Fabiola Baglieri is one of the wittiest ladies around. Most of you have seen her posts on social media in which she is lip-syncing or glowing up with makeup transformations, and some of you even think she is, indeed, the daughter of the famous British iconic character of Mr. Bean.
However, in spite of those things that made her famous, Fabiola Baglieri is a great human being who overcame all the criticism and hurtful comments towards her to embody a new version of herself committed to being a voice that can help change things, make the world a friendlier place in which people can make fun of themselves and embrace the ways they want to show their faces to the world. But the best part of her mission is that she can do it in a short video at a time and in the funniest form possible.
So, we invite you to read the exclusive interview we had with her, an opportunity to know her like never before.
Behold miss Fabiola Baglieri.
The truth
VT: What would you like to say about your life and origins?
FB: My origins have some almost funny traits, and if I let you enter my perspective of how I see things now in my life and how I saw them before, I think you would lose yourself too. Most people believe first that I am over 23 years old and that I have certifications, experiences, or degrees in make-up, marketing, or something like that when the truth is totally the opposite.
I was born in a small town where everyone knows each other, and I know everyone, so lost that, when I opened the door, I could find Heidi and her sheep. I can’t complain too much about my childhood; I’ve always had a family who loved me unconditionally and gave me everything I wanted, but in adolescence, things got a bit complicated on the part of my family and even from the people around me.
One of the most difficult tests I’ve ever gone through was to suddenly move, just as I thought I was on the clearest day of my life, from a remote city to another chaotic town where the place where I was studying was indicted and very dangerous. I’m not going to tell you the details because I don’t feel still the right time to talk about this phase of my life. But, I wanted to say that I certainly didn’t have the perfect 18 years, just like everyone else, no?
VT: Your videos are so much fun. How did you come up with the idea of glowing your appearance funnily?
FB: That is a question they often ask me, and I still don’t know how to answer. I’ve always been a fan of glow-up in general; let’s talk, for example, about Il Mondo di Patty (Ugly Duckling) or Betty La Fea (I Am Betty, the Ugly Girl) and other television series of this genre. I loved seeing the transformations of girls being bullied and ending up taking their revenge.
I could spend days watching these stories. Also, I must add that, in my life, I always have been bullied for my ugly duckling appearance. In 2015, a look change challenge had even come out, but it was too extreme. At a certain point, tired of everyone, I get the idea of bringing it more to the “realistic,” and I decide to take all the traits that society defines as “unattractive” and put them all together.
I take the earrings from when I was 4, my grandfather’s glasses from the 1950s, and the make-up of my old hello kitty cosmetic bag and transform myself into what society would never accept. Is this something everyone would have dared to do? No!
Is it easy for a teenager in the most fragile phase to be seen that way, knowing that they are exposed to more bullying in the following days? No!
Would it lead me to something? Yes, but I didn’t know that. After a day, the video went viral with more than 40 million views, and the highest-rated comment with more than 200k likes was From Mr. Bean to Kendall Jenner. And indeed, it was so. With that makeup on me, there was an extreme resemblance to Mr. Bean, while, with the final makeup, there was a lot of Kendall. From there, it all began! I decided to carry on this format by coming up with a different idea every day but always based on the theme and having more fun in each video!
VT: In which way do you consider the content you create empowers women?
FB: In addition to making fun with small sketches in the role of Mr. Bean’s daughter, one thing that doesn’t come through clearly in all my videos is that I aim to make people realize that what is external to a person does not define the interior. Nobody can afford to judge, bully, isolate or mock a person for how they appear on the outside.
We all have a brain and, above all feelings, none more than someone else, and they must be indirectly respected by everything. Most of my videos start with the scruffy girl being rejected or mocked by everyone and end with a final transition where she becomes curated, prettier, and suddenly wanted by everyone. Most human beings don’t understand that the girl at the beginning is the same as the one at the end; nothing inside her has changed. She’s still the same girl. So, my women but also men, never allow anyone to put their feet on your head because it is they who have cerebral insufficiency and do not understand the power and the great person that they lose themselves in knowing. Never hide or feel embarrassed or not up to par because someone is more beautiful than you.
Always assert who you are and your voice, and never hide from the judgment of others. Precisely, for this reason, the phrase that characterizes and summarizes all my videos is the famous “never judge a book by its cover” because the content will always be the same.
A great natural talent
VT: Do you still draw portraits and stay interested in the arts?
FB: Actually, I have never studied or had art lessons and even fewer courses at school in this area. Since I was a child, when I had nothing to do, I would put myself in front of the computer and try to portray the subjects I saw on the screen, it could be, for example, Mickey Mouse or Tom & Jerry, in short, all cartoons. I have carried this passion forward over the years. And slowly, it began to become more and more evident that I had a talent in this area, which is also why I learned how to wear makeup in such a short time because I considered my face like a sheet of white paper.
