Girlfriend Australia — Autumn 2017

WORDS

TAMARA DAVIS

STYLING

KRISTY KOUTSOGIANNIS

PHOTOGRAPHY

ARCHIE PRICE

HAIR & MAKEUP

JESSICA DIEZ @ ONENINETYNINE MANAGEMENT

MODEL

ADELE @ IMG AUSTRALIA

Unfollow me now if you

can’t deal with pimples,

hair, stretch marks...

• Petra Collins

When Maisie Williams wore

this terrifying face mask

When Lena Dunham

summed up our

vibe completely

When Anna

Kendrick did

this pose

media elicits

feelings of envy

and the distorted

belief that others

lead happier, more

successful lives”.

So that feeling of FOMO you get?

Tot a lly legit.

Changing the game

With that in mind, it’s refreshing to

see a new wave of online influencers

representing what it is to be a

girl – really and truly, with all our

imperfections on show – in an effort

to remind us that we’re human (and

that even Gigi doesn’t necessarily

wake up looking like Gigi...)

One such influencer is New York-

based photographer and writer Petra

Collins, who showcases her work

on Instagram. Think raw, unfiltered

portraits of girls doing what girls

do – hanging in their bedrooms on

their phones, bathed in the blue light

of a laptop, or picking at something

caught in their braces... and making

this activity look, well, beautiful

in its normalcy.

A caption on Collins’ own no-

makeup selfie reads: “Unfollow me

now if you can’t deal with pimples,

hair, stretch marks etc literally

anything that isn’t airbrushed. Coz

your negativity and ignorance isn’t

welcome on this insta and there’s

no room for more hate and shaming

here.” Collins continues, “This

is not just about me but about

all the amazing girls/women/

whatever I photograph that

deserve to be celebrated

and represented.” Amen to

that. And while there ain’t

nothing wrong with a

filter or quick Facetune

to make your pics

~fire~, we’re so down

with what Petra’s

getting at.

One of her muses

statement to her fans: “We live

in a society that literally profits

from our self doubt and insecurities,”

she shared.

Star Wars actress Daisy Ridley

riffed on this sentiment too, posting

a heavily filtered selfie with a poke at

the no-makeup-‘I-woke-up-like-this’

movement. “What people post is the

most filtered, most carefully chosen

and cleverly edited moments of their

lives,” she lamented.

Finding the balance

So with all that in mind, what next?

Well we’re not advocating that you

stop posting on social – that would be

no fun. Besides, seeking inspiration

from people you admire is awesome.

There’s nothing better than finding

that perfect snap that motivates

you to save up for a travel adventure

around the world, or screenshotting

your way to #outfitgoals IRL.

But it’s important to keep things

in perspective. Real talk: Alexis Ren’s

legs mostly come down to genes.

That fashion blogger’s trip to the

Greek islands was probably paid for

by a sponsor. And your life is truly

beautiful – even when it’s not totally

camera ready.

is 19-year-old plus-sized

model Barbie Ferreira, who

recently shared a close-up

of her stretch marks with

her 376,000 Instagram

followers along with the

caption, “...noticing how cute my

body can be despite lil changes”.

The response in the comments was

overwhelmingly positive, with girls

sharing how empowered Ferreira’s

realness made them feel.

As fan Lumozline wrote, “You

change how people look at the

industry you represent and you

change how people look at women and

themselves... How you can and will

change the lives of those with low self-

esteem and those battling themselves

to look like a Photoshop image, that’s

beautiful beyond measure”.

What Selena said

It’s what Selena Gomez was referring

to when she spoke at the American

Music Awards last year. Being the

most followed person on Instagram,

and no doubt one of the most admired

on the planet, had not brought her

happiness or gratification. “I had

to stop ’cause I had everything.

And I was absolutely broken inside,”

Selena revealed.

And with her break from the

spotlight came her turning point –

that she no longer felt the need to

seek that kind of approval. “I’m not

trying to get validation, nor do I need

it anymore,” Selena said, encouraging

her fans to share what was in their

hearts, rather than images of their

bodies, on social media.

It’s pretty powerful to see this

kind of authenticity finding

its way into celebs’ feeds.

In August 2015, PLL’s Sasha

Pieterse took to Insta to

share her story about weight

gain – and the public

shame she received as a

result – with a heartfelt

GF features

FIVE TIMES GOOFY

WAS THE NEW PRETTY

FIVE TIMES GOOFY

WAS THE NEW PRETTY

When Tavi and Rowan were

awkward-bestie-goals

When Sasha

Pieterse went cray

on set for PLL

girlfriend.com.au 65 girlfriendMAG