Supplements and health hacks - share your knowledge: )

[sKePTiKal]

G, I feel your quandary over makeup. It always feels like face-painting a mask on to hide behind for me. And I feel like it makes me look worse - like I'm trying too hard - and I almost always wash it right back off. A little lipstick, some bare minerals blusher and if it's REALLY formal, perhaps mascara. Almay is another hypo-allergenic brand; I like the clear.

But my new fella has me rethinking my gramma wardrobe, hairstyle and everything else. I'm LMAO at myself about how self-conscious I am over my body through this whole thing. As if he isn't a couple years older and his body has been through way more than mine could tolerate. He's suggested I need my eyes checked, because to me he's drop-dead handsome.

But I guess it's a good sign, that the attraction between us isn't solely that superficial stuff.

Like Hops said, I think we need to just refine our personal style - what works for us - especially as we age. It's difficult, because the fashion industry panders to a certain age group and that "come hither" signal regardless of body type, lifestyle, and occupation. And honestly, comfort is way more necessary in clothing as we age, fashion be damned. Interestingly enough, skinny jeans are still a staple of my wardrobe and are still working out pretty well.

[lighter]

Amber, I like boot cut jeans, nice and fitted at the knee.  I have a sewing machine, and jeans I adore to serve as pattern in case I try tapering in at knee on the pile of jeans I don't love.  The fitted knee makes a big difference.

I never looked good in opaque lipstick.  I prefer a sheer color.  Chapstick, with a swipe of lipstick, is nice.

Lighter

[Hopalong]

I misled y'all with that grumpy comment.
I was just pissed that G. couldn't see her own wonderful unique individual beauty, because the **#%$^%&^&** marketing culture does that to us. Women are supposed to loathe themselves and not be their own best friends. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR.....

Those standards do piss me off but I still cave to them. More often since I gotta boyfriend (who seems to crave me with or without, so can't blame him).

Skin health, in this order:
--Wash face with Dr. Bronner's Almond, diluted 3-1. It's also my body wash, shave foam, hand soap and in a pinch, shampoo. In old Method pump foaming dispensers discarded by my office years ago; keep one at tub, sink, kitchen sink. Order a gallon jug from Amazon about every six months.
--Few drops organic aloe vera gel (ordered off Amazon, lasts forever) on face, plus a few on arms/backs of hands
--When skin is dry, also warm a little bit of coconut oil between palms and work all over face (more at night)
--EVERY day, every season: SPF 50 physical (sheer zinc) sunscreen--face and backs of hands and arms if they'll be exposed. CVS makes a great facial one for face in little white pots with orange lids. I buy up since they often run out. I use the CVS blue-tube sunscreen for arms, legs, chest in warm seasons. Finally learned to use some on tops of thighs even when wearing pants--enough driving time means UV gets through anyway. Or so my age spots tell me.

Skin appearance (cosmetic):
--small dot of foundation over nose-to-mouth area (redness)
--cheeks sometimes, dot of stick blush (it's also a lip tint, don't own other lip color)
--little bit of eyebrow powder in patchy spots

Hugs
Hops the Vain

[Meh]

Thanks Hops & Skep. (smile emoji here) Funny about your grandma wardrobe Skep, I think if you are wearing skinny jeans how Grandma could it be heheheh. I don't own skinny jeans if anything squeezes my butt cheeks together I'm just going to be in a bad mood. Just a short reply cause I'm in need of more coffee at the moment and I don't wanna hijack the thread too much. There is something about appearances though, if one isn't quite living up to it then it can be a source of shame I guess. 
In all of it there is the question of effort and attention what aspects of our life need more time and effort health beauty?

I mean there is something about how each stage of a female life one has to figure out how do I be 20, how do I be 30, how do I be 40, how do I be 50. (the stages of my mother's life seem to be defined by what men she is with) I'm just questioning myself again do I act like my age. It's not so much that I "don't feel beautiful" because I've come to a pragmatic opinion about that. It's more just questioning NOW what am I supposed to be doing. And the older we get it's like do we just go WITH the flow or is that "giving up". You know the "letting oneself go". Also employers... do they expect older women to try harder to appear youthful or put together or whatever. I feel like all of a sudden I am supposed to look classier and wealthier than I am because seems to me that is what defines older women, they have arrived. Mature, made it. I might have an older body but maybe emotional parts of me are lagging behind and I don't want to act like a 16 year old in a 40 year old body or something.
There is something more cheerful about women who make some effort. When I think about my coworkers who do make an effort and those that do not. It doesn't always effect their career though as much as one might think. I saw women get canned who put more effort into their looks than some who don't. Sometimes it doesn't matter. Can I just rant that the beauty industry has added eye lid primer, eye lash primer, face primer, lip primer and setting sprays as extra layers. I don't remember these existing before.

