Want to look and feel your best for your husband's office party?  The best thing parents can do for their children is to love each other, and one way to show that you still care is to take the same personal hygiene measures that you did when you were dating.  Beauty * Health

Beauty Tips

Mascara: When you buy new mascara, use the old mascara wand to separate your eyelashes.  Wash it thoroughly first with soap and warm water, then let it dry overnight.  It's better than any brush you can buy.  Wash it once a week. 

Eye Liner: Use a shadow pencil instead of an eye-liner stick and blend it with a rubber wedge, fingertip, or Q-tip.  It gives a softer and more subtle look than eye pencils.

Brows: Use mascara for blonde eyebrows and brush off excess with the same wand you use to separate your eyelashes.  Use a shadow pencil for touch-up.

Skin: Mary Kay has a great anti-wrinkle eye cream that you can use day or night that diminishes wrinkles for about $26 a tube--it lasts for six months and longer.  Retin-A is great for repairing damaged skin, diminishing scarring, or blending discoloration.  It requires a prescription but most dermatologists will prescribe it if you need it and ask for it. Do you have red blotches on your cheeks or a red nose?  It can be treated with Metrogel--or Metrocream for dry skin.  It takes a few months but when the red fades you'll feel years younger. Many doctors are now using Metrogel to treat adult acne. Micro derm-abrasion is a good option for deep scarring.  It's what Geraldo Rivera used to get rid of his acne scars.

Puffiness: Do your eyes get puffy from allergies, migraines, or water retention?  Preparation H Gel (we're not kidding) works great.  Apply around eyes, not in them, lay down for 15 minutes, then wash off and apply makeup.  It is safe for topical use.

Hair: Try "Thicker Fuller Hair" Shampoo and Conditioner--the green bottle available at most drug stores.  It really does make your  hair thicker and fuller and works for men or women. Use it on the morning of your event.

Salon Conditioning at home, with things you have around the house: Mix 1 cup vinegar and 2 cups water.  Shampoo your hair twice and towel-dry.  Add 1/2 tsp baking soda to the vinegar and water.  As it foams pour it over your hair and comb it through.  Let it sit 5 minutes and then rinse well, add conditioner, and rinse again.  Wrap hot towel around your hair and leave for 10 to 30 minutes.  The fizzing reaction of the baking soda and vinegar removes residue from your hair left by shampoos, conditioners, hair coloring, hair spray, dirt, oil, etc. and leaves your hair soft and shiny.  --This tip is from Christina Martin, a beautician for 30 years.

Non-surgical face lift: Want to look great at  your husband's office Christmas Party?  Acupuncture gives you a great face lift and gets rid of facial puffiness in 15 minutes for way less than any surgery.  ($30 to $50 per treatment.)  Plan it early in the day of the party, or the day before.

Permanent Make-Up: Is it right for you? It was right for us.  It takes about two hours to apply and costs from $150 to $300 for both eyes.  We saved up the money by collecting loose change for a year and using coupons.  Lips and eyebrows cost extra and should be done in an additional session.  Make sure you get references from your beautician, or have her show you photos of satisfied customers.  It can last for 6 months to 2 yearS.  A good make-up artist can make you look fabulous wet or dry, morning or night. This is great for camping trips, for new Moms who don't have time for makeup, or just because you want to feel more confident.  Tips:

• Make sure you schedule it in advance of any planned activities or holidays because it takes three to five days for you to look your best. 
• It looks darker at first but then fades to a more natural shade. 
• There can be some puffiness for a 3 to 5 days but it will subside.
• Have your artist use colors that you've tried in non-permanent makeup and that you know will look good.
• Experiment before your appointment so you will know whether you want thick or thin eye-liner or eye-brows.

