Shelf Care: Shannon on Beauty, Part 2

Here at She’s Full of Lit, we are multi-faceted women whose mutual interests don’t just include books. One of those interests is beauty, and the products and rituals we use to take care of ourselves. We thought a series outlining our skin care, makeup, and hair routines, as well as some deeper questions about what beauty means to us, would be a fun read outside of our usual book-related content.

First up: the one who has made a career out of beauty! We should disclose that Shannon has worked for The Estée Lauder Companies for seven years. Please also note that there are some affiliate links below.

Part 1 with Shannon’s beauty routine and favorite products is here.

A pretty good encapsulation of my personal style. Photo by Sweet Sundays Photography.

How would you characterize your personal style?

I think my style is pretty minimalist-New-Yorker, if that means anything. I wear a lot of skinny jeans with combat boots and T-shirts in the fall and winter, although I do love a more feminine (but not frilly) sundress in spring and summer. My main color palette is blue denim, black, dark red, leopard print, and dark green. I think white Converse go with absolutely anything, and I don’t care how trendy small sunglasses are—Jackie O. shades for life. And I love a bold lip, especially if I’m barely wearing any other makeup.

What is your most tragic beauty fail?

I’ve had some pretty terrible bangs. I love the look of straight, blunt bangs (think Anne Hathaway in “The Devil Wears Prada” after the makeover), but only a really good stylist should cut them, and I definitely wasn’t going to great stylists in college and in my early 20s. I thank Goddess every day that my mom didn’t let me tweeze my eyebrows in high school (and that I didn’t rebel), meaning I’ve never had to deal with tiny ’90s eyebrows.

Do you have a general beauty philosophy?

In the simplest terms, my beauty philosophy is to have fun and look like the best version of myself, and also not stress myself out about it too much. One big piece of advice I have is to listen to your skin; it’s not the same every day. Some days you might be oiler, some days you might be drier, so it’s important to know at least something about the active ingredients in the skin care products you’re using. If I find my skin is a bit dull, I make sure to exfoliate with the Dr. Dennis Gross Peel Pads and use some Vitamin C. If I’m drier, I use a heavier moisturizer.

It’s also important to know what you’re willing to be high maintenance about. I am high-maintenance about many things (which many people will attest to), but I will just never blow-dry or heat-style my hair regularly. I’ve figured out a routine that works for my hair and my schedule, and every time I get a haircut, I make sure to tell the stylist that I don’t blow-dry my hair, which helps them better understand what kind of cut to give me—the layers need to fall well naturally, etc…

Lastly, it’s important for me to exercise regularly to feel like the best version of myself.

From whom did did you learn about makeup?

In college circa 2006, wearing my beloved purple Revlon cream eyeshadow

Anyone who knew me in middle school or high school would probably laugh at the fact that I’ve ended up working in the beauty industry. (I asked one of my close friends, with whom I went to high school, and she confirmed this.)

I think I wore my hair in a ponytail 99% of the time in high school, and definitely wore more than my fair share of KMHS Swimming and Diving hoodies between the years of 2001-2005 (…Go Mustangs!). My mom (rightfully) wouldn’t let me highlight my hair because I spent so much time in a pool, and she also blessedly forbid me to touch my eyebrows.

In college, I wore some mascara and tinted moisturizer (CoverGirl, I think?), and if I was “going out,” I’d pair my lacy, faux-silk going-out tops with Revlon cream eyeshadow. That was about the extent of it; beauty was just never really my thing.

oh, 2010 Shannon, if only you knew where you’ve ended up in your career.

This was posted two days after the previous tweet.

After college, I decided to make an attempt to figure out a skin care and makeup routine for myself. A friend and I walked into Sephora, asked “wtf is a primer,” and left with products we definitely couldn’t afford on our entry-level salaries. Flash forward to 2020, and I’ve been working at The Estée Lauder Companies for 7 years, and if you looked at my beauty stash, you’d probably think I qualify for “Hoarders.”

So, I learned about beauty from a variety of sources: Sephora, friends, my mom (after I finally decided to learn about “adult makeup”), and I’ve been fortunate to learn from some amazing makeup artists and hairstylists/colorists, as well.

When do you feel beautiful?

Honestly, probably right after I’ve done my skin care routine at night. Or after I’ve worked out. (My latest favorite workout is a class here in New York that combines boxing with weight-lifting and high-intensity plyometrics, which has helped work out some of my aggression concerning politics and ex-boyfriends.) In the words of Elle Woods, Esq., “exercises gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy!” But I’ve also gone through phases with hot yoga, running (…jogging), triathlons, and of course, swimming. In my opinion, the best workout is the one you do regularly.

How does working in the beauty industry influence your personal beauty philosophy? Do you feel pressure to look a certain way?

When I first started working in beauty 7 years ago, I definitely felt pressure to look a certain way. I started wearing a bit more makeup and trying new skin care products, both of which were fun to do! But after awhile I did get a little sick of “having” to wake up at a certain time to do my makeup routine, and I started applying my makeup at my desk. I should say that the pressure was mainly self-inflicted. I’m nothing if not a perfectionist. I don’t think most people noticed if I wasn’t wearing eyeshadow on any given day, but I do think people who work in beauty are quicker to compliment each others’ skin, makeup, or hair at the office (in the interest of sharing product recs and research), and, who doesn’t love feeling validated?

(One major benefit was that, if I had a date after work, there were always products around to do a quick touch-up before going out.)

Seven years later, I’d say I’m much more comfortable with myself and my place at work, and I only put in a major amount of effort if I have a big meeting (like many women in various industries, not just beauty). I’m fortunate to work at a much more casual brand, and they advocate for being yourself at work, which means I wear my ripped jeans and combat boots to the office quite often. And, it’s nice to work with a bunch of other beauty experts and share product recommendations and reviews in the office!

But, I’ve thought a lot about how working in beauty potentially conflicts with my feminist values, and these quotes resonate quite a bit with me:

But in my opinion, it is inherently anti-feminist to squash or suppress any part of yourself, and that includes our looks. It’s so important to embrace all aspects of self, and outer beauty confidence is equally powerful when elevated in conjunction with internal work.
(Being a feminist) is whatever makes you the best, most well-rounded version of yourself. Being a feminist shouldn’t be a trend, it should be your truth. For me, being a feminist is being inclusive; being your best self according your own needs; being nice to yourself; being nice to other women; and sharing beauty tips.

As I stated above, I think beauty should be fun, and, even though I work in beauty marketing (and advertising), I don’t want people (no matter how they identify) to feel like they have to use any products to be beautiful. They should use beauty products to express who they are, have fun, experiment, and play. There’s nothing wrong with getting Botox, and there’s nothing wrong with just using a little SPF and moisturizer (or at least just SPF!). I want people to reject old-fashioned beauty ideals and use makeup, skin care, and hair products to look however the hell you want to look.

That said, I’m sure I have a much easier time of things as I’m a straight cis woman whose style is fairly conventional, and wouldn’t be out of place in most professional settings (despite my 9 tattoos). Hair colors like blue or purple don’t necessarily fit into all dress codes, which is difficult if that’s how you want to express yourself. And I don’t really have a good answer for this, but just know that not everyone who works in beauty wants to push meaningless product on consumers. I want people to love how they look, no matter how many or how few products you use.

I also try really hard to use whatever power (lol) I have to advocate for diversity, inclusion, and representation.

What is one beauty step you never skip?

Taking my makeup off at night! I have to be very drunk.