Over the years, I have started portraying important subjects as pop stars, and if I have to say, the most realistic and beautiful portrait I have ever done was in 2020, Zendaya. It was a drawing that came out so well that I couldn’t understand how I did it without ever having taken lessons in how shadows, reflections, or any other technique is used to take certain drawings to such an advanced level. I admit I was also very surprised by myself. Do I still carry it on? I didn’t do it for two years, and then, a few weeks ago, I decided to do another one that portrayed Ariana Grande, and another time I was amazed at how well it came out.
Let’s say that I can say it is a great natural talent of which I am very proud.
VT: One of the things I like tho most about your influence on youth is that I see people from different parts of the world use your videos as inspiration to show a more confident version of themselves. How does that make you feel?
FB: That is exactly the motivation that stimulates me to give my best even on bad days. Seeing that what you create and spend most of your time can help people and positively influence them is one of the greatest satisfactions you can have.
It has happened to me that I open messages and read stupid insults. But also, I have found fantastic compliments, which they thank for helping them deal with their insecurities and uncertainties about their physical appearance by always making strength in their inner value fills my heart with joy. So, you manage to give me that thrill that I miss some days.
Unlike what some may think, it was a satisfaction seeing how the style of my videos has been taken as inspiration and recreated by other people. That is because so many people, just like me, have decided to get involved and not think about what other people might have thought.
One of the most beautiful experiences I have ever had the pleasure of reading was when opening the requests for messages: a girl born with a physical malformation of the skull told me how she always wore hats or covered her head every time. Somehow, she said that since she discovered my profile, she stopped caring about it and finally got rid of that wall that prevented her from being herself. She sent me pictures of how sad she was before and how happy she was now, free from embarrassment and worries, exactly how it should be.
Also, I remember other people who just stopped peeling off their eyelashes as a sign of rebellion against the stupid standards of society! I am so proud of myself and those wonders of people that I am lucky enough to influence.
VT: Social media can offer you the love of many. But also, some use social networks to spread hateful comments. So, how do you take care of your mental health and stay positive?
FB: Yes, indeed, social media can offer you many positive comments, and they can give you many negative ones. I know how much you can wish with all you have to receive only positive ones. But, I have now understood that such a thing is impossible because there will always be that person who will not be happy with something and will always have complaints or who will have fun saying bad things to the people.
The important thing is that you understand that they can also be constructive if you give weight to the right ones. I have learned to listen to criticism only from those who love me and care about me because it is the constructive ones that make you grow.
A voice that can help change things
VT: Which other values motivate you to stay focused and continue doing what you love?
FB: Well, I believe so much in what I’m doing, and I believe so much that one day I will be able to give my contribution to making this world a better place; indeed, I have no doubts. While this may not seem externally obvious, I am convinced that I will achieve the goal I set myself when it all started a year ago.
VT: What can you share with us about your upcoming projects?
FB: I am currently in my so-called travel period. A time in which different brands call me to do experiences of even more than a week, and I am going to diverse events, always creating content! However, I have many projects in mind, and I am just waiting for the right moment to make them come true!
One of the most important things that I will soon release will be media content that will bring me very close to my goal of having a voice that can help change things! I can’t wait to show it to you!
VT: Which message would you give those who are starting to try out makeup as a way to express themselves?
FB: Makeup is an art form accessible to everyone, through which you can express your emotions and have a lot of fun. A girl who discovered it a year ago tells you this! And about makeup, there are no limits on gender or color! I hear many people often say: “it’s a girl thing,” when it is quite the opposite.
This thing really makes me angry; I do not understand why certain mental stakes are set by society! Take the colors, all the ones you want, and turn your face into a work of art that should please you, not others! And the moment you start to give more weight to what makes you happy, you will be truly free and fulfilled.
VT: Anything else you would like to share with Vanity Teen?
FB: I would want to use this line to deepen a topic that is very close to my heart and which, unfortunately, I have been through for most of my life. Bullying kids will exist forever, obviously. We will always try to eliminate it completely. But, it is not easy. And the sooner you will be able to accept that in life, you could find yourself in front of people like this, the sooner you will be able to no longer care about them.
Before we go
Fabiola Baglieri has never stated that the path to follow her goals has been an easy journey, and there is so much of her story that she maybe will talk about it when she feels like the right time, or, probably, she will keep it to herself, who knows? But what I would like to draw attention to at this moment is that she demonstrates you do not have to be perfect to pursue happiness, and glowing up is more of an attitude than an external thing.
So, think about her story and do not let others tell you you are not pretty in your ways.
Love!