The selfie craze, championed by celebrities including Kim Kardashian and Miley Cyrus, has swept social media in recent years. And new research has revealed that the average British woman spends one month – 753 hours – of her life on the quest for the perfect profile picture. The staggering amount of time is spent taking, deleting, retaking, applying filters and retouching the perfect selfies.
Kim Kardashian is known for her love of selfies
The study, carried out by The Body Shop to launch their new All-In-One Instablur, also found the top five tricks women use to make themselves look their best in selfies: 1. Choosing soft or moody lighting (51%)2. Shooting from a downward angle (47%)3. Adopting a ‘slimming’ body pose (46%)4. Applying smartphone filters (37%)5. ‘Smizing’ or smiling with our eyes, as advocated by supermodel Tyra Banks (29%).
The famous Oscar selfie; Beyoncé: Scarlett Johansson; Gwyneth Paltrow and Reese Witherspoon
A quarter of women confessed that they would never upload a photo of themselves online without resorting to at least one of these quick fix tricks first. With the recent meteoric rise of online dating apps such as Tinder, it seems that the pressure for women to aspire to perfection on social media platforms is higher than ever. Almost two thirds – 61 per cent – of the 1,400 women, aged 18-30, questioned said that they felt the increasingly popularity of dating sites and apps has intensified the pressure to look good online. "It’s clear that the rise in popularity of selfies has really ramped up the pressure for us to make that all-important first impression online," commented Sam Thomson, UK Values & Marketing Director, The Body Shop. "However, The Body Shop has always been committed to activating self-esteem and we are passionate about giving women the tools to feel more confident in their skin.” New All-in-One™ Instablur™ (RRP: £14) blurs skin imperfections to help achieve flawless, photo-perfect looking skin in a flash.