3 Proven Skin Care Ingredients

Just because it's pricey and comes in a pretty jar, it doesn't necessarily mean a product has more effective skin care ingredients.

Often, "lower-priced products may work better than their more expensive counterparts," says Arthur W. Perry, MD, author of the book Straight Talk about Cosmetic Surgery (Yale University Press Health & Wellness). Whether it's $9 or $99, here are three key ingredients to consider . . .

3 Proven Ingredients
According to Dr. Perry, vitamin C (also known as L-ascorbic acid), alpha-hydroxy acids (also known as AHAs, fruit acids, and glycolic acid), and retinoids or retinol-like compounds (tretinoin, retinol, etc.) are a few of the handful of skin product ingredients backed by strong scientific evidence that they boost skin health and appearance.

What About the Rest?
That doesn't mean other ingredients won't benefit your skin; it's just that the scientific proof isn't as solid for them. The main reason some skin care ingredients fail to deliver? Their molecules are too big to penetrate your skin when applied topically. Real Age tip of the day

Originally posted 2007-05-04 12:38:37.

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I always like a good beauty quote, and Andrea Claire had a few good ones in her interview with Makeup Junkie. You can read the full interview and learn more about Claire's makeup, hair and style career here at MJ's blog. You can also see some of Claire's print work. I'm glad MJ is back online posting again.

Here are some highlights:

Fall 2009 Beauty Trends
Claire feels smokey eyes, matte red lips, and 80s revival will be the top trends this fall. This was confirmed in the MAC videos I posted earlier.

Advice to women of a certain age
Avoid trends such as 80s revival, if you already lived it once. Makes sense to me.

...if you had been there done that and bought the lime green shadow you cannot do that again! Besides, it is very much a 'must have young skin' to pull it off. Bold colour blocking with eye shadows can age you and have you looking like you are stuck in a time warp. This look is only carried off if you are an adolescent so if you are 21 and under I say rock it, over 21 opt for another trend of the season.

Claire gives the following makeup tricks:
Smokey Eyes

*layer carbon/charcoal shadows with metallic colour. [You notice that I have done this, as it works better for my eyes.]
*If you find shadows are difficult to blend with your dark base then layer MAC's Smolder pencil with a Lise Watier's Metallic Eye shine pencil, smudge together with a Q-Tip. [Or use the MAC smudger brush as I have done. And use a lighter base. MAC's Smolder moved on me and made a mess. Blackgraph stays put. They are two different formulas. Smolder would likely smudge better.]

Matte Red lips

*apply the lip liner after the lipstick so it doesn't appear to[o] geometric.
*dot a smidge of vitamin e on top - not to add gloss but just a little moisture -- if matte is too drying for you.

What I really loved is her beauty mantra:

Be realistic. Be real... Beauty is not serious - beauty is a moment in your day that can convey confidence, flirtiness, calm. What I mean is, all women 'take 5' in their day by touching up here and there ... Beauty is a moment in time that is forever changing. Embrace those little moments but don't be those moments just live in them.... HA! Life is short - enjoy it - have fun with it. That's what beauty and fashion is all about; ... A form of expression that can change day to day, season to season - enjoy the trends but remember to enjoy life too. Andrea Claire at Makeup Junkie

Be sure to look at Makeup Junkie's blog.

Karin --I do wear the lime shadow, just judiciously.
www.savvythinker.com
don't steal my posts -- you know who you are!

Originally posted 2009-08-27 19:21:47.

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One of the things I like to do, though unconsciously, is people watch. Likely it is because I grew up in the fashion world, so I enjoy seeing what people wear and how they wear it. I am not critical, I am just looking with an interested eye to analyze, because I've been a buyer. At a young age I was buying not only for youth, but for older men and women. I know too well the fleeting nature of fashion and of trying to stay ahead of the game to anticipate trends when shopping the markets to buy for the next season.

