Wanting a Change

Hi C.,

I'm always a big fan of the make-under (like Carmindy does on What Not to Wear). Start with moisturized skin, and then use either a very light liquid foundation or a mineral powder foundation to even out your skin tone (and perhaps a light concealer under the eyes if you feel like they need freshening).

A light shimmery eye shadow (something flesh colored perhaps with a little sheen - Mary Kay has a very nice one called Spun Silk), mascara (I'm a fan of basic black on both lower and upper lashes), a natural looking cheek color (it will look very bright in the palette but a bright pink or apricot in the palette looks the most natural on), and a lip gloss with a pop of color (again, don't be afraid of bright because it will go on sheer) will give you a polished, fresh sexy look without looking like you've been playing in your mother's makeup.

Warmly,
S. Mesh
Development Director
Cultural Care Au Pair - www.culturalcare.com
____@____.com

C.,
You can go to a department store makeup counter and they will do a free makeover on you. There are some other places that do this as well. Do you get the calender that has all the coupons on it? There was a coupon in there for one at a salon or maybe just a place that sells mineral makeup. I don't wear a lot of makeup, but I do think it's important to wear good makeup. Get a good mineral foundation. It's a powder that is very light on your face, you don't feel like your wearing makeup at all, and it is a natural sunscreen. I also learned a good tip today, if you push all the blood in your hand to your fingertips, you can use that color as a guide for blush and lip gloss. if your wearing lip glass, make sure you wear a sunblock underneath it, because it's shiny it attracts the sun. If you don't want to go somewhere for a makeover, you can check youtube for makeup tips. Just search for "how to apply eyeshadow" or whatever you want. There are also a lot of hair tips there too.
this is all kind of random, but I hope this helps.

C., good for you for wanting to look nice for your husband. I think we SAHMs sometimes don't think that is important anymore. Quick funny story before I give you my tips...the other day I was doing a quick touch up on my hair and make-up before my husband was to be home, and my little 4 yr old daughter was wanting me to grab an Army guy to from the toy cabinet that she couldn't reach. I told her I would get it in a minute. Well, 4 yr olds are not real patient, and she came into the bathroom and said I was taking too long. I said, "It will be just a minute, I just like to look a little pretty for Daddy when he gets home." My daughter looked at me and said, "Well, you don't even look good." I love the things that come out of my kids' mouths. Ok, I am a jeans and cute top kind of girl, or even if I'm in fleece pants and a cute top(I could live in PJ's) I still like to have my hair and make-up done. For make-up I like to use Physicians Formula mineral make-up. You can get it at Wal-Mart for around $8. I don't like to spend a lot on make-up, and this one feels really light and soft on my face. It also makes my face look smooth. I use just a little blush not too pink and not too brown just on the "apples" of my cheeks, and blend back a little. For eyes, I use a brush on eyebrow powder by Maybelline. It just enhances my eyebrow color without making them look fake. It looks like an eyeshadow but comes with an eyebrow brush. For eyelashes, I use Cover Girl Super Thick Lash in Black. Then I use a brown eye pencil just above my top lashes and blend it all in so it doesn't look like I've drawn a line on my eyelid. I also do a soft line under my bottom lashes and blend it smooth. That just makes the eyes pop. Then I use a shimmery light brown eye shadow on the rest of my eyelids except for the very top under my eyebrows. For that part I use a soft white eyeshadow and blend in. The last thing I use for my face is Sally Hansen Lip Inflation gloss. It comes in clear or a sheer blush and you can find it where the Sally Hansen nail clippers and products are at Wal-Mart. This all takes me about 5 minutes to do. Since you are not one for wearing make-up a lot, you might start light on the eyes so not to freak your husband out. I didn't start doing the eye liner pencil until the weather started getting colder. I found that in the Summer it heats up and smears a little. Experiment and have fun with it. I'm sure your husband will appreciate the effort you put into looking good for him.

I love my mineral makeup! In two seconds I look ten years younger. I usually do foundation, a bit of blush, eye liner, and eyebrows. Mascara if it's something fancy. It takes me 3-5 minutes a day. I do find with the mineral makeup I have to do my moisturizer earlier to let it dry a bit or the mineral makeup clumps up. I love the Clinique Extreme Moisturizer. I don't remember the exact name. Have fun! I know my husband loves it when I'm all done up for him when he gets home.

In my younger years I worked as a make-up artist. There is an incredible line of skincare and cosmetics by clothing designer, Nicole Miller. It is all non-toxic, and does wonders for the condition of your skin. There are so many fillers that are put into make-up that acutally do more harm than good. Things like phenylmercuric acetate (mercury), lead, coal tar, etc. Not worth wearing cosmetics if you are going to harm yourself and the environment. If you want to enhance your natural beauty, you have to start with a good skin care regimen. Next, I would invest in a couple of cosmetics to enhance what you already have. My biggest advice is to learn the 5 minute face. If you can make make-up application quick and easy, you are more likely to use it. Then, learn a couple of tricks (i.e. smokey eye) to vamp it up when you are going out with your husband. If you would like more info, please visit www.livetotalwellness.com/wyn.