What true beauty means for Julia

Sporting a neat hair bun, beige halter dress and nude makeup, Julia Barretto was radiantly beautiful when she graced the virtual media conference of her latest endorsement, beauty brand Miracle White.

When asked to rate her “pagka-kikay,” she gave herself a perfect 10, “10 na lang. ‘Yun din naman ang sasabihin ng mga bashers eh. Maarte ako eh,” said the 24-year-old actress.

As the first-ever ambassador of Miracle White, she shared how she maintains her glowing skin, some skincare routine and what real beauty means.

In a brief answer, she told The STAR her definition of true beauty, which is “embracing who you are and being proud of it.”

“There’s always one kind of you, one kind of me. Wala tayong magiging kaparehas sa buong mundo and I feel that that’s what makes us all unique in our own way, makes our own identity,” she said on the importance of embracing the looks that one has.

She added, “And I feel that everybody is beautiful in their own way… It’s just a (matter of) perspective on how you see yourself and how you see others. I believe everybody is beautiful in their own way, of course.”

However, Julia admitted that she, too, has an insecurity in terms of her physical appearance and that is her height. She wished she was taller like her younger sister Claudia. But as time goes and as she matures, she has totally embraced her imperfection.

Growing up and transitioning into womanhood, Julia granted that it’s very human nature to feel self-doubt but she got past that stage and learned to practice self-acceptance.

“I fully accepted my flaws and my shortcomings and the things that are good about me (as well). Because siyempre you can’t always acknowledge your flaws, ‘di ba. You also have to acknowledge the things that you like about yourself or what you think is nice about yourself. You got to have that balance,” she remarked.

The bottom line is “the first step (of overcoming your physical insecurities) is always acceptance,” explained Julia. “Once you’ve accepted everything that you have and do not have, then life would be so smooth and just easy from there.”

For those girls who have lost their self-confidence, the Viva talent advised them to “find that one thing that you strive in and (are) good at that will make you feel fulfilled.”

In her case, she shared that launching the online women’s accessories brand The Juju Club boosted her self-esteem. “I saw how well it was received and accepted by people. I gained enough confidence from it because nakita ko na kaya ko pala. Sometimes, you gotta make that conscious effort to really look for that ‘thing.’”

Aside from it, Julia realized that she can handle that “sense of independence,” having “to take care of all the grown-up stuff” all by herself living alone for two years. “Ngayon ko lang na-value yung pera, time and energy na binibigay ko. Ngayon, P200 or P500 ang mahal na sa akin ‘yun. Kasi na-va-value ko na siya. Because nakikita ko na yung bills ko, ako na yung nagbabayad, hindi na si Mommy,” said Julia and added that she is eyeing some investments besides The Juju Club.

She is really working hard for the future. “To get to a comfortable state and sana by that time, magkaroon tayo ng family. We just want our kids in the future to be comfortable and us to be comfortable.”

When she was younger, Julia revealed she lived a luxurious lifestyle — she would buy new shoes and bags every two weeks. But now, she is learning how to be frugal. She bought an expensive watch only after two years and as a Christmas gift to herself.

Nevertheless, her reminder to girls who have insecurities about their physical appearance is, “At some point, girls, in our lives, we have to really just learn to accept these. And let go of the things that we cannot control because (if not) it will lead us to frustration and anger. I really pray that you guys get to a point where you just learn to love it and you learn to find ways to embrace it.”

“Like me, you just make certain adjustments and you just kind of forget the things that you don’t really like about yourself — sa pananamit, how you carry and style yourself, paano ka umanggulo sa camera. There are always ways. I hope you get to a point in your life na ma-accept and ma-embrace mo yan. Later on, that will be your greatest strength I promise you,” she continued.

To ward off negative vibes and beat stress, she would think of her blessings and take the time to shut off. “Every time na medyo napapagod na ako or (I) feel stressed or minsan yung energy na binibigay sa akin is medyo bad or negative, I really take the time to shut off. Shut down and have a moment for myself. And really count the things that I should be grateful for,” admitted Julia.

“Hindi ko pinapayagan na mangibabaw ang stress tsaka negativity because again, hindi nakakaganda at hindi nakaka-Miracle White (laughs). Always count your blessings and focus on the good things that’s happening in your life, especially now na hindi natin alam kung anong mangyayari mamaya at kung anong mangyayari bukas, so as much as possible I just want to enjoy what I have and the people around me,” she declared.

Meanwhile, Julia’s beauty rituals include using body scrub once or twice a week, Miracle White supplement twice a day, and of course, “always wash your face and moisturize.”

She also felt very blessed this year, having done two series and two movies and some endorsements.

In fact, Julia just finished doing the lock-in taping for the film Expensive Candy, opposite Carlo Aquino. The former plays Candy, a sex worker and the latter is a school teacher. He falls in love with her and that’s where the love story begins and revolves around. She is excited for everyone to see the movie because, “It’s nothing that I’ve ever done before and I’d like to believe it’s a coming-of-age film.”

Expensive Candy is directed by Jason Paul Laxamana, who was also the man behind the 2019 flick Between Maybes, starring Julia and Gerald Anderson.