RSSArchive for January 2009
Greek Salad – Fast and Healthy
January 30, 2009
A child can assemble this if you do the slicing.
I make everything in huge amounts, but you can adjust accordingly. We seem to eat more than other families.
Ingredients
- 2 heads Romaine lettuce, torn – place in bottom of large bowl
- 4 tomatoes, cut in chunks – plop on the lettuce
- 2 English cucumbers (or field cucumbers in summer when they’re good) – on the tomatoes
- 1 500g tub Feta cheese ( this is one place where I don’t use low fat, it seems tasteless and waxy) – crumbled on the cukes
- 1 red onion, thin slices – on the cheese
- black olives – what, about 1 c., on the top, if you like them.
Dressing
- juice of 2 lemons
- 1/4 c. olive oil
- 1 package fresh oregano – soak the leaves in water, squeeze the clump of leaves out like a rag to get rid of most of the water, give a child a bowl and some kitchen shears and have them start snipping
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- salt, pepper to taste
Usually, I make the Romaine bed ahead of time. I have the dressing ready in a glass jar. I add the rest of the ingredients at the last minute and pour the dressing on then. I don’t even toss it before serving. Perfect for the buffet table.
Did you know that our Greek Salad is far from the authentic Greek Village Salad? As Lina and Susie explain, in the original, there is no lemon, garlic, or lettuce. So that leaves tomato, cucumber, feta cheese, onion, olives, and oil.
You’re using fresh oregano everywhere, right? Oregano has higher antioxidant activity than blueberries! than garlic!
Fresh herbs are cheap as chips and easy to work with. Dump tons of them in pasta sauces (kids will not detect basil or oregano in spaghetti sauce), lasagna, stir fries, stews.
-->
This Greek salad comes together in less than 15 minutes. You wash, get one child to assemble the salad, another to make the dressing, and you’re out the door.
Read moreFighting Flat Hair
January 27, 2009
My hair is fine, pin straight and entirely flat. Believe me I say that, left to its own devices, it is a swim cap. You have no idea. However, go near it with a blow drier and it turns into a mushroom-shaped puff, like a cross between a soufflé and a helmet. Since I have to let it air dry, I’ve devised other ways of getting some lift.
1. The cut matters, of course. I’ve learned that the more texturized (chopped into, broken) the whole head is, the lighter the pieces. They’ll lift up or back and stay put with very little product. The length isn’t really affected, just the weight.
I could cut big chunks out of my head and they’d be invisible, like scooping a cup of sand off a beach. If your hair is thicker, the chunks will show up more. The blunter the ends, the heavier the look, the flatter it lies.
Here’s a haircut that I’ve loved for years and always go back to. You may remember it from an old John Frieda ad.
by John Frieda
It turns out different each day, but with no particular styling, it looks like this.
2. Shampoo that doesn’t add weight. My 2 favorites are made by TIGI. They are BedHead Control Freak Shampoo Frizz Control and Straightener and Catwalk Thickening Shampoo for Fuller Hair, which I can’t find on the website. I don’t think they’re any different from one another really. The hair is gently cleaned and that’s it. Long ago, I stopped believing that any shampoo made for colored hair really does a better job at preserving color than a good gentle shampoo, and many of them are worse.
From left, Catwalk Thickening Shampoo, BedHead Control Freak shampoo, and Catwalk Root Boost (in 4. below).
Because they leave no film, these two shampoos are also great for handwashing sweaters.
Edit April 18/09 : I’ve been using the Control Freak more lately and have decided that it must have a stronger detergent in it because it strips the hair much more than the Catwalk shampoo. I’m trying to get the red-orange out of my hair so I can change my hair color to a more neutral brown, appropriate to my newfound Dark Winter status, and this product is doing quite a good job. You might try Paul Mitchell Instant Moisture Daily Shampoo if you want another option for a gentle cleaning shampoo that neither strips color nor weighs down the hair.
3. Light conditioners. Products that noticeably coat the hair never work well for me. I have found more lifting success with light conditioners. Typically, they are easy and fast to rinse out. They are also hard to find.
For years before finding the Joico product below, I used John Frieda’s Daily Nourishment Leave-In Fortifying Spray. This is a great one if you’re short on time. You will not feel it in your hair. It’s a very light conditioner and a detangler.
The best conditioner I know is Joico Body Luxe Thickening Conditioner, which delivers more than just detangling but rinses almost instantly and leaves no weight but some great smoothing. Your only need a tiny amount, smaller than a dime, really just a drop. It is wonderful.
4. Volumizing root lifters. TIGI Catwalk Root Boost, shown with the shampoo picture above, is a good product. It does what you expect it to, putting it in the category of a rare find. It seems like a spray mousse. So why not just use regular mousse? Well, it’s easy to aim at the roots only. It doesn’t leave flakes. The hair looks like hair, not crunchy or enormous. The effect lasts the day. Here’s the only use I make of a blow drier, to lift the Root Boost sections at the back and crown.
