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“Settle Down, Handsome Squidward”: 40 People Reveal What Beauty Standards They Find Unattractive
In 2022, the beauty industry made approximately $430 million in revenue. The beauty market is not just false lashes and lipsticks. It includes anything from skincare, makeup, haircare, and grooming products. And the experts project that the numbers will only keep growing.
Beauty products and their popularity mirror certain trends that are happening at one or other time in history. And, well, just because things are popular, doesn't mean that absolutely everyone likes them.
That's why when one Redditor asked "What's a beauty standard that you find actually unattractive?", netizens had plenty of answers ready. The answers ranged from surgical intervention to just simply too much makeup. Check out all the answers below!
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#3
Long, pointy nails. Overly long nails in general. 1/4 inch past the tip of the finger is plenty in my opinion.
It's true that different cultures have different beauty standards. Most of the things listed here are Western beauty ideals. A paper by Harvard University writes: "Western beauty ideals include being thin and tall, having long hair, having light/tanned skin, having big breasts, large eyes, a small nose, and high cheekbones."
Consultant psychologist Dr. Elena Touron told Glamour that people adhere to beauty standards because they want to fit in. "When we're flooded with unrealistic images on a daily, hourly basis (as can be the case with social media), it's no doubt going to have an influence on our self-perception and how we view the world more generally."
#5
Photos where the skin has been edited so heavily that it's lost all texture and character.
People aren't plastic. Stop it with that s**t.
Bartlet for World Domination 11 months ago
I saw one in real life. Apparently there's a powder now. If anyone knows the name...?
Unrealistic beauty standards are especially harmful to adolescents, as their brains are still in development. Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt wrote for The Atlantic that teenage girls are especially vulnerable.
"The subset of studies that allow researchers to isolate social media, and Instagram in particular, show a much stronger relationship with poor mental health. The same goes for those that zoom in on girls rather than all teens. Girls who use social media heavily are about two or three times more likely to say that they are depressed than girls who use it lightly or not at all."
#7
Face tattoos
On the other hand, social media can also help us shake off toxic beauty ideals. A 2021 study found that those who observed body-positive social media experienced improvements in body satisfaction.
PsychCentral writes that social media might provide inspiration and support to live healthier. Many accounts provide advice about nutrition and exercise. And online communities can act as support groups where people find empathy, understanding and encouragement.
#10
People need to stop promoting the unnatural look. It’s terrible for young girls/teens and f***s their self esteem so hard. People in real life simply do not look like that.
David 11 months ago
the sad thing is the older you get the more you see the marketing machine keeps moving the goal posts. It is never really about looking any certain way being 'ideal'. It is about convincing you that however you look is not good enough so you need to purchase what product they are selling. This is why you can go back through old photos and notice certain distinct looks for every decade. Those people were doing the thing that was supposed to be cool / popular / attractive at the time. Only to later be mocked by people buying jeans they purchased torn / with holes. LOL
#11
All the contouring! It just looks so caked on and overdone. When you’re unrecognizable without makeup, it’s too much.
kath morgan 11 months ago (edited)
Contouring is weird because it can be subtle and effective but most people use it aimlessly. They’ll contour their nose because brown powder drawn there is What’s Done, not because it’s going to flatter their actual nose.
#12
Drawn on eyebrows creep me tf out. Why do they always have to look surprised
#13
Obesity passing as curves.
Sunshine Lady 11 months ago
This. And I say it as obese woman, fighting for healthier weight. Not everything is just curves.
#14
The belief that the ideal woman looks and acts like an underage girl who needs a daddy figure to do everything for her.
#15
Orange spray tan
#16
When people do their lipstick way past their lip line to make them look bigger. It just looks weird imo but you do you
#17
Overly muscled men. Some is nice, some have bulging veins and look unnatural.
#18
A lack of standards towards men. As a man honestly men are allowed to be generally disgusting and nobody says anything because it's considered normal. Men too should be expected to put some level of effort into their appearance.
#19
Unnatural extreme white veneers. Many celebs get them even if they had overall nice teeth before.
