Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

Feminism: chat

Original poster

Tiny issue in comparison to most, but skin care...

29 replies

Kamchatka · 22/09/2013 18:08

I was given some free face cream samples at work yesterday, so this morning I tried some serum or other. First time, so I had to read the instructions.

After wading through some crap about Walchivia extract or hermodiastic skin unification (see I can make up words too!) I found that you smear it on, the smear on your usual face cream.

I thought: if this is actually any use then bunging moisturiser on top of it immediately is going to upset the formula, ruining the carefully 'explained' effects of the serum. So...it can't, surely, be worth anything, from a scientific point of view. Never mind the made up words and long-winded phraseology.

I've felt this for a long while, but it bothers me that women are marketed random 'smeary stuff' so easily and widely, and it bothers me that they buy and/or covet the high end stuff when plainly they are being duped. Is there any sort of publicity or campaigning about this that anyone's aware of?

OP posts:
Original poster
Kamchatka · 23/09/2013 14:11

It's like that Mitchell and Webb sketch: Men, you're already awesome as you are...

I don't really know why there isn't more outraged publicity about being taken for a ride AND manipulated into thinking that beauty equals a sort of flawlessness that only comes with spending untold £££ on whichever brand of silicon smooths out your pores best. It can't be because women don't know it's wishful thinking.

OP posts:
TheSmallClanger · 23/09/2013 12:11

I think it's worthy of a little thought. Increasingly, skincare is being marketed to men, too, but very differently. Ads for men's skincare don't go into much detail, and tend to emphasise the practical benefits of the product. There is far less pseudo-scientific waffle.

Original poster
Kamchatka · 23/09/2013 11:39

Yes, I mean it's massive business so it must be worth their while to perpetuate the lie that Snorgellopsia extract will make us look young and available. I find it unsatisfying to label it a feminist issue per se: we are after all free to believe whatever we want and if we can't be bothered researching/thinking, then more fool us.

However I would really like to see some proper publicity about it, in the way that girls' vs boys' toys has been flagged up as an insidious bit of nonsense.

OP posts:
ElizabetaLuknichnaTomanovskaya · 22/09/2013 19:57

I am not aware of any campaigning specifically in relation to skin cream.

Women are absolutely key in our consumer society, any means even obviously fake or fraudulent are used to discipline us into buying. I think because individualism has become the modern mantra, its about investment into the individual, be it education or face cream. We are constantly in debt to create the very best version of ourselves.

Swipe left for the next trending thread