I love Root Boost best when my hair color has grown out a little and the roots are flatter than the rest of the head. It’s easy to just spray along the part and anywhere else I want some lift.
My stylist has recommended TIGI BedHead Superstar. It looks like a liquid which seems gunky but she thinks it’s great. And I can vouch for hair lift. Hers is 4” higher than her head.
5. A light defining styling cream. Wet looking hair in men or women is not attractive. Ditto crunchy, oily, greased, or immobile hair. Manipulator ( see the article Product Review : Bed Head Manipulator) is a good pomade but can get heavy. It produces a more texturized look, a little less like real hair.
Try got2B Playful. It’s weightless. Your hair will be better behaved, the texture will be more defined making the whole head look thicker. I don’t find it does much in wet hair. It’s best when applied to dry hair, then it gives a little lasting lift and a great real-hair dry finished look.
6. Play with a stick wax. TIGI BedHead A Hair Stick for Cool People is good though too heavily scented. Like all wax, it softens with heat and stiffens with cold. You can put a touch at the roots for direction/lift, shape it with the heat of a blow drier, then when it cools, it stays. You can give the ends direction in the same way, or just add chunkiness and straightness to ends. Remember that stick wax isn’t applied to the whole head or the whole length of the hair. It’s used in spots, no area more than about 1” around.
I don’t use it routinely because of the smell but for dealing with a cowlick or controlling a certain spot, it is very good.
7. Hairspray? Hate the stuff. Maybe it works for you though.
-->
My hair is fine, pin straight and entirely flat. Believe me I say that, left to its own devices, it is a swim cap. You have no idea. However, go near it with a blow drier and it turns into a mushroom-shaped puff, like a cross between a soufflé and a helmet. Since I have to let it air dry, I’ve devised other ways of getting some lift.
Read more4 Ways To Lighten Your Makeup As You Get Older 3
January 23, 2009
The third of 3 parts on applying makeup that’s beautiful on an older face.
1. A little bit of bronzer every day. Just go around the outsides of your face, under your jaw, under your cheekbone, at your temples. I have a wide nose so I put it down the sides of my nose.
The bronzer and the contour are the same product. Choose the lightest color you could wear, more gold than peach or bronze, with no shimmer at all. Don’t spend a lot of time looking for this item. It’s near impossible to find in a shade that’s believable in winter, especially if your complexion is light.
Instead, make your life easier by choosing a pressed powder in a color 2 shades darker than your own color. There’s so much to choose from in this arena and it works really well.
I use AboutFace powder in Tawny that you read about 2 Beautiful Bronzers For Early Summer.
If I were shopping, I’d look at Estee Lauder’s AeroMatte because it’s:
- pressed ; loose powder will not be controlled enough
- sheer, which is more believable in winter and means a lighter color deposit
- matte, because sparkly bronzer or contour just looks idiotic, especially in winter or at the office
Follow with blush in a rosy or peachy color. Choose something light and fresh in your color family. Dark blush makes skin look dull and lifeless. Nobody has brown cheeks. For some women of intense coloring, a deeper rosy-plum is fresh and believable. For others, spicy peaches and terracottas are very real colors. Stick with your color family and don’t go too dark. Bought your Color Swatches yet? Choosing makeup colors is a snap, a done deal, a cakewalk once you have your swatches.
Put the blush high on the cheek, under the outside of the iris, right above the contour, a little higher than the nostril. Think of putting it on the highest part of the round part when you smile.
Blend your blush better than you ever have. Two spots of bright or dark blush are too stereotypically old-lady. Use products that blend with absolutely no hard edges.
2. Avoid foundation with heavy coverage. Look for sheerer products. Try a foundation that is more transparent or if you love the one you wear, mix it with a little or your day cream ( the one with SPF, you know?) . It looks so much more like real skin. It is fast to apply, gives you some sun protection, is easy to blend into the neck, and can do wonders for how smooth your skin looks. Some powder on the shiny areas, the sides of the nose and center of the face, and that might be all you need to make a huge difference.
Some choose to go heavier with pigments and coverage as they age, but the skin is less forgiving and can’t carry this off attractively. In Christopher Hopkins’ great book, Staging Your Comeback, A Complete Beauty Revival For Women Over 45, he explains his preference for more opaque coverage in foundation in a matte finish. He feels it hides uneven coloration better, which he believes that people notice more than wrinkles. I don’t know about that – it may be true from a distance, maybe even a social distance of 2ft. or so. I think people do notice wrinkles.
(The BUY link only works on Christopher’s site but the book picture is linked to it.)
Here are some of the After photos for you to make up your own mind. He has incredible vision and beautiful, classy taste but I’d feel too made-up, and I already wear the stuff every day. Could be I’m not putting it on right.
Sheer coverage can do a shocking amount to even skin tone, even if a few discolorations come through. With Christopher’s suggestions of an opaque foundation and the powder under the eyes (which can be brushed away later), your face would have very little pliability, the coverage would look like a shield, and the wrinkles would almost blink.
