Photo Credit: Avon.com
HEALTHNEWSDIGEST.COM BEAUTY COLUMNIST WENDY LEWIS HAS 10 WAYS TO DITCH A DECADE Everyone wants to look good and age gracefully, but with the economy taking a nose dive, those weekly facials are going to have to go on the back burner. You go through the hassle of wearing makeup to try and hide flaws and wrinkles and to make yourself look youthful, but your hair and makeup may actually be aging you.
10 TIPS FOR TAKING 10 YEARS OFF
1- Banish Bad Skin: Young skin should be clear, healthy and glowing and free of dark spots and blemishes. If you are prone to problem skin, Avon Anew Clinical Advanced Retexturizing Peel Glycolic Plus Soothing Extracts works wonders for exfoliation, unclogging blackheads, and keeping breakouts under control.
2- The Whites of Your Eyes: Tired eyes make you look older. If you are jet lagged or sleep deprived, bloodshot eyes can be a chronic problem. Systeine eye drops help clear redness and moisturize, cool and refresh. Make your eyes pop with dark navy liner like Sephora Kohl and Liner Waterproof in Keep Blue. Smudge the line with neutral smoky tones of browns, plums and muted grays.
3- Toss Your Brown Lipsticks: Think fresh and soft shades that add light to your face. Stick with medium to light rosy, pinky, peachy and coppery colors and leave dark, drab, matte shades to teens and twentysomethings. Deep reds and wines can make your lips look smaller. Use a neutral lip liner to shape the lips that should not show up as a contrasting shade. For a little shine, try a sheer gloss with a touch of pink pigment. like LipFusion Infatuation In The Flesh.
4- Brighten Pearly Whites: Just like your skin, teeth get discolored and thinner with age. You lose some of the outer layer of enamel that wears away, and stains set in from foods, Diet Coke, and red wine. See a cosmetic dentist for an in-office laser bleaching treatment that will brighten up your smile. If you’re on a budget, try Colgate Simply White Night Clear Whitening Gel.
5- Frame Your Eyes: A quick fix to open up your eye area is to reshape your brows. Tweeze or wax your brows to create an arch, filling them in with a powder brow pencil, like Dior Powder Brow Pencil. Keep brows in place with a clear mascara or brow fixative, and if you have gray brow hairs, either pluck them out or use a colored brow gel to camouflage.
6- Lighten Up Your Foundation: Wearing the wrong makeup can pile on years to your face. Powders tend to make skin look dry and accentuate fine lines. Choose a lightweight foundation with light-reflecting or soft focus pigments to brighten the skin like Sue Devitt Spa Complexion Hydrating Marine Minerals Tinted Moisturizer SPF15. Apply foundation and blend well so it looks seamless. Look for warmer, light, soft undertones to enhance your complexion and create a healthy glow.
7- Hydrate Your Skin: Keep dry areas hydrated to help plump your complexion from the outside in. Look for emollient ingredients like hyaluronic acid in Peter Thomas Roth VIZ-1000™ 75% Hyaluronic Acid Complex, to plump and firm the skin and inhibit dehydration.
8- Reduce Brown Spots: Brown discoloration from sun damage and hormonal flux look old. Add a brightening serum to your daily skincare routine to correct existing pigmentation and prevent new ones from ruining your flawless face. Look for the new Lumixyl™ Skin Brightening System that has four key products plus an innovative new sunscreen to keep dark spots at bay for the long term.
Photo Credit: amazon.com
9- Slow Down on Self Tanners: Avoid overdosing on orange or yellow undertones from bronzers and self tanners that create an unnatural look that is so not flattering. Instead of enhancing your natural skin tones, choosing a too dark shade of self tanner can cause your complexion to go sallow. If you’re not sure of the best color for you, try St Tropez Wash Off Face. For bronzing, stick with creamy natural rosy blushes for a healthy Nars Orgasm blush type of glow. Declare a moratorium on any products with that circa 1985 sparkle or glitter look for your face.
