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!

You've Come A Long Way Baby!

So yesterday was my birthday and it was nothing short of A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!  I had the time of my life and I pretty darn well did whatever I pleased.  And it pleased me to indulge myself. Immensely. Without restraint. A Happy birthday.  To me, by me and for me.

Fast forward to this morning and I am sitting up in bed in a much more reflective mood....asking myself some pretty tough questions....

Questions like:

What did you accomplish this past year?

Could you have done more/better?

What about those goals in your journal...time to tackle those don't you think?

So, what is your plan for the next six months?

Are you living up to your true potential?

When are you going to finish all those incomplete projects you started?

What!!!?????   What is this, the great inquisition?

Truth is, I know exactly what this is.  I do it, you do it. Some of us do it once a year on our birthday and some, at least once a day.  It is that internal check list we keep to make sure that we are on course.

Well, my response to "miss internal dictator director" went a little something like this....

I loved hard.  Fought hard.  Played just as hard or harder.

I challenged myself to grow........to count my blessings even amidst the pain.  To allow others to love me as I am, and to accept people just the way God made them.

I painted, crafted, designed, and honed my skills.  I entered competitions,was featured in galleries and participated in trade shows.  I celebrated, and was celebrated in return. Now I have a loyal following of people who believe in my Artistic ability/talents.  Some of them are very dear friends and some are loyal customers. (giant pat on back)

And then, just when I was feeling great about my life and the progress I was making, I gained 13 pounds in 7 months.......

But fortunately, that is not all I gained.

I gained insight and wisdom about health....my health. I learned how to better take care of my body.  Of myself.

I succeeded....

I lost 15 pounds in 3 months.

Then I failed. 

 I gained 12 pounds of it back......again........ 5 months later.  

.....But I never quit.

I lost every one of those 12 pesky pounds. And this is where I am now.  I learned so much about myself during this time.  I know now that I can do ANYTHING I make up my mind to do with God's help.  Am done with the up and down weight gain. I know now where I struggled and how to prevent myself from struggling in the future.  I am now 80% vegetarian and very happily so.

But wait.  There's more.

And, as if that change wasn't drastic enough, I went from this....



To this.

Then recently I decided to kick it up a notch with my design business.  So I did.  I am saying this only because you never heard me say it yet on this blog...that is until now.  I have a fashion line coming out but honestly sometimes the magnitude of it overwhelms me so much I keep it in the closet. Talking about it sometimes is just too painful.  I just want to do the darn thing!

I have BIG dreams for myself.  They have been coming together slower than I would like but slow progress is still progress non the less, yes?  So here is a small sample of my God inspired line. Hopefully they will be in a store near you real soon.

And Finally, last but not least.  Mi Familia.  The people whom I love most...on most days.  I think this year has really brought us closer.  We have had my dad and grandmother fall critically ill within months of each other and but for God's grace and mercy, they both narrowly escaped death. Both of them.  This put a lot of things into perspective for me.  No more sweating the small stuff. Seriously.

I think this picture sums up the way I feel about it all.  Look real close you will see two little figures walking in the distance.  That is me behind, the one in front is my sister Shan.  We are polar opposites but we have lots in common too.  Unlike me, she is very athletic so I am always one step behind. Literally.

Did you ever know that you're my heroooooooo,.....lol.  Am kidding.  The point is, I appreciate her for her strengths and I think she appreciates me for mine.  We forgive the parts in between, especially in the last year.  We have both grown so much and we are so much better for it.

And so "miss inner director/diva" I got news for ya.  What did I achieve in the last year?

NOTHING BUT GROWTH BABY!!!....and not just the hair.

Cherio!