Old Age Beauty Tips

Nobody asked for the following but I was thinking about it after writing on aging-- the things I do to look as good as I can for my age. If such tips bore you or you consider such concerns shallow, come back in two days when the next blog will be on Energy and Matter.

When I was young, I'd have thought, when I get old, I won't care how I look. Now maybe there will yet come such a time but for now, I care; but despite today's mantra to be young at any price, I do NOT care if I look younger. I just want to look as good as possible for where I am. I like being in my late 60s and don't mind if I look it. Once in awhile I am interested in trying something new, but not obsessed with trying to defeat something that cannot be done.

So, I do what I can without surgery, Botox or any of those filler injections. To me, besides not actually looking good, they would feel like cheating. I had a salon owner talk to me about Botox some years back, and I didn't want it then and sure don't now. Those kind of things are aimed at erasing what I have earned through living. But improving on my skin, well yeah, they have my interest if it's not too expensive.

Last November, when we were coming back from a family gathering, I heard an ad on radio for a product that claimed it would help rejuvenate skin with its unique ingredients. After hearing it a couple of times, I wrote the name down, checked it out on the computer when I got home, and when the price wasn't too far out of line, I decided to give it a try.

When it arrived, I liked the texture of the lotion, how it felt on my face. I followed their instructions for beginning slowly. After a month, I felt there was a subtle difference. An age spot had faded. The color seemed more even. My skin might have been a bit tighter, but the little lines and all were still there. I can't really nail down what the difference is except the overall impact seems positive to me. It was fun to experiment and maybe that's part of why I like such things.

Although, the first month I felt the new lotion wasn't working with the other thing I had been using. I needed something different for day. A few days later, I was walking down an aisle at Costco and saw StriVectin-SD, a supposedly improved version of StriVectin which I had tried before. It wasn't that expensive considering you get two 4 oz. tubes for I think under $60. You don't use that much; so it would last six months or more. I added that for daytime.

When it came time to order the night one again, I asked Farm Boss if he thought it was making a difference, he said he thinks it is. It has not reverted me to forty but I like what it's done for 67. I think it is the combination of the two which work well together.

I always hate to recommend something because we are all different and no guarantee how anything would be for anyone else. My skin has not benefited from years outside in the sun. I was never much for lying in the sun tanning, but swimming, hiking and gardening are part of what I have enjoyed-- often without a hat or sunscreen back in the days. I am not going to give sunlight up even now; so this lotion can't do miracles.

For someone interested in trying it but not wanting to invest so much, they offer a free sample; but it looked to me like if you did that, you should be sure you stop them from sending more along with a bill because that looked automatic. I didn't buy any of their myriad of other Dr. Perry products. I also am not receiving anything for mentioning it in the blog.

The night cream is Dr. Perry's NightSkin which I get from New Vitality with three of the little 1 oz. containers which each last about a month as you use four pumps each night. It isn't cheap-- $50 each with the third free when you order three together. They had a DaySkin but it was probably as costly as the NightSkin. There are products out there that cost a LOT more and I think do less (yeah I've played with some of them too).

I use the NightSkin at night and the StriVectin-SD during the day. If I am going to be outside for long, I have a foundation which has sunscreen in it which I try to remember to use. Currently that is Neutrogena's Healthy Skin Enhancer which has some of the same pluses as the others plus the 20 spf. I don't routinely use foundation as I really like my skin best when it's bare. It feels healthier when it can breathe. Standard sunscreens though tend to be a little oily for my rosacea and skin type.

For quite awhile my skin cleanser has been 'Olay daily facial hydrating cleansing cloths' which I also buy at Costco in a box of 150. Mine are for normal to dry skin-- although one time I got one for oily skin and it was fine also. I feel a tad guilty sometimes knowing it's not as environmentally pure as soap but I can't use soap without drying out my skin-- and surprisingly at my age, I can still get an occasional blemish if I am not faithful in cleansing well and avoiding oils.

I don't put a lot of time into any of these things . Even when I was in my 30s, lots of make up didn't improve my looks. My fav0rite thing is eyeliner and that has to be because of what I grew up seeing and admiring. Owl eyes? I think they look better than no eyeliner but try to resist the temptation. These days I wear very pale lipsticks, much lighter than my own lip color just because I like the effect. I have tried expensive lipsticks and decided the ones for $2 or less do the job just as well.

You know part of my philosophy is to trust what I was naturally given to be my best look but enhancing it is just fine. That's why I don't color my hair. It's not like I think gray is more honorable. It's because at my age dying my hair never seemed as good for my face as letting it turn gray has turned out to be. Sometimes it looks almost blond or even brown in photos, but it's really whitish gray in front and a kind of ginger color in the back. I would be happy if the whole thing turned white or gray but it hasn't worked out that way-- yet.

One last thing-- I have mentioned I believe in facial exercises. Last summer I found a little tool to add to the ones I was doing (fairly regularly). The Neckline Slimmer is basically a resistance tool to tighten the neck and jawline. IF you opt to try it (they are online, but I got mine at Bath, Bed and Beyond when I just saw it at the checkout stand), be sure you follow the directions for using it properly. Exercise that isn't done right can become detrimental.

It was inexpensive at $20 and should last a long long time as it's formed plastic and a spring. To begin, the instructions have you change the springs to gradually increase resistance. I can't say for sure what it's done for my jawline, but I will say I have only had one migraine, months ago, since I began using it when I normally would have one or two a month if I didn't visit the chiropractor to have a neck adjustment. I read some comments from people claiming it had helped their tmj, but when I try that exercise, I hear my jaw click and that is not a good sound. I go very cautiously with anything that might make my tmj worse.

The photo at the top was taken with my webcam. Although the lighting was a little off, with too much sunlight streaming in the window, I liked the expression for how I feel about my age. I tried to duplicate it with better lighting and it never quite happened. There is one thing about expressions, they don't come on demand.