10- Highlight Your Hair: Dark brown and black hair can age your face by dragging down your skin tone and stealing the brightness, not to mention, the inevitable grays. Add some soft highlights to frame your face and/or lighten your natural color by a shade or two to soften your overall appearance. Think about wispy layers instead of straight across bangs which can be an alternative to BOTOX® for your forehead but has a harsh effect. Highlights can reflect light back onto your face for a younger look that is pretty and sexier too.
Photo credit: laprairie.com
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LA PRAIRIE WHITE CAVIAR ILLUMINATING SYSTEME – The new 3 part systeme that brightens skin tone to lighten age spots and blotches. The magic bullet is golden caviar derived from farmed sources, combined with a clarifying botanical complex that contains Larch Tree Extract, Swiss Garden Cress Sprout Extract plus Vitamin C. You will fall for the La Prairie pearly white packaging complete with silver caviar bead trim. The look is exactly what you can expect from Laboratoires La Prairie – elegant, luxurious, and exclusive for the woman who dares to indulge. The rich White Caviar Illuminating Cream (which comes with its own silver spoon) and silky Serum are $450 each, and the Eye Serum is $250. The serums are intended to use under moisturizer, and add one of La Prairie Skin Caviar foundation over that.
FINAL VERDICT: GGI (GOTTA GET IT) – This is prestige anti-aging skincare at its best. La Prairie is expensive but it is the essence of ultra luxury.
Before and After Thermage CPT
PHOTO CREDIT: www.thermage.com
Interested in looking younger? Younger in a fresher – wow you had a great relaxing vacation- sort of way, not – wow you had a scary face lift – kind of way?
Thermage is the answer to your prayers. Thermage is not like a face lift. It will not dramatically change the way you look. Instead, it will help make your face/eyes/abdomen look the way it used to. Thermage can help smooth and tighten your skin for an overall naturally younger looking appearance, without surgery or injections. Sounds too good to be true? There is more. Thermage requires no downtime, none.
As you age, the collagen in your skin breaks down, resulting in wrinkles and sagging. Thermage helps tighten and renew your skin’s collagen through all three layers of skin: the epidermis, dermis, and the deep subcutaneous (fat) layers. Your skin looks and feels noticeably smoother, tighter, and firmer, almost immediately, with results improving over a couple of months.
The preparation for the treatment is simple, you need to do nothing other than show up for your appointment. This treatment is effective and safe year round, and since there is no need to avoid the sun like after laser treatments, you can make your appointment whenever it best suits your schedule.
The treatment starts with a gentle cleansing of the area to be treated, and then the doctor will apply a washable grid on it. This grid tells the doctor exactly where to place the small, hand held device to insure maximum results. The doctor also uses a cooling gel to minimize any chance of burning or bruising. The hand held device emits a unique radio frequency which safely heats the deeper layers of the skin, stimulating existing collagen, and promoting new collagen growth. The doctor makes numerous passes across, up, and down this grid. For the most part, there is no discomfort whatsoever. The goal is to feel a warm, heating sensation, without a burning sensation or pain. It is an interactive treatment in that you are expected to give the doctor feedback , so they can adjust the frequency if needed. For example, the frequency you can tolerate on your cheeks may be different that what you can tolerate on your temples. Everyone is different, and the beauty of this new hand held device is it gives the doctor complete control and flexibility to best treat eyes/face/abdomen, adjusting the frequency as they go.
The treatment lasts about an hour, depending on body site, and prices vary accordingly. Following treatment, you can immediately apply make-up, and go on your merry way.
In Chicago, Dr. Carolyn Jacob and her staff at Chicago Cosmetic Surgery & Dermatology offer the newest Thermage treatments in their soothing, relaxing office. They conduct business in a spa-like environment and employ true professionals. When you go, ask for Nirali. She is incredibly gentle and experienced. Exactly what you want when you go for any kind of treatment like this.
FINAL VERDICT: RDW (Run Don’t Walk) An hour or so of time to bring back younger, tighter, smoother skin? I can’t think of a better way to spend the time.
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