I think Hops mentioned Queer eye which I had never watched so I went and binged on them, they are great fun to watch. So I thought well maybe I should try makeup again, maybe I'm wrong about it....I tried makeup it burns my skin, end of story I guess. No big deal. Another season is released on Netflix now so I have to watch it, I'm addicted.

Honestly I feel like an old granny and I'm in my 40's. Am I still supposed to feel feminine, pretty, sexy etc. etc. I sort of want to be old and comfortable.


 This has nothing to do with the thread. Sorry Lighter.

Lighter your post about jeans reminds me of this vid, probably it's out of style as style comes and goes like every three months. I've always thought this would be fun to try something like this diy patched jeans:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwOveedkVko

[Hopalong]

I loooooooooooooove Queer Eye!
And it's for the emotional stuff, not the style.
(My style is classic casual and dressing up when a gun's at my head....but I do love color. Annie Hall, in a pinch.)

That show delights me on SO many levels:
--the guys greet people who might not like gay people with love and respect
--they keep it up
--they really believe in the power of self-respect, and pour it on
--they find joy in the small things and moments
--they pay close attention and notice the people they help

It's just wonderful. Genius. Morgan Spurlock's 2008 series "30 Days" blew me away even more, for similar reasons. Premise: He pairs unlikely or opposite kinds of people who don't understand each other, and they go live and work with each other for 30 Days. In Every Single Case, the contact transforms them. They see each other's humanity. I used to cry with joy watching those.

Hugs
Hops

[sKePTiKal]

G, I don't think this is off topic at all. There IS a connection about feeling healthy in our bodies and radiating our inner beauty outwardly, without conforming to "standards". We talk often about feeling comfortable in our own skins, right?

So, acceptance of our age, stage in life, looks, how we physically feel... and understanding the basics of how to creatively design our appearance to the rest of the world, to reflect who we are inside are all relevant. Self respect - not just a mental version of that but the confidence in ourselves emotionally and physically, is almost visible to other people if you observe closely. Not matter what you're wearing.

Lighter - wide leg jeans are making a comeback too!

[Hopalong]

PS, G--
I've got pretty sensitive skin and can't afford fancy organic foundation etc.
I've found that the few drops of organic pure aloe vera gel (topped with same of coconut oil when it's dry) do a really good job of protecting my skin from any reaction to other stuff. Per dose, both are really cheap.

Hops

[Twoapenny]

Thanks Hops & Skep. (smile emoji here) Funny about your grandma wardrobe Skep, I think if you are wearing skinny jeans how Grandma could it be heheheh. I don't own skinny jeans if anything squeezes my butt cheeks together I'm just going to be in a bad mood. Just a short reply cause I'm in need of more coffee at the moment and I don't wanna hijack the thread too much. There is something about appearances though, if one isn't quite living up to it then it can be a source of shame I guess. 
In all of it there is the question of effort and attention what aspects of our life need more time and effort health beauty?

I mean there is something about how each stage of a female life one has to figure out how do I be 20, how do I be 30, how do I be 40, how do I be 50. (the stages of my mother's life seem to be defined by what men she is with) I'm just questioning myself again do I act like my age. It's not so much that I "don't feel beautiful" because I've come to a pragmatic opinion about that. It's more just questioning NOW what am I supposed to be doing. And the older we get it's like do we just go WITH the flow or is that "giving up". You know the "letting oneself go". Also employers... do they expect older women to try harder to appear youthful or put together or whatever. I feel like all of a sudden I am supposed to look classier and wealthier than I am because seems to me that is what defines older women, they have arrived. Mature, made it. I might have an older body but maybe emotional parts of me are lagging behind and I don't want to act like a 16 year old in a 40 year old body or something.
There is something more cheerful about women who make some effort. When I think about my coworkers who do make an effort and those that do not. It doesn't always effect their career though as much as one might think. I saw women get canned who put more effort into their looks than some who don't. Sometimes it doesn't matter. Can I just rant that the beauty industry has added eye lid primer, eye lash primer, face primer, lip primer and setting sprays as extra layers. I don't remember these existing before.

I think Hops mentioned Queer eye which I had never watched so I went and binged on them, they are great fun to watch. So I thought well maybe I should try makeup again, maybe I'm wrong about it....I tried makeup it burns my skin, end of story I guess. No big deal. Another season is released on Netflix now so I have to watch it, I'm addicted.

Honestly I feel like an old granny and I'm in my 40's. Am I still supposed to feel feminine, pretty, sexy etc. etc. I sort of want to be old and comfortable.


 This has nothing to do with the thread. Sorry Lighter.

