We have several pages on Grooming:
What a grooming issue is and isn’t (you are here)
How to provide us grooming images
Tips for dealing with grooming issues
Things that are not grooming problems for us
Before you assume the worst, let’s be clear – these things are never a problem:
- Scars. They are part of you. 🦁
- Freckles. We love freckles!
- Neat fake nails / french nails (though we do prefer natural nails) 💅🏼
- Tattoos ✒️, unless they are new (existing tattoos are not a grooming problem, but our Shoot Producers will work to cover them in the shoot)
- Stretch marks (severe stretch marks might be a problem, but we’ll make that decision before we offer you work).
- Un-natural coloured hair, so long as the job is recent (ie, roots not visible)
- Hairy armpits (full growth is fine; not stubble, stubble is a problem)
- Braces for your teeth 🦈
- Contact lenses (so long as they are not coloured)
- Wearing glasses 👓
- Lots of pubic hair (hairy monsters 👹 preferred!)
Small issues like a scratch on your hand or a mosquito bite on your leg, are never an a problem.
Things that can be a grooming problem for us
Ultimately, we want to make shoots of people looking neat, clean, wholesome and healthy.
Any one of these issues may mean we can still shoot, but several issues (or, one severe issue) may mean a re-schedule. We assess every case individually (from pictures you send), and we’re as lenient as possible. We always consider how things can be covered in the shoot👒, but we also need to be able to make a full shoot of you, without being too restricted. 🤐
Our decisions are not made lightly – we know it’s frustrating for you (it’s expensive and frustrating for us, too!), but we have to make these hard decisions to ensure that we only put our best quality work on the website – that’s how we stay in business and are able to offer you paid modeling work!
These are some grooming issues we’ll need to discuss with you. Not every issue means a shoot cannot go ahead!
- Serious acne/pimples
- Cuts, bites, scratches, scabs
- Bruises
- Ingrown hairs (eg, from shaving pubic region)
- Rash (eg, from allergies, shaving, heat, or similar)
- Head-hair dye growing out, with natural colour very visible
- Messy or chipped nail polish (fingers and toes) 💅
- Fungal infection on nails
- Stick-on nails that have “grown out”
- Cuticles in poor condition
- Sunburn
- Bottle tan coming off
- Changed skin colour from solarium
- Eczema
- Visible STI
- Infected piercings / dermals
- Pubic hair stubble; less than 16 weeks growth
- Underarm hair stubble
- Stick-on eyelashes
Some of these affecting you right now? Let’s sort it out. Please make a set of grooming images and send them over, so we can discuss them further.
“I didn’t have any major issues except some waxing irritation a few days before. I got in touch with Leena [Model Liaison] about it and she was helpful and very understanding of the situation and she reassured me that it would be okay. In general, with grooming, there were pretty reasonable accommodations made for me” (Anika V, Dec 2021).
Other things to look out for
Things that might be a problem for us, but not strictly grooming.
- Cosmetic surgery on your breasts 🌰🌰
- Changing your hair length significantly 💇
- Botox 💉
- Lip augmentation / lip filler / lip plumper 👄
- Very long natural or fake acrylic (or similar) nails 🔪
- Eyelash extensions (unnaturally long or thick) 👀
- Wigs, hair extensions, or similar 👩🦱
- Hairy legs 🧸
We need to talk about them before we can proceed with a shoot booking, so please reach out.
See also, How much can I change my appearance before a shoot?
