Empowered Traditionalist

…continued from part 1

C.  Eyebrow tinting/lightening.

note: Eyebrows are generally 1-2 shades darker than ones natural hair color, so be observant when coloring your hair to stay within those parameters so as not to look too artificial.

1. Lightening your brows can lighten the look of your face. To get a rough idea of how bleaching will look, take a light brown or taupe eyeshadow and rub it on your brows.

2. Darkening your brows can definitely add more definition to your face and eyes. to get a rough idea of how tinting them will look, gently sweep your mascara wand across the brow out towards the ear. Apply more if you want them darker. (this can also be a quick daily fix to enhancing your brows without the risk of chemicals near your eyes.)

Because of the potential damage to your vision, always have your eyebrows tinted/lightened by a professional.

D.  Filling in your brows.
If your brows are sparse or spotty and you want to fill them in, there are several ways to do it.

1. take an angled eyeshadow brush and press just a bit of eye shadow to the brow. (medium or dark brown for brunettes. Taupe for blondes or redheads. Charcoal for silver or gray hair). Follow the direction of the brow and extend the brushed-on shadow to the edge of the eye.

2. Pat a tissue on top to blot up any excess.

note: If your brows are really thin, you can pencil them in slightly thicker, but it’s difficult to make this look natural.

3. Take an eye pencil under the brow and follow the brow line out to the edge of the eye. Use a powder sponge to press some powder on top, very gently, to soften the line. then use a brush to lightly fill it in with shadow.

So there you go! Good luck with your brows…. they really can make all the difference to a fresh face

~maresah~

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Even if you never touch another cosmetic again, buy a good pair of tweezers and develop the skill to use them. Because no makeup trick on the planet will make you look better than a pair of beautiful brows!!

So How exactly do we achieve these brows you say?

well follow these simple tricks and you’re on your way to much more naturally shaped brows, designed perfectly for YOU! Continue Reading »

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Sometimes it’s the little things that can really help our skin routines-

Chanel’s makeup up artist Peter Phillips shares one of his secrets: “Aquaphor takes the creases out of lips so you can get smooth, rich color.”

Aquaphor Healing ointment, $6 at drugstores.

That’s my kind of price.

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Ever wondered the secret to moist shine rich hair? Often the answer lies not in a specific product but how you apply and rinse your conditioner.

Condition:

Bleached/Highlighted: 

If you hair is currently chemically treated, like me,  you’ll want to condition end to root every time.

Natural Hair:

For natural hair, i only conditioned the mid-lengths and ends every time and the roots about once a week.

 Step By Step

1) don’t worry so much about hitting the top of your head with the mass of conditioner your holding in your hand. Try starting from the ends of the hair, working towards the top. This will help eliminate excess moisture on the scalp which causes that premature oily feeling.

2) Try just conditioning the mid-lengths and ends every time you shampoo and only the top every other time or about once to twice a week. Your hair is healthier the closer it is to the scalp, so the target area should be the mid-lengths and ends as this is where most splitting and damaging occurs  from brushing, hot tools, pony tails, clothing contact, and hair coloring.

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This How To is for those of us trying to treat our hair better, but keep getting frustrated because our tactics do not seem to be helping.

Hair Patterns

There are many things that cause us to change the pattern of how and when we care for our hair:

1. New job that requires more bathing.
2. Just heard that washing your hair everyday is not good for it
3. Can’t understand why you hair gets oily so fast
4. Can’t understand why its so frizzy, but feels like silk
5. New hairstyle that requires more or different product
6. Stuck on old habits
7. Etc, etc, etc.

I know my frustration came from a few things, but mostly I was avoiding washing my hair everyday (who has time to style their locks every 24 hours?) but then I felt my hair wasn’t really clean! This frustrated me, because i had many friends doing the same thing with great success! Well one day i had a hair teacher say “if you can’t seem to get it the first time around, do it again” so i decided to try washing twice before i conditioned. What a difference!!! The soap even lathers up differently the second time. Weird? It totally works.

So now i shampoo every two to three days and am very happy with the results.

Shampoo: Try This

Shampoo: better to shampoo twice in a row than every day.
(unless you have that oh! so awesome extreme oil prone hair)

Many times people who try not to wash everyday fail to wash more thoroughly when they actually do shampoo. This causes frustration because the hair seems to get oily or dirty faster.

 Double shampooing: Try it. 

#1: Focus on the Scalp. Once to focus (and i mean really focus) on that scalp! you need to remove the dead skin and oil buildup as to allow the scalp to breath and help new hair grow appropriately.

#2  focus on the rest of the hair and really make sure all of the grime is out!

Hair brittle after your shampoo? Come back for tips on conditioning your locks.

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A couple weeks ago our dear Maresah blogged on several companies that feature natural skin and face products.

This week we are highlighting a face mask from Arbonne as a giveaway to our readers.

Not to be left out in the dark, I decided to try a bottle of the product for myself. And i can tell you, this stuff is powerful! Not only does it rejuvenate the skin, it helps clean out all those pesky dead skin cells that cause black heads! The bottle recommends once a week, which means it’s going to last for a long time. ::happy sigh::

$45 dollar value. No, it’s not cheap (natural products never are) Which is why you should enter the giveaway!

Giveaway ends the 22nd. If you post a link from Facebook, twitter or your own blog we’ll enter your name twice.

*Leave a comment to enter, we will track your site links through our blog back-end. Let us know you posted a link and we’ll be able to match the link to the entry.

CONGRATULATIONS TO ENTRY #60, Emily at Glenn Fashions- YOU WON THE ARBONNE MASK. !

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Number one myth about hair: Trimming it will make it grow faster!

