Defining beauty.

[hanabi]

This thread is kind of inspired by the Dove toiletries 'Real Beauty' campaign. It's nice to see beauty products marketed using curvy women.

But even more than advertising, I was wondering how others here really define beauty. I ask because I have fallen in platonic lust with a mother at my children's school! I catch myself looking at her at every opportunity. And she has noticed me looking at her! I really must approach her and introduce myself before she thinks I'm scheming to come onto her!

To me, she epitomises an elusive, natural kind of beauty. She is small in stature and fine boned. She is sun tanned with freckles on her face. She has long brown hair and a nose stud. She wears funky but comfortable-looking clothes. She has body hair!! She has a quiet and gentle manner about her. I think she is gorgeous and she probably best defines my concept of feminine beauty - something that I don't really perceive in myself because I am a little more groomed, more loud in my personality and perhaps a little more conservative in my dress sense.


So please share! How do you define feminine beauty? What is it that makes a woman beautiful? Do you identify that kind of beauty in yourself?

[Eilleen]

hmmm.... you know I can go on trying to describe it, but as they say a picture says a thousand words so to me, is Siobhan's avatar - it truly depicts a love of life.

ETA: here's her public profile (hope you don't mind Siobhan!), and her avatar: http://www.forums.naturalparenting.c...ber.php?u=2073

[emd]

Oh I love Siobhan's avatar too! When I was in her Due In group I always wished I could look like that in pregnancy (as opposed to having my head in a toilet or whatever).

Geez Jodie you ask some hard questions To me, feminine beauty requires actual hips and boobs, possibly a bit of tummy curve, and healthy looking hair and skin. Youthful beauty is smiles, healthy looking hair and skin, and a little body that looks like it knows how to run & jump & climb. Wise beauty - you know, the beauty of people much older than me - is laugh lines and crow's feet, long greying hair, a strong body, and clear eyes.

And masculine beauty is Russell Crowe. But I think I digress to another thread from a few months back

[Siobhan]

Oh. *blush* Thank you.
(And Emma, I had to pull my head out of the toilet bowl for that photo shoot. )

I don't know about being able to define beauty as such, I just know it when I see it. Similarly, I find it almost impossible to perceive any of my friends as not being physically beautiful. If I know and love someone, they look lovely to me.

I'll tell you this much though, I wouldn't kick Rachel Weisz out before breakfast.

Oh, and I find this photo of Cathy Freeman amazing.

[Lysianna]

Jodie, I thought I had a bit of a crush on YOU just by hanging around these boards, then I saw that photo of you with dreads, sitting on a bed with all your hair pulled back and sticking up behind your head - That clinched it!!!
I think true beauty comes from a persons aura. Which explains to me how a person can sometimes seem more beautiful than at other times, depending on what their aura is emanating at the time.
Love the hard questions! I shall continue to ponder this one...

[hanabi]

Shucks Lys. You're lovely. I totally get your 'aura' reference though. See, Siobhan's appreciation of Rachael Weisz doesn't come close to my definition of beauty - she's too Vogue-magazine-perfect. I mean, of course she's beautiful but she's too beautiful iykwim. She doesn't draw my attention deeper. (Though you do Siobhan from the pictures I've seen! )

I totally appreciate stars like Toni Collette though. She possesses an uncommon beauty that makes her a very versatile actor I think.

That picture of Cathy Freeman otoh is totally BEAUTIFUL, spontaneous and sexy - but I've always thought she was a spunk.

And I agree about friends being beautiful too. I think all my male and female friends are gorgeous! Maybe it's the nature of 'imperfect beauty' that the personality behind it is more apparent and so that person seems more real and whole than someone who is too beautiful to be true?

[zofia]

I find women attractive generally who are laid back and comfortable in themselves, who generally don't worry about makeup and manicures, who have some spark that lights them up IYKWIM. I like a style that is sort of funky but a bit grungy. And no pretentious airs.

[~*Nile*~]

This is a hard one to describe. I would say I find a natural curve and natural features more attractive. I find the starving, no boob look to not be attractive, as I do with women that get plastic surgery. Everyone goes on about Angelina Jolie, but honestly, I find her look (particularly her lips, which I read are from collegen, not natural) to be very fake and unattractive. Whereas a woman like Cate Blanchette who isn't starving to death and has natural not contrived beauty is more attractive. And I find a preggie belly beautiful too.

[moo]

I tend to look beyond the physical these days and look for the beauty within people.

A very dear friend of mine is one of the most beautiful people I know-yet strangers often give her a wide berth on the street! She is certainly not conventionally beautiful, and has known great and pain loss in her life, yet her beauty way shines through and she is inspiring to me on countless levels.

Of course, being the bower bird that I am, one of my favourite pastimes is people watching.......I love just going into the mall in town or something and watching all the people go by. In particular, I love "quirkiness".......

[skn]

I know what you mean about 'imperfections'! I love people's uniqueness and those little 'imperfections'...they are gorgeous. I think all my closest friends are absolutely stunning, they have such beautiful, depth, intriguing personalities and charima. I can't really define it any more than that.