Why the Don’t Judge Challenge made us Judge

photo source: pinterest

Over the past few months our social media feeds have been overrun with challenges. These challenges have mostly been focused on self-image or summoning Mexican demons, which, let’s be honest is pretty standard activity for the bedlam of social media. Recently the Kylie Jenner Lip Challenge was responsible for multiple lip injuries all over the globe while the Ice Bucket Challenge had us all dodging hypothermia. All these challenges have had their own reasons for becoming global trends, some with questionable motives such as the Charlie Charlie Challenge, while others served some purpose such as the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge which, if carried out correctly, was to raise funds for a worthy, charitable cause.

Most recently, the inescapable ‘Don’t Judge Challenge’ has been flooding our social media feeds. At first glance I just saw a video of a girl transform herself from having multiple dots of pen splattered on her face to resemble spots, raisins stuck in her teeth, cotton buds in her ears and glasses to finish the look off. A few seconds later, her hand covers the camera lens and a changed persona appears, in all aspects physically altered and ‘beautiful’. Confused, I scrolled down a little further and saw the hashtag, ‘dontjudgechallenge’. I then clicked on the hashtag and watched many more videos with the same ‘transformation’. The challenge’s purpose is to attack the media’s portrayal of what is beautiful and is trying to promote the message ‘don’t judge a book by its cover’. The challenge’s aim was to be positive and encouraging but its outcome has been quite the opposite. The videos show an unrealistic image – the initial ‘ugly’ images consist of acne created with a few jabs of sharpie pens, paired with monobrows scraped on with eyeliner, glasses, cue tips emerging from ears and noses and teeth that are either jewelled with braces or blackened with raisins. These qualities are seen as defaults, as in the ‘transformed’ image all the qualities have been washed off and you are presented with a girl with flawless makeup, hair and skin, or a boy with self-confidence that penetrates through the screen and hair and facial features that might as well appear in a top modelling agency client book. 

I don’t want to make this post into one massive debate/ramble about self-image or even pay too much attention to the challenge itself, because by the time I’ve finished writing this I’m pretty sure there will be another challenge to divert the attention away from this one. However, I decided to write the post because I actually think that the challenge has been successful (hear me out before you collapse with shock and protest). The videos display two extreme versions of self image. I agree that the way the challenge has been handled by many people who have produced the videos is questionable. The initial body shaming ‘ugly’ image is created artificially with food and strokes of a sharpie pen, paired with ghastly facial expressions and an attitude of little confidence. In contrast, the second ‘transformed’ image shows a person who is self-assured, alluring and conforms to the media’s idea of what is beautiful. An image of a perfectly groomed specimen with little/no flaws and the confidence of an A-List Celebrity = 'beautiful'. Glasses, acne, monobrowns and dental deficiencies have been eliminated and replaced by an image of media ‘perfection’. Perhaps what would be more effective would be if we saw a true, blank canvas of a person – stripped from makeup, application of products and a more humble presence – then conforming to the typical ingredients of what is beautiful – eyeliner and eyebrows that are ‘on point’ for girls and a cheeky, well groomed boy. The main point of failure in this challenge is its inability to show two states of genuine self. We’re not seeing a true form of person in the initial image. We’re seeing a person exaggerate and falsely create flaws, creating a Halloween mask rather than displaying their natural face. The flaws that they are creating, however, are problems that are real and the cause of many self-confidence issues in teens and  adults. Society and media emphasise the importance of looking ‘perfect’ and perfection is something that is strived for by many as a result.

The challenge has got people talking, debating and arguing that the challenge isn’t realistic – only giving attractive people an opportunity to show the world how well they can draw on their face and how attractive they look in the second video. What makes the initial appearance so shocking, however, is the amount of absurd junk they have on their face – it is an image of comic ridicule and has an overwhelming element of hilarity thus proving entertaining to watch. It’s therefore only expected that the responses to these videos are ones of critique. The video's messages can be interpreted as saying that the flaws that these people have falsey created poke fun at real issues. For example, the spots they have drawn on with pen are not real, nor are they convincing replicas. They are dots and they are removed in an instant using a baby wipe. This inspires a judgement, the viewer sees these dots which are supposed to resemble issues such as acne and sees them disappear in the image of ‘perfection’. The video is therefore promoting the message that flaws such as spots are seen as ugly. OK, so I guess the video was successful in one sense – it’s highlighting the media’s portrayal of what is beautiful, ergo not spots. However, what we are not seeing is a genuine problem to begin with, we’re seeing an exaggerated false form of a problem. The concept of the video is clever but the reality is destructive because these are not real flaws that we are seeing. The flaws are drawn on – real people don’t choose to have these flaws, quite often they are inescapable and the cause of self-confidence issues.

Click the image to be re-directed to the video. 

