The BE Blog

We live in an era where we are told to love the skin you're in and are constantly being given tips on how to be body confident - great right? Well it is some of the time, because along side the positive vibes we are also bombarded with how to clean eat and exercise to get that summer body. So which is it that I am meant to listen to. I am trying to love my body but I find it very difficult sometimes because lets face it I love food and that certainly has a knock on effect. It also doesn't help that it seems impossible to find a consistent dress size when out shopping. So I thought I would share with you some of the issues I have with my body in the hope that I am not the only one that thinks this way, but also share some of the the things that I have found help me stay body positive.

THE ISSUES

Let's start with the negatives as I feel it's always better to leave on a positive note. The issues I have with my body constantly change, often depending on what kind of mood I am in, what kind of day I have had or even what time of year it is (summer is a big problem for me). However there are three main issues that I can't seem to shake off and remember that thing I said about summer it effects each one one of them.

From a very young age I have had problems with my skin and it is a problem I have carried with me into my adult life. In my teenage years I was very self conscious about it as acne was not only on my face but on my shoulders and back making me not want to wear things like vest tops (again making summer a difficult time. This also included bathing costumes which meant swimming lessons were a no go for me. Where as now acne is not a huge problem, yes I get the odd spot now and again but nothing as bad as it was. Now I just have to deal with large pores and very oily skin which leads to blackheads. For anyone out there who suffers from the same don't buy into the myth that is is caused by your skin being dirty, no matter how much you keep your skin blackheads are going to want to be your friend. Now I have tried every lotion and potion there is available and nothing has helped me, i now just stick to a simple skin routine that involves tea tree facial wash and moisturiser. So if any of you oily skin girls or guys have any suggestions please send them my way. I think my skin will always be the biggest issue I have with my body.

NUMBER 2 - MY BOOBS:

I am just going to be blunt I am a pretty busty girl and although I don't hate them my boobs bring more problems that I wish to have. Firstly, finding a bra that fits well and is supportive and doesn't cost me my life savings is an impossible task. What I would give to walk into Primark and pick up a cute little bralet for £4. Which brings me on to the fact that bras for DD and up are never cute, there are three colours to choose from, black, white or beige and most of them look like that they are made to be deliberately ugly. I am 27 years old and I want to look sexy in my underwear. And if you thought buying bras was difficult finding any kind of swimwear that covers more that your nipples is just impossible, adding to my problems with summer.

It is not just underwear that causes so much stress, clothes in general also do not want to co-operate with my boobs, forget about if anything is backless for instance. Button up shirts are another nightmare and I have to wear one for work, in order to get one to fit my boobs i had to get one that looks like I am wearing a tent, very unflattering. I am pretty certain that shops like H&M and Topshop forget that when sizes go up so should the area around the bust. I can not count the times I have tried on the biggest size they do and for it still not to fit across my chest and if it does, more often than not it hangs like a maternity dress, not really the look I am going for when I am not with child.

My last complaint on this matter is the pain it brings with it. Constantly I have niggling back and neck pain to only be told that I should try yoga or swimming to relieve it by my doctor. Swimming? I felt like screaming 'do you know how hard it is to find swimwear' at her and her tiny boobs.

NUMBER 3 - MY WEIGHT: 

I have never been stuck thin but since leaving uni I have definitely put on a significant amount of weight. I know most of this is down to the simple fact that I love food and hate exercise, but I also noticed this influx since I one started and office job and two since I learnt to drive. I know body confidence teaches us that you should love yourself no matter your size, but sometimes you can't help feel a bit down about it. What I would give to buy any piece of clothing from any shop and not worry about my weight. At least in winter I can slim down in black or cover up with layers, in summer everything is exposed. Finding cute shorts for thick thighs is difficult enough, that's even before the issue of chub rub.

I find it hard to find the motivation to do something about it and you know what? Eating healthy is expensive! And unless you like running, which I don't, so is exercise. However I know my weight is something I can aim to control if I feel so inclined to do so, my skin and my boobs are not so easy to control.

