OLD AGE IS NOT FOR SISSIES

NOTHING IN LIFE IS TO BE FEARED

Why a Concealer No Longer Works for Me

by Filed Under: Beauty

Finding a good concealer is getting more difficult. At least for us baby boomers.

This is an understatement, but this aging thing is certainly a problem. What I really mean is that I constantly reinvent the wheel lately. Life is getting more and more complex.

Take my under eye circles for example. A few years ago I wrote a post about the new concealer I found. You can read it here. I waxed on eloquently about its attributes, not realizing that in less than five years my complexion would change once again. My concealer no longer works, except for the broken capillaries on my leg.

What’s Happening to My Skin

In addition to the wrinkles and sagging skin, it seems I use fewer cosmetics. I’m learning that wearing less looks better. Many of the formulas were not made for older skin anyway.

They tell me that the outer layer of my skin is thinning, even though I still have the same number of skin cells. All the while, my pigment cells are decreasing, so my skin gets paler and more translucent.

This is why I now wear a sunless tan on most days. Pale skin looks pasty to me and every pound I gain looks like I gained five. I perfectly understand why our president and most politicians wear sunless tans.

For more info on how your coloring changes, the following blog post has a great explanation. You can read it here.

Then there are the blood vessels that feed my skin and which get more fragile while the connective tissues decrease. This is getting ugly.

They also tell me that the oil glands in my face produce less oil, and that’s why my face is drier. So I apply hyaluronic acid to my face daily. It sucks in the moisture my skin needs, but I wonder how long it will work, too. You can read about my skincare routine here.

In addition, I apply retinol. Retinol reminds skin cells to behave as they did when I was younger and healthier, It minimizes wrinkles, thickens skin, controls acne, strengthens blood vessels (so there’s less breakage and discoloration), and fades sun spots. Lately, I noticed that it takes more to do the same job.

So all of this seems to no longer work as well. Lately, my concealer doesn’t work at all, and my skin gets dry and itchy far too easily. It could be my hormones, but they are stable because my doctor checks them at least once a year. I am on bio-identical hormones.

Why I No Longer Wear Concealer

While my concealer should be the answer to erasing under eye circles and combating the look of fatigue; if used incorrectly, it also makes me look older. Too much makeup around the eye area highlights wrinkles and lines.

Careful about its application, I used my finger to melt the concealer into my skin. If I piled it on without blending it in, it settled into my fine lines and wrinkles. I looked for lighter and lighter weighted textures until I realized in the end that nothing worked well any longer. It seemed to just sit on the surface. Instead of making me look younger, it only made me look older.

A few years ago I ran across a makeup artist named Cindy Joseph. She now has her own makeup line.

She said, “Allow the character in your face to be your beauty. Adding texture to texture just makes more texture. So if you want to get rid of wrinkles, putting makeup on them is just going to make them more so. A young face is more like a blank canvas so you can paint colors and textures and all that stuff. But when you get older and you have character and wrinkles and age spots and all that stuff going on, just let it be there. You know, you’re not going to trick anybody. You’re not going to fool anybody.”

I don’t have to give up my foundation yet, but I guess that day will come too. In the meantime, I just keep adjusting my makeup routine to fit my situation.

You can read about more tips from Cindy Joseph here. The video at the end of the post really convinced me.

So what concealer do I use now? I took Cindy Joseph’s advice and I don’t wear concealer at all. I just use my foundation to cover my circles though it doesn’t do the job as well as concealers used to do. I make sure, though, that a primer is mixed with my foundation. It helps with the application.

How to go Gray in 3 Steps!

by Filed Under: Beauty

I was thinking of letting my hair go gray, but it was a big step.

I grew up in a small southern US town where the ladies dressed to the nines for just about everything–church, bridge, mullet roasts, garden circles, campaign rallies, and the Friday night football games. Even the older ladies did–especially the older ladies.

 

The Blue Haired Ladies

I distinctly remember the blue-haired ladies. They were always so tidy and meticulous with every hair in place. Several of the elderly ladies used a rinse that made their hair have a bluish-gray tint. We called them the ‘blue haired ladies”. 

