Anne Shirley is a life, love, and style icon. Who do you think is responsible for puffed sleeves coming back?
Exactly.
Anne is also a total hero. So to celebrate the new Anne show that's premiering on May 12 on Netflix, here are 8 lifelong beauty lessons we learned from Anne-with-and-e.
1. Beauty isn't about rules — it's about "scope for imagination."
Anne uses her vibrant imagination to turn the world into exactly what she wants. With a little "scope for imagination," she sees the beauty in everything and everyone — except herself. When she arrives at Green Gables, she imagines away all the things that society says are "wrong" with her: her hair color, her freckles, even her body type.
But with time, all that changes. Anne becomes less worried about fitting in — and more about expressing herself. That's what beauty is all about; not worrying whether Mrs. Harmon Andrews will disapprove of your lipstick.
2. Approach DIYs with caution.
Anne sinks into the depths of despair about her red hair, and impulsively buys black dye from a traveling salesman. Unfortunately, her old-timey Pinterest hack does not go as planned, and Anne ends up with green hair. "A queer, dull, bronzy green, with streaks here and there of the original red to heighten the ghastly effect."
You might not have to cut off all your hair, but definitely exercise caution with DIYs.
3. Every cloud has a silver lining.
There's no help for it — the green dye won't come out of Anne's red hair, so it has to be cut off. In the '80s show, Anne gets a bob — in the books, it's more of a mostly-shaved pixie. But, when her hair grows back, it's darker — the "real handsome auburn" Mrs Lynde promised.
So who cares if you take a beauty risk and it doesn't work out? You might get something even better in the end.
4.. Defend your beauty boundaries.
You can't fly off the handle at every idiot with opinions about your looks — you'd never get anything else done — but when someone takes it too far, Anne taught us to FIGHT THE HELL BACK. From cursing out Mrs Lynde, who calls her "skinny and ugly," to cracking Gilbert Blythe square over the head after he calls her carrots, Anne is a take-no-shit icon.
You tell 'em, Anne.
5. Be kind.
Offhand comments can really stick with people — especially about the way they look — so go out of your way to be kind, rather than critical.
"An old remembrance suddenly rose up before Marilla. She had been a very small child when she had heard one aunt say of her to another, "What a pity she is such a dark, homely little thing." Marilla was every day of fifty before the sting had gone out of that memory."
Anne remembers being "twitted" about her looks for the rest of her life, and even as she jokes about it as an adult, it's clear that it hurt her deeply. It's cliche, but words can hurt. Always lift people up — don't drag them down.
6. There's no such thing as an imperfection.
Though Anne makes an uneasy peace with her red hair, her freckles continue to bother her through the second book, "Anne of Avonlea" — and she goes to some crazy lengths to get rid of them with DIY beautifying potions. "On one occasion the entire skin had peeled off her nose but the freckles remained. A few days previously she had found a recipe for a freckle lotion in a magazine and, as the ingredients were within her reach, she straightway compounded it."
On a really busy day, she applies what she thinks is the lotion to her nose — only to find that it's rug dye, and she's dyed her nose bright goddamned red.
Luckily, the dye washes off — and Anne gives up trying to get rid of her freckles. They're part of what makes her who she is, and she learns to love them. Or at least she doesn't dye them anymore.
7. If you like it, wear it.
Anne loves pink — and spends her entire life not wearing it, because "people with red hair can't." Now we know that these beauty rules are made up and dumb as hell; if you want to wear a color, a style of makeup, or take a hair risk — DO IT. Style rules may have been real in Avonlea, but they're not real now.
8. BE YOUR OWN PERSON.
"People who are different from other people are always called peculiar," Anne says, and boy howdy is that true. Anne is, from start to finish, a different type of person — and that's why generations of people have loved her.
So, sure, there might be a few Pyes who judge your makeup game — but who cares what they say? Shine your makeup light bright, and inspire others around you to do the same.