I will concede that once we’re over 40, we have to be careful with dewy and glowy, just as he says. Unless you have 30 yr old skin, and perfect at that, take care with shine. You can always add it back in in a controlled way with a shimmer cream (see 6 Makeup Shimmer Do’s). Do we know this instinctively? The older we get, the less shine will work. That’s good. It keeps us in the realm of that watercolor diffusion which is the best makeup anyhow.
You’re brilliant, Christopher. I’d even let you at my hair. I don’t doubt I’d look much better than I do but I’m not with you on the foundation for an everyday look busy women can fit into their lives. You said “I know you can see [foundation] but others can’t.” I think they can. More about Christopher’s book in another post.
3. Eyeshadow that lifts. Women don’t require or desire a 4-eyeshadow blueprint. You put your light concealer under the eyebrow and that’s that done. You put a light neutral color on your eyelid. Where you put it on your eyes is what a makeup artist will tell you, but usually you’d go from the lash line to halfway between crease and eyebrow.
Our foreheads/eyebrows/eyelids are falling down with gravity and time. Instead of putting the darker neutral eyeshadow in the crease, apply it above the crease on the skin that falls down over the crease. If you raise your eyebrows, you won’t see where that is so relax your face and see what part of the lid is lying on top of the crease. See how the push pins are pointing to a fold of skin that falls down over the crease in the eyelid? Make it recede with darker shadow. Thanks to Jenepher Reynolds for this eye-opener.
4. Eyeliner. There is no way around it. You will look asleep without it. Our eyes, like our lips, lose definition with time. Our coloring softens and makes everything blend together more. Draw a line around something and it’s more noticeable. Our eyes are the part of our face that should be most noticed because they’re our expression and our vitality.
The color depends on your coloring, remembering that neutral makeup will always look more real. It will be some shade of gray, brown, or black. These colors are not hard to find. They range from soft grey to charcoal. You’ll find soft brown, milk chocolate, black coffee, grey-browns, lots of choice. Clinique’s Quickliner is but one of many good choices for application, staying ability, and color selection.
Buy from a company where you can test the colors. The sealed ones vary too much from the color on the packaging.
-->Today’s 4 suggestions for improved makeup on mature faces consider bronzer, foundation, eyeshadow, and eyeliner.
Read moreThe Smartest Shopping Bag
January 20, 2009
-->I feel a little demolished when I have to use plastic bags. I’ve stopped using them altogether … except when I’ve forgotten my Green bags in the car and I’m buying several items. That seems to happen on a daily basis.
Read moreHow Wall Street Fell And How To Fix It
January 17, 2009
Do you understand the recent turmoil? I lose interest when I read about it because I don’t understand most of what I read. I want to be able to talk about it because everyone else is. I don’t want to be accusatory or misinformed so I do more listening. Where can you learn the facts without being bored or confused?
When possibility and bankers meet
What if someone wrote it as a story about people? No graphs, no jargon (or not so much that the meaning is mired in it), not too many %. As a story about human behavior, it is nothing short of fascinating and not even surprising. The more you read, the wilder the story becomes. This debacle as fiction could never have been plausible.
Some people saw it coming. In fact they took out bets that it would happen. Who were they? How did they know? What alarms did they raise and who chose to ignore them? The most easily readable obituary of the financial meltdown is the article “The End” for the December 08 issue of Portfolio magazine.
Michael Lewis
Lewis begins at the beginning of the now-wreckage. It is the buildup towards the realization that collapse had to happen. The system was obviously, clearly, incontestably doomed. There was no other possible outcome.
When the end began
Actually, the pot was simmering long before the mortgage fiasco. It began 30 years ago. In Lewis’ 1989 book, Liar’s Poker, in the same story-telling vein, he describes Wall Street of the 80s. Again funnier and more far-fetched than most fiction, this is Lewis’ own autobiography in a tale about people, greed, and permission. Addicted to the wild risk ride, seeing themselves as indestructible, these were the rulers in the game of finding every legislative loophole possible to amass indecent fortunes by risking other people’s money.
There are good reviews here and here, if you want to get the gist of it.
What they did with the money
In the January 09 New York Times article “The End Of The Financial World As We Know It”, written by Lewis and David Einhorn, you’re brought up to date with what went on, what’s going on, and what they did with the money they were given. The role that politicians played in the background is explained. It becomes obvious that what they’re doing to fix things is as idiotic and doomed to fail as the scientific neglect that got them there in the first place.
How can so many people in charge of so much be so deluded ? Who would give $700 billion to someone with a gambling addiction without changing the rules of the game? How can single individuals still have so much authority?
Understanding the financial industry is not important. You don’t need to. It ‘s just a story about people posturing, bluffing, and ultimately hiding weakness. Showdowns are the name of this game, Old West style, gun-slingers trying to protect themselves and secure their glory. Wall Street is just human nature on a grander scale.
How to really fix it
The second part of the article above is “How To Repair A Broken Financial World”.
