If you ask me, one of the best things about beauty now, is how open to interpretation it all is. In our mother’s time, when it came to grooming, there were all these rules you had to follow and social norms to abide to. But now, more than ever, beauty is a blank slate and you can be anything you want to be. Whether that’s tousled-haired and androgynous one day or elegantly French-polished and feline-flicked the next. As for skincare, the sheer volume of choice on the shelves means that no matter what your concern (pigmentation? Piece of cake. Dehydration? Done! ) or cause (Vegan? Easy. Animal lover? No problem!) there will be a range to suit you. Yep, when it comes to beauty, the only rule is there are no rules.

To celebrate the individual in all of us, last week Westfield launched their Today I Am’ campaign – a confident declaration of embracing who you are. We went to the launch at Westfield in Sydney’s Bondi Junction and caught up with their ambassador for the campaign, the gorgeous Lara Worthington, who revealed that the most empowering moment of her life to date was giving birth to her now six month old son Rocket – and this coming from a woman who launched her own beauty business – The Base by Lara Bingle that same year! For the campaign, she made a film with Gracie Otto, proudly declaring, “Today I am a Mother.” At the launch Lara admitted just how amazing – and challenging – that’s been. “I feel like I’m jetlagged 24/7!” said the stylish blonde, who was dressed by Christopher Esber for the event. “It’s those first two weeks that was the biggest shock for me – that you can survive on two hours sleep. Originally I was a massive sleeper – 12 hours, loved to sleep – and then Rocket came along and I was just in shock!”

To celebrate the campaign’s awesome sentiment of rule-breaking beauty, we’ve compiled a list of the rules we think should be broken, and were inspired by the different ways our Beauticate subjects defy the traditional laws of beauty. To shop the essentials visit: http://www.westfield.com.au/products/beauty-health

1. “Brush your hair 100 times a day”

Marcia Brady had it all wrong. When we photographed Lara we were thrilled to discover just how low maintenance she is – the model admitted to rarely picking up a hairbrush. “I just get out of the shower and I don’t brush it or blow-dry it. Jaye Edwards from Edwards and Co does my hair and I use Evo shampoo and conditioner. I like the Bumble and Bumble Salt Spray, or the Original Surf Bomb. If I get colour done it’s once a year.”

2. “A lady should always have her nails done”

When we shot the impeccably-groomed Rebecca Judd in her home, she proved that this is one rule that is seriously outdated – particularly for busy mums. “I actually never do my nails, it’s too much maintenance. As soon as I had Oscar I don’t think I’ve had my nails professionally done since. I figure that a nicely groomed natural nail looks better than chipped polish, and I’ll chip it within an hour of getting it done, no matter how long I’ve left it to dry!”

3. “Don’t use soap to wash your face”

Bikini blogger and model Natasha Oakley revealed to us on our shoot with her that there’s one bar of soap she’s quite happy to use on her face. “As weird as it sounds, I actually use a Dove Beauty Bar ($1.49) to wash my face,” says Natasha. “I always have. Old school, but it always works for me and if I don’t I always break out, so I just stick to what I know.”

4. “Don’t leave the house with wet hair”

Fashion blogger Margaret Zhang is known for her super sharp style which she often completes with cropped, wet look hair. When we photographed her at her boyfriend’s house she showed us how creates her trademark look. “If I’m having a bad hair day, I use gel. As long as your hair is shiny nobody’s going to say anything. I use a random chemist brand, with a weird angry name like Super Power Gel. It turns your hair into concrete.”

5. “You should wash your hair every day”

Not so, says fashion designer Bridget Yorston, when we shot her in her immaculately-curated home. She routinely skips the shampoo as a way of dealing with her super fine hair: “I have found that washing it less often and then utilizing copious amounts of dry shampoo in between washes, is definitely the way to go. I like Klorane as my choice of dry shampoo. A bit of product build up seems to give it texture and volume, which is what I need.”

6. “Oily skins should avoid oil”

Fitness guru and founder of Sporteluxe Bianca Cheah revealed to us that she feeds her oily/combination skin with nothing other than rosehip oil. “It makes my skin glow, and takes away any extra pigmentation. Now every night I do a facial massage with Kosmea Rosehip Oil. In summer it’s a bit too oily so I water it down with a few drops of water, in winter I mix it with my moisturiser, Clinique Dramatically Different moisturiser. I do a shiatsu massageI learnt at Shiseido. It uses pressure points in the face to activate lymphatic drainage and works the muscles to plump the skin up and keep it glowing.”

Story by Sigourney; Photography by Jake TerreyTitus Pengelly and Neiyo Sun, In Association with Westfield.

Comment (0)

  1. November 4, 2015
    Kirsty

    I love these tips- agree beauty shouldn’t be so formulaic.