Is your Mascara a time bomb?

   Wow! Mascara and time bomb in the same sentence?  Unfortunately it is true.  The very mascara brush that you held in your hand this morning, the mascara that you applied so carefully to your beautiful eye lashes could be a time bomb waiting to spread germs and infection to those beautiful eyes of yours.
   Women are frugal creatures.  We don't normally throw something away until we have squeezed and scrapped the last drop out of the products we use.  Come on now, you know you do.  How many of you store your shampoo bottles upside down when they are almost empty to get those last few washes?  Do you work your tooth paste tube from the bottom up, then fold the opening over to get that last few uses out of it before throwing it away?
   Women are no different with their cosmetic usage.  There are hundreds of different mascara's on the market and they are used by millions of women each day.  But did you know that approx 75% of us will not replace our mascara until it is empty or dried out?   Many of us will have several different types of mascara on hand at any given time to achieve different looks for different occasions.  But that only contributes to the potential time bomb making each tube of mascara last longer.  I'm talking years here!
   Mascara like all other cosmetics have a specific "life after opening."  And for mascara it is about 4 months.  Now when is the last time you tossed your mascara away?  Can you even remember when you first opened your mascara?  I can't and it's not because I'm old! 
   Mascara applicators  have the ability to pick up germs from surfaces like your eyelashes, or your fingers and nails as you try to remove a clump from the wand before you touch your lashes.  And dark moist areas, like the tube your mascara is in, loves to grow and breed germs.  Oh, and toss into the mix, girlfriends, out together, touching up their makeup and sharing their mascara, and germs.
   OK, If I haven't grossed you out yet and you are still with me, take a few seconds and think.  When DID I open my mascara?  Companies like AVON carry a wide variety of mascara at affordable prices.  In today's economy it is far more frugal to by new mascara every 3-4 months than it is to get a painful eye infection that will require a visit to the doctors office as well as antibiotics.
   Remember, your eyes are how you see the world, and how the world sees you.  Take care of them because......... You Are Beautifully Made!

It's The Inner Beauty That Counts

Wedding bells seem to be everywhere lately!  Have you noticed it?  It's more than just the normal June prime time wedding season.  This year 3 people very close to me will be married within a month of each other.  I had the pleasure of spending the day with one of these brides-to-be.  What an exciting time it was.  Listening to her plans, sensing her excitement with that special "I'm a bride" smile, seeing the love in her eyes when that special someone is mentioned. We laughed a lot, shared a lot, and shopped a lot!  Our  feet got tired, our money dwindled, but that look....the look of an excited, smiling, loving bride never changed.

I've learned that you can tell a lot by looking and watching the eyes of others.  In a way, it's like catching a glimpse of their soul.  And I found that I really liked what I saw in those bride-to-be eyes.  Because what I saw was a very firm foundation built with solid morals, respect for others, love for God, her family and her husband-to-be.  I didn't see "rescue me." I saw confidence. Confidence that this man was worthy of the special love she had to offer him. 

She was beautiful today.  And it had nothing to do with her makeup.  Makeup can hide a lot of flaws.  It can also compliment many physical features.  But true beauty comes from within and pours out to others through the eyes and smiles of those who posses it.
Darlin' you are gonna make a beautiful bride because You Are Beautifully Made!

Good Skin Care Doesn't Have to be Complicated!

You are beautifully made........wow how did I pull that out of my head.  It has taken me a very long time to realize that, AND BELIEVE IT.  But we are!  Each and every one of us.  Yes, we all have features we do not like about ourselves.  I wish I was thinner and I wish I had a pretty smile.  And I wish.....But I will never look like those women in the magazine ads, or be thin and petite.  In fact, I think I was born bigger than some of my thin and petite friends are  now.  But lately I've begun to play with the features God did give me.  I found a great local hair salon and stylist who has worked with my color and cut.  They have lived up to their name....Absolutely Fabulous Hair Salon has given me Absolutely Fabulous hair. 

Next, I took a good look at the facial features God gave me.  I haven't treated my face very well over the years so skin care became my next focus.  There are so many skin care products out there......and so many price tags to go with them!  I decided that if I was going to invest money into a product, I wanted to be able to return it without hassle if I didn't like it or the product didn't live up to it's claims.  I also learned that despite all the advertising you need to start simple.  I chose to start using AVON's ANEW line.  Like all good skin care companies,  Avon spends a lot of money on research and development.  But what really attracted me to AVON was their 100% satisfaction guarantee and the fact that they donate a very large amount of money to women's issues such as Breast Cancer and Domestic Violence. 

So where do you start?  What is good skin?  It's not as complicated or as involved as I use to think.  All you need is a good cleanser, day cream and eye cream.  As I said, I have been using Avon's ANEW line and I have not been disappointed.  I love the way my skin has become healthier looking and feeling.  The products don't take long to use at all.  I wash my face in the shower every morning and again before I go to bed a night with the Reversalist cleanser.  Then I apply the Reversalist eye cream and day cream to my clean, dry face.  But what about at night?  Did I hear you ask that?  I personally use the same products......the day cream and eye cream at night.   I found that for my skin, the night creams tend to be a little heavier and made my face break out.  But the day cream works perfectly.  I just adding a little extra protection to my face in case the sun becomes confused and shines while I sleep!  A good day cream should always have a good SPF to protect your skin from harmful sun damage.

That's all there is to it.  With good skin care, you will start to feel beautiful.  As you start to feel beautiful, you will also start believing that YOU ARE BEAUTIFULLY MADE.