Friday, June 11, 2010

International Beauty

Other Brazilian beauty secrets that I particularly like for their simplicity are the use of beach sand and coffee grounds as exfoliants and cellulite reducers.

So next time you're just sitting on the beach, don't just sit there...do like the women of Brazil do and start rubbing some sand into your suntan oil. Your thighs will thank you!

If you're not close to the beach, try Lush's Sandstone Bar which was inspired by these Brazilian beauties!
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The Indian woman relies on various spices, dairy products and food items to achieve a flawless complexion. Thus popular Indian beauty tips profess the use of gram flour and turmeric to scrub the face clean while lemon juice mixed with honey makes for a great bleaching pack.

In fact, Indian beauty secrets are replete with such homemade medication. You will find the Indian woman reaching out for her concoction of cucumber juice, glycerin and rose water instead of the sun block cream obtained from the store shelf, while her toiletry includes lemon, milk, saffron and salt.

Lemon rubbed over freckles lightens them while a little alum over lemon is a guaranteed antidote to mottled and pigmented complexion. Milk and salt applied on the skin softens it. Using saffron with milk to counter pigmentation is a widely recommended Indian beauty tip while honey is used as a moisturizer.

Solah Shringar--or 16 adornments--is an integral part of every Indian bride-to-be’s beautifying ritual. It starts with an oil massage before the bath, an application of gram flour, turmeric and mustard oil or butter, culminating in a bath in milk and rose water. This 16-step ritual encompasses the conventional cleansing, toning and moisturizing routine that all beauty experts stress on.
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Asian women and particularly Indian and women of the Middle East are noted for their extremely beautiful eyes. And with a little definition, these eyes simply look ethereal. Thus a dash of pale green, cool gray or peach colored eye shadow, a forest green or brown eyeliner or kohl smudged for a smoky eyed look are the oft-advised Asian beauty tips on eye makeup.

Asian beauty secrets profess plum hues with red, brown or mauve undertones for lips that speak volumes. Beiges and pink mauves also complement Asian looks while Asian beauty tips are unanimous on one point: bright pinks and oranges are a definite no-no for soft Asian features.

Asian women have hair that is generally thicker than that of the rest of the world’s population. Hence they do not take well to lightening and generally end up looking garish. However, this thickness enables Asian women to experiment with various flattering haircuts.

A preference for all things natural is evident in the Asian beauty tips practiced in the spas. Here you will find beauty treatments like detoxification with pure sea salts, the use of milk, yogurt, papaya and buttermilk as skin softeners and various aromatherapy oils like lavender, ylang-ylang, sandalwood and rosemary.

Also high on the natural beauty tips list is the white camellia nut oil, widely used by the Japanese women for hydrating and softening the skin. It is especially beneficial for treating pregnancy-related stretch marks (Titanic star Kate Winslet had used it) and inducing hair growth. It is also popular as a facial oil.

Seaweed is a popular presence in the Japanese beauty tips. It possesses excellent cleansing and toning properties and is reputed to impart an ethereal glow to the skin.

The Chinese beauty tips swear by their white tea, with its much-publicized anti-ageing properties.

Asian beauty secrets are actually quite simple to follow and they are becoming increasingly popular as a means to achieve that rare Asian charm and grace.

Skin Smarts

What is the #1 thing that celebrities do to keep their skin looking fabulous?


Stay out of the sun. “I had one young actress come to me and I ended up turning her away because she wouldn’t stop going to tanning booths and the beach,” says Dakar. If you need proof of what the sun does to your skin, just compare a section of your bod that never sees the sun [like your belly] to a section that does [your forearm] and note the difference in texture. Most stars are pretty sun-savvy-either they prefer to stick with their natural fair-skinned tone, like Nicole Kidman or Scarlett Johansson, or they’re like Christina Aguilera, who gets her bronze-Betty look from self-tanner instead of hours spent in the sun. The easiest way to make sunscreen a part of your daily beauty regimen is to buy either a moisturizer or a tinted moisturizer that contains an SPF. “For the face, I suggest nothing less than SPF 15,” says Dakar. Also, don’t forget other sun-sensitive areas like the earlobes and, if you part your hair, keep in mind that your exposed scalp can also be burned.