Stores in our area had a hard time sustaining themselves when they used northern buyers for our market. It just didn't fly. Think hot, humid, and tropical and you would be right. What you'd wear in NYC or Chicago, you would likely not wear here. Also, the majority of us grew up somewhere else and came here for the space industry, so our fashion tends to be eclectic, but geared toward extreme heat.

The other day I was on a college campus with my 11 yo who had a function there. There were parents, as well as kids from 5th grade to 12th. Three college girls parted a swath amidst us. One was striking; one was average; one was OK. It was clear the striking one was leading the others and they deferred to her. They were an island to themselves. She was head of the pack, and she knew it. Confident. The rest of us of whatever age were invisible to them. I wondered what they would look like as parents. It was hard to imagine. But the day is coming whether they parent or not.

The next day I stood in a long line at the post office. Two young girls were in the front, one might have been an exchange student. One wore a dress; one wore shorts and a T. Both were modest and circumspect in their clothing. In front of me were two women older than I am. They both were invisible, in their demeanor and in their clothing. Behind me were women, invisible, looking hot and tired, none young. More or less patient in the line. I tried to imagine them the age of the young girls and failed. I tried to imagine what the young girls would look like at the age of these women or of me, or the ones behind me, how they might dress, and it was near impossible. I wondered what the hopes and dreams of the older women had been, and if they had achieved them. I wondered if the young girls would achieve theirs.

Next came me, fading into invisibility, maybe, wearing my uniform for the heat: shorts and a T. And don't forget I wore a lot of bracelets before they came back in style. Or I set the style, LOL. I am fashionable, but not a fashion plate. And I'm recycling things I loved from years gone by.

It reminded me of Dylan Thomas:

Do not go gentle into that good night
Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieve it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Or Robert Frost's

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

I don't think of myself as old, though to some I might be, and there are moments when I definitely look older than I would like to. I don't intend to go quietly. I hope never to be invisible. I've got a long ways to go before I end up there. Maybe I'll be like the 107 yo woman blogger and still be blogging. That would be something! But I hope it is an interesting ride. And she is clearly not invisible.

Someone I know once said to me that she couldn't wait until she was old enough not to care what she looked like. How old is that, pray tell? I'll never forget the striking much older woman on the arm of a younger man in Paris, her head scarf twisted into a flower by her ear. High heels and tasteful makeup. I have something to aim for, but skip the heels!

How about you? do you think of yourself as invisible, or do you know better?

Karin

Here it is in full:

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
Poem lyrics of Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost.

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village, though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there's some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

Originally posted 2007-08-29 22:12:05.

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Have you ever noticed how things come together? if you are reading about it in one place, you see it in another?

I've had that with a couple of things lately. One was Costa Rica; the other was patience.

Another book I've been reading and enjoying is Leap!: What Will We Do with the Rest of Our Lives? I read about the book in a catalog I received and thought it was one I'd like to own. Good choice!

Sara Davidson talks turkey about being a Boomer, born between 1946 and 1964 and the sea changes that will happen and are happening as that group comes of retirement age. I think the book will speak to those older than Boomers and younger.

She interviews a great many people, and I found the interviews touching, funny, inspirational, educational and worthwhile. I recommend the book to anyone thinking about it.

The basic premise, sort of, is that there are three ways of dealing: those who want everything to stay the same (and they might have been or will be forced out); those who only want to retire; and those who want to do almost anything than what they've been doing, but don't wish to retire. And within that broad range, she places her interviews.

At one point, she hears that many people are retiring to Costa Rica for a variety of reasons including affordability and (lack of) taxes. She goes on a fact finding trip to see what is available with a couple of real estate people in Costa Rica along with the group they are taking around. It reminds me a bit of time share visits, though not the pressure. She ultimately realizes it is a bit out of touch for her, with travel time and lack of connections to market her writing. But it is beautiful and the beaches are to die for.