The warnings were always there. Reasonable solutions are offered but the choice seems to be made not to heed them. There are other ways out of this than just throwing more money into the pit that sucked it all up in the first place. The system that so mismanaged itself will have to propped up artificially to maintain some sort of status quo and prevent a complete unravelling. I hope something more is happening behind the scenes.
We all have a sense of the inexcusability. Bankers moved from invincibility through denial to protection. Can this lesson tame the insatiable greed? Of course not. Humans are humans. You don’t give a bully more attention. His reward system has to be taken away.
The gears of the political and financial machines will have to grind in sync to straighten this out. The legal loopholes will have to be closed. This second article presents forward-looking means of preventing a repetition because the weaknesses of human beings are foreseen and contained. It is the only thing that will really work.
-->I lose interest when I read about it because I don’t understand most of what I read.
What if someone wrote it as a story about people? No graphs, no jargon (or not so much that the meaning is mired in it), not too many %. As a story about human behavior, it is nothing short of fascinating and not even surprising. The more you read, the wilder the story becomes. This debacle as fiction could never have been plausible.
Mall To Mall Travels in America
January 14, 2009
We’ve returned from the road trip from Ontario to PEI. Bill says we should just put a fifth wheel on the roof of the minivan and drag a semi trailer. Throw on a CB antenna, and we can converse with the big rigs. If the monster purple suitcase flies off the roof and hits a truck, it will knock it off the road. Then the big rigs will be mad at us.
We crossed into the US at Buffalo, stayed a night in Albany, NY, a night in Portland , ME, and a night in Freeport, ME , getting to Charlottetown on the 4th day. It sure was a better drive than Northern Quebec. If it storms, I’ll take Albany over Riviere-du-Loup anyday.
The whole family together for 4 days in a little van. Dunkin Donuts, chips, fries, what’s next ? My hair flipped up and I’m headed to NASCAR. I found it interesting how overheated my body felt for that 3 weeks of eating so much or so badly, like my personal global warming bioassay. Do you suppose pollution makes our individual furnaces run hotter, just like the planet’s? Eating that way also creates a disturbing amount of garbage.
If there’s a recession, someone should tell the Americans. Malls were as full as ever. The lineup at the checkouts was long. Can a recession can be prevented just by the collective power of millions of people not believing in it? Or is the reality just beginning to settle in? Maybe all those people were not buying, or maybe they won’t be buying now. I think we’re a little insulated from the situation in Canada.
We’re walking through L.L. Bean. Bill saw an item of clothing he liked but refused to buy because it was made in China. He had noticed the same thing about the Lexus cars parked in the center isle of a mall the day before. The sticker in the window said “% Canadian or American content, zero”.
He noticed where an item was made within 15 seconds. Put me in front of those cars or clothes for a full minute and I bet I couldn’t tell you where they were manufactured. That information doesn’t jump out at me.
I see that Canada and the US can trade “fairly” because a dollar is worth a dollar and the wages and standard of living are the same.
I can understand that there can be no such thing as fair trade with a country like Mexico or China where people work for $5 a day while we work for $15 an hour. Companies are sending all the manufacturing there but they want all the consumption to stay here. It can’t happen. If we don’t buy our own stuff, nobody here will have money to spend on anything, regardless of where it’s made.
But the spirit of America is stronger than ever. We want to make the right purchasing choice. It just needs to be more obvious. Put a big US flag or a picture of Obama right on the front of American-made items and I bet more people would add that consideration to decide their action.
If I had $20 left at the end of the week and Made in the USA or Made in Canada or Made in China was more obvious, I’d be swayed by that. I may not always like or choose what America makes but it would pressure North America to make what its citizens want.
Have you watched Mr. Al Gore’s documentary An Inconvenient Truth? No person over the age of 10 should miss it. It will change your life. Hopefully, it will change all of our lives. In it, he explains that emission standards for cars made in the US are so low that they could not be driven in China. If that is still true, then US automakers don’t deserve to have their vehicles bought. The technology is in place. This is a political low point. Consumers do, and should, use more information than where something is made when they decide what to buy because some issues are bigger than all of us.
For many products, this just needs to be easier. Every consumer demographic should be able, within 15 seconds, to say where a product is made to factor it into a buy decision. It would be easy to say that consumers should be more conscious of the issue and actively find the information like Bill does. I don’t think that’s realistic. I’ll be too distracted by all the other things I’m noticing. We want to do well but we’re lazy. I’m lazy.
Imagine if Sephora had all the animal-tested stuff on one wall and the cruelty-free products on the opposite wall, clearly marked. I bet the tested products would be gone in a year. We’re strongly driven to spend our last $20 on what we want but we have enough conscience to support the right side more often than we do if we don’t have to go out of our way too much.
It will be interesting to see how retail does in the next 4 months. Mobil is putting its gas grades R to L, unlike the conventional L for cheapest and R for costliest. Someone not paying attention will select the most expensive. Maybe they’ve always done that, but now, we’re noticing and resenting. Diesel costs more and it’s a by-product of gas. Gas in Canada costs much more than in the US. … and the gas companies are not screwing us?
