Make up tips for REAL women

Ever walked into Sephora hoping to find makeup for a special occasion or maybe just makeup that won't make you look washed out at the church homecoming, and walk out with a makeover more suitable for a night of clubbing?
Me too. So what is a sophisticated, vintage woman supposed to do for a Christmas Party or New Year's eve. Should we go with the "Smokey eye" or the "Kardashian Contour?"
Those looks may be more suited for the twenty-six year old makeup artist at the Sephora counter or maybe Tammy Faye Baker but they are not suitable for women over 40.  According to Prevention Magazine ( I know, not exactly Cosmo but bare with me here) Make up tips for women over 40,,
Women over 40 should find new products that work with their lifestyle and skin. Almost no one walks around with the robin's egg blue eyeliner that we wore in high school, but truthfully many of us still follow the same makeup routines we wore in our 20's and 30's or we give up and follow no makeup routine at all (guilty).
Here are some tips gathered from a variety of sources; none of them, me, (Hey, I have to do my research, this Mary Kay consultant thing has a very long learning curve) which focus on the areas that most women find challenging: foundation, eyes, brows, cheeks, lips.

Foundation: Prevention magazine states that foundation is very important for aging skin and should not be skipped. Foundation adds color and depth to aging skin which can appear thin, ashy, and dry. It also protects against sun exposure, and provides a barrier for your skin against pollution.  According to Mary Kay.com, the key to smooth, even foundation coverage is using good skin care. Every thing looks better on a clean, smooth, canvas, so as we discussed in an earlier blog, clean, moisturized skin is very important. Next, you want to use a primer and then a moisturizing foundation which provides hydration for dry, aging skin (thanks, Prevention.com). I like Mary Kay CC Cream. It provides light, oil free moisturization, and  UVA/UVB protection. CC cream colors range from very light to deep and works well with all skin types.

Cheeks: Cheeks lose the luster of youth as we age, blood circulation to the skin slows with age and makes cheeks appear more sallow. On the flip side, loss of fatty tissue in the face can create nice hollows, and Angelina Jolie cheekbones, unless you have a pie face like me. Mary Kay.com suggests using bright, peachy, or pink cheek color or a bronzer applied to the tops of the cheek bones. If you lay your index finger below your eye socket and diagonal to your ear; you should be able to find your cheek bones. Sweep foundation up the cheek bones and toward your ear in small circular motions, this softens the line and keeps your face from looking like the side of your Nike sneaker.

Eyes: Eye lids tend to shrink and droop as we age, smaller lids get warmer which leads to shadows, creasing and melting into fine lines on the eyelids (Prevention.com). Eye shadow primer, smooths out eyelids and prevents creasing. A light concealer and powder shadow should be used under the eye to softly define the shape of the eye and lift and brighten the eye. Cream eye shadows, like Mary Kay cream eye color can also provide a base coat for powder formulas and give all day crease proof coverage. Older women should also shy away from black, liquid eyeliner, and stick to softer colored pencils in shades of gray or brown, darker eye shadows can also be applied with a slanted brush to provide more drama or used to soften black pencil or gel liner if you are going for the Adele look. Prevention states that it is important to focus on brows which can become duller, and more sparse with age. Follow the shape of the eye brow using eye shadows and a soft brush or a brow pencil in short, soft, sweeping motions. Never over pluck eyebrows and leave waxing and shaping to a professional. Eye lash curlers should be used to curl lashes prior to applying mascara. An eyelash primer like Mary Kay eye lash primer can provide definition, intensify lash volume and length, and make mascara almost water resistant. You can't sweat it off if with intense exercise or if for some reason you suddenly become warm. Make up artists from make up advice for women over forty suggests that mature women should wear a lengthening mascara to give more definition to older lashes because thicker volumizing formulas adds to much weight and can cause clumping which emphasizes age rather than lift. Mary Kay Lash Love Lengthening formula is an easy to use mascara that provides great length and definition to lashes.

Lips: Collagen breaks down with UVA/UVB exposure as we age. Changes in collagen also cause lips to shrink and become drier. Prevention.com suggests using a matte lipstick and lipliner.  Mary Kay Satin Lips exfoliates, softens and moisturizes dry lips.  Neutral lip liner, a satin lip color like True Dimensions Tuscan Rose and  Nourishing Lop Gloss in Pink Luster give lips a pop of color.

For Special Occasions Mary Kay Make up artists suggest trying a sparkling, bright eye.

Step 1:  Apply moonstone mineral eye color all over the eyelid. Concentrate color on the inner corner of the eyes as well as on the brow bone.

Step 2: Apply silver satin eye color to just above the crease and along the lower lash base.