Stardust she/her 11 months ago
Overly white teeth are so creepy to me. Sometimes it feels like they glow brightly in the dark
#20
Filler in general, but especially in the cheekbones. I am genuinely so confused why so many girls want to look like they're having an allergic reaction. It's almost painful to look at, it looks like their face is swollen.
I've never in my life looked at someone and thought, hmm their cheekbones are too flat.
#21
Lip injections, saw one lady who looked like she had an infection or irradiation
quentariel 11 months ago
And the worst is when they try to smile, but their lips don't stretch that much.
#22
I don't find this unattractive, I just think its overrated; being blonde shouldn't be the beauty standard. Dark hair is beautiful as well.
#23
Women having to shave their genitals or its considered weird. You ever seen a historical depiction of a goddess that was clean shaven? Not only has millions of years of evolution trained my brain to see Bush and know you are fertile, and therefor its just deeply instincually sexy. But on a deeper label, its so powerfully feminine in a deeply beautiful, artistic way. A girl with her natural hair looks like a literal goddess. A girl with a bikini wax looks like a child. Its such a huge turn off, and like men demanding it gives of hella p**o vibes.
David 11 months ago
Women should choose what they want not "men demanding". But there are other reasons for shaving or at least trimming. Certain activities are more enjoyable and I've heard more than one woman comment they preferred trimmed because it made hygiene easier. Not sure where OP's head is at but a shaved woman doe not look like a "child". The body changes are more than just the pubic hair. Anywho - the 'norm' varies by culture. Japanese don't, Muslims do, apparently ancient Egyptians did. Decision should be the woman's but societal views seem to vary by country / culture.
#24
Long beards on men.
Those absurdly long finger nails some women love to have, to the point they have problems even using a phone or writing
David 11 months ago (edited)
A well done long beard can be nice. Not for me as a straight cis male who can't grow a decent beard anyway. But I've seen nice ones. The other day I saw a "dwarf" coming out of a store. He was normal size - but I mean he looked like one of the dwarves from LOTR or something. Huge red beard halfway down his chest and and a stout, 'dwarf like' body. Again, I mean DnD / RPG dwarves, not midgets / short people. I can't describe it well in text but basically he would have looked awesome doing dwarf cosplay for a convention.
#25
The common beauty standard around Asia is really weird to me - skeletor skinny, sickly pale, and timid. I've seen girls avoid eating, wear hats, masks, jackets, and pants in super hot weather to avoid sunlight, and cover their face in countless different skin cremes. Most of them would be beautiful if they ate something and got some sun though. Doesn't help that family members make disparaging comments with even the slightest bit of weight gain or tanning.
Penguin Panda Pop 11 months ago
The female beauty standard in Asia is something akin to Michael Jackson's nose and eyes on a triangular shaped head. Jacko-659f...a8a87b.jpg 
#26
Anything too far. Fake eyelashes? Make em look slightly better than natural. B**b job? Shape em and go up or down a size to fit your figure. Injections? A tiny bit so even your friends and family think you look great but can't quite put their finger on why. I laugh so often at all these BBLS and wonder what they are all gonna do when the new beauty standard/trend is flat a**es or rail thin. DONT GET SURGERY BASED ON TRENDS!
#27
What ever the Kardashian aesthetic is.
Pencil thin drawn on eyebrows
Face tattoos
Sociopathic behavior
TheElementalGod️️ (He/him) 11 months ago
don't forget butts that look like you stuffed balloons down your pants!
#28
It’s not that I find it unattractive but I do not understand the intense hype over tall men. I am way more into average to short dudes.
#29
I grew up in the 90s, women with no thighs or butt, and large often fake breasts, were the pinnacle of the playboy franchise. I adopted this standard of beauty as a young man. I now love a naturally curvaceous woman. I want to make it clear women of all shapes and sizes I can see beauty in. I feel bad for those who alter their appearance to fit the aesthetic of anytime. Finally personality is sooo important. A “stunner” can alienate themselves with a bad attitude. An “average” person can impress with a smile.
#30
Noticeable plastic surgery. It just makes me sad to see.
