The Charisse Report

This week I’m diving into three key beauty stories that have basically annoyed a lot of us, or, if not you, me! The three stories I’m focusing on are a shady aesthetician who Photoshopped an actress from Stranger Things to look 'prettier', the toxic beauty standards that Tyra Banks and her America’s Next Top Model team fed to us back in the 2000s and the Bali Body self-tanner that’s allowing white women to change their race while never having to deal with racism or stereotypes. I'd love to know your thoughts on this episode, so feel free to get in touch @beautymepodcast on Instagram or Twitter and be sure to follow me on TikTok @charissekenion to see some video content on this toxic topic and more. You can also stay in touch with me by signing up for my free newsletter https://beautymenotes.substack.com. Links mentioned: Episode 96 Beauty standards in the age of filters and fillers with Berlin-based content creator Jessica G: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2URoUugnPEXHx8d5yje8rV?si=f000ed9372234df2 Episode 129 Why do we still use Photoshop to retouch beauty images? https://open.spotify.com/episode/7cMMB7u0I4AQTh0Q9GxMgI?si=78a365dc2b7649a8 My TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@charissekenion BeautyMe on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beautymepodcast/?hl=en BeautyMe on Twitter: https://twitter.com/BeautyMePodcast

This week I’m sharing my favourite products that keep my skin glowing all over, all year round. I know for a lot of people, glowing limbs and collarbones are only really a thing when the summer months roll around but for me, as someone with brown skin, it’s always been about enhancing my skin tone. Just this week I started to see the Autumn press releases coming in - and I got my first Christmas beauty release! - but none of them really seem to be grasping that some of us like to glow all year round. It’s like Summer is for glowing and Autumn is for covering up, but surely that depends on where you are in the world and what your preferences are? This episode is split into prep products, which is all about exfoliation, and enhancement, from hydration to adding a hint of shimmer. I definitely share some all-time favourites and cult classics in there, but I was also sent a few products to try from Fenty Beauty, Charlotte Tilbury and Ole Henriksen, so I'll give you my honest reviews on everything. However, every single product in this episode is something I actually love! Let me know your favourites over on Twitter or Instagram @beautymepodcast or email beautymepodcast@gmail.com. If you enjoyed this episode please do like, subscribe and follow - that way you'll never miss another episode! Thanks so much for listening, below is the full list of products mentioned. Links Episode 74: My Hydration Tips for Fighting Maskne: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5Jgz0BzacGevUscajFPFpE?si=4b07fd2c3436479c Lush Buffy Body Scrub: https://www.lush.com/uk/en/p/buffy-body-buttter Lush Orange Body Scrub: https://www.lush.com/uk/en/p/orange-shower-scrub Rituals Ritual of Hamman Deeply Purifying Hot Body Scrub: https://www.rituals.com/en-gb/the-ritual-of-hammam-body-scrub-1111370.html Fenty Skin Buff Ryder Exfoliating Body Scrub: https://www.boots.com/fenty-skin-buff-ryder-exfoliating-body-scrub-170ml-10296795 Frank Body Buff Marshmallow Scrub: https://www.frankbody.com/us/products/buff-marshmallow-body-scrub/ Neutrogena Hydro Boost Body Gel Cream: https://www.boots.com/neutrogena-hydroboost-body-gel-250ml-10245781 Fenty Skin Butta Drop Whipped Body Oil Cream: https://www.boots.com/fenty-skin-butta-drop-whipped-oil-body-cream--10294792 Frank Body Perky Sculpting Body Hydrator: https://www.lookfantastic.com/frank-body-butt-first-coffee-kit/12936998.html Ole Henriksen BeamCream Smoothing Body Moisturiser : https://www.boots.com/ole-henriksen-beamcream-smoothing-body-moisturizer-190ml-10311431 Ole Henriksen Firmly Yours Toning Dry Body Oil: https://www.boots.com/ole-henriksen-firmly-yours-dry-body-oil-100ml-10311432 Hei Poa Pure Tahiti Monoi Oil with Golden Mother of Pearl: https://www.heipoa.com/pure-tahiti-monoi-oil-golden-mother-of-pearl Nuxe Multipurpose Golden Shimmer Oil: https://www.marksandspencer.com/huile-prodigieuse-multipurpose-golden-shimmer-oil-50ml/p/hbp22511670 Fenty Beauty Body Lava Body Luminizer: https://fentybeauty.com/products/body-lava-body-luminizer-brown-sugar Charlotte Tilbury Supermodel Body Highlighter: https://www.charlottetilbury.com/uk/product/supermodel-body

