Age Defying Beauty - Look fabulous At Any Age!

Lulu - dailymail (article)

A few days ago during a conversation with my sister-in-law, we somehow got to talking about aging and beauty.  Well, truth be told we started talking about it because I was complaining sharing with her about my new visitors.  Gray hair.  First, a couple showed up and that was fine but now they have invited their friends......and family....and their pets.  Hey,whoa there.  Now don't get me wrong, I am a huge fan of gray hair, I even did a post on it here.....I just don't think am old enough (42) to do it right just yet. I would welcome/rock a streak of gray but not a whole head. Not yet.

 And so such was my lament to my sis.  Well, she is older than me and looks fabulous so I asked her to share some of her tips with me and man did she ever!

Here are the tips in no specific order.  Bear in mind this is from a woman in her early fifties who has followed this regimen over the years and proven everything listed here.

1.  Oil of Olay products - She loves and swears by them.

2.  Use a toner to clean your skin thoroughly.  She recommends Olay of course but a toner that is mild, gentle and non-drying is perfect.

3.  Follow up with a good moisturizer.  Do this morning and night, moisturize both your face and neck.  Make sure you don't forget to do the neck because the neck is prone to wrinkling later on and who wants that...

4.  Do not pick your skin!  This will result in scarring. Leave the pimples alone and apply an astringent to them instead.  

5.  Do something physical every day even if it's as simple as cleaning your house.  Get some exercise and do not take for granted the benefits of fresh air.  Taking a walk with ensure that you get both fresh air and exercise.

6.  Get 8 hours of sleep.  Seems like a lot but you need it to keep your body energized and at it's best. 

7.  DO NOT STRESS. Stress is the catalyst for a myriad of sickness and disease. Laughing and spending time with positive people and activities makes you healthier and adds much value to your life.

8.  Having a heathy spiritual life is also very important.  When you are overwhelmed you will have a comfort/resource to turn to.  Always.

9.  Take care of your hair. Keep it hydrated every day to minimize breakage.  Stay away from too much heat and products.  Find something that works and stick to it.

10. A well groomed lady takes care of her hands and feet.  Keep nails trimmed and on point!

11. Finally, have Confidence.  Once you look good you'll feel good.  Believe in yourself and do not let anyone shut you down.  Ever.

And there you have it, a simple list of tips that will keep you lookin fierce!  If you need more inspiration just check out this pic of Lulu who happens to be 61 years young.  In my opinion she looks better with age. For those of you younger folks, Lulu sang to "To sir with Love" which is the theme/title song for the movie "To Sir With Love" (a beloved 60's movie) starring Sidney Poiter...who hails from my home, the Bahamas.   It is one the the best vocals I have ever heard.  Love you Lulu.  You can read more about her and her new book on the subject of aging well here.  I will be getting a copy for sure.

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Well, I hope this post was helpful to you.  Have a great week!

Cherio!

Age Defying Divas - Weight Loss & Fitness Inspiration

About a week ago, my sister sent this video to me and it totally blew me away.  If there is a fountain of youth, Annette Larkin has taken more than a sip from it.  She looks fabulous!  I was so inspired by her story that 70% of my diet is now raw vegetables, fruits and grains too. I am not 100% raw like she is (hey, baby steps) but the health benefits of my new diet regimen is nothing short of incredible. This is only week one for me and I know there will be meat craving bumps along the way but am up for the challenge.  Bring it on!

Another lady who inspires me is Ernestine Shepard. She is a 74 year old body builder and athlete who currently holds the Guinness book of world records for being the oldest female body builder.  And, for all of us late bloomers, she started her fitness journey in her 50's. Yep, it is NEVER too late. 
Ernestine starts her day at 4am in the morning and diligently runs 10 miles...every day.  She is also a fitness instructor, personal trainer and avid marathon competitor.  Whew!....am tired just thinking about all this stuff.  This lady is no joke.  She and Annette are solid proof that you can be healthy and look fierce at any age.  It's up to you though, so go get it!   


Cherio!

An Unconventional Love Story

When I said yes to my husband's marriage proposal, I did not have any grandiose ideas about having a big wedding or even a reception. There was only one thing I had to have, and that was a nice ring. A wedding ring to me is sacred and it represents the everlasting love between a husband and wife. Hopefully. But in addition to that, my wedding ring is what I will wear everyday "till death do us part"...... so I wanted one that I really really liked. Well because I am such a nit picker, I mean selective shopper, I ended up designing the rings myself and having them custom made.  Our jeweler did a wonderful job and I fell head over heels in love with my ring at first sight.

Then the worst thing happened two years later...I lost my ring!

I had been hiding this little dark secret from my husband for three months.  I just couldn't bear to tell him I had lost it, after all it had cost him a small fortune.  To make matters worse, I knew exactly where I had lost it and there was no hope of ever retrieving it.  You see, I had lost it in the ocean. Way out in the sea where Jaws and his crew hang out......probably.  It was only a matter of time before my husband figured out the real reason why I had not been wearing my ring and I was beside myself......and out of valid excuses.