This is not only false its crazy! Your hair is dead the second it grows out of your scalp! So no matter what you do to it on the outside, it will not effect whats going on at the root!

I tell you honestly and truthfully that the only thing that helps your hair grow faster is all internal!

So you want to make your hair grow faster?

you are still in control and you don’t have to cut it! i have one simple word for you….

PROTEIN !!!!!

Eat it, drink it, bathe in it, breathe it, however you must get it in your body! : )
If your body is not healthy then neither is your hair! Unhealthy hair means slow growth….and that’s it!

Protein Suggestions:

Eggs, Meat, Beans, Greens, Protein bars/shakes…..just make sure you’re getting ALL your vitamins!

Remember and spread the word!!

Although trimming your hair may help it appear healthier as it grows,
it WILL NOT MAKE IT GROW!!!

hahahaha what a break through

~Maresah~

p.s. Prenatal vitamins work wonders!!

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Here are some very simple things to do to help you get a cleaner, longer lasting shave and better looking skin!

Exfoliate before you shave!: this will help clear dead skin cells on the surface of the skin, and in turn, cause more of the hair to be exposed, providing a cleaner and closer surface for shaving.

What to use:   Kosher salt! It dissolves easily and is not as abrasive as Sea Salt….although sea salt works fine: ) also raw sugar works well. Sea salt and raw sugar are larger crystals, therefore, those with sensitive skin should be careful not to apply too roughly.

How to use it!: Mix any one of these with a dash of olive oil to make the application a bit easier and to help soften the hair and add moisture to the skin!
Just put a scoop of the mixture in your hands and work the whole area to be shaved in long circular motions. Rinse with warm water and proceed with your soap of choice and shave! (many times, the oil left behind from exfoliating will be enough for me to shave, although you really have to make sure you clean your razor well!)

Use a SHARP blade!: I know we are all trying to save even down to the smallest thing like our razors, but really? I have to say I’m quite fed up with razor burn and ingrown hairs because I’m skimping where i could be potentially saving!

1) Your blade will last longer if you properly prepare your skin to be shaved as it will not have to fight hard hairs and dead skin (causing unnecessary buildup and dulling of the blade).

2) It will also last longer if you clean and store it properly! (make sure your razor is dry and free of debris before you put it away. If you leave it in the shower, then try to get a wall razor hanger or just be sure to put the guard back on it before placing it on the shelf.)

Post Care: After shaving, towel dry and either apply a small amount of oil or a lotion (remember to refrain from lotions with mineral oil as this ingredient clogs pores).
It is so important to moisturize after shaving or even showering for that matter!..i mean we go through such lengths to make sure our faces stay clean and moisturized to reduce lines, remove dead skin cells, and grimy buildup so we don’t break out….Well same goes for the rest of the body ladies!!

I’ll leave you with that……Good luck with your next shave!

~maresah~

ps. This simple mixture of salt/sugar and oil is a great way to exfoliate the whole body! It is not only cheap, but easily done in the shower or during a nice soak in the tub : )

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FOODS!!! “Don’t knock it til you try it”, ok?! here are some crazy cool things to try straight from your kitchen!

1. Whole milk plain yogurt (if you tend to have more oily skin, use skim milk)! With loads of zinc and lactic acid, yogurt can not only help lighten acne scars, but helps close pores, prevent acne, exfoliate dead skin cells, moisturize the skin and reduce the appearance of fine lines. You can blend yogurt with a variety of fruits, cucumber, lemon (this gives your skin a blast of pure vitamin C and acts as a natural bleach to lighten scares) or honey for additional healing ingredients in your homemade facials.

2. Nuts Sunflower seed kernels, sunflower oil wheat, almonds, hazel nut and germ oil are rich sources of  Vitamin E.

More Home Remedies!: this is an incredible one page sight with quite a few home remedies just for acne scars that you MUST check out!!

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NOTES:

1. Be aware that Iron hinders the absorption of Vitamin E (if being taken internally), according to the Acne Resource Center, which also recommends that the two supplements be taken eight to 12 hours apart in order to be effective.2. Know that although the use of Vitamin E improves the texture of acne scars by leaving the skin feel smooth, do not expect it to erase ALL evidence of scarring.

3. Anticipate some forms of Vitamin E to feel greasy, especially gel from a capsule.

4. Expect Vitamin E to have an odor. (Some say it resembles motor oil…this is normal: )

5. If you don’t see the results you anticipated, you can always seek the care of a dermatologist to consider other options.

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Okay so right off the bat here, i am happily overwhelmed with information on this subject! My heart goes out to all those recovering from or currently dealing with the effects of any type of acne! Whether you are scaring from mistreatment of breakouts or scaring from the natural effects of acne as a long term skin condition, there are so many natural solutions! (which is proven the best approach).

This is always a great testimony to the Great Designer of our world and everything in it! It’s so amazing to see how herbs, flowers, vegetables, fruits, and plants can help sustain our bodies in so many ways!

Well, lets get going!!

Vitamin E!!!  This natural resource can be found at your local natural food or regular drug store and easily applied in many ways…..

1. Apply Oil Directly You can apply a vitamin E oil directly to your scars at nighttime and work it into your skin just as you would a moisturizer.

2. Lotion Form -Vitamin E also comes in lotion form as well.

(Remember to avoid lotions with mineral oil as it has been know to clog pores, thereby causing more breakouts).

3. Vitamin E Capsules -Another option is to simply take a capsule and crack it open or pierce it with a needle. Apply the liquid contents directly onto your face or any other acne scars. (using capsules secludes the oil and preserves the effectiveness and longevity of the product).
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Hear from others!  

Cant wait to hear from you!

~maresah~

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