This week I really wanted to share three podcasts that influence me every single week; Jay Shetty's On Purpose, fashion designer Recho Omondi's The Cutting Room Floor and Maintenance Phase, an anti-wellness show hosted by Aubrey Gordon and Michael Hobbes.  While Jay Shetty inspires me to grow and create the life I want, Maintenance Phase is the podcast that makes me question everything health-related and The Cutting Room Floor is an exercise in research and reflection, with a fashion angle.  I wanted this episode to be an insight into what I love and I really hope you love them too! Be sure to let me know – do you already listen to these podcasts? Have you got some favourites to recommend to me? I’d love to know so feel free to DM me @beautymepodcast or email beautymepodcast@gmail.com. I’ll see you next time, thank you again for listening. I have got some amazing episodes coming up so be sure to subscribe and follow so you never have to miss an episode. Links Big Sean ON: Releasing Negative Perspectives to Realise Your Own Path Forward: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5pRel0VDhB0YIK6gqw9tdk?si=21e75e9aa7fd4be6 Jay Shetty's website: https://jayshetty.me/podcast/ Maintenance Phase: Worm Wars: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7ujpdCPK5hKPgUYDGV87aV?si=1a28a62153d84c96 Maintenance Phase: Oprah Winfrey and the ‘Wagon of Fat’: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7ujpdCPK5hKPgUYDGV87aV?si=a328058db32d45e5 The Cutting Room Floor: The Tanning of America ft Leandra Medine: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1gfuHa3yM2g9Dzti3SApWb?si=a03cd751cca54f3c The Cutting Room Floor on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thecuttingroomfloor/posts

Something a bit different this week! All throughout the pandemic lockdowns I kept hearing more and more about various types of personality tests. Everyone seemed to be talking about INFJs and ENTJs or whether they were a number 4 with a Bear wing and I had NO clue what was going on! More recently, one of my favourite YouTubers, Hindz did a personality test on his channel and I started to think that it could be an intriguing way to perhaps learn something new about myself. I’ve left a link to Hindz’s one below if you want to check it out. Personality tests date back to the 1920s and the one that’s most often used lately seems to be the Enneagram. It’s based on a typology system that describes a human personality as a number of interconnected personality types, with 9 types, 27 subtypes and 3 basic centres. So that’s the test I’ll be taking, and I used a website called Truity, linked below. Feel free to take the test along with me via the link and definitely let me know if you do! Hindz Personality Test on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P00uXFeYru0&t=24s Take an Enneagram Test: https://www.truity.com/test/enneagram-personality-test As always thank you so much for listening; do please rate, review, follow and subscribe wherever you can. See you next time. Follow me on Instagram @beautymepodcast and Twitter @beautymepodcast/@charissekenion and check out my newsletter beautymenotes.substack.com

Few people have made as much of an impact on the beauty industry, at just 21 years old, as Hannah Harris. The Florida-born creative launched a ground-breaking Instagram account in the summer of 2020 and nothing was the same again when it came to diversity in the beauty industry. The account @browngirlhands showed brands what they hadn't been showing and since that moment, Hannah has become known as the go-to creator for brands who truly want to serve all communities. Recently graduated with a degree in The Business of Beauty and Fragrance, Hannah has just started working for cult beauty brand Summer Fridays, so in this episode we talk about how she got to where she is and what she's excited for next.  Hannah also opens my eyes to the sheer cost of education in America and shares how she had to follow her gut when it came to choosing the right college for her. Don’t forget to check out @browngirlhands on Instagram and you can follow Hannah’s personal journey @hannahharris__ Thanks so much for listening – let me know what you think, send me a DM @beautymepodcast. Visit https://www.charissekenion.co/podcast to check out all previous podcasts and sign up for my newsletter at beautymenotes.substack.com. Products mentioned: Lesse Refining Cleanser: https://lesseofficial.com/products/refining-cleanser Lesse Bioactive Mask: https://lesseofficial.com/products/bioactive-mask Lesse Ritual Serum: https://lesseofficial.com/products/face-serum Summer Fridays Cloud Dew Oil-Free Gel Cream Moisturiser: https://www.cultbeauty.co.uk/summer-fridays-cloud-dew-oil-free-gel-cream-moisturizer/13322274.html Glossier Boy Brow: https://www.glossier.com/products/boy-brow Glossier Brow Flick: https://www.glossier.com/products/brow-flick Summer Fridays Lip Butter Balm: https://www.cultbeauty.co.uk/summer-fridays-lip-butter-balm/13322271.html