#31
High heels, especially stilettos. I just find them extremely unattractive. Maybe it's the implied vanity at the cost of foot health and comfort but I just find it yucky.
Milady Blue 11 months ago (edited)
Not just the feet, though they DO take a LOT of damage from high heels. I wore high heels once for a job interview - I spent the next week with my feet, ankles, knees, hips and lower back giving me nothing but grief. And these heels were no more than about 2 inches tall. To top it off, I didn't get the job, either.
#32
There's a trend in female Kpop idols (I'm not sure if it's in South Korean culture as a whole--I know idol culture can be magnified quite a bit) to remove the fat from their cheeks, so their faces don't look so round and "fat". Every single woman I've seen do it goes from looking gorgeous to looking vaguely alien. The round face seems to be seriously looked down upon, which is a damn shame.
Penguin Panda Pop 11 months ago
I live in China. Can confirm that the beauty standard here is for women to have anime/manga type faces - big eyes, no nose, small and pointy chin.
#33
The current trend of thick, strong eyebrows on people who weren't born with eyebrows like that. Lily Collins, Brooke Shields, etc - YES. Everyone else - NO.
David 11 months ago
Brooke gets a pass because she had just always had full eyebrows. She was 14 in Blue Lagoon and has prominent brows even then, just a bit lighter in color (at least for that movie). I feel like is you have a look for 40 or 50 years then it's your look rather than you bending to a current trend. Also - I've never seen her brows look ridiculous like some I've seen.
#34
The frozen look - which might look nice for posed selfies, but in person there’s a real uncanny valley feeling about it.
Seeing young women, especially in their early 20s getting botox in their foreheads is so unnecessary and strange looking.
Anthony Kiousopoulos 11 months ago
For me the sexiest most attractive feature a person can have is their smile. The frozen look is the antithesis of a smile.
#35
Women pulling their tongs and swimming underwear way up the waistline to look sexy, while in no world do I find this provocative and it's just weird and exaggerated
#36
Youth. The standard of beauty is young people at the peak of their development. I don't find that attractive.
David 11 months ago
I found that attractive when I was one. But basically I'm attracted to my own age or reasonably close. My current "attraction" to youth isn't sexual. It's more like - God I wish I still had that much energy. LOL But for dating, give me a human being in my own general ballpark.
#37
Tats and face piercings -- especially nose rings. I mean, of all your facial features, why do you want the most attention to be on your nostrils?
Stardust she/her 11 months ago
Over here it’s a cultural thing for women mainly to have nose piercings, either studs or usually rings
#38
People who watch makeup videos and try to over contour their face and then don't blend it well. When people do that on videos it is so much product and looks decent in pics but from what I have seen in person it does not translate well. The stuff is so thick I can't image the amount of remover it takes to get off the face. It also looks so damn fake in person.
David 11 months ago
There is real skill to putting on makeup such that you look 'better' but at a glance it doesn't look like you are wearing makeup. I know some women who can, and for special occasions they look amazing. But they never look "Tammy Fae" with it. Mostly I prefer women who are comfortable in their own skin. Nothing or just a moisturizer base for skin protection. I realize - IMO / YMMV
#39
Button and ski slope noses. Give me some Roman chonkers.
#40
Easy on the eyebrow shaping please
What do you think ?
Tracy Wallick 11 months ago
Wow, the majority of this list is people just ripping on things that aren't for them that aren't hurting anyone.
Yer maw 11 months ago
God forbid random people don't like what I do to myself to make myself happy - there's plenty of things I don't like the look of and wouldn't have myself but I don't judge others for having different tastes. Don't like it, don't get it/do it/have it - if you do then you do you and crack on. I am absolutely it going to waste my time worrying if random people don't like my choices and neither should anyone else
Lydsylou (she/her) 11 months ago
I find it so sad that people think they need these surgeries and fake stuff to make them pretty. We should stop aiming for a completely unnatural plastic look as a beauty standard and start making a good personality our beauty
THEVibingShark92 11 months ago
I have an amazing idea: Let people do what they want with their own bodies ffs cause half of these were straight up cow manure 👍
🇺🇦 PrincessPatton 🇺🇦 11 months ago
A lot of people in this discussion are like, "if girls want to get botox and fake a*s, let them, it's their choice, their body, and they're not hurting anyone". Really? Would they really have voluntarily chosen it themselves if they hadn't been massaged from all sides by these "beauty standards" since childhood? It's on TV, the internet, social media, celebrities, influencers... Did they really voluntarily and independently choose it, or was it pushed on them?
