"The way I channel my Latinidad through my beauty routine is not a specific thing, but the entire ritual of it all. My mom raised me to enjoy the beauty routine as a form of self-care, but also as a point of pride. I never thought much of the fact that my mom taught me to always leave the house made up and nicely dressed because you never know who you're going to run into, and you always want to have a great first impression. I thought that's how all moms spoke to their daughters and trained them with weekly manicures, biweekly pedicures, how to style their hair, etc.
"However, the older I got and as I started to engage with non-Latinas when I moved to NYC, I realized this 'celebrated vanity' was a cultural difference. American culture and media tell women that you don't need to look good on the outside to feel good on the inside, yet Latina culture has the opposite view of 'when you look good on the outside, you feel good on the inside.' That Latina mindset on beauty has its obvious pros and cons, but I always took it with a grain of salt and adapted it for what worked for me. So now, when I take 30 minutes to do my skincare and makeup routine, it is more than just the literal application of it. It's my time to think, plan my day, and indulge in a bit of me time before I dive into the madness that is my life."