This week’s guest is someone I’ve wanted to have on for a while now and Ashley Nelson, AKA Restroom Rituals was worth the wait. Ashley has built up a 13k Instagram following since launching her irreverent and honest profile just two years ago; a fact that I find unbelievable as Ashley was so clearly destined to be very public-facing, but I've also learned that she likes to keep her social and personal separate. In this episode I find out more about LA-based Ashley’s entertaining persona, how she developed a passion for beauty at a very young age and I also put her through a really quickfire product round so be sure to wait for that at the end. I hope you love this episode; if you do, please go ahead and rate or review the show anywhere you like to listen. Let me know if you already follow Ashley by the way, and if you don’t go check her out @restroomrituals. You can also find me @beautymepodcast on Instagram and Twitter. In our conversation Ashley mentions my episode with fellow content creator Gina Knight; check it out here  Products mentioned: Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Bronzer: https://www.charlottetilbury.com/uk/product/airbrush-matte-bronzer-medium Phytosurgence Skin Spark Blush Balms: https://www.phytosurgence.com/product-page/skin-spark-blush-balms Bodyography Glitter Pigments: https://www.bodyography.com/products/glitter-pigments Kosas Air Brow: https://kosas.com/products/air-brow-tinted Rare Beauty Perfect Strokes Universal Volumizing Mascara: https://www.rarebeauty.com/products/perfect-strokes-universal-volumizing-mascara L'Oreal Paris Volume Million Lashes Mascara: https://www.boots.com/loreal-paris-volume-million-lashes-volumizing-mascara-10103016 Half Magic Liptrik Kit in Magic Brownie: https://halfmagicbeauty.com/products/liptrik-kit Danessa Myricks Dewy Cheek & Lip Palette: https://danessamyricksbeauty.com/products/dewy-cheek-038-lip-palette-dew-it-flirty Rose Inc Softlight Luminous and Hydrating Full Coverage Concealer: https://www.roseinc.com/products/softlight-concealer

This week’s guest is one of the UK’s original hair bloggers and award-winning wig maker, Gina Knight – you might know her as Gina The Wig Witch, and if you’ve been on the internet for a while, you might have known her as Naturalbelle. Based in Reading, UK, Gina has been blogging since 2008 and launched her wig design company in 2016 as a way to support her love for creating content built on community. I've met Gina in real life; she has the most amazing smile, is quick to laugh but will always keep it very real. She's also very open with her experiences, from growing up with white parents, to motherhood to accepting and embracing hair loss. Believe me there are so many things I want to talk with Gina about, and we'll get to that, but for this episode we're specifically focusing on the future of content. It all started with a conversation in the DMs that started with a British Beauty Council webinar held in partnership with Meta (owner of Facebook, WhatsApp etc).  The webinar focused on how businesses could use influencers in the future, and often the subject of virtual influencers came up. For Gina and a few others who came into my DMs that morning, some of the subject matter felt disconcerting and disheartening. So I invited Gina on for a chat and this what happened! Let me know what you think; if you're listening on Spotify I've posted a poll for you to get involved in. Or you can DM me while you're listening @beautymepodcast or feel free to email beautymepodcast@gmail.com. Thanks for listening and if you enjoyed this episode please give it a rating or review! More information on the British Beauty Council webinar here: https://britishbeautycouncil.com/event-details/beyond-beauty-get-future-ready-with-creators/ Follow Gina on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ginaatinukeknight/ Gina's website: https://www.ginabeyondthegrid.com Find out more about Gina's wig making: https://www.ginaknightwigdesign.co.uk Read about Gina's Alopecia experience: https://www.thecut.com/2022/03/my-alopecia-is-not-your-punchline.html Sign up for my newsletter: https://beautymenotes.substack.com