Some will go under. Some will try to sting us a little deeper.
Thanks to Sandra for the link to Sundance Catalog. There are some beautiful things here, “Cleverly Cute Shoes” , “Ultra Cool Boots”, items for the home, jewelry (Circle Of Friends earrings, be still my heart!), and clothing. The Outlet, always my second stop at a new website (after About Us), is there. The prices are entirely competitive. From the About Us page, everything appears to have been crafted by artists across the US.
-->Every consumer demographic should be able, within 15 seconds, to say where a product is made to factor it into a buy decision. It would be easy to say that consumers should be more conscious of the issue and actively find the information. I don’t think that’s realistic. I’ll be too distracted by all the other things I’m noticing. We want to do well but we’re lazy. I’m lazy.
Read moreEllen as Cover Girl Spokesperson
January 11, 2009
I bet CG will sell a ton of whatever makeup Ellen is promoting because they picked a real person and didn’t Photoshop away all her wrinkles. The brand will be noticed for celebrating diversity in women, just as they were with Queen Latifah. The consumer appeal will be that these are real women, not plastic girls, and they’ve teamed up with Olay to put an anti-aging spin on it.
She’s 50 years old. She’s worth $65million.
This is the link to the CG ad, not reproduced here to protect copyright. There, you’ll find the videos for the photo shoot. I wonder if I could afford those pants and shoes.
Why is she always in black or black&white? Is it her choice, do you think? Neither one do anything to light up her natural beauty. Her incredible eyes don’t shine through and her skin looks tired. Why frosted pink lips? Surely, the makeup artists could have come up with something more interesting.
Real women needed
The fashion and cosmetics industries desperately need to find women of the Over 40 group to inspire real clothes and makeup. Look at how Michelle Obama dresses. She doesn’t spend a ridiculous (a disgraceful) fortune on what she wears.
You can’t tell me that a woman whose ensembles cost $50,000 and up has the slightest idea about the life of the everyday family. Maybe Mrs. Obama doesn’t either but at least she looks great, she has a unique style, her shoes make sense, and she doesn’t buy into what any designer tries to put us all in. She could look at pictures of herself in 10 or 20 years and not cringe. These women really do represent how we look and how we want to look.
Why do women decide that designers somehow have flawless vision? What makes their taste so sacrosanct?
Look around and suddenly you see women in this,
Stiletto at Amazon, linked to source if you wish to buy.
or this,
Pants from Amazon. Click image to find source.
In need of real muses
We look dumb dumb dumb. Weak. Suckers. The marketing department cranks up its imagination and they rake in cash. The media machine doesn’t address the needs of regular women over 40 because it doesn’t know how. It still thinks we all have the body and budget of Diane Keaton. It is dawning on them that we have interests beyond those of Goldie Hawn but they’re not sure what they are.
Ellen’s style of dress may be masculine but at least it’s real. There’s nothing she wears that I wouldn’t like to own (in the right colors, in case I haven’t said it often enough). She doesn’t wobble when she walks. She could even dance to faster music, like You Can’t Stop The Beat from Hairspray, or Avril Lavigne’s I Don’t Like Your Girlfriend, which I think would be a good departure from the present tempo, and she wouldn’t risk falling over and needing help to get up.
I hope they’ll paint Ellen as a real woman. They’re almost forced to because she’d look too goofy in sparkle and cartoon eyelashes. They couldn’t get away with it. I’m hoping to see what their makeup artists can do with neutral. Because her coloring is so incredibly soft, they can’t overpaint her. Even here, she looks interesting, if a little metallic.
Photo Michael Thompson. Ellen on W, February 2007.
She is funny. Like all people who have a certain exterior face, her private side is probably fairly serious, maybe even overly reflective. People who are always up and funny on the outside are often the opposite on the inside. Here, she is just plain funny, from YouTube.
One bone to pick
Now why is she selling for a company that animal tests? Why? It is so outdated. It also feels a little two-faced in light of her support of animal charities. Her tell-it-like-it-is honesty isn’t really her biggest selling point. Her funny sense of timing and dry, throwaway remarks are, like Bill Cosby. She’s incredibly likable but this feels deceitful.
Among the charities various celebs support, this page shows Ellen’s causes.
There are more Ellens in reality. There are no Julias. That’s the beauty of the woman. She’s all of us.
-->I bet CG will sell a ton of whatever makeup Ellen is promoting because they picked a real person and didn’t Photoshop away all her lines. The brand will be noticed for celebrating diversity in women, just as they were with Queen Latifah. The consumer appeal will be that these are real women, not plastic girls.
She’s 50 years old. She’s worth $65million.
Sites To Know : Pretty Your World
January 9, 2009
I’ve been waiting a year and a half to find Pretty Your World. I read the entire thing in 3 hours. There are other color sites out there but few hold a candle to this one because it is so much more a teaching site than a marketing site. In most cases, the marketing is only thinly veiled by an attempt to teach, but PYW is about teaching and it does so outstandingly well.
