Lifestyle Choices

Covering the Blemishes

Now is the time to deal with any problems you want to conceal, such as black circles under your eyes or discolorations here and there. Concealer creams and sticks are good here, although some of them are greasy and, particularly under the eyes, tend to sink into tiny lines and make matters worse. If you use a concealer, buy one that is not too light-colored. Many brands are far too pale and, used under the eyes, make you look ghoulish.

Put your concealer on and pat it into the skin with your little finger until it blends perfectly with the surrounding area. If you add a little powder here—particularly under the eyes—even if you don’t wear it on the rest of your face, you will get just the finish you need to make the undesirable area fade into the surrounding skin tones.

The Magic of Light and Shade

The whole secret of successful makeup, no matter what look you are after (the natural, clean face or pure glamour), lies in using light and shade well. The rules are simple. Whatever part of your face you want to bring out or emphasize, you apply a light color to, and whatever part you want to minimize, you cover with a darker shade. In practice it becomes a little more complicated. Shaders and highlighters come in several forms: creams or lotions you put on a naked face or just after applying your foundation, powders you brush on after applying translucent powder, and simple light and dark shades of foundation you put on various areas of the face for effect. (more…)

Every good makeup begins with a water-in-oil moisturizer and a sunscreen lavishly applied over clean skin and then given a chance to settle in. It is rather like making a mayonnaise. You can’t rush things. You need to wait for your skin to take to the moisturizer before you put on your foundation; otherwise you will end up with a flawed finish and your makeup will not last. “Taking” time is usually about two minutes.

Many Moisturizers

In addition to the ordinary moisturizers, there are also tinted ones on the market. These products are halfway between moisturizers and foundations. They impart some color and also provide you with some measure of protection from water loss. In France they are often called creme sport, because they can be worn, by women who ordinarily would not want to cover their skin with a foundation, for instance during a tennis match. They give a very light cover but can be a nice way of simply adding a healthy glow to your skin. Some of them also contain sunscreens. (more…)

Permanent Waves

Waving and straightening hair involve pretty much the same process. First you break down the sulfur bonds connecting the protein molecules by using a highly alkaline solution containing a chemical such as ammonium thioglycolate. Then you rearrange the softened hair into the structure you want it to have. Finally, you use a peroxide neutralizer to halt the chemical action of the bond-breaking chemical and to encourage the new shape to set. Since the neutralizer is acidic, it also helps close up the imbrications in the cuticle and encourages the hair shaft to become strong again. Finally, your hair is treated with some kind of conditioner to restore some of the damage done by the process.

In the case of the permanent, the reshaping of hair takes place while it is wound tightly on curlers. With straightening, the reshaping takes place while it is being combed, stretched, and encouraged to give up its natural tendency to curve. (more…)