One scroll through the filtered corridors of Instagram is enough to make one wonder if reality even exists conceptually online anymore.

Of course, it is a wonderful sort of escapism to see perfectly chiseled individuals posing in exotic locales every now and then, but there is certainly a detrimental side to all of this flawlessness.

It surely follows that being confronted with edited and filtered perfection online practically without cease perpetuates wholly unrealistic beauty standards. That in turn can all-too-easily lead to us having negative feelings about our own appearances, as we aspire to such lofty heights of beauty that simply cannot be achieved without clever lighting, angles and editing.

One teenage influencer had a plastic surgeon verify that her butt was 100% real:

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Thankfully there are those who are attempting to redress the balance between fiction and reality on social media. Movements like the grombre movement - which encourages us to embrace our gray hair - and the body positivity movement, which urges us to love the skin we're in, are doing much to remind us that it's okay to love ourselves the way we are.

And celebrities are also getting in on the act, by posting makeup-free selfies on Instagram in a bid to normalize embracing our natural looks.

And over the weekend, legendary singer and entertainer Jennifer Lopez delighted her fans by getting in on the act. Taking to Instagram, she wrote, "Good morning everyone!!! #MorningFace" alongside a makeup-free selfie.

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And her fans were quick to comment their delight with her look.

"I am captivated by your natural beauty ❤️ thank you for sharing," wrote one, while another added, "Beautiful just the way you are".

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A third fan wrote, "Im so glad that you are not shying about your natural face it’s soooo good".

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"Yes queen ! Keep serving these natural looks. Pure beauty is unmatched." Wrote a fourth.

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This isn't the first time J Lo's fans have praised her seemingly eternally youthful looks. Previously her fans called her 'forever young' after she posted a bikini video to Instagram.

To quote Zoolander, celebrities are really, really, really ridiculously good looking. Whether they're on the big screen, performing a concert or strutting the red carpet, they always have to look their best. Well, they don't have to, but if they don't, Twitter trolls will call them old and fat. And that's kind of a bummer.

So, we're used to seeing stars with impeccable makeup. As we admire their beauty, we can't help but wonder, would they still be so attractive without all those powders and paints? After all, we've seen people pull off stunning transformations with makeup. This cosplayer uses makeup to perfectly recreate a variety movie characters. And this beauty guru uses makeup to help clients hide burns, scars and acne.

On social media, many celebrities have posted makeup free selfies to show the world what they look like underneath all the glitz and glamour. By showing their "real" face, they help take a stand against setting unattainable beauty standards. And also they might be trolling for compliments. Recently Christina Aguilera did a makeup free photoshoot, and her followers were blown away. The barefaced singer looked unrecognizable, but gorgeous, revealing adorable freckles.

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Kelly Rowland is the latest star to post a makeup free picture. I know Kelly best as Kia from the classic 2003 slasher film Freddie vs. Jason. But you probably know her best from her work with Destiny's Child, one of the best selling girl groups of all time. Last April, Kelly, Michelle Williams and Beyoncé reunited at the Coachella Music Festival, proving they were still as bootylicious as ever.

On Instagram Stories, Kelly shared a photo of herself from the early morning, lying in bed in her pajamas. When I wake up in the morning I feel like a hideous swamp monster, and would never post a selfie. In fact, I look so bad, if I tried to take a picture, the screen on my phone would crack. However, Kelly Rowland has so much problem. She "just woke up like this," and looks stunning. She wrote on the picture, "Washed, moisturized, and not filtered. I'm on my @gabubion." That's a nod to actress Gabrielle Union, who's also known for posting makeup free selfies.

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The isn't the first time the singer has went makeup-free. Over the years, she's posted barefaced photos and videos on social media. In fact, in 2013, she was featured in People magazine's Most Beautiful People, as part of their Not a Drop of Makeup campaign. "I started wearing makeup at 14 for Destiny’s Child," Kelly told People. "I remember the first time I saw my lashes with mascara on them – it was my favorite thing. For me, makeup reminds me of work. Without it, I feel natural and untouched."

Well, Kelly Rowland looks great, makeup or no makeup. And we all probably look a lot better natural than we think.