I had just read that section, when I saw part of a segment on Costa Rica on TV. At first I thought it was a vacation spot, and it was so unbelievably gorgeous, I said, I don't care what it costs, I would book in for it....for one night...no matter how long it took to save. Then I found out it was a vacation home. I wish I knew more about who owned it and how they built it, where they live and how they made their money. That's a lot to ask, isn't it!

Basically, there were separate circular pods all open to the beach. One large pod was a kitchen big enough for everyone to cook in. I'm not sure if that was adjacent or separate from the large family room with fireplace that overlooked the ocean with about 150 feet of invisible sliding doors and overlooking a pool with no edge. The grown children each had their own pod. And there was a bunker pod equipped for hurricanes where they would gather in a storm, though each pod was supposed to be bunker worthy too. Furnishings were minimal and white so all the emphasis was on the view.

I realize the photography was perfect; the lighting was perfect...perhaps being there (or getting there) would not be nearly as beautiful or perfect as it was on TV. But I have never seen a more beautiful place ever.

I've never been to Costa Rica, have you? [Addendum -- we went on a cruise in December 2007 -- one of the things we did was traverse the rain forest from the canopy.]

Karin

Originally posted 2007-06-16 13:48:45.

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I only recently heard of Irena Sendler, a Polish Catholic 97 year old woman who rescued 2500 children in the Warsaw Ghetto from the gas chambers in 1942-3.

After getting the children out, she arranged 'adoptions' by non-Jewish families (I admire them too for the risks they took) to protect them, documenting their names in a jar which she buried, so that one day she could tell the children their real names.

She was captured and tortured, eventually escaping, but she did not betray what she had accomplished.

She was up for a Nobel Prize in 2007 which she did not win, but she won a far more nobler prize.

You can read more about her at this website.

Karin

Originally posted 2007-10-29 08:35:43.

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Once upon a time in a previous lifetime, at least it seems that way, it was so many years ago -- I taught professional makeup. I enjoy the fashion aspects of it; I enjoy tweaking it depending on what is currently in style, limited to my eye shape; I enjoy having makeovers -- and even giving them; and I thought I would begin to share techniques along the way as time allows.

I am an equal opportunity beauty aficionado. I have products across the board, from high end to low end. Some things are worth the money a high end company charges (some colors and skin care,for example); others are not.

Whenever possible, I try to buy with a gwp which gives me more to play with or to pass along as gifts.

And I always find something to buy if I am having a makeover -- or I would choose a different cosmetic brand to have one with. Spending the money for a high end lipstick or gloss or whatever seems easier to justify (whether I have to justify or not) if I've just had a makeover. Sometimes a makeover requires a minimum purchase. I try to avoid those, even though I usually will spend the minimum. And I suppose if a person really hated how they looked, the minimum purchase would be a moot point, unless they charged up front, which some do. I just don't like the constraint of it when it can be done for free. (It's free anyway, you are just buying product.)

When I have a makeover, I usually give the makeup artist free rein. I tell them I am not afraid of makeup; it doesn't have to look natural (think eyes) but I'd like my skin to show through (face); it just has to be in the right placement with the right colors. It's fun to see what they come up with. My eyes usually make or break an artist -- they either know how to do them or they don't. Some are scrubbers. And some find it hard to blend as my skin is so fair. I've been known to tell them to stop blending, because they are hurting me. Here is when a good set of brushes and a light hand is a necessity. And also a heads up on technique.

To a certain extent anything goes. If you like the way you look, you can wear it. There's a wide range between goth or exotic and natural. Don't be afraid to experiment. And do think about getting a makeover, if you never have. Update your colors; mix it up a bit. Be modern. I only dislike a makeup badly done. I think it's fun to see how others are out and about and what they are wearing.

After all, it only lasts a day. What have you got to lose? You can look flawless. It can actually improve your skin. You look more polished. You can enhance your beauty.

