When Look Good Feel Better came to Darlene Bell’s workplace at L’Oréal Paris looking for volunteers to facilitate beauty workshops for people battling cancer 10 years ago, she felt inspired to sign up.
“Many of us who enjoy using cosmetics have bought L’Oréal products before, and of course, we’ve all known someone who has gone through cancer treatment,” says Bell. “So it seemed like a perfectly aligned opportunity for me to give back to the people who have supported my career my whole life.”
Now retired from the largest cosmetic company in the world after 41 years, Bell helps those who are facing cancer diagnoses gain the skills in their toolbox to rediscover their confidence and connect with the beauty within themselves from the inside out through these workshops.
The beauty workshops are a two hour long complimentary experience for individuals who are living with cancer. When guests arrive, they are first greeted by the Look Good Feel Better team, who then create a customized beauty palette for each guest based on their needs.
The makeup kits used in the workshops are all donated by Cosmetics Alliance Canada (CAC), which includes full-sized high quality skincare and makeup products that guests can take home with them.
“They’re full of energy when they leave, and those kinds of comments make you feel like you’re making a difference in somebody’s life.”
Darlene Bell
Guests are educated on everything from proper sun care and skincare to how to apply eyebrow makeup after experiencing hair loss from cancer treatment. Look Good Feel Better also has a wig specialist come in to teach guests what type of wig is best for them and how to care for their new hair.
Bell says the most rewarding part about volunteering at these workshops for her is seeing the difference in people from when they first walk into the event and how they light up with confidence after the experience.
“They’re full of energy when they leave, and those kinds of comments make you feel like you’re making a difference in somebody’s life,” says Bell.
The beauty expert expresses how rewarding it is to see how animated people get after their makeup is done, chatting about plans to go out for dinner or how happy their family’s will be to see them looking like their old selves again.
“If you can just do that. Give them one afternoon of joy, a time where they can learn some tips and tricks on how to cope with what they’re going through, it’s just a really incredible feeling,” says Bell.
Look Good Feel Better workshops are not only a place where those living with cancer can get a break from outside stressors and get their makeup done, it’s a place where individuals who are battling cancer can come together to create connections and community with other people who are going through similar battles.
“I’ve volunteered a lot in my past, but nothing has ever meant as much to me as this does. It fills me up. Every time I go, I leave with so much gratitude and feeling lucky myself to be able to give back to make a difference in somebody else’s day,” says Bell.