The Brightside: Interview with Emily Belfiore of Damn That's Glam

I’m so, so happy to be collaborating with Emily of Damn That’s Glam this month to discuss all things beauty … with a brightside twist!

Beauty can be … a loaded topic. It can bring up a lot, whether it’s PTSD from experimenting with middle school makeup or struggling in modern-day-times to figure out how you’re going to heal the maskne wreckage before the summer starts.

When I think about beauty, and when I feel the most beautiful, it’s actually not so much when I have a full face of glam (I’ve never been very adventurous with my makeup, I joke that I’ve been doing the same routine since high school). When I feel the most beautiful it’s when I’m treating my body right, keeping up with my skincare routine, and showing myself that self-love consistently However this trifecta is not as consistent as I wish it was, and that “wow, I feel beautiful” moment is far too scarce and fleeting, wouldn’t you agree?

And this is exactly why I wanted to chat with Emily about her approach to beauty - how it’s evolved over the years, and how working in the beauty space and starting her own IG account has shaped her perspective. We had the MOST fun chatting on Instagram a few weeks ago - and in case you missed it (you can still watch here!), I’m sharing some of the highlights from our interview in today’s newsletter. Here we go!

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Bogs: So, Emily! We crossed paths at Marist, but we just reconnected through Instagram. Tell us where you’ve been since college and how you started Damn That’s Glam!

Emily: It all started with an internship at a lifestyle publication. The first couple months were all beauty related which was cool because I didn’t know a lot about the space and I was dealing with terrible acne - and as I started to write articles, PR representatives would start to reach out to me offering products, etc. I was like, wait, me?! Slowly, I became more in-tune with what was happening in the beauty world and started learning about tons of new brands.

At the time my personal Instagram account had nothing to do with beauty, and I tried posting something about a product and basically got made fun of by my sister. So my friends encouraged me to start my own account, and I came up with the name Damn That’s Glam, and the rest is history!

Bogs: Wow, it’s cool that a side-hustle came so naturally out of your day job.

Emily: Yes! And it’s hard balancing two Instagram accounts, but it’s nice to have a place that’s just dedicated to beauty and where I can share things that I’ve tried. I'm not an expert, but I’m an enthusiast, and I want to bring my experience and put it out there. I’ve also been getting into texture photography, and it’s cool to experience new avenues to consume beauty like packaging, texture, ingredients, etc.

Bogs: That’s inspiring. Right now I basically run to Sephora and hope for the best. Can you tell us more about your relationship to beauty before you started your career?

Emily: The beauty love definitely came later in life. My first beauty item was at 13, the Almay eyeliner crayon - I thought I looked amazing but when I look back at pictures and see my racoon eyes, I laugh so hard.

I was blessed throughout high school and college because I dealt with blemishes, not full on acne - but because of this, I didn’t think that my skin needed a routine. When I turned 22 I started getting cystic acne along my chin that was really unpredictable and hard to deal with, so I started to explore different products and routines, and between that and learning from my job, I’ve got a system that works for me, and I can tell when I don’t stick to it! So yeah, it’s been a glow-up.

Bogs: That’s awesome. So now that you’re really “in” the beauty space, what are your goals for Damn That’s Glam?

Emily: Well obviously the beauty space is really saturated, so when I started [DTG], I asked myself how I could stand out. I think that beauty really is so universal and can be so personal - it’s available to everyone - so I went to all of my friends and asked for beauty selfies, whether it was a them using a facemask or rocking some killer eyeliner… and I just collected pics and shared how people in my life were relating to beauty.

The pandemic has made that tough, though and I’ve been dealing with a lot of burnout. Sometimes I go 1000% on DTG, but I’m learning that I need to give myself breaks .. right now I’m just coming back from a little break, but I want to revisit the inclusivity angle again and showcase the universality of beauty.

Bogs: I love that. It’s so important to be inclusive, I always gravitate towards accounts that share other women’s stories - you can learn so much! So tell me, who is your celebrity dream guest for DTG?

Emily: I have so many. I was just thinking about it today. Right now I am so beyond obsessed with Lizzo - everything that she does - makeup, fashion, music - I just say, thank you for existing. And because you can learn so much from other people, it’s important to be able to see yourself in other people, and I think representation in any form is just so powerful (I know I’m a white girl saying that, but it is just so important). Also, Ashley Graham. Also, Rihanna. .

Bogs: Damn. That’s a great list! Next question. What would you want to tell a younger version of yourself? Let’s say 13 year old Emily with the Almay pencil - what would you say to her? 

Emily: OMG precious. In terms of beauty, I’d say, one day you’ll realize that eyeliner is not the vibe. You’ll watch a Buzzfeed video learning how to contour and life will change. Also, I think imposter syndrome is always in the back of my brain - but there are so many thing that I’ve accomplished and I really don’t give myself credit or acknowledge, so I’d encourage her to be grateful, be in the moment, and try to accept and pat myself on the back about what’s happening in my life.

Bogs: I so relate. I constantly feel like I’m not doing enough.

Emily: Yeah! Instagram is such a great tool, but the minute you see someone succeed in a way that you thought you would by now, it makes your brain spin a little bit. It's important to take breaks from social media.

Bogs: That’s a great segway into my next question. When you’re feeling down about yourself, what helps?

Emily: I wish for the life of me that I was a reader, but I’m not. In terms of beauty though, especially with work from home and there being no real opportunity to do a ‘look’ - there are some days where I open Snapchat and I’m like, ‘WHO is this girl I see?’ And I put on a little bit of concealer and mascara to look ‘awake’ and it makes me feel a lot better. And also, when it comes to skincare, I love a good exfoliating mask and follow it with a solid routine and it feels like such a breath of fresh air for your skin.

Bogs: Yes! A reset. So I have one last official interview question for you: what beauty companies do you think are doing an exceptional job with inclusion, representation, and just being present to the current moment?

Emily: I know I brought up Rihanna before, but Fenty Beauty. Rihanna was the first person to really justify the need for inclusion - she shows that all of her 50 shades are selling out and you can’t use the excuse anymore that ‘no one really buys the deep shades’ - she shows the demand and she shows that people are willing to pay for quality - they’re not just buying it because she’s a celebrity.

Bogs: It’s such an important moment to be holding brands accountable, and this is such an important topic. Yes! Thank you so much for sharing your story with us.

Emily and I went on to talk for another solid 30 minutes answering reader questions, talking about our “desert island products” (is it bad that I had 5??) and just kicking the can about beauty. It was so much fun, and like I said, you can still watch it here!

Next week’s newsletter will include a product roundup with all of Emily’s top beauty pics, and they’ll be in response to your beauty questions and insecurities. SO let us know what you need a reco for, and we gotchu covered!

All this talk about glam and self care has me READY to splurge on a bougie facial from Ever / Body