And if you really, really know what you like and think it will never change -- and if you know a good technician -- you can get permanent makeup. I've seen some beautiful work, and I've seen the opposite. I think even if I had permanent makeup, I would still apply makeup. I like the variety it offers.

You can be anything you want, starting with natural in the morning and working your way up to exotic. You can tweak your work makeup to go out to dinner (sometimes all it takes is another color of lipstick or a swipe of liner.)

I'll also be talking about products that work and do what they say. There is such a plethora of products now, all claiming the same things and working similarly but different, who knows what to choose. Not even the SAs know which of the lines works better unless they have personally compared.

Stay tuned.

Karin

Originally posted 2009-03-06 02:23:23.

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This book is a delicious romp, with some serious issues handled through the story and the relationships, but in ways that you care about the characters and don't look at them with a jaundiced eye. Most of us have known someone who might act this way, given half a chance. And most of us have felt the brunt of some of this, even if in lesser degree.

Again, I was struck by the cover (which was what made me choose it) -- both the illustration and the clever title with its play on words to the English idiom, "Wolves in sheep's clothing." (It gave me the opportunity to define the idiom to my younger girls.) And because it said chic clothing, I hoped it would be as fashionably interesting as it turns out to be.

Oh my, this story is a lark! Filled with twenty-something abbreviations, it is Mean Girls grown up. I read nearly every word so as not to miss any of the humor or the abbreviations. The authors skewer anybody and everything. They even skewer themselves:

Lell: "My number-one priority is discretion...I don't like to have people who are loose-lipped working close to me [she has security cameras trained on everyone]...I don't gossip about my coworkers, and I expect -- no, no demand the same from them. Besides the fact that we have no friends in common, you don't seem the type to waste time on meretricious persiflage."

Julia (thinking): Meretricious persiflage? What the hell was that? "Of course not. I am like a vault..." And God, what had she told Douglas so far? She'd need to put a filter on that.

Lell: I didn't think so. Because gossip is really just tacky and harmful...In fact, there are two girls that I'm sort of friends with, and they have a book deal to write about twenty-something Park Avenue debutantes. I think it's really shameful and tacky." p 64

It has everything -- a thoroughly likable main character, Julia; love; sex; morality; sexless marriage (and adultery and wished-for adultery); a pedophile married to one of the women; extreme wealth and those who have wealth, but can never keep up; four friends who are variably supportive of each other; gay men (friends with the heroine Julia) who later enter into marriage in Canada; foreign phrases used to separate the knowledgeable from the less knowledgeable...

All this is delivered with a camera's eye, dished up with humor, while we laughingly wince at the character flaws, which are our own, but exaggerated enough to make them palatable.

Julia has naturally what the others need to develop -- style with a capital "S." She works at Pelham's jewelry store, a mere peon in the system, until she is noticed by Lell, the store heiress, when she is asked to deliver a necklace on Lell's wedding day. Julia is handcuffed to the briefcase containing the necklace and escorted by security. While there, she knows intuitively how the bridal attendants can successfully wear the normally staid and old-ladyish Pelham jewelry (which is delivered in a second delivery), by making some deceptively simple changes.

Suddenly Julia becomes the pawn in Lell's and Polly's makeovers. Both see her potential and feel it will reflect well on them if they are her mentor. Lell really has nothing to prove with the snobbery to bring it home, but Polly is playing catch up. Julia finds herself thrust into the world of trust funds (and lack of), loveless marriages, the milieu of high fashion, and more. She loses herself for a bit, but never completely loses her good sense, her kindness, her sense of seeing the good in everyone, even when they treat her crassly.

I rate it a 5. I chuckled out loud more than once, and I look forward to reading their first book on the off chance that it is similar to this one.

BTW, this would make a great movie!

Have you read it? If you like the relationship between the women in Sex and the City or the cattiness of The Devil Wears Prada, this is a book you will thoroughly enjoy.

Karin

If you are looking for interesting jewelry or bridal attendant gifts, look to Inky Productions. You can find more information at her blog. Her MySpace.

