By now you’ve probably seen it, the image that has gone viral in the past few days. It features a woman’s bikini bottom, seen from behind, and the uncovered skin is coated in glitter. Every magazine has presented it as the new trend to look out for. Are you ready for #GlitterButt? I choose to refer to this trend solely in its hashtag form, since if it weren’t for hashtags, this wouldn’t even be a trend at all. It would’ve merely been an editorial choice during a photo shoot. It’s only now when we’re constantly searching for “Instafame” and glory that we notice these kinds of fads (who else remembers #BikiniBridge?).
How far are we willing to go for praise and recognition from our peers? How important is our social media presence that makes us disregard our common sense in favor of being “liked,” in the clicking rather than the action form? This trend was created by the team at The Gypsy Shrine, a retailer of all things glitter. According to the story, while doing a photo shoot in the Moroccan desert the sand was getting everywhere, as anyone who’s gone to the beach can understand. The sparkle crew came up with the idea to throw on a lot of glitter and, voilà, #GlitterButt was born!
✨WHOS GOING TO GET A GLITTER BOOTAY THIS SUMMER????✨ Gold Glitter Available online! ✨ Our talented artists @sophiamoreno7 + @thrillsoftomorrow
A post shared by THE GYPSY SHRINE (@thegypsyshrine) on Mar 9, 2017 at 4:00am PST
So far it seems like the entire fashion and beauty industry of the world is on board. I mean what could be so bad about this? Well, here’s my take:
When I was searching for the accompanying images to go with this article I looked up the hashtag on Instagram. I’ll be totally honest, I felt like a creep as I inspected all these backsides breaded in unicorn sparkle to choose which looked best. Which brings me to this question: what happens when we objectify ourselves? Because that’s what this feel like, as if we’re packaging ourselves as products for others to click on, follow, and share. Before I hear the “it’s not objectification” response, the fact that these images are more about one body part than about the person attached to this butt, is to deconstruct a human.
✨RAINBOW BOOOOOTAY BY @thrillsoftomorrow ✨ EXCITING NEWS COMINGGGGG V SOON!!! #watchthisspace
A post shared by THE GYPSY SHRINE (@thegypsyshrine) on Mar 16, 2017 at 9:50am PDT
Second thought on this comes from the rest of the images I found on The Gypsy Shrine page, as well as on the now iconic image: cultural appropriation. I’ve taught myself to look away from what is now regular at summer music festivals. I can pretend I’m not seeing all those people wearing headdresses and face paint, even though I am. I can shrug and say whatever to how my generation loves to call themselves the new hippies, claiming they’re following what our parents and grandparents lived through, as they take selfies from a phone that was definitely not paid by the collection box at the commune. Can you believe yourself to be a free spirit like those who came before us, when we’re not even willing to live without all this stuff?
✨WHAT A WEEKEND✨ BEYOND SAHARA YOU ARE AMAZING!!! We have had no wifi in the desert but here’s a SNEAK PEEKKK of what we have been getting up tooo!!! ⚡️ MORE TO COME LOVE @sophiamoreno7 + @thrillsoftomorrow ✨✨✨✨#GlitterBootay WATCH OUR STORY TO SEE WHAT WE GOT UP TOOO TOP FROM @ravewithmigente
A post shared by THE GYPSY SHRINE (@thegypsyshrine) on Mar 6, 2017 at 8:16am PST
Finally, here are my two cents regarding health concerns. Anyone who’s found themselves with some sand in their nether regions knows how uncomfortable that is. That being said, sand is not synthetic. As adorable as this trend can be perceived as, I doubt a yeast infection is worth the Instagram post with a couple hundred, or thousand, likes. Not that I’m claiming that it will definitely happen, but I don’t know. This is not a normal situation. Nylon Magazine even made a small comment to ensure the safety of its readers when going this route: “Some glitters are made of glass, so for the DIY crowd: make sure your glitter is not made of glass.” Come again? Glitter made with glass? Now I’m not just worried about the bikini area, what about people who put glitter on their faces?
Why not #DiscoBooty ⚡️⚡️ @ndrixon @thegypsyshrine ✨✨ • • • • • #glitterbooty #coachella #festival #glitter #glittery #glitterbutt #thegypsyshrine #gold #festivalstyle #festivalmakeup #festivalvibes #tuesdaymotivation #sparkles #artstagram #artoftheday #artistsofinstagram #bikini #makeupart #makeuplove #makeupartist #makeupblogger
A post shared by Mia Kennington (@thrillsoftomorrow) on Mar 28, 2017 at 2:09am PDT
Ultimately, if anyone wants to stick whatever on their backsides, faces, or any other part of their body, it’s their choice. My comment isn’t against #GlitterButt per se. It’s about how as a society we’re more than willing to get on the next bandwagon, as long as the hashtag is cool and the bulk of the media tells us it’s the new thing. This idea came from two makeup artists at a professional photo-shoot. How did it turn into a thing for the average person to try at home? I certainly wouldn’t want to be the one who finds themselves explaining to the doctor at the Urgent Care how I ended with a chunk of mermaid sparkles over there. Particularly if it will start with, “so I this on the internet and I wanted to try it out on my own.”
RAINBOW BOOTY❤️All glitter by @thegypsyshrine ✨✨ The beauty @ndrixon
A post shared by Mia Kennington (@thrillsoftomorrow) on Mar 16, 2017 at 10:14am PDT
Is it really so hard to love ourselves enough to not have to search for new lengths to reach to feel beautiful and accepted? How can we encourage others to love the skin they’re in when we’re constantly rolling out new trends that seem to say, “this is what you need to do to be pretty”? At first, when #GlitterButt showed up on my timeline, I thought it was a joke. As I kept seeing it referenced in several places, I realized the joke was on me for not getting it. Well, call me old fashioned, but I’d rather keep having sand up my one-piece swimsuit while I fix my Mickey Mouse beach towel than have to worry about glass or how many followers I’ve gained or lost. I’m vintage like that.
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Sources:
Nylon
Gypsy Shrine’s Instagram