#BeautyTipTuesday: #DabitDontDragit

source: polished.tv

Taking care of our lips may be one of the simplest things in our beauty routines. Applying lip products is habitual for most of us, whether it's in the form of a balm, stain, tint, lipstick or gloss. And it's so quick and easy to do, that it's seldom inconvenient. I do this as I'm locking the door, while I'm putting on my jacket, or sitting in the car waiting for the gate to open/close. Sometimes, I even apply it as I'm walking into wherever I need to be.

Although applying lip products has become second-nature to most, we're all lip-care sinners. The application of lipstick is so glamourous in ads, movies and music videos. I especially love the lipstick slow-mo. It's so seductive and beautiful. Except the part where SHE'S DOING IT WRONG! Okay, that's a tad dramatic.

#DabitDontDragit

Our lips are delicate and we need a little restraint. We should be patting and dabbing on our lip products, instead of dragging lip products carelessly across our beautiful faces. The stratum corneum that covers the lips is super thin, we have no sebaceous glands to lubricate our lips naturally, and water loss on the lips is a whopping 3-10 times higher than the rest of the body The natural colour of your lips is a result of the underlying blood-vessels, and (again) the super thin skin covering it, allowing the red and pink (and blue, in winter) tones to shine through. I think that's pretty cool, but I digress. We need to treat the lips with the same gentle care as we do our eye areas. You don't need much pressure applying good lip products. By dabbing instead of dragging, there's less "stress" and stretching on the very thin skin covering on your lips, and it's less likely to be chapped as a direct result of your application method. I've done this, it ain't cool. And neither was that lipstick.

YES, you can get the same, intense colour without dragging your lippies. Just keep dabbing, and use a lip brush. I do this with red lipstick. I dab it until it's as intense as I like it, and then I dab my lip brush in the same colour and fill the bits and pieces closest to my lip line. I also define the vermillion border with a lip brush or soft lip pencil and VOILA! Same-same. And obvs you can use your lipgloss applicator in the same way. I love the soft brush of Bourjois's Rose Exclusif Lipgloss and the sponge-tip applicator of Essence's XXXL Nudes lipgloss.

So dab-dab-dab, pat-pat-pat, dab-dab-dab. And dab some more.

#DabitDontDragit

Have you mastered applying lip products without dragging? Any tips and tricks?

Miss B

#BeautyTipTuesday Post-wax lotion - Home care

If you're a regular reader, you'll know that I'm crazy in love with waxing. I did the waxing series almost two years ago and have updated it as I've learnt new things via research and experience. They're the most popular posts on my blog (see right). Thanks, pervs.

One thing I battle with is post-wax home care. There's only so much I can advise my clients, and there's always a chance they're not going to follow my advice. They may have a hot shower and use a heavily fragranced body lotion as soon as they get home, because of habit, routine and lack of suitable products.

It's best to use a fragrance-free, colourant-free, irritant-free, alcohol-free, soothing lotion on the waxed area. And it's hard to find such products. Trust me, I sat on the floor in clicks reading labels, in search of the perfect body lotion and best sunscreen. I nearly laid down in the middle of the parking lot afterwards, it was so depressing to leave with nothing. An after-wax lotion was also one of the last things I decided on, when starting The Wax Room. I focus on skin care when waxing, and it was hard to find a fragrance-free, alcohol-free post-wax lotion. I don't use a pre-wax spray or lotion for this reason: it all contains alcohol. And if no alcohol is present, it contains other skin-irritants like witch hazel, and then says it's "ultra-calming." *bangs head on keyboard* 

You could buy post-wax lotion. Some suppliers are open to the public (very few), but you could simply ask your therapist about options, or ask her to order the one s/he uses on you, if you've never had a negative reaction to it. You could also use an after-sun product. Whether it be a lotion, milk or gel, it's probably better than that perfumed body lotion you have. You know, the one that came in a set with your fragrance. The MATCHING one. Do people still do this kind of layering of perfume? Seriously, I'm curious. Many after-sun's are great in that they have a light texture and are packed with soothing and moisturizing ingredients.  Avoid any after-sun products that are heavily fragranced, though. My favourite anti-irritant, soothing ingredients are aloe vera, allantoin and chamomile. Many health, natural and/or homeopathic stores have aloe vera gel and chamomile creams that could be perfect. Again, be mindful of the ingredients and fragrance components. All fragrance is bad for skin. Even natural fragrance.

What products do you use after waxing? Have you ever been advised to use something specific?


  Miss B

'Sup homies

Hey hey hey

It's been a while...

I've been working on so many things at once, and every time I sat down with the intention to write here, I was distracted by other pressing issues. Prioritizing is hard work sometimes, yo.

So much for #BeautyTipTuesday...

Let's pick it up from next week. I've got so many "drafts" with tips to share, and I have doubts about scheduling, but will give that another chance. And check my timezone settings this time. *facepalm* Adoy.

As always, your comments, questions and suggestions are welcome. Hit me up.

Miss B

Dark Circles: Think about it...

"Hundreds of eye creams are being sold, all making claims they get rid of dark circles among other problems around the eye area, and yet we have never received feedback from anyone saying their dark circles went away from the products they were using. Even the cosmetics companies don’t believe their own claims about the eye creams they sell or they wouldn’t launch new ones year after year after year. If the last ones worked as claimed, what are the new ones for?" - Paula Begoun. 

Makes sense, right?

Miss B