Friday, February 3, 2012

You're so Vain...You Probably Think This Post is About You...

 vainity van·i·ty/ˈvanətē/Noun

1. Excessive pride in or admiration of one's own appearance or achievements.

pride [prid] Noun

1. Satisfaction with self
2. Proper sense of own value
 
There is a fine line between vainity and pride, but caring about how you look shouldn't be an issue. I pride myself on always looking my best, and you should too. The efforts we take to ensure we look (and smell) good are not to be shrugged off or wasted. In a world where we are judged even before we open our mouth and speak, it should interest everyone to always put their appearance as a priority.

Making sure your hair, nails, face, teeth, clothes, shoes and scent are presentable is a must. This does not make you high maintenance, just conscientious, and attention to details will always score you big 'points' professionally and personally. Always.

A great investment that will last a lifetime would be to hire an image consultant. Sounds pricey, but it's actually not. They can customize their service(s) to suit your needs and do everything from style assessment, wardrobe/closet audit, hair/makeup consultation and personal shopping (among a few other things) to create your new look. They even go through your clothes and create new outfits for you.

Think of it like the show "What Not to Wear" with stylists making you over, but without the television cameras. This is the perfect way to get a legitimate unbiased opinion on what looks good to portray the image you want. Being delusional about thinking you look good when in fact you look like a hot mess is the worst thing you could do. Whether you start with a makeup make-over, or book an image consultant, you will not go wrong when applying the efforts to look your best.

Banish Those Puffy Eyes!


Do you often wake up with puffy under eyes regardless of how much sleep you got? Although hereditary, age and diet are the usual suspects, you can combat those dreaded bags. 

First things first; wash your face with warm water and lightly massage/tap the puffy area to circulate the fluid that has accumulated there. Next, get an ice cube, wrap it in a paper napkin and apply to puffy area (off/on for about 10 minutes). In between icing, continue to massage/tap the area gently while keeping your head upright (no laying down). Wait another 10 minutes before starting to do your makeup and you will see the remaining puffiness dissipate on its own. 

What can you do to prevent the puffiness in the first place? Drink more water, less sodas, and try eliminating salt/high sodium (junk) foods from your diet, and cut back on alcohol, because these are the beauty destroyers. If you don't believe me, just try skipping it for a week and you'll see how much more refreshed you'll look in the morning without the under eye baggage.

There are de-puffing eye products you can buy (caffenine is the main ingredient) that might be able to help speed up the process, but ultimately your diet is the bottom line and those "toxins" will resurface and show on your face. Plenty of rest with your head slightly elevated also helps avoid puffy eyes too.