Actress Amber Tamblyn Embraces Her 'Silvering Hair' and 'Forehead Lines' With Love
Actress Amber Tamblyn, 42, just posted a stunning photo on her Instagram, which was taken by her husband, actor David Cross. She says she was "dreading the idea of getting a new headshot done" when he took it, but then she shares how awestruck she was when she actually saw, and loved, the photo he captured of her.
Tamblyn may be best known for her roles in TV shows General Hospital, Joan of Arcadia, and House, and films The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and Django Unchained, but she's been acting since she was 6 year old. It's no wonder the idea of a yet another headshot gave her dread. Glamming it up is exhausting business for any of us, but just imagine if you've been doing it professionally for decades.
When she looked at the photo, Tamblyn says, "I was speechless."
We half expected the actress to get hyper critical, to point out her flaws, and to, you know, be a human woman living in a beauty- and youth-obsessed culture. However, the message Tamblyn shares along with her portrait is unexpected, quite the opposite reaction we're used to hearing, and, in fact, really refreshing.
"'There you are,' I said to myself," she writes. "My silvering hair, which I love; the lines on my forehead, which I love even more; the flecks of green in my hazel eyes that most photos flatten to brown."
How beautiful. This seeing of herself. And in such a positive way. So many of us, particularly women, spend so much time pointing out what's wrong in the mirror or in photos of ourselves and far too little time liking and loving everything we are.
Tamblyn adds, "He captured all of me in a single frame: the strength I carry, the wisdom I've earned, the beauty I claim as my own."
It makes you wonder what we might actually see if we looked at ourselves with love instead.
Check out the portrait of Amber Tamblyn and her message:
These days, Amber Tamblyn is a writer focused on poetry and nonfiction, including feminist cultural criticism and social change. She publishes a Substack newsletter called The Sharpening where she is building a community that turns artistic expression into civic action.
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This story was originally published April 16, 2026 at 4:08 PM.