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Mom uses a brilliantly simple, one-word switch while teaching her daughter about makeup

Imagine if all daughters were taught to think of makeup this way.

@maggiekatz/TikTok

One simple change can make all the difference.

Makeup is an incredibly fun form of self-expression. At the same time, it’s deeply enmeshed with the problematic beauty standards that rob women of their self-worth. Many grown women have a rather complicated relationship with it, so it’s no wonder that they might have a hard time knowing exactly how to have a conversation about it with their own daughters.

But one mom has a pretty awesome solution for teaching her child about makeup in a healthy way, and it all comes down to a simple word switch.

In a video posted to her TikTok, Maggie Katz has a pretty adorable exchange with her daughter in front of the bathroom mirror as they put on makeup together.

As they do, Katz tells her daughter “You look so fancy.”

Note the word “pretty” is not mentioned here.

Katz continues, “And why do we do makeup? Because it’s fun and we get to look fancy. But are we pretty no matter what,” to which her daughter enthusiastically agrees.

And that’s it—that’s the entire video. But it’s so easy to see what a profound mindset shift this language tweak makes. Imagine if all of us had been taught to view makeup as something that merely adorns or elaborate on what’s already there, rather than fixing unlovable flaws.


@maggiekatz The words we hear growing up have an impact :heart: #makeup #momsoftiktok #raisingdaughters #fancy ♬ original sound - Maggie Katz


“I needed this as a kid,” one person shared. Another wrote, “This lady on here fixing all the little people inside of us.”

So many people chimed in to praise Katz’s idea, saying that they would be following her lead.

“THANK YOU!,” one person wrote. “I put on makeup occasionally for super special events and I’ve struggled with how to explain it besides saying it’s fun to be artistic sometimes. I’ll be using this.”

Another echoed, "I will be teaching my daughters this way now.”

Others shared how they too have incorporated different phrases like “glamorous” or “fun” rather than “pretty” when teaching their daughters about makeup—or just thinking about it for themselves.

And for what it’s worth, Katz believes in boys feeling fancy with makeup, too. In a comment she wrote, “I have a son too (he's a few years older) and it definitely works with him too. I've worked to remind him that we can all find beauty everywhere we look and that everyone is special in their own way.”

The conversation struck up by Katz’s video is just one way our collective mindset towards makeup has seemed to shift for the better. Yes, we hear tales of Sephora kids being prematurely fixated on anti-aging, but maybe that’s only one part of the picture. After all, we also see celebrities going more bare faced, as well as more people advocating to do away with overly photoshopped ads for beauty products.

Speaking of ads—it’s interesting to note that for years makeup was sold to women as something they needed in order to feel beautiful/worthy/acceptable/etc. But then Gen Z came into the scene, with their fun eyeliner shapes and crazy color combinations just for the hell of it, and now makeup has become more of an art form than a clutch. And makeup sales are more booming than ever. Companies take note: you don’t have to disempower people to push products. Just saying.

Whether you’re a bona fide glambot or prefer to save the eyeliner for special occasions, may this be a reminder to you (and any little ones you’re trying to uplift) that you’re perfect exactly as you are.