
What would we do to spend less time on ourselves? I have rituals that make me feel beautiful, but they’re time-consuming. So when the trend of “high maintenance to be low maintenance” caught my attention, I dove right in.
The social media trend mostly features young women showcasing parts of their beauty routines that claim to save time and possibly money. Perfect for college students like myself, right?
Until I saw that an average lash lift and tint in my hometown costs $100.
The Hidden Costs of Being “Low Maintenance”
Renee Rodriguez, staff writer and social producer for PopSugar, published her own High Maintenance Routine, indulging readers with treatments like hard gel/Russian manicures and a $455 Led mask for light therapy – supposedly to help with aging and acne. Both are hot social media trends at the moment. Quite frankly, that sounds like a waste of time and money for a student like me.
More and more influencers continue to post their routines with chemical peels and lip tinting, but these are luxuries that few can afford regularly – especially young people in college.
This trend is all about saving time and money, but it doesn’t actually work out that way. Unless you have deep pockets, you wouldn’t be able to afford a quarter of what these influencers do.
This trend is essentially a beauty scam. Beauty treatments are meant to make money on your insecurities; for example, promoting Botox to prevent aging, which doesn’t exist as Botox can’t prevent aging. It is a way for the ever-changing beauty machine to make money.
The trend isn’t inclusive, either. Jacqueline Kilikita wrote in a article for refinary29 said that, “Hair maintenance is also a hot topic, but it’s no secret that Black and brown people are expected to do a lot more than Caucasians.”
There is more pressure for women of color to have “presentable” hair because of deep rooted racism in the workplace.
According to the American Bar Association, “80% of African American women felt they needed to switch their hairstyle to align with more conservative standards in order to fit in at work.”
Even the language used in this trend can be degrading. If you’re openly “high” maintenance, you’re too much or a drama queen. Being “low” maintenance is a curated image for men and others around us. Not wearing makeup or not shaving is looked down upon because we “let ourselves go” even though it’s “low” maintenance.
Shaeden Berry, author of “Why Calling Ourselves ‘Low Maintenance’ Or ‘High Maintenance’ is Setting us Back” said, “The world loves a low maintenance chill girl until she’s actually a low maintenance chill girl.”
She can get the $100 lash lift and tint, but god forbid she doesn’t shave her armpits. Yet the idea of being low maintenance is supposed to make women’s lives easier, right?
The True Cost Breakdown
Using the idea of a lash lift and tint, I can do the math. It’s $100 for the treatment itself, but it can take about 45-60 minutes to apply. There is also a tip, standard being 20% of service price. We also have to consider gas money, with the rising gas prices. For our purposes, let’s say it’s $45 for a full tank. Then you have a 15-30 minute drive to the salon of your choice both ways.
So for a one lash lift and tint, you would need approximately two free hours and $165 dollars for something that only lasts four to six weeks. Compare that to my Colourpop mascara that was $9, takes less than a minute to apply and has lasted since I bought it in October.
Well if it isn’t cheaper and is more time-consuming, why are young women hopping on this trend left, right and center? Societal pressure and insecurity.
The Real Reason Behind the Trend
According to a UCLA Midwell article, about 40% of college-aged women struggle with serious body image issues, with 58% feeling pressured to maintain a certain weight.
But, body image issues extend beyond weight:
Acne, glasses, nose shape, lip size, breast size and eye shape are all things I myself have been – or still am – insecure about. Most of these are things that I can’t control about myself unless I drop thousands of dollars on beauty products and treatments. As a college student I can’t afford that – and I doubt most people can.
Redefining Beauty
How can we feel good about ourselves in a timely fashion? You create a routine that makes you feel good about yourself, whether or not it’s been recommended by an influencer. You probably don’t need an elaborate 12 step routine every morning.
Don’t get me wrong, I love doing my own nails every so often. However, with ever-changing beauty standards created by celebrities, influencers and trends in media that I’ve been consuming since I was 14, I am tired. Our bodies are tired.
Insecurities aren’t something we are born with, they’re instilled in us, through repeated statements that we are pretty, but we could be beautiful.
I find sitting down doing my lashes, brows and hair everyday makes me happy. It’s a form of self-care for me. That’s what makeup and skincare should be.
The time we dedicate to caring for ourselves should be a priority because we’re worth the love and effort. But constantly changing beauty standards? Not so much.
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