Step 3: Finish with Steely eye liner on upper lash line, and use a smudger brush to soften the look. For added drama try wing tipped eyeliner on the upper lashes. Use gel eyeliner or use mineral eye color in coal and the angled tip of the brow brush to wing out eye liner on the upper lid.

For more information on Mary Kay cosmetics: Check out my web site at http:marykay.com/ssmith98853

New Year New Resolutions

2016 is just around the corner and like millions of other people, I can't resist the opportunity to make New Year's resolutions. Like most people, losing weight, getting more exercise, and looking better top my list or resolutions. According to nielson.com, staying healthy and fit, losing weight, enjoying life to the fullest, spending less, saving more, and spending more time with family and friends round out the top six resolutions for U.S. Consumers. 

Unfortunately, according to Time Magazine content.time.com, those top six resolutions also make the list of the most commonly broken New Year's Resolutions. These tried and true observations lead me to wonder what are the best strategies for focusing on keeping resolutions and how can I incorporate those strategies into my own lifestyle?

Jeanette Pavini, Coupons.com Consumer Savings Expert 10 tricks to help you actually keep your New Year's Resolutions, suggests that resolutions should be broken into small manageable goals. For example: Rather than making a resolution for staying healthy and fit, a more reasonable option maybe walk a mile per day and drink 5-8 glasses of water. If the goal is easier to keep, you'll be able to measure your progress along the way.  Pavini also suggests that the resolution should be about the journey not about the outcome (for example: sticking to a healthy diet is more important than a number on a scale).  

Another obstacle I frequently face is finding time for myself. When you are juggling two jobs and family life it is often difficult to find time to keep your resolutions. Pavini, suggests scheduling those times into your day, using a buddy system, stating your goals and keeping records. If you have a regularly scheduled lunch date to "walk with a co-worker," or you set aside a couple of nights per month for a "date night or girl's night out", then you are assigning importance to your goals. Suddenly they become a lot less lofty and a lot more concrete. Sharing your goals with other people and keeping track of your progress also keep your resolutions from looking like ideas on a pinterest board to looking more like clear, achievable objectives. So instead of making broad and lofty goals like losing weight, getting more exercise and looking better, I am going to narrow my goals. 

Resolution # 1: Drink more water
I am going to develop a clear and concrete plan for increasing my water intake from 1/2 cup per day (if you count the water I use to brush my teeth) to 8 glasses of water per day. I am not going to worry about whether they are 12 oz. bottles, or focus on the magic number of 64 ounces. I am simply going to work on refilling my cup when it's empty and avoiding sexier choices when I am going out to eat. 

Resolution#2: Walk two miles per day: 
It's time to make my tread mill function as something other than a high tech drying rack and reconnect with Jillian Michaels. I am also going to commit to using the walking track at school for thirty minutes after work on days when the weather is clear. 

Resolution #3:Wash my face every night
I admit it; sometimes I wake up wearing the previous day's makeup or on days I don't wear make up, I may just skip the skin cleansing routine entirely. This is probably one of the worst mistakes any aging school teacher can make when it comes to taking care of her complexion. Nothing ages the skin, like layers of oil and make up which clog pores, dull the complexion and accentuate fine lines and wrinkles. According to Dr. David R Weaver, futurederm.com physiological changes occur in the skin over night. Clinical evidence suggests that our bodies circadian clocks are related to the cell cycle and DNA repair. Our skin needs oxygen to repair itself. Sleeping in makeup deprives skin of oxygen and blocks the natural exfoliation process.  Cleansing your skin at night rids your skin of excess sebum, dead skin cells and pollution, so even if you don't wear make up, you still have a day's worth of pollution sitting on your face before going to bed. Therefore, I am committing to washing my face at night and using my  TimeWise Miracle Set for something other than just demos at my Mary Kay Parties.

Resolutions #1, and 2, will automatically help me jump start resolution #3. Drinking water will help me fight dehydration which leads to premature aging, fine lines, and a dull complexion, Walking will help me tone my body, increase my metabolism, give me more energy, boost my self esteem, washing my face twice per day will  help me to achieve a glowing complexion, increase my confidence and make me feel better about my overall appearance. My three resolutions may not be lofty but they are achievable, If we can all stick to small measurable objectives we can rise above the statistics and be some of the few who stick to their resolutions in 2016.

For more information on the TimeWise Miracle Set and other great Mary Kay Products. Check out my PWS at http://marykay.com/ssmith98853

Mary Kay offers a great selection of products such as the Time Wise Miracle Set, which offer 11 age defying benefits including:  cleansing, exfoliating, freshening, firming, energizing, hydrating, smoothing, renewing, softening, protecting and reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Consumer studies show and 83% reduction in fine lines and wrinkles over time, 25% improvement in skin resilience, 100% improvement in softer more supple skin, and a 46% improvement in more even skin tone.