Karolina Maria is using her makeup skills to illustrate "the pressure to be perfect."
The 20-year-old special effects artist posted a video that shows how social media envy and low self image can cause people to take drastic measures.
She starts off wearing no makeup and looking happy with herself.
But then she checks social media and sees a barrage of "perfect" faces that have been contoured, highlighted, and airbrushed.
So she grabs her makeup and uses contour and lipstick to look more like Instagram's beauty ideal.
She's happy with the results — until she goes back on Instagram and sees Kylie Jenner's full lips and Kim Kardashian's sculpted nose.
"Am I pretty now?" she asks after using her special effects skills to show just how far Instagram envy can push you.
Maria says she made the video for teenagers who feel pressured toward cosmetic enhancement.
"This video is about self love and accepting your flaws … Young girls all the way down to the age of 13 to 15 years old are starting to save money to get a boob job or get Botox to get rid of the wrinkles under their eyes when they turn 18. Not a single person can tell me that this is normal!"
Indeed, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons reports that in 2015, over 226,000 cosmetic procedures were performed on teens aged 13 to 19.
But she's not against plastic surgery and cosmetic procedures altogether.
"Just to make it clear, I am NOT shaming anyone who has had surgery or has fillers," she wrote, adding that it's when people turn to cosmetic procedures as a means of self love or confidence that things become dangerous.
The video offers a powerful message from a very talented young artist.
So talented, in fact, that she had to post a message assuring fans that she didn't really get plastic surgery!
"To those of you who think that I actually got plastic surgery, it's just makeup."
Watch the full video below.
