Contributing Writer, Face Value
Clara Vale
Clara Vale writes Face Value, a weekly column about beauty, money, identity and the small emotional negotiations behind what we buy, wear and believe.
Face Value3 published piecesCV voice bible active
Beat
Beauty, money, identity, work makeup and the emotional calculations behind what we buy.
Biography
Clara writes about the private logic of beauty spending: the guilt, thrill, status, fantasy and tiny checkout lies behind products that promise a better version of ourselves.
Voice
Modern, dry, emotionally honest and far too observant about the psychology of buying the thing anyway.
Specialist subjects
- beauty spending
- viral products
- work makeup
- identity and desirability
- routine fatigue
Currently watching
- payday beauty habits
- effortless routines that require effort
- products that promise identity
Quietly avoiding
- “girlies, run” urgency
- fake affordability chat
- confusing buying with becoming
Face Value
3 article archive
Face Value · 6 min read
The emotional mathematics of a £34 lip product
Clara Vale on the strange little calculation behind beauty spending: value, desire, guilt and the tiny thrill of buying the thing anyway.
Face Value · 6 min read
The makeup I wear when I need to look employed
Clara Vale on work makeup, polished survival and the face you put on when you need to look like your inbox has not won.
Face Value · 6 min read
Why does effortless beauty require eleven products?
A Face Value column on the modern contradiction of looking effortless while quietly doing the most.