Beauty 101

Beauty not only includes a girl's makeup but includes fragrance, skin care, hair care, and health & fitness. In this posting I will talk briefly about each one. I'll go into more detail on each in later posts.

FRAGRANCE
My favorite perfume is "Beautiful" by Estee Lauder. You might have guessed that by the "Beautiful" ad on the left.

Perfumes have been taken from flowers, herbs, oils and various garden varieties, to crush, captivate and secure the most tempting of scents. There is most certainly a direct link between romance and a fragrance's aphrodisiac effects. These sensual pleasures can create the following: a relaxing mood, a festive mood for parties, a scent for your own identity, an inviting and warm welcoming and the ability to lure one to be enraptured with another.

"Sephora" has an entire wall dedicated to perfumes and fragrances. "Bath and Body Works" has an amazing selection of oils, creams, body washes, shower gels, bubble bath and other assorted indulgences. I always come away with lovely goodies that match my mood and promote my passions.

SKIN CARE
Skin care is a very individual matter but it is critical to looking and feeling great. There are basically 3 things in a great skin care regimine: CLEANSE, TONE and MOISTURIZE

Cleanse
Great-looking skin begins here! Be gentle on your normal/combo skin with a non-irritating cleanser. It helps maintain your skin’s natural moisture while thoroughly clearing away dirt, oil, and makeup. I use the Neutrogena Facial Cleansing Bar. It promotes gentle cleansing for clean, clear, healthy-looking skin. This glycerin-rich facial bar contains no harsh detergents, dyes or hardeners. It removes excess oil and then rinses clean–without leaving any pore-clogging residue.

Toner
Toner conditions skin, lifts away dry skin flakes and removes excess dirt, oil and makeup so skin will better absorb moisturizer. It minimizes the look of pores to improve your skin’s texture. I use Neutrogena Alcohol-Free Toner. It refreshes my skin without stripping its natural moisturizers. It is specially formulated to provide clean, refreshing toning without the harsh drying effects of alcohol. Special mild purifiers gently remove impurities and recondition skin. Skin feels fresh and clean–without tightness, dryness or stinging.

Moisturize
Hydrate and protect your skin every day by using a facial moisturizer. Hydration revitalizes and improves the skin’s texture. Enjoy twice daily for radiant skin. I use Aveeno Positively Radiant daily Moisturizer SPF 30. It is used for long-lasting protection against the sun's harmful UVA and UVB rays. and contains clinically proven Total Soy Complex to brighten and even skin tone, and natural light diffusers, like mica and silica, to reflect light to visibly smooth imperfections and immediately bring out skin's natural radiance. Daily use leaves skin softer and smoother and looking healthier.

Body cleansers and moisturizers
There are so many to choose from. Check out "Bath and Body Works". So many great products in a variety of scents. Talk to a skin care specialist to determine what product are best for you.

HAIR CARE
Hair Care is a complex and challenging subject. Today, the list is endless with choices of hues you can use, ingredients that give the hair a special glow, and the attention -getting influences. Hair care decisions on shampoos, conditioners and colors take time and knowledge. It’s like walking into a candy store as a kid, and saying, “Wow, which one should I pick, they all look so good.“ Being that we are all individuals, each product will work differently on our own hair texture. Many of us girls use wigs. Wigs that are styled and cared for to highlight our best features can look great without anyone knowing the difference. I will chat about all the choices in a future posting.


COSMETICS
All of us, for the most part, have experimented, indulged, tried and tested a collection of skin care and cosmetic products. It’s a bit like the “right to womanhood” aspect, yet we’ve grown into various stages since the early inception of “being beautiful” with what we’ve been graced with. And the experimenting and testing doesn’t stop throughout our adult lives. For the most part, we look at it as an adventure of sorts. How many of us regularly stop at the department store cosmetic departments and do a make-over, or examine something new?

Let’s face it- it’s fun, giving us a new look on life, and often improves our appearance or enhances us in some way and makes us feel better about ourselves.

My favorite store to shop for cosmetics is SEPHORA. Of course, I love to go to Macy's, Bloomingdale's, Sak's or any stylish department store, browse the cosmetic counter, chat with the sales ladies and try new products.
In one of my next posts I will share with you what makeup I use and some of my beauty secrets!



HEALTH and FITNESS
This is definitely not the most fun aspect of beauty, only the most important. Physical health needs to be an integral part of our everyday life. Dedicating 30 minutes a day to exercise along with the proper diet can do wonders for a girl's physical as well as mental well being. Some of us love to go to the gym every day, some of us like to go to a class a couple of times a week, others prefer their regular walking program, and yet some of us have a struggle with even getting out the door for any of those. Yes, we all know beyond doubt that exercise is awesome for us. We all need to find inspiration in our own way and set realistic goals for ourselves.

Get into a healthy routine and you self image will soar. You will look and feel beautiful.
"Happy girls are the prettiest girls"... SHESHEME

Andrea Nicole Baker