I read somewhere that French people think it is rude for one to go out in public without looking his or her best. Shouldn't we be considerate of the other people who are being forced to look upon us? Of course, it is MOST important for us to make ourselves attractive for the members of our household, especially our spouses, who pre-marriage probably ONLY saw us at our best.
It is largely a matter of laziness on my part that keeps me from doing the bare minimum. It takes less than 2 minutes for me to put on eyeliner, mascara, and eyebrow color, which makes a HUGE difference in my appearance. It doesn't take any longer for me to put on clothes that are becoming to me than clothes that are comfortable for schlepping around in. Comfort and beauty are NOT mutually exclusive, you know. I should purge my closets and drawers of everything that makes me look sloppy or heavier than I really am. I am a busy mom, but I CAN work an extra 2 minutes in, even if it is putting on makeup in the car while I wait for red lights to turn as I drive my kids to school.
After many weeks of not shaving my legs, the other day I forced myself to engage in a major depilation/epilation session and I pretty much removed all my unwanted hair from my head to my ankles (I forgot about my toe hair). One of my beauty gurus, Sophia Loren, mentioned in one of her books that she uses a razor to remove her body hair, and she bleaches her arm hair, but she didn't address facial hair. I KNOW she's got it!!! Even if she doesn't own up to it. Those Mediterranean types always have an abundance of body hair, and my 2 year old has an unbelieveably hairy back and legs, which I blame her Turkish father for. I have discovered that waxing my armpits is MUCH more satisfactory than shaving (shaving gave me painful razor bumps) and the only wax I use is MIM which I get from my favorite Kurdish grocery store. (Muslims are SERIOUS about regular body hair removal) It isn't really wax, it's the store-bought version of a hair remover I have also made at home with lemon juice, sugar, and water boiled to a taffy candy consistency. It is more accurately referred to as "sugaring" rather than "waxing". I also use this on my ever-increasing facial hair. I also use one of these, http://facialhairthreading.com/ and tweezers on the hairs left behind. I wish I had money to get a professional facial hair removal every month. It is easier when someone else if inflicting the pain, I think.
WHY is it that as I age, I'm losing the hair I want to keep and I'm growing hair in places I don't want??? I know I have lost at least 1/3 of my hair on my scalp in the past 10 years. I even think my ponytail may even be 1/2 the diameter it was when I was a teenager. Even though MOST of the hair on my face is very light and soft, I am sure my "sideburns" are getting thicker, and I'm getting more coarse and even DARK hairs above and below my mouth. I JUST HATE IT!. I can get by without shaving my legs, but I have to admit that I feel prettier and cleaner and more feminine with smooth legs. Since I'm not sleeping anymore with a man who would literally kick me out of bed if I had the least amount of stubble, I tend to not shave often. It does make me feel ugly when it gets so long it starts to curl. WHO was it who decided women should remove the hair God has caused to grow so luxuriantly on our bodies? And I'm used to plucking my eyebrows, but why are they suddenly growing LONGER, so I have to trim them or else have them turn into Larry Hagman-type "handlebar" eyebrows? I wouldn't complain if it were my eyelashes or scalp hair growing coarser, darker, or longer, but NOOOO, can't have that!
I LOVE hair on a man. I think beards and chest hair and even hairy hands and arms are VERY attractive and masculine. I am not so crazy about shoulder and back hair, though! If I was a man, I think I'd wear a moustache and full beard year-round. (and I'd like to think I'd wax my back and shoulders if I had hair there, but I don't know--if I was a man, I might think it made me more masculine!) But since I'm not, and I don't want to be one of those women with a moustache or beard, I pull those hairs out and it hurts so much it makes my eyes water.
One good thing about the pain of waxing is that I BELIEVE it causes the brain to release endorphins, which ultimately lead to a mood-boosting effect. I have also noticed that from eating painfully spicy food, and that is one of my self-medicating measures I take when stressed or depressed (the eating, not the waxing).
I also conditioned my hair the other day with some John Frieda Shine booster which really does add a shine. I got it on a fantastic sale at Walgreens and I love it. They have colored ones, but the only one on sale was clear. I could probably use the "red" one to good effect, but it's kind of expensive at full price. I'm toying with the idea of henna-ing my hair to bring a little of the red back to it, that has faded with age.
I need to paint my nails, as that makes me really happy.
I think the biggest thing I can do to improve my appearance is to lose weight. I hate to say that I'm over 200 again and have been stuck here for about a month. Thanks to Jamie for turning me on to www.sparkpeople.com and I hope it will help me keep track. I REALLY need to be keeping a food journal. I have been very inconsistent with my exercise. I just got on sparkpeople.com today. It looks good, and it's free!