I have a theory about Gwen Stefani. It might sound a little bit crazy, but please, here me out here. Although the former No Doubt singer-songwriter looks outwardly gorgeous, it's my contention that she's obviously either sold her soul to the eldritch powers, or secretly discovered the elixir of life.

Why am I theorising that she's some kind of smiling vampire? Because of her looks! More specifically, the fact that she looks so young. Seriously, Gwen Stefani's career began way back in 1986 - meaning that she's been a performer for over 30 long years now! She's currently in her late 40s! And despite all that, she still looks no older than 30-years-old. How does she do it? It must be witchcraft, pure and simple.

Seriously, I think black magic is the only explanation, because Stefani has just proved that her youthful looks and lovely complexion isn't just the work of expensive cosmetics, or even everyday over-the-counter makeup. How am I privy to this information? Well, it just so happens that Gwen has just uploaded a selfie to Instagram, in which she appears to be completely makeup deprived. Despite that, she still manages to look stunning. How does she do it?

This week the 48-year-old diva was at Lake Texoma, Oklahoma with her partner Blake Shelton, happily celebrating his birthday, and on Tuesday night she shared a makeup-free selfie to emphasise her natural glow. The picture was accompanied by the caption "@blakeshelton thank u for sharing your world." Later, she added another snapshot, in which she can be seen relaxing on a boat with her natural look still complete. Behind her, driving the boat, is birthday boy Blake himself.

Blake and Gwen first announced that they were dating back in November 2015, after meeting each other while judging contestants on the reality talent show The Voice. They were first spotted cuddling up together at the 2015 Billboard Awards, in Gwen's Instagram feed. The couple then went on to perform a stirring rendition their song “Go Ahead and Break My Heart” in front of a large audience. They even embraced at the end of their cute duet. It seems like they're obviously very happy with each other. Stefani had previously been married to Bush singer Gavin Rossdale since 2002, but filed for divorce in 2015, citing "irreconcilable differences."

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It's good to see that she's taking a well-deserved vacation. After all, she has a busy schedule ahead of her. Gwen has apparently signed a 25-date residency deal to perform at the Zappos Theater in Las Vegas; scheduled to begin on June 27, 2018. Not only that, but despite her lack of cosmetics in the holiday snaps, Gwen's also planning on launching her own beauty line called "P8NT." More and more female celebrities are being open about not wearing makeup, and I personally think that the natural look should be endorsed more. You go Gwen!

 

 

Why do women wear make-up? It's the age-old question which has had many a non-make-up advocate scratching their head for centuries on end. Is it to mask those deep-seated insecurities? Is it the patriarchy clouting us down once again? Is it simply to give our image that extra bit of pizazz? The truth is, whatever her rhyme or reason, each woman - and the relatively low percentage of men who indulge in cosmetics - can now be stripped bare by MakeApp, the app that allows users to remove make-up from any picture. Many users are thrilled to pieces with the technology, which was updated this month to include videos. Finally, instead of relying on the paparazzi to catch celebrities "daring" to bare their naked faces in public, they could do a little DIY work and strip back the warpaint the rich and famous employ at red carpet events. After all, what could be better than having a bit of fun catching out Kim K or Blake Lively sans make-up, right? Wrong. MakeApp has painted itself as the subject of controversy among those who insist that it is just another way to shame people who choose to wear make-up, as well as those who claim that the new app doesn't accurately portray their bare faces, often making odd assumptions about their skin. So, do the haters need to get over themselves or is it all a little problematic? Perhaps the main issue is that many people see the app as a way to "expose" the women wake up in the morning and apply foundation, blusher and eyeliner to their faces. In the online world, make-up is commonly seen as a way for ladies to disguise the way they really look and "fool" men into thinking they are more attractive than they are in reality, the two Twitter posts below exemplifying this worrying opinion that is rife in society. After all, women make the decision to put on make-up for a reason and whether that reason be due to it being an art form, her own insecurity, or just to make herself happy, who are we to take that away from her? By giving users the opportunity to uncover a woman's face, are we swindling her out of the right to determine how she presents herself to the world? [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/feelickss/status/925049045965524992]] [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/1Word_Respect/status/476903126042427392]] Izabella Zaydenberg, a writer at Revelist certainly thinks so. She wrote an article entitled 'This make-up removing app is just a subtler form of shaming' that claimed: "If a woman steps out with make-up on her face, it's because that's the image that she wants to convey that day. It's not up to us, or up to some creep with an iPhone, to determine what she "really" looks like underneath her make-up. If a woman is wearing make-up, it's presumably because she WANTS to, and robbing her of that right is totally unfair." Another problem some users have encountered with MakeApp, which can also add make-up to a face, is that it is not always completely accurate in its portrayal of a bare face, often presuming that whoever using it has big bags under their eyes, red blotches on their face and a ghostly white complexion. It's come under fire for appearing to lighten people's entire faces, even giving them a paler eye colour than before, as well as not removing the make-up in its entirety. [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/gabrelyanov/status/923609438669459456]] However, it appears that the controversy surrounding the new technology was never intended. MakeApp founder, Ashot Gabrelyanov, reached out to Revelist explaining that his app was never intended to offend and, rather than troll, was instead meant to help the large number of people who are illegally trafficked around the world each year. He wrote an email, stating: "Every year, hundreds of thousands of people are illegally trafficked all around the World. In most of these cases, make-up is heavily used to disguise the age and/or identity of these people. If human traffickers can hide these victim's identities, their chances of rescue are low. When security services show an image and say 'Is this your daughter?' heavily applied make-up often makes the identification process quite difficult. We hope our technology may help families and authorities identify victims for rescue. We are already in communication with a few organizations to help them identify the victims of kidnapping and human trafficking." So, what do you make of MakeApp? A genius invention designed to better society, or a devious creation that humiliates women yet again? At the end of the day, it seems as though it is all about whose hands the app falls into. If trafficking victims are being saved, there's no argument that the app serves a worthwhile purpose. However, you could argue that once internet trolls, school bullies and make-up shamers find it in their clutches, they'll be no going back.