A more effective ‘transformation’ is the real issue that beauty blogger Em from My Pale Skin displays. The pictures and videos on her social media accounts are courageous, brave and inspiring as she shows herself naturally with her ‘flaws’ and then immerses them in a mask of makeup to face the world. Em, tired of conforming to the image she's expected to have from the media and society, rebelled against it. This video and her blog posts have provoked internet trolls and bullies, inspiring the hashtag #YOULOOKDISGUSTING. Em received comments that she looked ‘ugly’ and ‘disgusting’ without makeup, she no longer looked like the media’s image of perfection, but looked like a real person. On the flip side her videos have inspired similar responses on social media, with videos and pictures of people stripping off their makeup masks and showing their natural state – ‘flaws’ ‘n all. These videos are empowering and it makes me wonder whether the trolls that call her ugly are the ones who are suffering with a similar problem who lack the courage to show to social media what’s beneath their contoured cheeks. Not showing your friends and strangers what your true, ‘I woke up like this’ face looks like is fine – after all, we have role models like Beyonce to compete with – right? WRONG.

What the ‘Don’t Judge Challenge’ has failed to do but attempted to achieve is the acceptance of ‘flaws’ and natural imperfections. Social media is partnered with an overwhelming pressure to be perfect. We follow celebrity accounts that post a stream of perfection. It's a rare case if we see a celebrity bare faced and naturally blessed with skin as fresh as a baby. The majority of the pictures we are seeing are either photoshopped or results of 3 hours in hair and makeup. Let’s not forget that even Beyonce has suffered some media attention for having less than perfect skin. While we don’t know the reliability of these pictures the articles nevertheless are trying to promote the message that ‘real’ isn’t 'perfect' nor is it natural. 

It would be asking far too much of human nature to stop judging. There will always be people who find enjoyment in picking flaws and glorifying the perfection of celebrities and models. But, these celebrities and models that appear in magazines are worshipped for a reason – they are the minority. They have undergone intense photoshop sessions, hair and makeup time that has eaten into their hours of sleep and bodies that have taken sweat and tears to sculpt with their personal trainer. While we may strive for the image of ‘perfection’ the ‘#DontJudgeChallenge’ and #YOULOOKDISGUSTING hashtags should make us challenge the image and idea of what is ‘normal’ in contrast to what is artificially created and ‘normal’. Some are seeing the #DontJudgeChallenge’ as a failure, but the responses that it has inspired display that it is a success. Teens are questioning why glasses, acne, braces and all the other images of ‘flaws’ displayed in these videos are ‘ugly’. The challenge has challenged perception and made people question why they judge. The #YOULOOKDISGUSTING hashtag similarly is challenging the media’s image of ‘normal’ and sharing the truth. Why is the natural face such a shocking image when the majority of us stare at our own versions of it in the bathroom mirror?

Review / Lush Henna Hair Dye & My Hair Journey...

'NEVER dye your hair'. 

This was a sentence that was said to me by friends, adults and strangers that I'd just met. My natural hair colour is ginger. Growing up I had absolutely no shame in the fact that I was a class A 'ginger'. In fact it was my trademark - I loved it. Oh, and just in case you were wondering - yes, gingers do have souls.

Dying my hair was something that I'd always been adamantly against. People always complimented my hair colour, saying that they loved the caramel/ginger tone of my hair. I once got approached when I was about fourteen years old by a thirty-something woman begging me to tell her what hair dye I used. I was fourteen and she was selling me my favourite cake (I was in my local bakery). My first thought was please hand me my cake and no one gets hurt, as I'd exchanged my money for my cake. Naturally, I wanted my cake not questions. My second thought was - lady, this is 'au naturel'. My third thought - 'I'm only fourteen and I'm not supposed to talk to strangers'....
After getting my cake finally, I told her that it was my natural hair colour. Bemused and getting a closer look, the staring was getting rather awkward - not to mention that I still wanted to stuff my face with the cake I now held. 'Well, don't dye it darling because I would pay hundreds for that colour'. With a 'thanks' and an awkward shuffle out of the shop, I indulged in my cake which disappeared somewhat five seconds after my exchange with the woman who had sold me it.

I don't know if it was the fact that I was seventeen and craved a change or if I was sick of being told to never dye my hair (I've never been good at being told what I can or cannot do) - but I did it. To clarify, the 'it' that I did was dye my hair. I decided this impulsively in October 2014 when I looked at my hair in the mirror and needed a change. I grabbed the Lush Henna block that I had randomly stored in my kitchen cupboard (my Mum previously being a Henna user) and melted it down and spread the dye all over my hair.

Why I chose Lush Henna Dye 

Aside from the fact that it was the only hair dye that I could get from within my house during impulse decision time, I chose Henna dye for its nourishing benefits. Whether you're dying your hair with chemicals from a box or having them professionally applied at the hairdressers, chemicals will not leave your hair in good condition. The last thing that I wanted to achieve was hair in worse condition than mine already was at that stage in my life. I had grown my hair out and styled it to the point that it was literally burning off. I applied heat to my hair every day without fail and didn't deep condition it ever. I'd since learned the error of my ways and wanted a hair dye that would nourish, condition and colour! I've also got super sensitive skin so the last thing that I needed was a chemical reaction achieved from a cheap chemical hair dye found in a box!