Lighter your post about jeans reminds me of this vid, probably it's out of style as style comes and goes like every three months. I've always thought this would be fun to try something like this diy patched jeans:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwOveedkVko

G, that's so interesting because I think woman have defined themselves through their men for such a long time (you mention your mum being defined by a man; my mum's the same) and also have defined themselves through their looks/figure/ how well they keep house and so on.  It does become a bit of a "well how do we define ourselves now?"  Given that a lot of us interrupt our careers to have children or to care for other relatives, or have to take jobs because they're available rather than because it's doing what we love.  Where does our definition come from instead?  It's an interesting question

On the topic of daily routine and beauty products I am heading towards a less is more approach for everything; I try to use products that don't contain chemicals if possible and I'm trying to get away from plastic packaging as well so at the moment it's a shampoo bar and soap bar and that's it.  I've got moisturising cream that I'm usually too lazy to put on

Make up always makes me look like a cross dresser; I've never been able to put it on and it doesn't seem to suit my face, plus I'm colour blind so that combination is always a bad look!  Lol, plus I can't be bothered to wash it off again at night (although I read that Dolly Parton deliberately leaves hers on in case there's a fire and she has to run outside ).  Clean is about as much as I aim for; my bane in life is facial hair which I've yet to find an echo friendly yet effective way of getting rid of.  If I didn't pluck I would look like Captain Caveman xx

[sKePTiKal]

Sally Hansen wax strips make plucking less of a chore, G. It comes with a small bottle of oil to dissolve the wax after, that seems to last forever. Then I follow up with an astringent - witch hazel - usually. I care less how it looks and more how it feels. I don't want to be the bearded lady!

My face is very far from "perfect". I have one eye that's very hooded and even kinda droopy. That means the eyebrows aren't level either. My ears don't line up, so the arms on glasses need a LOT of adjustment. LOL. I'm off kilter about half a bubble. But ya know what? That's probably 'coz of me inside... all the crap I've been through... so it's the gen-u-wine article. I think the only reason I agonized for so long, trying to look like someone else, was because I wanted to hide; just disappear into the masses of look-alikes all striving for the "fashion of the day".

You know I wouldn't be content in a crowd like that. LOL. The nail that sticks up, hollaring - but I'm ME, dammit! So that's a battle I don't much think about anymore. I'm clean (most of the time), neat, but not fancy. Simple. Until I start thinking about dressing for a guy... complication #560. Then, I get all weird over it again. Good thing I started Buck out, with my normal farm work "uniform"... and oddly enough, that wasn't a problem or obstacle. But if I'd tried too hard? Maybe show more cleavage? That actually might've been off-putting.

So I basically have adapted Holly's mantra - which is wear what want to, be as comfortable as I wanna be, and if that means plain old face - so be it. It's maybe a version of "when I am OLD, I'll wear purple".

[Meh]

Two and Skep, you gals are so funny.

[sKePTiKal]

Never underestimate the power of regularly laughing at ourselves and everything else in balancing our well-being - physical, mental and emotional. And I mean uncontrollable giggles kind of laughing... rolling on the floor, trying not to pee yourself, laughing so hard you're crying.

[lighter]

I woke up this morning recognizing my stomach.  Somewhat flat, considering the state of it over the last 2 weeks.  Well, it is flat, now that I look, and my jeans are hanging.  Where did all that fluff GO? I think I peed it out.  I think my cells must have been bursting with inflammation, and I'm gobsmacked to see that difference, unexpectedly.   

It's difficult to value sleep properly,  and it's the effect on our health. 

Enough sleep.... I'm talking 9 or more hours a night, is HUGE, IME.  Better to get 10 or 11.

We have blue blocker glasses in the house, to wear a couple hours before bed.  We aren't using them at all right now.  I know better.   I'm just not in a place to USE them consistently. 

Lighter

[Hopalong]

This is no hack or clever discovery at all, just a report on a simple but significant to me health step. The stroke was sobering.

I have been to the pool for several days and just walk in the water up to lower chest height (can't submerge the monitor on my upper chest) for 45 min to an hour. I push my arms back and forth ahead and behind me for extra resistance. I feel better.

M is joining me, or a friend now and then and they love it too.

Hops

[lighter]

I KNOW movement and exercise are very important keys to better emotional, and physical health.

I KNOW THIS, and have experienced it, but it's difficult to practice/be engaged consistently at this point in my life.

I hurt myself when I went back to working out, and shoulders are just now feeling normal again. 

You're being very smart with movement in the water.  That little bit of resistance, and it's so easy on the joints. 

Good for you, Hops.  I'm glad you're feeling better.

Lighter

[Hopalong]

Thanks, ((((Lighter))))!
I know it too.

The biggest muscle I'm trying to work out is the resistance one between my ears.


Hugs
Hops