It is largely a matter of laziness on my part that keeps me from doing the bare minimum. It takes less than 2 minutes for me to put on eyeliner, mascara, and eyebrow color, which makes a HUGE difference in my appearance. It doesn't take any longer for me to put on clothes that are becoming to me than clothes that are comfortable for schlepping around in. Comfort and beauty are NOT mutually exclusive, you know. I should purge my closets and drawers of everything that makes me look sloppy or heavier than I really am. I am a busy mom, but I CAN work an extra 2 minutes in, even if it is putting on makeup in the car while I wait for red lights to turn as I drive my kids to school.
After many weeks of not shaving my legs, the other day I forced myself to engage in a major depilation/epilation session and I pretty much removed all my unwanted hair from my head to my ankles (I forgot about my toe hair). One of my beauty gurus, Sophia Loren, mentioned in one of her books that she uses a razor to remove her body hair, and she bleaches her arm hair, but she didn't address facial hair. I KNOW she's got it!!! Even if she doesn't own up to it. Those Mediterranean types always have an abundance of body hair, and my 2 year old has an unbelieveably hairy back and legs, which I blame her Turkish father for. I have discovered that waxing my armpits is MUCH more satisfactory than shaving (shaving gave me painful razor bumps) and the only wax I use is MIM which I get from my favorite Kurdish grocery store. (Muslims are SERIOUS about regular body hair removal) It isn't really wax, it's the store-bought version of a hair remover I have also made at home with lemon juice, sugar, and water boiled to a taffy candy consistency. It is more accurately referred to as "sugaring" rather than "waxing". I also use this on my ever-increasing facial hair. I also use one of these, http://facialhairthreading.com/ and tweezers on the hairs left behind. I wish I had money to get a professional facial hair removal every month. It is easier when someone else if inflicting the pain, I think.
WHY is it that as I age, I'm losing the hair I want to keep and I'm growing hair in places I don't want??? I know I have lost at least 1/3 of my hair on my scalp in the past 10 years. I even think my ponytail may even be 1/2 the diameter it was when I was a teenager. Even though MOST of the hair on my face is very light and soft, I am sure my "sideburns" are getting thicker, and I'm getting more coarse and even DARK hairs above and below my mouth. I JUST HATE IT!. I can get by without shaving my legs, but I have to admit that I feel prettier and cleaner and more feminine with smooth legs. Since I'm not sleeping anymore with a man who would literally kick me out of bed if I had the least amount of stubble, I tend to not shave often. It does make me feel ugly when it gets so long it starts to curl. WHO was it who decided women should remove the hair God has caused to grow so luxuriantly on our bodies? And I'm used to plucking my eyebrows, but why are they suddenly growing LONGER, so I have to trim them or else have them turn into Larry Hagman-type "handlebar" eyebrows? I wouldn't complain if it were my eyelashes or scalp hair growing coarser, darker, or longer, but NOOOO, can't have that!
I LOVE hair on a man. I think beards and chest hair and even hairy hands and arms are VERY attractive and masculine. I am not so crazy about shoulder and back hair, though! If I was a man, I think I'd wear a moustache and full beard year-round. (and I'd like to think I'd wax my back and shoulders if I had hair there, but I don't know--if I was a man, I might think it made me more masculine!) But since I'm not, and I don't want to be one of those women with a moustache or beard, I pull those hairs out and it hurts so much it makes my eyes water.
One good thing about the pain of waxing is that I BELIEVE it causes the brain to release endorphins, which ultimately lead to a mood-boosting effect. I have also noticed that from eating painfully spicy food, and that is one of my self-medicating measures I take when stressed or depressed (the eating, not the waxing).
I also conditioned my hair the other day with some John Frieda Shine booster which really does add a shine. I got it on a fantastic sale at Walgreens and I love it. They have colored ones, but the only one on sale was clear. I could probably use the "red" one to good effect, but it's kind of expensive at full price. I'm toying with the idea of henna-ing my hair to bring a little of the red back to it, that has faded with age.
I need to paint my nails, as that makes me really happy.
I think the biggest thing I can do to improve my appearance is to lose weight. I hate to say that I'm over 200 again and have been stuck here for about a month. Thanks to Jamie for turning me on to www.sparkpeople.com and I hope it will help me keep track. I REALLY need to be keeping a food journal. I have been very inconsistent with my exercise. I just got on sparkpeople.com today. It looks good, and it's free!
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