A 1960s Magazine Ad

Mother said that some women’s gray hair yellowed more than others, and that they used this rinse to make their gray prettier. Of course, with graying comes the dimming of eyesight, too. So sometimes some of the ladies used too much of the rinse, thus the blue tint. As a child I thought it was cool.

1960s Magazine Ad for Yellow Tinged Gray

I’ve threatened for years to be a ‘blue hair’, when I grow old. If all these young girls can have pink, purple and green hair, then why can’t we older ladies have blue hair?

My Mother at 68 and Grandmother who was in her 90s

Time to Go Gray?

Well, here I am today with a head full of gray hair. Or at least it appeared so at the roots. I wasn’t sure because I colored my hair consistently. I’ve colored it since some of the it started coming in nearly twenty years ago.

I thought, though, that it might be time to embrace my gray hair; but I was not exactly sure how much I really had up there.

Frankly, this is a new phenomena for me. Until just lately, I never even considered letting myself go gray. I’m a vain woman. I think I’m just curious more than anything. Several of my girlfriends did it, and I liked it. They looked great.

Three Steps to Going Gray

So last fall, I stopped coloring my hair, which was step one. I watched the gray roots grow each time between washings. It was like one big experiment.

Next, step two was to spray my gray away. To keep it looking good, though, I sprayed the roots using a product called “Grey Away”. It worked like a charm and hid my roots even after my roots got more than two inches long.


It washes out completely the next washing. There are many other sprays and other secret weapons on the market, but I found this one right away and kept using it.

I had over two inches of uncolored grey that I covered with this spray after every shampoo. This is why I tell my husband that we older ladies know camouflage. He calls it fraud. I found it worked better after my blow dry and after I applied my hair spray.

Here’s a before photo and an after using the spray. It covered very well.

The third step was a good haircut, shorter than I had in a quite while. I wanted to cut off as much of the colored hair as possible. I needed hair to frame my face, so it is cut longer on the top with bangs. The haircut was by Angela at Hair on Earth in Tallahassee. She cut it just like I wanted.

I love styling it myself, but I am still not totally gray. I may want to go back to spraying it with “Gray Away” to let more gray grow in.

And I can always just go back to coloring it. We women today have so many options.

One thing I know for sure, though, my hair won’t allow me to be a ‘blue hair’. Not yet, anyway. It’s still a little too early. That will take a little while longer.

 

Are you thinking about going gray?  If you already have, please share how you did it?

How Restylane® Lyft, Restylane® Silk and My Husband’s Failing Eyesight May Give Me A More Youthful Look

by Filed Under: Beauty

This post is sponsored by Restylane® Lyft and Restylane® Silk. However, the thoughts and opinions are my own.

 

I’ve noticed that when I’m not smiling, I look a little depressed and somewhat sad. The reason is that the corners of my mouth turn down ever so slightly. What used to be a pleasant look on my face is no more. I look stern much of the time, unless I try to maintain a smidgen of a smile on my lips. I’m afraid I won’t be able to do this much longer, as it is getting worse.

My Youthful Daughter Tracy in the foreground and my unsmiling self in the background.

My Youthful Daughter Tracy in the foreground and my unsmiling self in the background.

 

So what’s next? Will I begin to appear angry instead of just a little sad? I don’t wish to look like Cruella de Vil. It might frighten the grandchildren, especially the toddlers.

I’ve also noticed that the apples of my cheeks have lost volume. My face is beginning to look gaunt.  In the picture above, look how full Tracy’s cheeks are, as compared to mine.

Everything seems to be sliding toward my mouth which may be why my mouth is turning down. Drat that pesky thing called gravity which is good for keeping us grounded, but which our muscles control less and less as we age.

So enter an old friend called Restylane® which has a new treatment that I really want to try soon. It is called Restylane® Lyft. You can read more about it here.

 

Lyft Brochure1

I’m hoping it can add some volume to my cheeks. Restylane® Lyft is the first and only FDA approved filler for cheek augmentation and the correction of moderate to severe smile lines (nasolabial folds).

Before & After Using Restylane® Lyft

 

I guess that is why I need to talk to a specialist before I decide. A good specialist can tell me which area(s) needs to be lifted, filled, relaxed and/or smoothed, because what I don’t want is anything that changes my looks overall. I still want to look like me.