The most important image tool
You may know how much importance I place on getting your colors right to look good. The terribly overdone choice of black for evening. The ubiquitous blonde highlights. The supposedly safe charcoal gray or navy suit. They just don’t work on everyone. Ellen DeGeneres in black, Nicole Kidman in washed out blonde hair, even celebs get it wrong.
We all notice it, not just people who like color. The dress you complimented someone on but really thought didn’t look special at all. The friend who spent a fortune on a new coat and she really looks pale and washed out, but you felt you had to say something nice. The warm brown hair on women with no warmth in their skin, so the hair takes over the face.
I really like Color Me Beautiful’s first book because it was my introduction the 4 color season way to analyze people’s colors. It made the whole thing simple enough to understand. It is unbeatable as a place to begin but there were still people I couldn’t fit into the scheme. I get most confused by celebs with hair dyed the color of corn or Springs with brown hair (like Julie Andrews in The Sound Of Music, who seems most often thought of as Spring). Or why some women that I’m certain are Autumns look so good in black. I’m hopeless with women of color. Ask and it shall be answered. Along came Pretty Your World.
Lora Alexander
Lora Alexander is an esthetician, a makeup artist, and a Certified Image Consultant. Color and Art are her primary interests, with close second loves of makeup, color analysis, and beauty psychology.
The 12 Season System
The system is based on a more complete 12 Season color analysis, which Lora believes to be the ONLY accurate system there is, and I absolutely agree. The 4 seasons we know are broken down to each have 3 sub-categories. You don’t begin by finding your season. Rather, you find yourself in the 6 descriptions of Deep, Clear, Light, Soft, Cool, and Warm. Secondly, you identify yourself among the 2 choices of Warm or Cool. Combining the first 6 and the last 2 gives you the 12 combinations. So you could be Deep Winter, Cool Winter, or Clear Winter. The breakdown is found on the Analyze Yourself page.
There are plenty of examples, using celebrities. There are excellent but not overly detailed explanations. The system is broken down in various ways, in a stepwise process, to help you find your place. There are links using Eye Color and Hair Color to help guide your choice. It is unbelievable to me that Lora began this site only 2 months ago. She’s already created THE best teaching site about personal color analysis on the internet.
A walk through PYW
I was completely amazed to see how much Lora and I have in common – like our love of Kevyn Aucoin, our belief in Paula Begoun’s work, our over-40 vintage, our season (Autumn), the fact that we colorcast people within a few minutes of meeting them (though I’m not nearly as good at it as she is), our thriftyness (but we are not cheap!) and our passion for finding beauty advice that works in the REAL world.
She doesn’t pull any punches. We are in perfect agreement when she states, in The Truth About Beauty , that the cosmetics industry lies to us day in and day out and we still can’t give them money fast enough.
Though it may be not be fair, she is also right that we are judged immediately by others and most of it is on appearance. We are not judged on whether or not we’re Gwyneth Paltrow look-alikes. We are judged on the use we’ve made of what we have. Following the “Even someone naturally beautiful…” link on that page will take you to the famous Dove billboard ad and how much artifice the beauty industry is based on. Empower yourself. Learn which products work. Learn your colors.
I love Celebrity Style because it shows celebs in their various hair color tryouts.
Just for fun, but fun it is, there are 4 pages of celebs without makeup. Would we look twice at any of those faces in the mall or pushing a grocery cart? We would not. Their 5’10”, 110 lb bodies, maybe.
How to most improve your looks
I totally get that not everyone wants the bother of makeup. Most women probably don’t. But, listen. Makeup is EASY once you know your season. Your makeup colors ARE your clothing colors. It’s all right there. Even your hair colors are in your palettes!
What I don’t understand is why a woman would not take the time to know her colors just to make good clothing choices. It totally transforms how you look. Why spend $200 or $100 or $10 on something that not only doesn’t flatter your looks, but actually detracts?
You might prefer a certain style of dress or cut of jacket and nobody could argue with your taste. But only 1 of the 3 Springs will ever look gorgeous in black. A Summer never will. You might as well paint a drab grayish foundation color on your face, darken the shadows under your eyes, and get it over with.
I know Autumn women reading this will be saying “I like ballet pink and I’m g.d. well going to wear it.” Do what you gotta do. Hopefully the pink thing doesn’t cost a lot. You will never look rich, vibrant, and powerful in pink. Wear it but not to a meeting. Or an argument. Or a 10 year reunion.
Experiment with success
Many women have some sense of what colors suit them but there’s still a lot of confusion out there. The whole topic seems intimidating. They might have a sense of their general category or some good safe basics. To find a collection of 50!! colors that would be great on YOU – now that’s a gift. You could be more adventuresome, get away from safe, and look amazing.
Where do you start? How do you find your colors when you go shopping? Well, you start here. Like everything else, you get help when you need it, even if it costs money. You send in your picture. You buy the swatch book. You take it shopping. The swatch kit on Lora’s site, and all the extras that come with it, looks fantastic.
