Key Takeaways:

• There is a clear dichotomy that exists within all beauty consumers. On one hand, they embrace skinimalism and body positivity. On the other, they feel a pull toward perfection. 
• But the two really aren’t that different. All consumers are actually aspiring to the same thing—unrealistic beauty standards and the pursuit of flawlessness, perpetuated by celebrity and beauty culture. 
• Brands can lean into this contradiction to better target their consumer with more conscious beauty that blends the attainable and the new definition of aspirational.

Something unexpected happened recently. As a self-proclaimed (and proud) skintellectual who has always enjoyed relatively problem-free skin, I started to notice inexplicable changes: redness, dryness, and mysterious blemishes and texture on my chin, along with, frustratingly, a diminishing overall quality of my complexion, no matter what manner of creams, masks, serums, and pore-vacuuming devices I used. Chalk it up to aging and perimenopause (I’m 43), and also a new, higher-resolution iPhone that captured my face (and flaws) in high definition. Am I vain? Absolutely. (And I’ve worked in the beauty industry for two decades, which doesn’t help.) So, in an effort to calm my angry skin, I traded my retinols, toners, and chemical exfoliants for only a cleanser and an intensive repair cream at night, and in the morning as well, together with sunscreen. Within four or five days, I was quite shocked. My skin hasn’t looked this good in a year or more, and I feel much more confident than I used to when sans makeup.