Last Wednesday evening I was invited to a “What’s Her Secret?” event in Atlanta at Dermatology Consultants. You can find them here. They are located on Peachtree Road in a beautiful state-of-the-art facility, where Dr. Anna Paré gave a demonstration on the use of both Restylane® Silk and Restylane® Lyft.

 

Lyft Facility

Dermatology Consultants Facility on Peachtree Road in Buckhead

 

 

 

A demonstration of Restylane Lyft

A demonstration of Restylane® Lyft

 

As many of you know, I have used fillers in the nasolabial folds of my face for years–you know those folds that run from your nose down to your mouth. The fillers really helped with the puddling of skin at my jowl line and helped my face look less severe.

So as you can tell I’ve had good experiences with Restylane®.

They have another product called Restylane® Silk that I may also try. It adds back the fullness that we lose as our lips age. My upper lip especially has been thinning. Silk may be in my future, too. You can read more about it here.

 

 

Restylane® Silk is the first and only FDA-approved product specifically designed for lip enhancement and the smoothing of wrinkles around the mouth in patients 21 years of age and older. I definitely have those little parallel lines where my lipstick bleeds unless I line them with a clear lip pencil.

Finally, Galderma, the company that makes these Restylane® products has an amazing opportunity for you to earn extra benefits when using their treatments. The ASPIRE Galderma Rewards program, which you can find here, gives each new member a $20 Treatment Certificate to be applied toward his or her next treatment.

Oh, the things we’ll do to maintain our youth.

My husband Chuck complains that I commit fraud every day with my makeup and treatments, but then again he also likes to still refer to me as his 61-year old “hot wife”. Thanks to Restylane® and his failing eye sight, I still may have it!

 

Important Safety Information

Indications: The Restylane family of products includes Restylane®, Restylane-L®, Restylane® Silk, Restylane® Lyft with Lidocaine, and Perlane®. Restylane, Restylane-L, Restylane Lyft with Lidocaine, and Perlane are indicated for the correction of moderate to severe facial wrinkles and folds, such as nasolabial folds. Restylane and Restylane-L are indicated for mid-to-deep dermal implantation. Perlane and Restylane Lyft with Lidocaine are indicated for implantation into the deep dermis to superficial subcutis. Restylane Silk is indicated for submucosal implantation for lip augmentation and dermal implantation for correction of perioral rhytids in patients over the age of 21. Restylane Lyft with Lidocaine is also indicated for cheek augmentation and for the correction of age-related midface contour deficiencies in patients over the age of 21. Restylane and Restylane-L are also indicated for submucosal implantation for lip augmentation in patients over the age of 21.

Products in the Restylane family contain traces of gram-positive bacterial protein and are contraindicated for patients with allergies to such material or in patients with severe allergies that have required in-hospital treatment. These products should not be used by patients with bleeding disorders or by pregnant or breastfeeding women. Restylane and Restylane-L for lip enhancement and Restylane Silk should not be used by people under 22 years. Restylane-L, Restylane Silk and Restylane Lyft with Lidocaine should not be used by anyone with a known allergy to lidocaine. Products should not be injected anywhere except the dermis, superficial subcutis (Perlane and Restylane Lyft with Lidocaine only), or lip submucosa (Restylane, Restylane-L, and Restylane Silk only).

Use of products in the Restylane family at the site of skin sores, pimples, rashes, hives, cysts, or infection should be postponed until healing is complete. The most commonly observed side effects are swelling, redness, pain, bruising, headache, tenderness, and itching at the injection site. These are typically mild in severity and typically resolve in less than 7 days. Serious but rare side effects include delayed onset infections, recurrence of herpetic eruptions, and superficial necrosis at the injection site. Do not implant into blood vessels. Use with caution in patients recently treated with anticoagulant or platelet inhibitors to avoid bleeding and bruising.

The Restylane family of products is available only through a licensed practitioner. Complete Instructions for Use for Restylane, Restylane-L, Restylane Silk, and Perlane are available at www. RestylaneUSA.com. Complete Instructions for Use for Restylane® Lyft with Lidocaine is available at www.RestylaneLyft.com.