THE POSITIVES

So I have talked a lot about my body issues, lets make things a little more positive. There are a few ways in which I try and tackle the negatives and let myself love my body a little bit instead of giving it such a hard time.

NUMBER 1: FIND SOMETHING I LIKE 

I try and focus my attention on the parts of my body I do like. For me my favourite part of my body is my eyes, therefore I really got into ways of enhancing them, learning as much as I can about make up and in turn I have found a new interest in beauty. Another I try and enhance my body is I have decorated myself with tattoos, I have chosen art that I love and used it to empower myself, and they really do make me feel better about my body. I realise tattoos are not for everybody but for me they make me feel so much more confident about the way I look.

NUMBER 2: IGNORE STORE SIZING 

Dress sizes don't mean a thing, they differ in every store you go into and are never consistent. So my tip to anyone is just to ignore them completely, just buy the size that is most comfortable for you.

NUMBER 3: I HAVE SOMEONE WHO THINKS I AM SEXY

This might be a little soppy but I have found my other half that not only tells me I am beautiful but also that I am sexy. This has to be the ultimate confidence booster, because no matter how you are feeling about your body that day to hear that is something that will make you feel instantly more positive. I am very lucky to have this in my life.

I apologise that this has mainly been a very long rant, however I feel that it is important to talk about this. To know that even amidst the bombardment of body positivity it is still OK to have a few issues. Don't get me wrong I am all for body confidence in every aspect and I adore the fact that we are steering away from the one size should fit all mentality, but we also shouldn't be ashamed if some days we just don't like our bodies, its only natural as a woman I feel.

I hope you have enjoyed reading this post, please let me know your thoughts on your body positivity and feel free to share any issues you may have.

Thanks for reading x 

I seem to be forever on a mission to find that one magical product that will help my uncompromising skin. Usually I seek the advise of the the YouTube and Blog Yoda's for this, which usually ends in me screaming 'WHY DO THEY MAKE THIS LOOK SO EASY?' at my computer screen. However, the Shills Deep Cleansing Black Mask from blackmaskcleansing.com seemed to be popping up all over my social media, as from time to time beauty fads do. Everyone was raving about how good it was now it pulled all the dirt out of your pores, and the satisfying part was that the effects were visible when you pull the mask off. I was sucked into the hype and bought it even though I had to ship it over from America, that's how curious I was to try this. Was this the product that was going to fix all my clogged pore problems?

No, no it was not. The mask was fine, but just fine, I have used better just from the high street. Many peel off masks work just as well. I am not saying that Shills Cleansing Black Mask works any worse than these but I was expecting something that would change my life, maybe my expectations were too high, but that is the power of social media. 

The mask is quite thick and sticky but applied pretty well, even though you have to use quite a lot of product to get the right coverage. The problem I had to start with is that it takes an extremely long time to dry. Usually I don't mind waiting for masks to dry if they feel amazing. When I say feel amazing I am talking for instance about the masks from Lush as they smell amazing and feel so refreshing or GlamGlow where you can really feel the mask working. Both masks from these brands have changed my life (at least the face mask section of my life). But, in my opinion the Shills Cleansing Black Mask mask smelled funny and didn't feel anything happening. 

Even with this rocky start I still held up hope. I had seen on the Facebook videos that this was a painful mask to take off. I would have settled for pain, at least then I would feel like it was working. Alas, there was no pain and nothing on the mask when I pulled it off. One of the appeals of the videos is that you could physically see all the gunk from your face in the mask. I know it sounds gross but again it is an indication that the mask actually did something , that is the satisfaction that I was looking for, but there was nothing. Don't get me wrong it did make my skin feel a little smoother but all of my blackheads were still visible on my face. 

Now, this probably won't stop me buying something just because I have seen it on the internet, because let's face it the internet influences most of my beauty buys these days, but this particular product did not work for me. Of course this is just my opinion and I would love to know if any of you have tried it and what you thought? Am I just doing something wrong?