Pretty faces are everywhere, and it’s hard not to compare them to your face. All you need to do is take a quick stroll through the makeup isle, and the place will be rife with posters and package covers of women with perfect skin and jawlines. These products promise that you too, can look like them. As long as you use the product, of course. But that’s royally silly. No amount of skin-whitening cream, exfoliant or drawn-on brows is going to give you the same genes as those models.

That’s reality, and a ton of women are more aware of it than they were a decade or so ago. On Instagram, the #FilterDrop hashtag thanks to women who want to give everyone that much-needed splash of cold water. A ton of beauty ads on Instagram are hiding behind heavy retouching and filtering, and this hashtag wants to make that very clear.

1. Yes, ladies and gentlemen. This is what skin is normally like.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CF5FzSBJ1bb/

We’re always told to worry about our pores, never mind that pores are totally normal. If you’re expecting that perfect, flawless skin on every girl you see, then you’re about to get a much-needed reality check.

2. Skin isn’t a flaw!

https://www.instagram.com/p/CF-KVAWp5x2/

Those filters can really make you look better, and that’s not really a good thing. Imagine how many young girls never want to see what they “really” look like without a filter. Who’s going to tell them they look totally fine without it?

3. This is my face!

https://www.instagram.com/p/CFo6sYdJ6hU/

Leaving out the foundation might just be a foundation itself, one of self-acceptance and confidence! Let’s see those pores and lines.

4. Our genes call the shots most of the time.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CKtginuLHGR/

Acne is a pain, and even more so if it’s genetic. Those red bumps all over your face can be annoying, but they’re nothing to be ashamed of. Everyone gets them, and sometimes there’s little we can do about it.

5. Sometimes, pretty faces aren’t real faces.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CGVbbtzgrzL/

Smile lines mean a person who smiles a lot, so why would you try and cover those up? It’s been said again and again, but a smile is the prettiest thing a woman can wear on her face.

6. 40 years and never once needed a filter.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CK15R3JJMIV/

Age is inevitable, and this society really likes to pressure women to worry about aging. News flash, you’re going to get older. Your skin’s not going to look the same, and that’s totally fine!

7. Grey hair is still hair.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CEZe_sBBG74/

The keratin in your hair is just as much at the mercy of time as everything else. One day, your hair is going to go grey, and it’s better to own it than cover it up. Wouldn’t you agree?

8. Who is that girl I see?

https://www.instagram.com/p/CFh2rQJJvt8/

This photo may make things seem like a night and day difference – and they obviously are. But how often do you see women who look like her face on the right? Acne and pores come for all of us, and that perfect skin probably isn’t worth the money or the fuss most of the time.

9. We all woke up like this.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CKv25aFFyL7/

Between looking good and feeling good, I’m sure we’d all pick the second option. Lisa here is well ahead of us, and honestly still looks pretty good with her sweater and glasses.

10. She doesn’t even need the filter, if you ask me!

https://www.instagram.com/p/CK07M4uDulx/

We’ve forgotten to address the elephant in the room here : Using filters to advertise a beauty product falls under false advertising. So there’s more than a couple reasons why countless women all put their foot down and decided this wasn’t going to fly.

11. Skincare isn’t an option for many people.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CKmDKRSpmiv/

Good skin is part daily routine, genetics, and part skincare products. Most people would be lucky to have even 2 of those, and the ones who have all 3 still need to pay a pretty penny for it. That’s not even mentioning the patience you need to see the results.

12. You don’t need a filter for many things, in fact.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CJtk0HpAWXz/

“Beautiful in your own skin” has been echoed again and again for decades now, probably because not enough people listen. Now that we have social media to spread messages like this, maybe things will start to change?

Cameron Russel, a professional model, has spoken in length about our appearance-obsessed culture and why things have to change. There’s a great deal of subjectivity involved when it comes to beauty, and most of it comes down to genes that you don’t really have a say in. So why do we keep telling women that they need to have perfect skin and jawlines, and fix their pores and lines?

I’d say there’s quite a few people who’d need to read and see this for themselves, so give that share button a click and tag some of your friends!

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Source: [BoredPanda, TedTalks]