The Little Bird Said…Cheap Cheap Cheap….Let’s Talk About Moisturizers

by Filed Under: Beauty

Sometimes I like to just wear my moisturizer for the day. If I don’t plan to leave the house, I’ll apply moisturizer and give my face a needed break from the rest of my makeup routine, which includes another higher SPF creme.

In the past I used Estee Lauder’s Daywear Anti-oxidant Creme SPF15, but I have to admit that I really didn’t like paying $50 for 1.7 oz. I really do like its consistency, and I really do believe wearing an anti-oxidant with sunscreen is very important for my skin.

Moisturizer1

Last winter, though, I made a very good discovery when I ran out of my Daywear and had to make do with a drugstore brand. I found Lumene’s Bright Now Vitamin C Cream SPF15. It, too, is a daily moisturizer with built-in antioxidants and UV protection.

Moisturizer2

For my winter skin, I liked it even better than Daywear. It had a creamier consistency. My skin is drier in the winter, but best of all I bought it for less than $20. Now that is a savings, especially since it is 1.7 oz just like Daywear.

Summers in Florida are quite humid, so I’m back using my Estee Lauder Daywear; but this winter I will go use Lumene Bright Now Cream, again. Both formulas promise to protect against signs of aging and to safeguard my skin, but Lumene’s Bright Now keeps my face from drying out longer and I save $30.

I don’t know about you guys, but that’s a good deal! And all of you know how cheap I am.

I’m always looking for a good bargain. Any of you found one lately? If so, please share!

The Little Bird said, “Cheap, Cheap, Cheap, Cheap!”. Let’s talk about hair color!

by Filed Under: Beauty

I don’t need highlights in my hair. Just look at the cowlick on the left side of my head. It obviously is totally gray now, because with the hair color I currently use, the highlights there are beautiful blonde or light brown.

So what am I doing? I use a semi-permanent hair color called “Natural Instincts”, which is a 10-minute formula. I use a light cool brown. If I want red highlights, I use golden brown.

Natural Instincts

With my dark colored hair, voila! I get automatic highlights where the gray was.

I’ve been doing this for about two years now, and it has saved me a boat-load of cash.

Wrinkled Was Not What I Wanted To Be When I Grew Up!

by Filed Under: Beauty

Actually, I once saw that on a bumper sticker; and boy is it true. Sadly, though, it is what it is.

I have these deep nasolabial folds that run from my nose down to each side of my mouth. Some people call them laugh lines, but I’m not laughing. The one on the left side got so big that my left dimple disappeared into it.

Finally, I went searching for a fix; and I found myself once again at my plastic surgeon’s. He suggested soft tissue filler injections to plump the deep lines beneath the folds. These are injectable compounds used to plump and camouflage the line and make the overlying fold less obvious. They are biodegradable, so they need to be repeated at six months to a year intervals.

There are several to choose from, but I usually use whichever one is cheaper. I’ve used both Restylane and Juvederm, and they do a good job of making the folds much less pronounced. They also keep my skin from puddling down into my jowls.

No, I didn’t get my dimple back, but I like the result just the same. I’m just not sure I’ll keep getting the fillers after I retire.

Before-and-After-Juvederm

Before & After Juvederm Photo

Yeats Described My Eyes to a Tee

by Filed Under: Beauty

WHEN YOU ARE OLD
by William Butler Yeats

When you are old and grey and full of sleep,
And nodding by the fire, take down this book,
And slowly read, and dream of the soft look
Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;

Well Yeats was right, because by my mid fifties my eyes no longer had their soft look but instead bore shadows deep.

At the age of fifty one’s skin around the eyes begins to change–and not for the better.  There the skin thins and collagen is lost.  There’s puffiness, swelling, dark circles under the eyes, wrinkles, and crow’s feet.

What’s a girl to do?

Well, I can tell you what I did. I began looking for a plastic surgeon.

First, I had tried everything else. I applied all kinds of creams, serums, concealers, you name it. I wasted a lot of money with no success, and I finally gave up. 