Henna hair dye coats your hair. Synthetic hair dye and other colour treatments open your hair cuticles and penetrate your hair with colour and (hate to state the obvious) chemicals. These chemicals also enter your skin, bloodstream and system. Henna dye simply stains the outer layer of your hair. I didn't want any chemicals entering my bloodstream, thank you :) . Lush Henna dyes have a great reputation, renowned for their natural ingredients!

What is Lush Henna?

When I told people that I had dyed my hair with Henna they thought I'd gone insane - 'What, the thing you use to make patterns on your arms?'. Henna is a plant that is natively found in the Middle East and it can be used to dye skin and hair. The Henna plant leaves are dried and then ground into a powder which is then mixed with cocoa butter and made into a solid brick ready to buy. The tricky part is choosing what colour combination that you want to use because there are four different shades and tones created by - Brun, Noir, Rouge and Marron.

Choosing my colour

I would like to say that my hair dying process had some sort of method to it but honestly it was very spontaneous and very random. I used different combinations and quantities of Rouge and Marron to begin with and then became daring adding less Rouge and venturing into Brun and Noir. The process of dying my hair with the solid Henna blocks was very tedious. It's probably my lack of patience with time consuming beauty things like this, but I found melting the Henna blocks down until they were liquid laborious work! After various methods that I tried (one of which included a cheese grater but let's not get into that..), smashing the solid blocks up into pieces and individually melting them in a saucepan proved to be the most successful. Applying it was the next nightmare. This dye stains, which is good really because that is what you've paid for it to do, but staining anything other than your hair is just annoying. Once you've covered your hair surface with the dye, you've got to be like a little ninja around your home, henna-proofing every fabric surface to avoid brown/yellow staining from the dye. I chose to let my hair dye in the open air (the process can take up to 2-3 hours), which meant I basically had to sit on my floor and wait because small flakes of the henna flew off as it dried! This was a nightmare but I dyed my hair at least seven times with the stuff so I had become somewhat a pro towards the end!

I would like to say that I kept a record of the exact colour combinations I used and how long I left the dye on and all my process stages but I didn't. Admittedly I was hesitant to create this post because I changed my hair colour with Henna for two months non-stop, trying out different combinations. Therefore, there's not a lot in terms of information and advice on how you achieve a specific shade. However, I took a few different pictures along the way to give you an idea of what colours you can achieve from using the Lush Henna blocks.

Unfortunately these are all in the forms of selfies. Please, do not judge me in these selfies. I haven't uploaded them too show off - I have uploaded them to show the colour change. If I had the technical skill, I would blur my face off to resemble a potato head with hair to avoid judgements but here's my face because I don't have that skill.

     

The initial change was achieved with mostly the use of Rouge and red wine to enhance red tones here. Like I said, I didn't keep a record of what colours I used and how much of what I used unfortunately! This colour was a little too orange-toned for me and while there's nothing wrong with a fiery tone, it wasn't what I was looking for so I kept experimenting! 

I started adding more of Brun to the mixture, I think this was my favourite shade that I achieved but typical to the nature of Henna the colour started fading so I re-dyed!

      

Then a small disaster happened and I accidentally went brown. On my Henna adventure I never ever intended to be anything other than a red head. The fact that I'd coated the red out of my hair really was upsetting. This was the point that I had become too experimental with my Henna dying and chose to stop for good. I wanted my red hair back and re-dying wasn't the answer because you cannot strip Henna hair colour out of your hair or achieve a lighter shade from a darker one - you simply have to grow it out. 

This is the colour of my faded Henna colour now. It is still a lot darker than my natural hair colour and not as red as I want it. After all my experimenting I decided that my natural hair colour was the one that I really loved. I am only comfortable being a 'ginger', nothing else. When I had brown hair, although I received many compliments, I also received many sad looks - 'Where has your red hair gone!'. It was a question I never thought that I would be asked. I love my red hair and I want it back. The Henna experiment was fun for a while but it was expensive, laborious and time consuming - not to mention unpredictable. I would recommend Henna for anyone who wants to dye their hair the healthy way but I would NOT recommend it for anyone who gets bored quickly because once you've dyed your hair with Henna there is no going back! You cannot use chemical hair dyes on top of Henna - you risk burning your hair off/ turning it green in some cases. The only way to get rid of your Henna stained colour is to grow it out. 

Here's to my continued journey - growing back my natural hair colour. Goodbye Henna, you were fun for two months. I am now eighteen years of age and I would like to think that I will stop making such spontaneous decisions. However, it's my spontaneous decisions that have led to outcomes such as this blog so who knows what's next! 

Visit the LUSH website for more details on Henna and advice.

(I am not a qualified Henna expert nor do I aspire to be, ergo the information in this blog post is derived from my personal experience and the information is not gospel!)