Health Tips

Anti-Aging Vitamins--Feel Better for $11/month: Do they work?  You bet! 500 mg of Acetyl-L-Carnitine and 200 mg of Alpha Lipoic Acid daily will give you more energy, help wrinkles fade, and take two to five years off your age according to studies done at UCLA.  We tried it and it works.  You can get them combined in one tablet at GNC Health Food stores. ($22.00 for 60 tablets)  It's a good idea to take a multi-vitamin along with it to make sure the rest of your body can keep up with your new energy level.  Only drawback: If you stop taking them you'll lose some of the benefits.  Other anti-aging supplements: Vitamin C, E, CoEnzyme Q10, and Lecithin.

Irritability: L-Tyrosine--a vitamine that helps  your mood and your "tude."  You need about 600 mg. daily, which you can usually get in one tablet.  St. John's Wart (an herb) also helps.  You need 900 mg. daily of this.

Weight Loss: Hoodia.  Yes--Hoodia.  It's a plant that grows in Africa and the tribes who live around it and eat it have no over-weight people.  Granted, Africa doesn't have a lot or over-weight people, but studies show that this plant really works.  It gives you more energy.  A proper diet and exercise are required for best results.  Available at Health Food Stores and even at Costco.  Another sure-fire tip: Eliminate bread, cakes, donuts, and cookies from your diet, or cut way way back on them.  Sugar and flour can upset your hormone balance and cause fat and water retention.  Substitute with yogurt, apple slices, grapes and cottage cheese, cheese sticks, carrot sticks, raisins, nuts, trail mix, rice, sweet potatoes, and potatoes.  If you start to crave flour eat stick pretzels, because it's hard to eat a lot of them.  Always feel hungry?  Try appetite-reducing herb teas available at health food stores.

Forgefulness, Ditziness, and Air-headedness (yes, we're experts on this): Ginko Biloba and Gotu Kola are two herbs that work very well.  They increase circulation in your brain and in other parts.  They tend to increase libido too so be wary if you don't need an increase in that area.  Phosphatidylserine Complex (600 mg) also works well, as do Huperzine (50 mg), an enzyme, and Lecithin (400 mg).  "Mental Clarity" by New Chapter Organics is another good one.  All of these are available at your health food store.  There are claims that all of these can also slow down Alzheimers.

Hormones: Feeling tired and irritable?  Retaining Water? Moody? Can't lose weight?  These could be signs of hormone imbalance.  Many women have too much estrogen which can cause the symptoms above.  Natural progesterone fights excess estrogen with no side effects, but make sure you buy a brand that has wild yam, the only true natural progesterone.  (From the book "What Your Doctor Doesn't Tell You About Menopause")  Some women need more than one type of hormone for proper balance.  A good ObGyn should be able to help you, preferably one who believes in natural medicines.

Allergies: Tired of feeling tired or hyper when you take decongestants of anti-histamines?  Try Pantothenic Acid.  It's part of the B-Vitamin family and it really works for most people without any side effects.  Take 500 mg. 2 or 3 times a day.  The best part is that you can take your usual decongestant along with it, and it will diminish the side effects like drowsiness or feeling hyper.

Immunity: Are you catching every thing that comes along, or you feel run-down and can't seem to get any energy.  Having trouble healing from an illness?  We tried these and they really work.

• Tunguska Blast ( from www.Tunguskablast.com): A meteor hit Siberia in the early 1900's and no one was allowed to investigate for over half a century.  When scientists finally got in there they found trees and plants in the area of impact that were 2 to 4 times taller than anywhere else, and herbs that were 2 to 3 times more potent.  They combined some of the most beneficial into a health drink that tastes good, makes you feel good, and actually has healing properties.
• Max GXL (www.mxgxl.com): Glutathione is the body's own immunity builder.  An American Scientist discovered how to accelerate the body's absorption of it.  This is a long-term immunity booster for people with almost any illness.

Disclaimer: We're not health experts or beauty queens, and we're not responsible for any problems that use of these products might cause for you, but we know they worked for us.   You may want to check with your doctor before using these and also if you have any questions or problems.  Also, we get no commission for telling you about any of these products, just the satisfaction of giving you knowledge that can change your life for the better.  For comments email Adrienne@Kidsread.net.

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