Take a stroll along memory road and think of all the female silver screen stars, models, and musicians whose distinctive birthmarks were considered the epitome of beauty, grace, and seduction: Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, Sophia Loren, Goldie Hawn, and Dorothy Dandridge, to name a few. In the '50s and '60s, moles were considered desirable physical attributes, tiny spots to liven up the face and give it an alluring mystique. Though these beauty marks fell out of favor in the '70s and '80s, they experienced another revival in the '90s ā largely thanks to the meteoric rise of supermodel Cindy Crawford.Ā
Nowadays the aesthetic appeal of beauty marks remains a contested issue, but we think these specks add character and, more often than not, help to accentuate a woman's features.Ā Find out which celebrities embrace their birthmarks and recognize them to be playful exclamation points that emphasize one's natural beauty.
Image via Michele Eve/Splash News
Cindy Crawford
As Cindy Crawford ascended to supermodel status in the '90s, young girls everywhere tried to replicate her signature mole. Ironically, Cindy Crawford hated her birthmark as a child and even considered removing it. She decided against surgery, however, after her mother warned her about possible scarring. Her mom's advice turned out to be a saving grace. Crawford credits her beauty mark for making her stand out in the modeling realm. "It's the thing that made people remember me," she says. "It made a lot of women who also have beauty marks identify with me."
Blake Lively
The mole on the right side of Blake Lively's face, right next to her nose, compounds her beach goddess vibe and brings attention to her rosy cheeks so that, when she smiles, her face looks all the more effervescent. Would Serena van der Woodsen have captured Gossip Girl's attention without that perky beauty mark? Hard to imagine!
Rachel McAdams
Rachel McAdams has several moles on her face and neck, and she's never considered them an impediment. As Mean Girls' Regina George, she ruled North Shore High School (moles and all!), and she later charmed audiences in The NotebookĀ andĀ Wedding Crashers. McAdams is so proud of her complexion that she went sans makeup on Allure's August 2014 cover, deliberately flaunting her marks.
Eva Mendes
Throughout adolescence, Eva Mendes was relentlessly teased about the mole on her left cheek. "In junior high, the other kids would say, 'You've got some chocolate on your face,' and I fell for it every time," Mendes told People. "I said, 'The minute I turn 18 I'm going to get that mole removed!' But I'm happy I didn't." As are we! The mole adds to her sex appeal and vintage glamour, which recalls legend Sophia Loren. And Ryan Gosling surely isn't complaining!Ā
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Sophia Bush
In March 2014, pop singer/rapperĀ Jake Miller sent a flirtatious tweet to One Tree Hill star Sophia Bush, saying, "I think we're soulmates…we have matching cheek moles." The actress, who often flaunts her beauty mark on Instagram (rather than concealing them with photo retouching apps and tricky filters), graciously laughed at the message, admitting that they might be #molemates.
Mariah Carey
Could the raised mole on the left side of Mariah Carey's chin be the source of her vocal prowess, her version of Samson's long mane? Probably not, but it does add personality to the diva's face. Ever since we saw that spot in Mariah Carey's "Vision of Love" video, we were lovestruck with it.
Gina Rodriguez
Jane the VirginĀ star and outspokenĀ body image activist Gina RodriguezĀ wants to be represented in a truthful manner. The Golden Globe winner recently expressed her frustration regarding heavy-handed Photoshopping tactics. "Let me keep my curves, my birthmarks," Rodriguez toldĀ Women's HealthĀ magazine. "I want to look like myself.ā Fist bump, Gina!
Jennifer Lawrence
It's Jennifer Lawrence's refreshing and disarming honesty that has endeared her to film audiences. She never seems too polished, rehearsed, or distant and, while she's undoubtedly stunning, there's a familiar and approachable qualityĀ to her good looks ā down to the moles around her mouth and along her neck. So, when Dior unveiled its Spring 2013 Miss Dior campaign, starring Lawrence, fans were perplexed by her porcelain-like, mole-free complexion. In response to their call for a more authentic representation of the star, Dior left J.Law's characteristic moles untouched for its fall 2013 campaign.
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Karlie Kloss
As '90s supermodels Cindy Crawford and Niki Taylor showed us, birthmarks can become trademarks. That's certainly the case for leggy supermodel Karlie Kloss, who has a small constellation of moles running down her right cheek that she works like, well, a Kloss. Makeup artists often leave her beauty marks uncovered on the runway, for magazine spreads, and for print ads for brands like Cover GirlĀ and L'OrĆ©al Paris.
Natalie Portman
ActressĀ Natalie Portman defends her right to bear moles ā even if photo editors and art directors protest. "Having a mole on my cheek was the biggest thing," theĀ Black Swan starĀ told Allure magazine in 2014. "When I did photo shoots, they would Photoshop it out. No one ever said anything to my face, but I felt like I was being told it was ugly. Finally, I had to say, 'No, this is part of me.'" Queen Amidala has spoken, so take heed!
Kate Upton
With a bubbly personality to complement her killer curves and blonde waves, model Kate Upton has solidified her bombshell status, earning comparisons to Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield. Like Monroe, she has a mole above her lip that augments her kittenish allure. Not that her fame has come easy! For years, Kate Upton has coped with naysayers lambasting her appearance, calling her fat and insulting her birthmark, but she's learned how to tune out all the negativity. "The people who are the loudest about wanting to change you are the people with the least amount of vision and creativity," she said in Glamour's October 2016 issue.
Iggy Azalea
After an appearance on Saturday Night Live in October 2014, "Fancy" rapper Iggy Azalea took to Instagram to thank the show's producers for a great evening. She did, however, mention one tiny disappointment: the promotional images shown during the episode had been altered so as to eradicate all of her facial moles. "I loved the promo pictures, butĀ I wish they hadn't Photoshopped all my moles off my face (hey, I like those things!!)," she wrote.
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Angelina Jolie
Forget the @AngiesRightLeg Twitter account ā someone should have started an @AngiesMole account ages ago! The Academy Award winner has a subtle birthmark directly above her right eyebrow, drawing attention to her smoldering gaze and sculpted arches. It's like a downward-pointing arrow sign that lures us toward her eyes.
Mandy Moore
"Candy" singer Mandy Moore has the most precious little mole on her right cheek, an extra morsel of sweetness on her fresh face. Good thing she doesn't plan on removing it ā we'd miss it like candy!
Scarlett Johansson
If birthmarks really are kisses from angels, then Scarlett Johansson got a big smooch from a cherub on her right cheek. It's the perfect complement to her bee-stung lips, almond-shaped green eyes, and high cheekbones. Somehow, it also makes her beauty seem more timeless while amping up the sex appeal.
Janet Jackson
Back in the late '80s and '90s, Cindy Crawford did for above-the-lip moles what Cara DeLevingne has done for bold eyebrows, making them theĀ era's most covetable feature. Even Madonna drew a faux beauty mark above her pout for nearly a decade! Around that time, some theorized that Janet Jackson, like Madonna, was sporting a painted-on dot. Twenty years later, the conspiracy theories have finally ended, and Janet's birthmark hasn't gone on any "escapades," but instead remains where it's always been.
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Niki Taylor
Besides Cindy Crawford, no supermodel in the '90s had as desirable a beauty mark as Niki Taylor. The Florida-born model graced the cover of Vogue in 1990, at the age of 15, and went on to appear in*Ā Elle*, Allure, Self, andĀ Marie Claire and to serve as a Cover GirlĀ model. Her mole, both then and now, is a key component of her easy, breezy brand of beauty.