My mother’s bags under her eyes were pronounced and very, very aging even in middle age. I was only about 53, and I did not want to look like that yet. So I went to see a plastic surgeon.

He corrected this with something called blepharoplasty and a brow lift.  Blepharoplasty is a procedure used to correct drooping upper eyelids and eliminate puffiness of the lower eyelids. The technique brightens the eyes leaving a more youthful and rested appearance.

It opened up my eyes, and for at least two years after the surgery I did not even need to wear concealer.  What a wonderful thing! 

Now it is over six years later, and I still do not have bags under my eyes.  I have been very happy with this procedure. I do apply concealer and makeup under my eyes now, but that seems to be all I really need.

At the same time as the blepharoplasty was done, he also did a brow lift.  A forehead lift /brow lift is a cosmetic procedure that restores an aging or drooping eyebrow to a more youthful position, giving the area above your eyes a softer and more refreshed look. 

Six years later, my forehead is still smooth; and I still do not have those two parallel creases between my eyes, though they are beginning to appear when I worry too much for too long a period.  I don’t need botox anywhere on my forehead. This part of the surgery was also a huge success for me.

I do use botox, though.  My upper lip is very thin now, and they apply a little to the two highest peaks of my upper lip.  Not sure how this works, but it gives my upper lip a little fuller look.  It is as if my lip was stung by a bee (only so slightly), and it swelled just a little.  Actually, I’m sure it must relax my lip in some way so that it appears fuller.  All I know is it works.

I also use a little botox in my crow’s feet.  I try to get in about once every three months, but I don’t get there exactly every three months. I’ll let it slide sometimes up to six months, since I really don’t mind the crinkles at the corners of my eyes. I always thought they gave older people character; and let’s face it, I am getting old.

So that is what I’ve had done to my eyes and lips, and I’m very happy with the results even as I enter my sixties.

It Smells Like a Little Bit of Nostalgia

by Filed Under: Beauty

The other day I noticed that my facial skin looked very thin.  I even thought I could see the forehead section of my skull.  Oh no, no, no!  What in the world?

And then it hit me.  I’ve been using Retin-A, scrubbing cleansers, and all kinds of abrasive creams on my face.  I’ve had microdermabrasion.  Maybe, my face needs a break.  Here’s the problem.  Even my cleanser might be over doing it. 

After removing my eye makeup at night, I use the Total Facial Cleanser by the Ageless Collection at I-Image Skincare.  With wet hands I apply about a dime’s worth and message it into my face, neck and decolletage for one minute.  Then I remove it with a damp baby’s wash cloth.  I think the secret to this cleanser is the ingredient, glycolic acid. (By the way in the beginning I couldn’t leave it on for an entire minute, it burned.  I had to work up to a minute.)  So you see, my basic cleanser was part of the problem.  I use it three out of every four days. 

So what to do?  About a month ago, I went looking for a gentler cleansing cream for my face.  Oh my gosh!  There are so many from which to choose.  And the cost! 

Finally, I went with a tried and true old favorite.  I bought a large jar of Noxzema for about $4.50.  I haven’t used this since I was a very young woman.  I love the way it feels on my sixty-year old skin. 

Image

My first reaction was the smell.  It was nostalgic.  It reminded me of being 16 and dressing for a date with my boyfriend; but here is the best part, it deep cleans by removing all my makeup and it leaves my skin soft and smooth.  I love it, and I noticed recently that my skin doesn’t look so thin.

Image

I went online and found out that Noxzema has been around since 1914.  I remember my grandmother used it. There goes my nostalgic emotions, again.

I am so happy I found it.  I’ll go back to my Ageless Total Facial Cleanser when the time is right, but I’ll keep my Noxzema for when it is needed.  It is good to get an old friend back.  It is the best bargain in the skincare aisle!

 

 

 

 

The Difference Between BB Creams & CC Creams

by Filed Under: Beauty

I use a CC Cream from time to time and I have tried several BB Creams; but I have to admit that BB Creams and CC Creams are beginning to confuse me, especially when you compare them to those from eastern countries.

Cos34m_1_pack-shot

Here is a good link to the blog “Musings of a Muse”. She explains it well.

What’s the Difference Between BB Creams and CC Creams?

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