Norikuh: The Courage to Be Bare
After years of hiding her vitiligo behind makeup, content creator Norikuh found power in vulnerability—and beauty in what once made her feel different.
At the age of five, content creator Norikuh began wearing mascara, eyebrow pencil, and concealer to school. It had been her parents’ decision.
It wasn’t some misguided attempt to make a kindergartener look better. Instead, the makeup hid the white patches that had appeared suddenly on her eye area—white patches that, her parents worried, would attract bullying in school. Later on, young Norikuh would be diagnosed with vitiligo, an autoimmune condition where the body’s immune system attacks melanin-producing cells, which leads to a loss of skin pigment and the white patches. The makeup was meant as a shield, but it was confusing for the young girl, and led to what the now-beauty content creator calls “a love-hate relationship with makeup,” and ultimately, with her own looks.
“When I was younger, I hated it,” she shares. She had to wake up on school mornings before everyone else to put on her face, and in school, was often forced to remove her makeup in front of her classmates by unsympathetic teachers, who were bent on sticking to rigid school rules, despite Norikuh’s mother informing them beforehand of her daughter’s condition.
“I used to be very insecure, especially with my vitiligo, growing up,” she shares. But when she began uploading beauty content on TikTok, her perspective changed. “That’s when I started loving it,” she says. Years of having to apply makeup to cover herself up finally, in Norikuh’s eyes, had a purpose: “I realized I could inspire others, teaching them how to emphasize their features, making them feel more beautiful, more radiant.”
Today, Norikuh is a full-time beauty content creator, and her TikTok views number in the millions. There is one particular video, however, that stands out. It starts with Norikuh, perfectly made up as usual, covering one eye with her fingers, and slowly pulling her fingers away to reveal her naturally white eyelashes. The views currently number 14.7 million.
“That was the toughest video I ever posted,” Norikuh says, about her public reveal that she suffers from vitiligo. “My best friend told me, ‘Your skin condition is beautiful. Stop wearing mascara and lash extensions all the time.’ She was the first person to ever tell me that my white lashes, my vitiligo was beautiful.”
Norikuh filmed a video without her usual eyelash cover-ups, and posted it. “I was so nervous. I thought, ‘People are going to call me names.’ But there was not one bad comment about my physical appearance.”
Wilmark Jolindon
Appearing in public without the protective cover of makeup still makes Norikuh uneasy. Even at the Allure Philippines shoot, she is hesitant, admitting that ditching her mascara makes her feel very vulnerable. “I haven’t seen my lashes in a photo in years,” she remarks. “The last time was for my kindergarten school photo,” which she actually pulls out for us to see.
A little Norikuh, with more visible white patches, smiles out at us from the photo—full of unfettered joy, still oblivious to the trials she will have to surpass because of those patches. It’s a meaningful gesture, especially since Norikuh herself has a daughter.
“Ever since I had my daughter, I look at myself with more grace,” she shares. “I remind myself to forgive my past self for thinking that I looked horrible, that I was a defect, and just to be kind, forgiving, and graceful.”
If there’s one thing Norikuh wants to teach her daughter about beauty, it’s that, “Beauty is not a physical thing,” she says. “It’s knowing your self-worth, before you even put any makeup on. Know who you are. Don’t try to fit into all these unrealistic beauty standards.”
Art direction by Nicole Almero. Beauty direction by Ambrosia Concepcion. Makeup by Lala Flores, assisted by Raquel Rocha. Hair by Dale Mallari. Styling by Geno Espidol for Qurator, assisted by Jermainne Lagura.
