#INFLUENCERDRIVE: Cheryl Cavanaugh

 Aesthetics count. Be your Best Self. Take CHARGE of your appearance, as YOU want it. In the age of tech and business development, there is no barrier to defying age and honing body, face, mind and soul. 

And in that spirit? We turned to one of our favourite, upcoming, influencer names. 

Cheryl Cavanaugh kindly gave us some time to sit down and talk about the things that matter. Here we go!

1: How did you become an influencer?

I didn’t choose the Influencer life, the influencer life chose me!  I have always had a passion for makeup.  My Mom was a cosmetologist.  While scrolling on Instagram one day I came across a line of cream makeup that looked very interesting.  

Being 55 with changing skin, I was intrigued.  I bought a few of the makeup items and immediately fell in love.  I wanted the whole line, but I didn’t want to pay full price…so I inquired about becoming an artist for the makeup.  

I found out there were no minimums for sales and that I would get a decent discount, so I signed up.  My plan was to be an artist for the makeup for a good 3 or 4 months until I acquired all of the items that I wanted at a discount. 

However as I started using the makeup I felt like I could make a go of selling it, as it was something that I had never seen on the market before and it was an amazing product.  That was November of last year (8 months ago) I started TikTok and Instagram pages.  Zero followers on both.  

I began posting videos of myself applying the makeup using my phone and sunlight from a window.  A couple months in and I posted a 20 second video applying makeup stripes on my face to achieve an “instant face lift.”  That video received 3.2 million views on Tik Tok and 1.5 million views on Instagram.  

Shortly after I received a message from a reporter from The Daily Mail and next thing I knew I was an influencer.   I have since had a few other videos go viral, most recently on Instagram- telling 2.4 million viewers that I am 56 years old!

2: What, really, is the difference between using a filter and applying make-up, on principle? If we allow one, why are people so opposed to the other? 

Filters can practically create a whole new face for you - change your hair colour, eye colour, facial structure.  There are obvious limits with makeup in that regard.  Also with makeup you can look good in person - you can’t walk around with a filter in front of your face!  

Having said that, there are indeed some amazing things that can be accomplished with makeup!   Makeup and skincare has been around for a lot longer than filters too - dating back to around 3000 BC!  Perhaps people need another 1000 or so years to get used to filters! ;) 

3: 'Over 40' is in the tagline. What, specifically, are the kind of 'SWOT' (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) that women can encounter on the beauty front once they reach that milestone? 

With time, our faces tend to lose fat and our facial structure elongates.  Our skin starts to droop and pores can become enlarged. Our cartilage relaxes so our noses appear bigger. Oftentimes our skin will show the effects of sun with age spots and hormones can contribute to melasma and spider veins. Our skin can become drier and demonstrate increasingly more fine lines and wrinkles.  

Personally speaking, I am at the age where I am starting to notice these things more.  I wonder to myself how far am I willing to go with this?  What do I want to look like in 10 or 20 years?  There are so many options out there these days to prevent and treat age related changes.  Our looks are so entwined with our identity, right?  

So who am I going to be?  True story:  my grandmother tried to get a facelift (her 2nd) at the age of 85.  The Doctors told her 'no', she was too old for the surgery.  Is that what I will want at that age? I hope not! But when am I going to be okay with looking older?  That is the million dollar question.  

Right now, I plan to age beautifully - with maybe a few minimal procedures here and there along the way- nothing too invasive.  I’m just winging it as I go.  I feel that there are millions of other women in my shoes.  The fact that two of my videos focusing on aging went viral proves it.  We don’t have a representative.  All of the ads out there feature women in their 20s and 30s.  I always laugh when I see a 20 something young woman talk about how she lost 20 pounds in one month.   

I was skinny in my 20s too.  I could eat one less French fry and lose 2 pounds. It is the same way with makeup and skincare.  I can’t relate.  A lot of women who never wore makeup before are starting to see changes in their faces and want to start trying a little makeup.  They often have no one to teach them what to use or how to apply it.  Social media has become the teacher for us all.  I believe as such, my generation has the opportunity to better define what aging looks like.  We are not the era of the Golden girls, at least not many of us.  

There are still some women who are proudly going grey at 50 and embracing their wrinkles. Some of these women can be very vocal about the rest of us trying to maintain our looks. There is definitely a division.  I can’t tell you how many times women have tried to shame me over using a type of Botox. So what is the cultural norm for aging women??  I believe that is in the process of changing.

4: How can tech help with beauty? Both hardware (ie, makeup) and software (planning, simulation, rehearsal)?

Ah I got a little ahead of you in my answer above!  I mentioned that social media is our new teacher - and that is very much true!  Celebrities are being overshadowed by Influencers.  More and more women age 40 and over are getting on social media to find out what’s new in makeup trends, how they can adapt it to their skin, what the latest techniques are.  We are no longer going into department stores to get a makeover. There are filters that can show you what makeup will look on your face and exactly where to apply it.   Online sales are booming in all categories.  I don’t see this as a trend, I see it as the new norm.  COVID helped usher all of that along.  

5: Which women inspire you and where do you see yourself in 5-10 years in that same spirit? 

 

— Good question.  I am struggling in that area.  As I stated, I don’t think there are many “representatives” for my age group.  We could talk about Jennifer Aniston or Jennifer Lopez/Affleck (congrats on the wedding, btw!), celebrities like that- but honestly these ladies have all the money in the world to do whatever procedure they want and use whatever products they want AND they’re not talking about it!!!  

So I would probably have to say my Grandmother.  She did things in her own time, on her terms.  That inspires me.  In the same spirit, I hope to become one of those “representatives” that we are so lacking in my age group.  

I want to straddle the line between aging gracefully and aging with a little help.  I want it to become more acceptable and have this knowledge more available to women.   

I see myself sitting on the couch of Ellen’s replacement (isn’t she retiring?) talking about my new beauty book.  I want to contribute to women looking good…because when we look good, we feel good…and when we feel good - we make the world a much better place.  I bet you didn’t guess I was so “wordy”!!

 

  Thank you so much for the opportunity. (Cheryl, it was my pleasure!). 

For my part? In both fashion and function? Allow me to direct you to the following platform places: 

Try: Sustainability Roadmap

And: City Maps

Or: Augmented World

And this company, right here, which I have come across in my research.

If you are still reading at this stage then also check out these two:

Airports

Locations