I actually came across this story TWO WHOLE WEEKS AGO but I'll admit it, I was a lazy blogger while I was overseas so I failed to report about it and I'm ashamed because it's something so upsetting to me that I should have done it immediately.
There is a beauty salon in Essex, England called Trendy Monkeys that is offering makeovers, spray tans, facials, and other beauty treatments to girls (dare I say BABIES?) as young as ONE year old.
The owner of the salon, Michelle Devine, a 28-year-old former lingerie model and mother of two, defends her business saying it will help girls "exude confidence, glamor, and the desire to look her best at all times, regardless of age."
With young girls being consistently fed the media's images of "perfect" women, do we really need to have them being robbed of their childhood at the tender age of one? I mean they cannot walk out of their house (heck, some can't walk at one!) without seeing thousands of advertisements telling them how to be beautiful.
Yes, I know kids play with that fake plastic make-up and stick-on jewelry when they are kids ... and, actually, my mom had my ears pierced when I was an infant (and, honestly, I think I'll do the same thing if I have baby girls) but SPRAY TANS! I've gotten one spray tan in my life ... and it was because I was told I was a little too white to be in a wedding party (scratch that, I'd look better if I was a little darker ... see what I mean about these image issues!) And I don't think I was allowed to wear make-up regularly until I was maybe 13.
Seriously, WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE WORLD TODAY? What is wrong with these parents? I think these mothers have some hidden image issues of their own that they are trying to deal with through their children ... Just like those crazies on "Toddlers and Tiaras." I mean just look at those outfits those children wear! My mother would slap the hoochie out of me if I tried to walk out the house in half those pageant outfits and I am six-times most of their ages. It's just so sad. Plus these children are just rude, rude, RUDE. Their parents should spend some more time teaching them some manners, and less time teaching them to catwalk.
Someone needs to give Ms. Devine a slap of reality and let her know that her Trendy Monkey salon is not helping any of these girls. It's not helping them gain confidence in themselves. It's setting them up for a lifetime of body image issues, and problems with self-worth. We need to let these kids be kids because it's only a matter of time before they are forced into an adult world where they HAVE to deal with the media's portrayal of women and deal with the feelings that come along with that.
She loves her mama's lemonade and hates the sounds that goodbyes make. She prays one day she'll find someone to need her. She swears that there's no difference between the lies and compliments; it's all the same if everybody leaves her. And every magazine tells her she's not good enough, the pictures that she sees make her cry. She would change everything, everything, just ask her - caught in the in-between of beautiful disaster. (Beautiful Disaster, Jon McLaughlin)
PS. See this Documentary: "America The Beautiful" ... It is basically a look at the media and why we are so obsessed with beauty in this country. Best quote of the whole thing ... One model says, "If you're going to worry about your health [in this business], go to college." Oh, and you'll definitely love the one dude who opens the trailer ... He's a winner! Thanks to the Roomie for introducing me to it.
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