What beauty means to Caroline Daur

Net-a-Porter is providing the ultimate summer vacation necessities through Jet-a-Porter, its annual summer “curation of exclusive capsules and collections.” Jet-a-Porter is all about “discover[ing] the mood-boosting fashion and free-spirited style made for endless days of sunshine.” To show these new summer collections in action, Net-a-Porter jetted out models, designers and influencers to the Peloponnese coast in Greece to stay at the beautiful Amanzoe resort, showing us how to vacation the right way.

The Jet-a-Porter trip partnered with Zimmermann (celebrating the Australian label’s Eyes on Summer collection), Chopard and Sisley Paris. The Jet-a-Porter shop will be featuring 59 exclusive capsules and 32 new brands throughout the summer, providing us with everything we need to look our best this season.

Net-a-Porter invited German fashion and beauty blogger Caroline Daur to be one of the select girls that jetted off with them to Greece. Daur has worked with some of the biggest designers in the world and is constantly in the spotlight, with nearly two million followers on Instagram. She’s an expert on style and beauty and gives her followers an understanding of her life through her blog. Daur sat down with us to chat about her Jet-a-Porter experience, and gave us some insights on beauty and fashion from her perspective within the industry. 

Let’s start with a vague question, but one that’s deeply relatable for women and men all over the world – what is your definition of beauty?

My definition of beauty is feeling good in your own skin, accepting your imperfections and spreading positive energy. 

As a public figure who’s always in front of the camera, do you feel pressure to always present yourself beautifully?

Not at all. I have no problems showing imperfections. Nobody is perfect and it is totally okay to have some flaws. 

What do you tell yourself to stay in a beautiful mindset?

I think we should take it easy. There are so many more important things in life. There are days we feel better, then days we don’t – and this is how it is supposed to be. 

When do you feel the most beautiful? 

I love being productive and structured. When I have days where everything goes as planned, I automatically feel good. And when I feel good, I also feel beautiful. Also, being surrounded by my family and close friends gives me a lot of good energy! 

What’s some beauty advice you’d give for someone going on a long-haul flight? 

Hydrating my skin before the flight helps me and I try to drink as much water as possible. What I also like are gel eye pads; they’re super-easy to use on a flight.

The Jet-a-Porter trip has gathered a diverse group of individuals – this includes diversity in skin colour, body, sexuality and style. What are your thoughts and experiences on representation in diversity? Do you admire any people who represent diverse beauty? 

I am blessed that I can live such a diverse life. Meeting new, inspiring people from all over the globe on a daily basis is such an amplification of mindset. We can all learn so much from each other. 

What does ugly mean to you? 

Inner beauty is important to me. If a person is unkind or rude, I cannot see any beauty in that person.

What’s your secret to feeling beautiful during the summer months and during this Jet-a-Porter trip? 

To be honest, I like to have a little tan – not too much but a healthy glow makes me feel good. On this trip, I had a facial. Usually I don’t have time to get one; that’s why I really enjoyed it. My skin was glowing! 

Do you think the beauty and fashion industry creates any unrealistic expectations that have made you and those around you insecure about yourselves? What would you say to empower those who look up to you? 

Yes, I do. I see people that look almost perfect from the outside – their beauty is unbelievable, but still they are not happy, which again confirms that appearance is not everything. It is way more important to be happy and confident about yourself. We all should spend more time and energy to work on our inner values. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. 

If you could change one thing about this industry, what would it be?

I think not taking yourself too seriously and helping each other is important, and would change this industry in a good way. 

Do you think body shaming and online bullying is an issue in the year 2019? If so, why do you think people act that way? 

Yes, I do think that it is still a big issue – maybe even more than ever before. Earlier, there was no platform to quickly spread your opinion or, in this case, hate. Being anonymous crosses limits easier. I doubt that those online haters would have the courage to say the lines they text in someone’s face, personally. People who act like that are often very unhappy with themselves, and it is mostly their own insecurity and a lack of love. It is easier to just spread negative energy, which is done within seconds, than to sit down and work on oneself, which might take years. 

What’s your favourite feature about yourself? 

I like my eyebrows. 

At this moment, what’s your goal in life?

It sounds like the most obvious thing on earth, but as mentioned before, always improving myself in terms of kindness is an ongoing goal. Plus, I always have high expectations for myself – that I would like to minimise a bit. Just live in the moment and don’t be too hard on myself. 

Who is your legend? 

My parents. They are both very warm-hearted, open, encouraging people and it is great luck to be able to observe such a relationship. They never fight and treat each other very lovingly, respectfully and understandingly.