Remember the articles on Gift Ideas 1 – 5, back in December? Well, no gift, and I mean NO gift, NONE, could come close to buying a woman her color swatches. Gift certificates are available but the surprise and gratitude of giving a woman her own colors would be worth it.
The palettes themselves aren’t at PYW – or anywhere on the internet. Lora recommends looking at the book Color Me Beautiful’s Looking Your Best for good explanations and 28-color layouts of each of the 12 Seasons, with verbal descriptions of the full 48colors for each season at the end. (The Click to LOOK doesn’t work, it’s just coming from Amazon.)
I bought this book and it’s pretty good. The best thing about it is that it explains the 12 Season system quite well, particularly how a season can crossover and borrow colors from another season. This expands your palette but in a controlled way that is understandable. There is still the hair/clothing/style advice but it’s outdated (the first version was published in 1991). Most disappointing to me was that the 28 colors are hard to see. They look like they’re painted on concrete, grainy and rough. The swatches in the original book were better. Still worth it for the explanation of the 12 Seasons if you’re into it, though.
Have your colors done!
Still don’t believe your color analysis can be done on the internet? In a future post (once I know the date, I’ll post it in the Upcoming link on the front page of this site), Lora will do an in depth color analysis using pictures of me with makeup, without makeup, close-ups of my eyes, and pictures of my hair color when I was young. I’m off to her site to fill out the questionnaire.
Take a serious look at what you get for $89.95 on that same page.
-->I’ve been waiting a year and a half to find Pretty Your World. I read the entire thing in 3 hours. There are other color sites out there but few hold a candle to this one because it is so much more a teaching site than a marketing site. In most cases, the marketing is only thinly veiled by an attempt to teach, but PYW is about teaching and it does so outstandingly well.
Read morePerfect Indoor Shoes
January 7, 2009
These Insulated Comfort Mocs from L.L.Bean are the most comfortable and functionally ideal shoes.
They had to be slip on. The zipper’s not tight over the top of the foot but I wear them with the zipper open and they don’t fall off.
They had to have some support because I hate the look and feel of mushy slippers.
The toe had to be closed to keep my feet warm in our drafty house. We seem to have a lot of air currents at ground level.
They had to be lightweight because I don’t like heavy clothing. That’s why I seldom wear jeans.
The sole had to be rubber to avoid tracking dog hair all over the house.
The sole also had to be waterproof. Stepping in melted snow in socked feet at 11PM can make you IRRITABLE.
They had to be durable so I could throw them in a bag and take to people’s houses when I visit. It might feel a little proper to bring your own shoes but socked feet hurt my back and make me feel short and squat. Nobody stands right in socked feet but women are the worst.
They had to be indoor/outdoor in case I drove somewhere and forgot to change my shoes.
They had to be inexpensive.
They had to be quiet to walk in at 5 AM without waking everyone sleeping upstairs.
They had to be lined with something that doesn’t make feet too hot like shearling. That fur you see is just a collar around the ankle. It doesn’t extend into the shoe.
You know L.L.Bean. Those are the clothes you love more everytime you wear them.
Did you know L.L. stands for Leon Leonwood?
I bought them at the store for $34, or maybe it was $39. They’re not on sale on the site ($50). Now, that’s annoying. What if I loved them so much that I decided to buy a black pair online when I got home? I’d be a little testy, wouldn’t I? I’d even have to reconsider whether L.L.Bean is one of my favorite stores. Keep watching the prices, women.
I normally wear a 9.5, but I found a 10 most comfortable, especially if you’re wanting heavy socks with them. I have a phobia of feeling the end of my shoe with my toe; it’s a relic from years of wearing shoes that were too tight/narrow/pointed because I thought someone noticed how good they looked. I’ve smartened up a bit since those days.
-->They had to have some support because I hate the look and feel of mushy slippers.The sole also had to be waterproof. Stepping in melted snow in socked feet at 11PM can make you IRRITABLE.
They had to be 9 other things too.
Interview With A Makeup Artist 2
January 5, 2009
In the previous article, Interview With A Makeup Artist 1, I introduced you to makeup artist Jenepher Reynolds. I never visit PEI without taking an opportunity to sit in her chair. It is always a great experience in beauty and learning. We chatted about makeup for women over 40 last summer. Here is the second half of our conversation.
Views on PEI's Confederation Trail.
6. The three most important products for women over 40?
JR: An eyelash curler !! Care to know the why? As we age, the lashes tend to fall and stick out rather straight from the edge of the lid, so from the front they become invisible. The eyelash curler lifts the hair up, which immediately counteracts gravity. It also exposes more of the white of the eye, which makes the eye look larger.
Secondly, smudged eyeliner. It defines and thickens the lashes, which is youthful. Where the line goes depends on the eye and the face.
Third is concealer in a yellow-orange-peach color. The light yellow-beige sold in most lines is too light and not very effective. If you think about color theory, orange cancels blue and yellow cancels purple. So since a lot of Caucasians are blue/purple under the eyes, it only makes sense to use a concealer with yellow and orange in it.