lily jones 11 months ago (edited)
Most of these are targeted at women. I gave up on counting but this entire post just seemed to be bashing women for wanting to get lip or butt filler, and ignoring the fact that they must have felt super insecure in order to do it? Every time I see some kind of internet content with someone who got plastic surgery or is following some beauty trend everyone and their mothers are being all high and mighty in the comments 'wHy wOuLd yOu dO tHAt tO yoUrSELf' maybe because of the ridiculous beauty standards placed on women? What happened to girls support girls? I know some of the haters are men but a bunch a definitely women convinced they're soooooooo much better just because they haven't gotten lip filler. Obviously it's sad if people get plastic surgery for others and not for themselves, are you really going to add to all that by hating on them?
Guess Undheit 11 months ago
The MALE BURQA, baggy clothes from top to bottom. When I was a kid, men wore form fitting clothes day to day and speedos to the pool, and NOBODY freaked out about it. Now? If a man dares wear ANYTHING close fitting (never mind tight), he's assumed to be gay. How did men become so emotionally insecure about their bodies, so inwardly homophobic?
Ima Manimal 11 months ago
Beardzilla men. Duckface. Name brands prominently displayed. Most BMW drivers.
Tracy Wallick 11 months ago
Wow, the majority of this list is people just ripping on things that aren't for them that aren't hurting anyone.
Yer maw 11 months ago
God forbid random people don't like what I do to myself to make myself happy - there's plenty of things I don't like the look of and wouldn't have myself but I don't judge others for having different tastes. Don't like it, don't get it/do it/have it - if you do then you do you and crack on. I am absolutely it going to waste my time worrying if random people don't like my choices and neither should anyone else
Lydsylou (she/her) 11 months ago
I find it so sad that people think they need these surgeries and fake stuff to make them pretty. We should stop aiming for a completely unnatural plastic look as a beauty standard and start making a good personality our beauty
THEVibingShark92 11 months ago
I have an amazing idea: Let people do what they want with their own bodies ffs cause half of these were straight up cow manure 👍
🇺🇦 PrincessPatton 🇺🇦 11 months ago
A lot of people in this discussion are like, "if girls want to get botox and fake a*s, let them, it's their choice, their body, and they're not hurting anyone". Really? Would they really have voluntarily chosen it themselves if they hadn't been massaged from all sides by these "beauty standards" since childhood? It's on TV, the internet, social media, celebrities, influencers... Did they really voluntarily and independently choose it, or was it pushed on them?
lily jones 11 months ago (edited)
Most of these are targeted at women. I gave up on counting but this entire post just seemed to be bashing women for wanting to get lip or butt filler, and ignoring the fact that they must have felt super insecure in order to do it? Every time I see some kind of internet content with someone who got plastic surgery or is following some beauty trend everyone and their mothers are being all high and mighty in the comments 'wHy wOuLd yOu dO tHAt tO yoUrSELf' maybe because of the ridiculous beauty standards placed on women? What happened to girls support girls? I know some of the haters are men but a bunch a definitely women convinced they're soooooooo much better just because they haven't gotten lip filler. Obviously it's sad if people get plastic surgery for others and not for themselves, are you really going to add to all that by hating on them?
Guess Undheit 11 months ago
The MALE BURQA, baggy clothes from top to bottom. When I was a kid, men wore form fitting clothes day to day and speedos to the pool, and NOBODY freaked out about it. Now? If a man dares wear ANYTHING close fitting (never mind tight), he's assumed to be gay. How did men become so emotionally insecure about their bodies, so inwardly homophobic?
Ima Manimal 11 months ago
Beardzilla men. Duckface. Name brands prominently displayed. Most BMW drivers.
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