A self-taught make-up artist from the northeast of England, Miss Luke's decision to create tutorials on YouTube has made her an unlikely global superstar- and well on the way to becoming a millionaire in the UK. Known as Panacea81 on the site, to date she has amassed over 59 million views and has over 290,000 subscribers.
From Humble Beginnings To Online Star
Born in South Shields, the 27-year-old was bullied at school due to her body image and had few friends, turning to make-up as a form of comfort in her own home. She dropped out of education after falling pregnant, with her son being born when she was age 16. Left to bring up her son with her family, she did menial jobs before deciding to take up her interest in make-up.
In a new relationship and with renewed confidence, she sold well-known brands on eBay having bought products in bulk. She captured herself wearing the cosmetics to demonstrate how they could be used, and she was soon answering queries on her site related to achieving looks created with the make-up she was selling. This prompted her to create her own YouTube make-up tutorial channel.
Popularity Continues To Soar In The UK And Beyond
Filming from her own bedroom, the charm including background mess and the sound of the usual family chaos in the background, her tips in recreating various looks since July 2007 have led to her growth in popularity. She is the most subscribed user in the UK, has amassed TV and radio appearances and she even writes a weekly column in The Guardian newspaper. Luke recently launched her own book, Looks By Lauren Luke, she has created a video game for the Nintendo DS and has her own cosmetics line called 'By Lauren Luke', which is widely available in the USA.
Champion For 'Normal' Women
Her attraction to viewers is obvious- she is just like them. She has commented on how she sees her viewers as friends, regularly offering feedback and even just a friendly word. In a recent UK newspaper article she described how one elderly lady in the USA always looked forward to her friendly face offering her tips on make-up application, almost acting as a personal friend in the lady's life. Unlike the air brushing of the glossy women's magazines and the unrealistic body images portrayed in the wider media, Lauren herself accepts herself to be just a normal girl. As she declares on her YouTube page: "I want to make a huge change to the beauty industry...I hopefully will be able to do so."
James Cleary - I am a published author with a wealth of sports writing experience, who also writes reviews for a number of different sources. I have an ...
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