the cult of beauty and wellness

In the 2020s, people haven’t necessarily become less desperate for large, pillowy lips — although plastic surgeons have noticed more people wanting to dissolve their filler.

Admitting that the motivation behind losing weight is to look better first and that health is a secondary concern feels in part like betraying a sacred liberal feminist covenant that insists we must love ourselves the way we are.

To accommodate lip gloss superfans like Mason and Li, Hailey Bieber is even selling gray Rhode phone cases that customers can attach their glosses to the back of. Given that a common cellphone attachment is typically a cardholder, this innovative gadget implies that lip balm, specifically Rhode’s, is just as crucial to carry around as your driver’s... See more

On social media, the fitness journey is rarely the purview of men. Instead, it is a deliberate repackaging of weight loss, adding an emotional element.To carve out a new body from the one that previously served you is good for the physical but also for the mental. You will be fine, of course, if you live in the body you currently inhabit, but would... See more

“We’ve heard of the ‘lipstick effect theory’ in culture, where sales in affordable luxuries, like lip products, skyrocket in times of economic distress,” she says. “These small ‘treats,’ if you will, bring a big impact physically and emotionally.”