![]() I didn't feel that we were being represented." What about all those other people? Queer identities, non-binary identities that cared about ingredients, that cared about sustainability, that cared about what they were buying? What about all those voices? I am one of those people and have a lot of friends and acquaintances that are also those people. The wellness world was very targeted towards one type of demographic only. "I just didn't feel that the industry was speaking to all the voices out there the consumers and people that are interested in their own self-care. "The other aspect was why does it have to be just women? Why can't male-identified or non-binary individuals want to wear makeup, have glowing skin, or have more of what would be considered in society a 'feminine' approach to their well-being, skincare and cosmetics? So to me I felt duped as a woman being targeted in that way. 'Age-defying.' And why are these 'women's issues?' At the end of the day all genders want to look good, feel good, feel beautiful, feel attractive, look healthy, have clear skin, have healthy skin. But so much of cosmetics come targeted towards women and so-called 'women’s issues' like your wrinkles. ![]() "I personally feel that when cosmetics are targeted to a gender…everything at the end of the day comes down to advertising and you have to, obviously, make money as a company and know what your niche is. It’s saying, 'Today I want to wear a thick brow and a bold lip and a star on my face.' But at the end of the day I feel really great washing it all off, you know?" And then being able to then add on to that. "And so I think that for me, it’s feeling good at looking at your bare self, feeling good at looking at your own pure reflection and loving that first. As I started to feel better about the quality of my skin, that made me want to use less on my skin. So I actually felt good with less on as well. Good skincare and good diet, it changed my skin overall. And then as I got older, I stripped it back even more by using good skincare. "So I really tapered it all back and started going really, really natural so I could begin to love my skin again. But I remember getting to a point where I'd wake up in the morning and look in the mirror without makeup on just kind of feel gross and disgusting in my own skin-not even recognizing my own features-and felt like I had to change them to feel my identity and that kind of freaked me out. I was super punk, super goth-I would paint my face, like a mask. "Beyond, it's about that transparency of self as well. And that's when NOTO, a botanics-driven skincare and makeup line, was born. It all came to a head when she realized that if the beauty industry didn't have the space for something that allowed inclusivity, sustainability, and plant-based ingredients to coalesce, she'd carve that path out herself. "My wellbeing was changing, my diet was changing, the things I do with my body was changing, my experience in herbalism was growing and natural cosmetics were becoming more and more of a staple," she recalls. "I started wondering what I could do to feel a little bit more involved in my output in life."Īs this itch started to fester in her career, Noto was making shifts in her personal life that only exacerbated the matter. "I was just in the industry for so long and was looking at how things were being done and working through it, and started to feel less connected to my work," she says. If you need reminding that the beauty industry has come a long way in just the past few years, consider the story of Gloria Noto: It was less than four years ago that the veteran makeup artist (whose signature "less is more" aesthetic probably populates your "saved" folder) found that she was having trouble relating to a market that was, at the time, sorely lacking in both sustainability and gender fluidity. ![]() Make Your Self is a series that spotlights the stories of women who fiercely embody this relentless pursuit. It’s self-determination-the daily commitment you make to yourself and your future, and the hard work and rituals that create the foundation for that journey. ![]() The greatest tool in a woman’s toolbox isn’t a cosmetic or a brush.
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