Sorry, cosmetics industry. Celebrities started posting makeup free selfies on Instagram, and the trend shows no sign of stopping. Gal Gadot, Chrissy Teigen, Sofia Vergara and several other stars have shared candid photos of their bare faces, without a hint of foundation, eye liner or lipstick. The pictures have revealed that many celebrities are naturally beautiful, beyond all the gloss and glamour.

In fact, after Christina Aguilera did a makeup free photoshoot, people remarked that she looks even better without makeup. (Freckles represent!) Pretty soon makeup will be out of fashion, like corsets, hobble skirts and those weird white Founding Fathers wigs.

Okay, so makeup isn't going anywhere, but #NoMakeMondays are popular. It's refreshing to get a peek behind the curtain at what stars really look like, and realize it takes time to create those 'flawless' red carpet looks. Celebrities - they're just like us! Except incredibly rich and all of their dreams came true. Anyway, Hilary Duff is the latest to go au natural - meaning she shared a makeup-free selfie, not that she posed nude. Come on, get your mind out of the gutter! The 30-year-old actress snapped a photo in her car, and looks stunning, bags under the eyes and all.

Hilary Duff has been in show business her whole life. As a child, she starred in television commercials with her sister, Haylie. Then she became a teen idol - and a household name - with her hit Disney Channel series, Lizzy McGuire. The show featured Hilary an awkward, clumsy teenager who...sometimes...was animated.... Okay, you caught me. I'm too old to have seen this show. But I know it was incredibly popular, jumpstarting her acting career and singing career.

You might have not thought about Hilary Duff since 2006 - you jerk! - but she's actually been pretty busy. She has a seven year old son, released five albums and currently stars in the hit TV Land sitcom Younger, which is in its fifth season. After being glammed up in front of the cameras for so long, it's nice to see the 'real' Hilary shine.

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Of course, girl looks good in makeup! Keeping up with cosmetics can be time-consuming and costly, but the transformative effects are worth it. Humans are superficial, and all those paints and powders help minimize our flaws. (I wish I was wearing concealer right now, to hide the fact I got four hours of sleep last night! Could also use some contouring, to get rid of chipmunk cheeks.)

That said, it's important to remember that makeup is a facade, a mask, 'very fake news'. By sharing makeup free selfies, we feel connected in our imperfections, and combat unrealistic beauty standards. But only for one day a week, on No Make Up Mondays. We'll make up for it on Cake Face Fridays.

In related news here's 11 wtunning side-by-side shots of models with and without makeup on...