How Amanda Miguel and Selena Taught Me to Love Beauty and Embrace Myself!

When it comes to my relationship with beauty, I can tell you the same story almost every woman with curly hair will tell you: I always hated it. That is until two iconic Latinas taught me how to embrace and style it.

Growing up, I'd get my mamá to straighten out my hair and make it as smooth as possible at every chance I had. I thought it was unmanageable, messy, and unruly and that it didn't look as good as the other girls' who had burnt their hair to a crisp with their plancha. My proudest moment in high school was when I had to straighten my hair to play the role of Cinderella, and people gushed over me and my beautifully straight hair; I loved it.

But all of that hate and disdain for my hair changed in college. I can't tell you the exact moment when I decided I would no longer abuse my hair by straightening it and blowing it out. I simply stopped. My mom, who had also had the same hair as me when she was younger but sadly destroyed it after a perm gone wrong, supported me. I went to the salon for a trim, and when my mom asked me if I wanted it blown out at the end, I said no. She asked me why, and I just said I was done putting my already dehydrated hair through that torture. She didn't object, because she just wanted me to be happy. She also enjoyed the fact that I was finally embracing and taking care of one of the many things that made me unique: my hair.

As the years passed, I learned how to style my hair and vouch for it at hair salons that wanted to chop it up because they had no idea how to cut it in a flattering manner and embraced it as part of my Latinx roots. This also manifested itself in me supporting small businesses run by Latina women, such as Rizos Curls started by Julissa Prado, who, like many of us, had phases with her curls. My curly hair was proof of the Spanish, African, and Taíno blood that ran through my veins.

Aside from my mother, two women were essential in my journey of acceptance: Argentinian singer Amanda Miguel and Mexican icon Selena. Growing up, they were constantly present in my life. Whether it was watching their music videos or listening to their songs, I was obsessed with them, and I wanted nothing but to look like them. It was witnessing them embracing and exalting their stunning melenas that helped me accept mine. I can't thank these women enough for their influence on how I relate to my hair now; I also have to thank them for my passion for all things beauty.

My love for makeup began as a way to cope with my insecurities, my anxieties, and my lack of control over certain aspects of my life. It really started when I would simply watch YouTube videos of Latinx beauty gurus — like Christen Dominique, Kathleen Lights, and Melissa Alatorre — and it felt almost comforting when they interacted with their fans in Spanish. Impulsively, I bought every eyeshadow palette, lipstick, and foundation they recommended because they just knew which brands to support that could cater to a Latina's skin demands.

As shy as I was, I began to feel more comfortable in my skin and more empowered when I dared to rock an all-blue eye look or a red lipstick almost every day. I became unapologetic over my glittery eye looks for work because they made me feel like me. In a way, my mother and I bonded even more as we played around with makeup as if I was a child all over again.

If Selena could stand by her fashion choices and her passion for beauty, why couldn't I? It made sense that the moment MAC Cosmetics dropped a Selena collection, I ran to be among the first to own it. Owning something that Selena herself would have worn seemed to validate me and made me eternally grateful that I was among the same racial group as her and so many inspiring women.

As I've gotten older, my fashion sense has evolved into something more classic, but in my book, loud beauty looks and big curls are the Latinx classics I'll always love and appreciate.