Also, a pimple is nowhere near the color under your eyes. It’s red. Green cancels red so for blemishes you need a concealer with a bit of green in it.(Not to the extent of an illusion toner). That can be a very difficult product to find but it counteracts redness and shadows better than any other.
I have several favorite concealers. One is made by Ben Nye (see the article Concealer : Ben Nye Neutralizer Crayon Should Be Famous) .
Long walks on windy beaches.
7. Any general color advice that applies to everyone?
JR: Nothing applies to everyone. You might reconsider if you are using deep, dark, or matte colors on lips. Lips are the only feature that can be big!! Darkness, especially if it’s dull and matte, is a minimizer.
I think a lot of people have experience with color whether it’s from decorating their house or buying clothes for themselves or someone else. Color theory is color theory. i.e. if you choose a color for your lips that is much darker and deeper than your skin and lip tone, there is high contrast which can be harsh, especially if it’s not blended. I mention this because so many women will not put any make-up on except lipstick and quite often a very deep lip color. All we see are the person’s lips.
This applies to eyes as well. Colors that contrast strongly with those naturally appearing on your face may appear harsh and that can be aging or unflattering.
Consider bronzer year-round, in a shade more golden than brown, for the soft light it brings.
No more dusty rose blush. That color is flattering on a small and select group of women. Peach/apricot/pink are more attractive on most fair/medium/dark Caucasian skin tones faces.
New Glasgow, PEI.
8. What are the differences between applying makeup on models and on real women?
JR: Women should understand that it takes several hours, professional lighting and photographers, and upwards of 100 – 250 pictures to get one good shot. Add to that hair and makeup people (often several of each) and models with training in how to pose. This is before we discuss computer retouching! It is insane for women to compare themselves to model photos. There is no comparison. Go have a look at the videos on the Dove site if you need an example.
What you will see of your kids - see the line of snorkels?
9. What did you learn from working in a plastic surgery milieu?
No matter how much money you have or how much work you get done, it doesn’t mean that you will be happy or satisfied with your looks. I know this also from my own experience with cosmetic surgery. Like your insides and the outside will reflect just that.
How's that for a carbon footprint?
10. You’ve worked with so many lines of cosmetics. Why did you choose to work with the AboutFace line?
JR: I answer this question on my website’s Cosmetics page. They rely on advisors within the industry, editors, chemists, and others. They do not test on animals.
I looked at many lines before I settled on this one. I felt it best addressed the needs of many women. I also appreciate that they are always adding new products.
Brackley Beach. A wee bit different in December.
11. Have you any reaction to how media tells women over 40 to feel about aging?
JR: The most common complaint I hear from mature women is “I look so old”. They’re trying to hide this spot or that one. Sure, they don’t look like they did when they were 17, but why accept that there’s something wrong with that?
Why try to hide yourself? Why not enhance what you do have? All the makeup in the world won’t hide poor eating habits, smoking, or an angry expression.
If cosmetic surgical procedures truly will make you feel better about yourself, then go ahead. It can make a huge difference in self-esteem. But it’s not for everyone. Growing enough to accept that we are no longer who we used to be on the inside, and seeing it as natural to reflect that on the outside, can satisfy most of us.
You can do preventative things to slow down aging, concentrating on the biggest aging factors. Those are sun, smoking, and stress, not necessarily in that order.
I’d like the beauty industry to stop using the term “anti-aging”. We start aging from the day we’re born. The focus should be on taking care of yourself inside and out. I have laugh lines that end in my hairline. I’d rather that than frown lines.
Hay bales and the ocean always over the next hill.
Despite the oversight of having left out a visit to Jenepher’s studio, which I’m certain will be corrected in the next issue, the ultimate Book of Musts : The 101 Places Every Islander MUST See is absolutely unequalled for letting you in on what to REALLY do in PEI. (here it is at Amazon). I’d like to tell you it’s sunny and hot all summer but that might be an overstatement. With this book in hand, you’ll have a fantastic time, even if you’re at Value Village buying fleece.
Without it, you might not find the best Montreal bagels and Thai food. You might not know that 6AM and 9PM are the best times to be on the North Shore beaches. Pick the strawberries on Tea Hill so you can stand up and gaze out at the ocean. Cross country ski at Brookvale and you’ll feel entirely at peace.
Go to the Island but don’t go without this reference. The more kids you bring, the better you’ll like it.
Go without kids and take the forest walks at Bubbling Springs or Lover’s Lane at Green Gables.
So much more than a sub-Arctic sandbar and the home of Anne of Green Gables. Any water sport you can name. Fantastic food. Incredible shopping. Oh, it goes on and on.
The best vacation on Earth.
Visit www.peiplay.com.
-->The most common complaint I hear from mature women is “I look so old”. They’re trying to hide this spot or that one. Sure, they don’t look like they did when they were 17, but why accept that there’s something wrong with that?
Read moreGet daily makeup and colour updates. Join the 12 Blueprints Fan Club on Facebook! A Click on the box will take you there.
-
A Greener Tea
Web Maintenence by Rick Beckman
