying makeup/hairstyling I am paying special attention to all my features and I feel beautiful, like my own work of art.
Oh yes, I used to be really insecure about my pear shape and was more concerned with hiding it and looking for a “quick fix” to just make it go away. Now, I embrace [almost] everything and love the “challenge” of finding things that are just right for my body type. THAT is a beautiful feeling!
Puberty is a pretty awkward time with lots of changes happening all at once. It’s no walk in the park but if you’re lucky, it will prepare you for a lifetime of changing and evolving.
Today at 27. Sure–I used to weigh less, have flatter abs and perkier breasts but I feel so much more comfortable being me, warts and all. I think of beauty as a bunch of little things, alignment, harmony, and as I grow older I’m getting better at harmonizing.
What do you think about how the media depicts the female body?
The media is really just a reflection of our culture, it needs our cooperation to really sell all those images. For the most part, the media is just portraying the subjective, mainstream ideal of beauty. It really is just an idea because what we see has been edited, styled, airbrushed, and a collaboration of the works of teams of people who make people look awesome for a living. It’s pretty silly for us to hold ourselves to that standard when what we see doesn’t actually exist.
Valerie Rowekamp candidly shares frugal fashion and DIY beauty advice on her blog CharmedValerie.com. She’s also a wife, mom, and works in social media.
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