Well, the very next day my mom and brother came for a visit and I got this sudden urge to go to the beach and collect shells.  I love beach combing so why not?  My brother on the other hand could care less and refused to go with me. For some strange reason though, my mother and I relentlessly begged him to go with us until he got sick of us and gave in.  (To this day I find this quite strange since it is out of character on both sides.)  When we got to the beach the tide was low, so low you could walk out about a quarter of a mile on the sand banks which my brother did by himself.  Mom and I stayed closer to shore picking up beach goodies, there was so much beautiful shells to choose from that day.

getty images

 All of a sudden, my brother who was out so far he looked relatively smaller, starting yelling.  My mother and I rushed to see what was wrong.  He seemed quite excited, he was waving frantically at us and jumping around. When we got within earshot of him, he was grinning ear to ear.  "I found something he said."  What is it?, I asked eager to see.  He slowly opened his hand and there nestled in his palm was my ring.  The one I had lost three months ago in the ocean.  My mom recognized it instantly and asked me "Wan, isn't that your ring?"  All I could do was gulp.

Turns out my ring somehow serendipitously reappeared out of the abyss after three months in strong sea currents and miles of shifting sand. My brother finding it equates to finding a needle in a hay stack. He said he saw a small beam of light emanating from the sand out of the corner of his eye.  Those were his exact words. Trust me, I am still in awe of this, I mean what?!!!  That beach is huge, plus the ring was buried under 15-25 feet of ocean for months.  What are the chances....and my brother had almost stayed at home too. All the planets had to be aligned just right for this to have happened, and they had. To this day, I just call it what it was. A miracle. My husband and I love each other so very much and our rings are a symbol of that love.  Maybe that is why it found it's way back to me.  Back to us. ...well that is what I believe anyway.

Since this incident, I wish I could tell you I never lost it again but I did lose it once after that nine years later.  And you know what, it found me again under very strange/unlikely circumstances. Call me crazy but in my sixteen years of marriage, because of the times I lost my ring, it is even more precious to me.  It is so true that you never realize the value of something until you lose it.....even if only temporarily.  I realize now that it is not the cost of the ring that matters so much to me but the cause of the ring.  It's all about love. And so lovelies, today on Valentine's day I wish you love.

Cherio!

Imperfectly Perfect

As Paula Dean would say, hey Y'all (in my best Southern drawl impression.....which is pretty bad).  How was Christmas?  Hope you had a blast, hope your family didn't drive you mad.  Okay, I know, too soon.

Well, Christmas for me was quiet and relaxing which gave me the opportunity to do what I love best.  Craft!  I had a ball I must say and I learned a lot. 

 I am a relentless nit-picker perfectionist when it comes to my own work and while that has it's benefits, it also comes with drawbacks as well.  Last weekend I had a mini-melt down.  I was experimenting with new materials and everything seemed to be going well then all of a sudden I realized why I was not quite satisfied with the piece.  I was playing it too safe.  I was afraid I would mess it up. Eureka! Then, my lightening fast mind reflected (5 minutes later) on all the pieces I did that I loved and got rave reviews for, most of them already sold.  They had spunk, style, daring, and in your face swag!  Why? Well, because I had thrown caution to the winds.  And when I did, my work took on a life of their own, they became something better than perfect. They became expressive......people felt something when they saw it. And that is what I want most of all.

So with this being said, it's on like donkey kong!  Expect to see this new attitude manifested in my blog.  This is a life lesson that is not just about my Art, it encompasses everything and I couldn't be happier to see where this takes me.  From now on am holding nothing back.  You may be shocked, inspired, confused, amazed or even motivated to pray for my sanity but I promise you, you won't be bored!

Cherio!

Picture This!

Some times its the simple things that makes us appreciate life most. Today I got out of bed after battling a cold for the last few days and I realized that I felt much better. No sneezing, coughing, aches or pains to speak of, its amazing how I appreciate feeling well again. Just yesterday I was lying down thinking of all the things I wanted to do once I felt a little better so here is one of them. Photography and digital collage! Yes, I said it, maybe not deserving the exclamation mark for some but for me its very exciting stuff. It sends shivers up my spine when I think of the fun I could have with a digital camera and my faithful Mac computer.

Last year I had challenged myself to create digital collages that expressed my faith in God and inspired people. As a result of this, I created what you see here and many other prints that you can find at: wandadmcphee.etsy.com

All of these prints started with a piece of photography that I shot while I was up and about or I set up the shoot based on a specific idea I had. Once I had the photo I took it into Photoshop and then added textures and filters. I also imposed and blending other images and colors into the original photo. Although some of these pieces I did are a bit advanced to someone who is new to this, you can get great results too by just taking a great photo and converting it to duotone. (two colors only in image) A lot of my prints are done this way and I just love the way this adds an element of mystery and interest to photographs. At the moment am working on a few ideas for new prints, I will post these as soon as I finish them. In the main time, get your feet wet, dust of your camera and take some photos. Not only do they make great Art framed on your wall but you can sell them as well to wholesale photography sites on the web.

Well, what else can I say but, lets do this!