Note: I know I shared on social that this week's episode was going to be with a guest but the audio came out really poor. So, I’ve been thinking about the concept of retouching lately and I’ve been wondering, as a photographer, beauty writer and consumer, do we really need it?  When Photoshop was first launched by Adobe in 1990, the founders thought it might sell a few hundred copies a month but today it would be challenging to find un-retouched beauty imagery, whether that's in a brand campaign or on the cover of a magazine.  In this episode I question our motives for relying on retouching software; I wonder if it's making us pretty, or just pretty boring? I bring up the fact that activist Sasha Pallari has had a huge effect on the advertising industry with her #FILTERDROP hashtag, resulting in brands being encouraged to work with influencers who don't use filters in ads. If this can happen with social media, why hasn't it happened with the publishing industry? CORRECTION: in the episode I incorrectly label Sasha's hashtag as #NoFilter. I really apologise for this and I am so annoyed with myself! Throughout the episode I focus on three different cover shoots that have looked super retouched to me, featuring Rihanna, Naomi Campbell and most recently, Beyonce. I'd love to know what you think; do you think retouching is just part of beauty and media? Do you want to see real skin? Do you think I'm over-reacting?  Let me know over in the DMs @beautymepodcast or email me beautymepodcast@gmail.com. If you enjoyed this episode be sure to rate and review it and share it with a friend! You can find out more about what I'm up to via my weekly newsletter; sign up for free at https://beautymenotes.substack.com. See you next time! Artwork image: https://www.charissekenionphoto.co

Jennifer G. Sullivan, co-host of Fat Mascara, discusses her beauty experiences, favorite products, and how the pandemic affected her family. Topics include foreskins in her favorite serum, travel, eighties influences, and the balance of discussing the beauty industry on their podcast. The speakers also talk about difficult podcast guests and the importance of authentic marketing in the beauty industry.

This week’s episode is all about SPF; in some ways it's kind of a follow-up to the two sunscreen episodes I did last year, which I'll share below. I'm talking about six sunscreens that are new (to me) and giving my honest, real reviews on each of them. Two of these were gifted and I bought the other four and I definitely found a couple of new favourites! So, I'm sharing my thoughts on Fenty's Hydra Vizor, Bondi Sands (super popular on TikTok), a brand new SPF from the UK's top upcycled beauty brand and more. I also share who I think would suit each of these products and I definitely think there's something for everyone, on any budget. Let me know if these sunscreens are new to you and be sure to let me know if you’ve tried any or if you think I’m missing out and you have one to recommend!  Thanks so much for listening. Please do rate and review this episode over on Spotify or Apple if you love the show – it really helps! Stay in touch over on Instagram @beautymepodcast and you can find me sharing more info on TikTok @charissek. See you next time! Products mentioned: Bondi Sands Daily Moisturising Sunscreen Lotion SPF50: https://www.superdrug.com/skin/sun-care/sun-protection-creams/bondi-sands-sunscreen-lotion-spf-50/p/788696 Garnier Ambre Solaire Anti Age Super UV Protection Cream: https://www.boots.com/ambre-solaire-super-uv-anti-10291969 Purito Daily Go-To Sunscreen SPF50: https://www.lookfantastic.com/purito-daily-go-to-sunscreen-60ml/13455612.html UpCircle SPF25 Mineral Sunscreen: https://upcirclebeauty.com/products/mineral-spf-for-face Carbon Theory Day-Lite SPF50: https://www.boots.com/carbon-theory-day-lite-spf-50-plus-50ml-1030743 La Roche Posay Anthelios Ultra Light Invisible Fluid SPF50: https://www.laroche-posay.co.uk/en_GB/anthelios-uvmune-400-ultra-light-invisible-fluid-spf50/LRPUK-164.html Fenty’s Hydra Vizor Invisible Moisturiser SPF30: https://www.boots.com/fenty-skin-hydra-vizor-invisible-moisturizer-spf30-10290216 Kevyn Aucoin Foundation Balm: https://www.spacenk.com/uk/makeup/complexion/foundation/foundation-balm-MUK300054235.html Black Girl Sunscreen: https://www.blackgirlsunscreen.com/product/black-girl-sunscreen-spf-30/ Ultraviolette Queen Screen: https://ultraviolette.co.uk/products/queen-screen-spf50 Garnier Ambre Solaire’s UV Water Transparent Protecting Spray: https://www.wilko.com/en-uk/garnier-ambre-solaire-uv-water-sun-protection-spray-spf20-150ml/p/0469559