Violette, who goes by her first name only, is like the human version of a tall, refreshing glass of water on a scorching summer day.

Perhaps, that’s why I have so much admiration and love for French-born, Brooklyn-based makeup artist Violette and her brand new vegan, cruelty-free beauty line named for her eponymous IG and YouTube handle, Violette_FR. As more and more people emulate the exact same beauty aesthetic (I love social media, but sometimes I curse it), I’ve slowly but surely found myself resisting the mainstream ideologies of what’s “trendy” or “in” when it comes to makeup- a return to beauty sans an agenda if you will. I can’t remember the last time I applied my makeup with that kind of free, completely un-influenced abandon, and I highly doubt that I'm alone.

Instead, we were following our basic instinct gravitating toward something we loved purely because it made us happy or sparked excitement and joy. Remember when we were eight and were drawn to a sparkly green eye shadow or glow-in-the-dark pot of nail polish? We weren’t thinking about whether or not said beauty product was “cool” or whether it’s what our favorite celebrity or influencer was wearing. Yes, finding the perfect shade of lipstick might make you feel all the more powerful during that important presentation, and a fresh new haircut might be just the ticket for an extra dose of self-confidence, but above all, experimenting and finding the creativity within the field of beauty should bring joy, and it should be something you do for yourself, and no one else. I don’t know who needs to hear this, but makeup-and beauty, in general-should be fun.

Makeup review