There is a difference between pretty and beautiful. Ironically, in beauty there is an exaggeration of symmetry somewhere, take Penelope Cruz and her sister for example. They are both lovely women who look similar, but where Monica is ‘prettier’ the stunning beauty is Pene who has more exaggerated features, her nose for example. Sophia Loren did not have tiny symmetrical features, and the model Giselle has facial planes like a Picasso painting where current VS model Miranda Kerr is ‘pert and cute’ a cute pretty at best.

Saying that, one must discover one’s own signature, and accentuate that to be one’s most alluring as an individual. Angelina’s lips work for her face, but so did Greta Garbo’s for her face! Learn to admire without so much envy that you annihilate yourself. Admire and also seek what is most like you and emulate this. If you look more Reubenesque, then don’t set Audrey Hepburn as your physical ideal. You will be miserable. Look at other ideals, including those in art and connect to your sensuality. Then, you will be an alluring siren.

Also, beauty and allure is partly what a person projects, an energy from the inside. A person who holds their own uniqueness as a treasure is already fascinating. Stars did not have conventional looks. There was something unique about all of them. Trying to look like this plastic surgery mean or average, like you came off an assembly line with a stamp on you is not the way to being unforgettable.

Teens, who are always awkward about their appearance during those years, (this writer included) should especially steer clear of plastic surgery. Their faces are still growing and changing as is their character developing. A nose that embarrassed one at 13 may be realized as a distinctive asset when they are 25. As Simone de Bouvoir once wrote, a woman is not born a women, she becomes one.

Celebrate yourself.