SI Swimsuit Models Are Not Fans of the New Viral TikTok Filter

SI Swimsuit’s 2019 cover star Camille Kostek and Swim Search finalist Summer Wilson shared their thoughts in recent videos.
Summer Wilson and Camille Kostek.

Summer Wilson and Camille Kostek.


Camille Kostek and Summer Wilson are not happy with TikTok’s recent viral filter. Everyone on the app seems to be trying out the “Bold Glamour” feature that adds a dramatic glam, slims down the jawline and lifts the eyebrows and cheekbones—all physical attributes that can be achieved with some sort of cosmetic surgery or enhancement.

Wilson, a 2021 Swim Search finalist, shared her thoughts in a recent video.

“I hate so much that this filter even exists and that it’s so realistic and that everyone is trying it,” she began. “Are we just like trying to add more dysmorphia and self deprecation to life and make things harder? I just don’t get it.”

TikTok users have created a total of 5.2 million videos with the filter.

Wilson wore a white bathrobe with her hair pulled back and revealed a bare natural face after removing the feature.

“So this is what I look like and I’m totally cool with it, and you should be totally cool with what you look like because we’re not avatars,” she continued. “We’re real human beings. I just hate the fact that people are gonna look back a year from now, or 10 years from now, and think they looked a certain way and have no clue what they actually looked like. I always hear people say ‘filters are just for fun,’ but no. Filters are something to mask and change the entire appearance of what you look like. And it completely f---s with your head. I don’t know why people are doing this. I can’t back it. I don’t like it at all. I’m sorry. Don’t do it.”

SI Swimsuit’s 2019 cover star Camille Kostek also chimed in on the video-based platform to try the filter and offer her opinion on the ridiculous full face of makeup that comes with the feature.

“filters dull your shine 🍯,” she captioned the Feb. 25 post.

She began the video with the filter on. Her hair was thrown up into a messy bun with face-framing pieces left loose and she wore a brown color-blocked leather bomber jacket. The 31-year-old began by shaking her head left and right. She covered her face with one sleeve, removed the filter and revealed her natural skin—freckles, rosy cheeks and all—and began dancing.

“YOU are beautiful unfiltered,” read the screen. “I’ll dance to that.”

Make sure to follow SI Lifestyle in Google News!


Published
Ananya Panchal
ANANYA PANCHAL

Ananya Panchal is a writer on the Lifestyle and Trending News team for SI Swimsuit, where she covers fashion, beauty, pop culture and the internet’s favorite personalities and trends. She joined the brand in 2022 after roles at Bustle, the San Francisco Chronicle and the TODAY Show. Panchal loves to write about fashion in all its forms—from standout runway moments and evolving street style to the best accessories to elevate each season’s wardrobe (she rarely goes anywhere without a stack of jewelry and a coffee in hand). A self-proclaimed beauty fanatic, she’s always on the hunt for must-have products and loves breaking down viral trends. Her favorite series at the moment is spotlighting female founders and the stories behind the brands they’ve built—especially those shaping the future of fashion, wellness and tech. She is based between New York City and San Francisco and, when she’s not writing, can be found rewatching One Tree Hill, playing sudoku, trying new restaurants or ranking her favorite Disney Channel Original Movies. She holds a bachelor’s degree in communications and journalism with a minor in criminal justice from Boston University.