Originally posted 2008-07-13 13:45:32.

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When it comes to facial treatment products, I find that I like to at least sample products that friends have led me to. If a friend recommends a product as accomplishing what it is hyped to do, I rely more on their judgment than an ad campaign.

How about you? Have you tried (or bought) something recommended to you by a RL or online friend? Did you find yourself more satisfied with it? (Or trying something you might never have found or tried on your own? There is such a plethora of products now, who can sort through them all?)

There's something about it that makes me happy. Maybe there is even less buyer's remorse or second guessing.

Since I was about at the end of a couple of products, I bought something completely new to me on the strength or recommendations. They are significantly less money than the products I have finished. I'll let you know what I think of them after trying them for a couple of weeks or so.

Karin

Originally posted 2008-05-10 14:04:47.

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I like to watch the Oscars as much for the glam as for the host and the presenters, not to mention the winners. I never wanted to miss any of Billy Crystal's openings.

Ellen DeGeneres is hosting the Oscars this year. It sounds like she is working incredibly hard, double shifting her talk show, and getting ready, writing and re-writing, while keeping a good spirit about it. It's something she's hoped to do since she hosted the 2001 Emmys.

I'm trying to enjoy every step of it: the anticipation, the day of, the night of...It will be interesting to see if this is something that I'll do again. But right now I'm just looking forward to this one.

That's the secret to happiness, according to one book I read: to enjoy all that goes into the final moment of accomplishment. If you are a writer, the book said, but you only enjoy it when your book is published, you will not be happy the rest of the time. But if you enjoy all that goes into writing the book, then you will be happy. I'm not sure I totally agree, because if you hope to be published and that doesn't happen, then what.

Others say her warm approach, her positive attitude, her wit, humor and unpredictability and that she makes you feel good are parts of her appeal.

She hopes for some last minute surprises on Oscar night, like when Jack Palance did one-armed push-ups or when there was the streaker.

Chris Rock evidently told her last week that the job is 'scary as hell.' I betcha. About 40 million watch it in the US, not to mention other countries. As she says, not too many people could do it.

She hopes to spread a happy vibe. I don't know about you, but I can always use more happiness.
Karin

Originally posted 2007-02-21 09:53:51.

No related posts.

If you are lucky enough to have a Soho kiosk near you, then you have seen some of the lovely hair accessories that they have. They are not inexpensive. But they are very elegant, though they can be worn with jeans.

You can search to see if there is a location near you. I also have a business card they gave me that lists their locations.

The good thing is that they will show you how to use them and let you try every color or color combination or style until you find what works for you.

They also have hair extensions that really are amazingly good matches for people's hair. I've seen them sell one or two every time I'm at their kiosk. (I have a couple that I'm not wearing that are not from them, so I haven't yet decided to buy one. And my hair is plenty long on it's own. The question is whether I want a fast way to put it up. And then, of course, if I would ever do it. Shades of the 70s revisited, but updated. I wore plenty of them then.)

I first saw them in Las Vegas, but since have seen them in a couple of other malls.

Don't be put off by the styles necessarily showing on their website. Some are over the top.

Many are beautiful in clear rhinestone.

The stick styles are pretty sprinkled in the hair along the sides. They are even nice when used in multiple colors, either in rows of separate colors or alternating. On blond hair, I liked amber or clear. The amber is more subtle.

You can see other ways to use them at the website. Using the half rounds with little stars or flowers is very nice too.

One style I bought in LV was difficult to get out of my hair because it snapped so tightly. They made an exchange for ones of the same style that opened more easily. Using these (they are crystal circles that snap together) makes it look like my hair is braided without braiding. I haven't tried the looser ones yet. The tight ones necessitated by daughter helping me remove them so as not to break my hair. The above styles do not do that. But I thought their service was excellent!

Karin

Originally posted 2007-10-27 11:34:42.

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