20-Year-Old Melisa Raouf becomes the first Woman to Compete in Miss England without Makeup

The world’s most beautiful women will not appear in public without wearing makeup. That has raised the question; if you are truly beautiful, why spend hours on make-up to look beautiful? 20-year-old Melisa Raouf has answered that question as she is now in the finals of Miss England without wearing makeup, becoming the first woman to do such. She said her goal is to inspire ladies to appreciate their beauty without wearing editing their looks.

The Politics student from Battersea in London said there was no need to hide her flaws if she is beautiful.

“It means a lot to me as I feel many girls of different ages wear makeup because they feel pressured to do so,” Raouf told UK Independent. “If one is happy in their own skin, we should not be made to cover up our face with makeup. Our flaws make us who we are and that’s what makes every individual unique.

“I think people should love and embrace their flaws and blemishes, as we know real beauty lies within simplicity,” she added.

It was the first time in the 94-year history of the competition that anybody was competing in the beauty pageant without wearing makeup. Many feel Raouf is setting a new standard of beauty for young ones, especially in this era of social media.

Although Melisa admitted to wearing makeup in her early days, the 20-year-old said she had now accepted that she is beautiful the way she is.

“I never felt I met beauty standards. I have recently accepted that I am beautiful in my own skin and that’s why I decided to compete with no make-up,” Melisa continued: “I still feel confident in myself. With makeup, I am all concealed. This is who I am, I am not afraid to share who I am. I wanted to show who Melisa truly is.”

Melisa did not fail to address the issue of ladies who feel less confident because of their looks. She said it was time to let go of the mindset that makeup contributes to self-confidence.

“I would love to use my Miss England platform to empower natural beauty and eliminate this toxic mindset,” Melisa continued. “With mental health being such a big topic, I want to make all girls feel good. I just want to remove all the beauty standards. I feel like all girls are beautiful in their own way. I feel like I’ve done it for all girls” she said.

‘Bare Face Model’

For years, the Miss England beauty pageant almost did not have any space for bare-faced contestants. The organizer of the competition, Angie Beasley, said the ‘bare face category’ was recently introduced.

She said: “It encourages contestants to show us who they really are without the need to hide behind makeup and filters on social media.”

“This round in the contest was introduced back in 2019 as we were receiving so many entry images from contestants covering their faces with thick makeup and using filters,” she told CNN.

Ms. Angie said: “Since then contestants post their images on social media to enter this round. This is the first time I’ve seen a contestant completely makeup-free competing in a semi-final, and she said she felt empowered against all the other contestants.”

“I’m all for makeup to enhance your natural beauty, but there’s no need for youngsters to wear it so thick that it looks like a mask,” she stated.

The final of Miss England will hold on October 16-17, and the world is watching if the bare-faced model will emerge as the winner. Even if she does not win the competition, at least she has written her name as the first woman to challenge the status quo in the industry.