Do celebrities eat anything special to make their skin look so good?


While we know that eating chocolates isn’t going to give you acne, that doesn’t mean you have free reign to go and devour the whole drive-thru and expect a glowy complexion. “It’s important to get the right vitamins for your skin,” says Dakar. For teen clients she always suggests zinc [found in meat, milk, and beans], vitamin C [citrus fruits], and flaxseed oil [can be bought at the health food store and drizzled over a salad]. Zinc and vitamin C work to protect the skin and strengthen it. Flaxseed oil actually has the power to thin the blood in your skin a little bit so pores may not get as clogged. All three of these help the skin to heal more quickly, which, if you’ve ever picked a zit, you know can take a while. “Also, don’t forget to drink water,” adds Dakar, “without it your skin can look dry and tired.” Not that you need to go on a crazy diet to have good skin, just remember to balance out the fries with lots of natural stuff like fruits and veggie—these naturally contain a lot of vitamins and minerals your body needs, plus, they’re more filling than popping a pill!

THE BEST WAY TO GET SAFE SUN
1. When hitting the beach or pool, always coat your entire body with a generous amount of broad-spectrum, water-resistant sunscreen with at least SPF 15; look for zinc oxide or Parsol 1789 in the ingredients.
2. Protect your face with oil-free SPF 15-and-higher sunscreens; don’t forget your ears, nose, the part in your hairline, and lips.
3. Show off sun-savvy chic with a wide-brimmed hat and sunglasses with UV protection.
4. If you know you’ll be sweating, coat yourself with a sweat-proof sunblock.
5. Always apply sunscreen 30 minutes before you go outside, giving it time to be absorbed into your skin; reapply sunscreen every two hours and after swimming.
6. Everyday, rain or shine, slather on body and face moisturizers that contain SPF 15. Damaging sun rays can shoot through your clothing and harm your skin—a white T-shirt only has an SPF of 8.
7. Be extra careful in the sun if you have pale skin, freckles, light eyes, blond or red hair, or are on antibiotics.

Tips for taking care of the hands

Tips for taking care of the hands
1- Apply olive oil on your hands.

2- Apply the juice of cucumber juice and glycerine on your hands.
3- Mix olive oil and lime juice and apply on your hands.
4- Make a paste of tomato juice, glycerine and lime juice in equal proportion and apply on your hands.
5- Massage with almond oil a night to glow your hands.
6- Apply a paste of ground almonds, milk cream and few drops of glycerine and lemon juice for bleaching.
7- Soak your hands in water in which potatoes have been boiled.
8- One effective method is to rib warm boiled water and mashed potatoes on hands and finger
9- Make a mixture of Vaseline and carbolic acid and rub in on your hands.
10- Hands can be softened by taking a mixture of orange juice and honey.
11- Mix rose water and glycerine and apply on your hands with cotton.
Bridal beauty tips
Start doing this minimum 2 months before your wedding.
The biggest tip I have to give for any bride is drink loads and loads of water and keep your stress level minimum. No beauty treatment will work if you don’t drink enough water or you are highly stressed.
Remember to choose your wedding makeup/hair style so that it looks good in photos too. Please, please have a trial makeup/hairstyle session before your wedding. Learn to pose for the camera and smile confidently.

Skin care tips
• Drink 10 glasses of water everyday
• Eat 3-4 oranges every day. This will give you your daily doze of vitamin C essential for healthy skin
• Cleanse, Tone and moisturize once in the morning and once at night
• Apply sunscreen of spf 15 or higher everyday 20 minutes before getting out in the sun
• Carry an umbrella and use it as a sunshade
• Exfoliate twice a week followed by face mask suited to your skin tone
• If you can afford going to the beauty parlor, get a facial done once a month
• Apply ubtan twice a week
• Do some kind of exercise 20 minutes everyday
• Keep stress level at minimum, You stress and your skin will have acne and blackheads
• Get your last facial done 4-5 days before your wedding day

Hair care tips
• Do the hot oil treatment twice a week
• Apply henna to your scalp thrice a month
• If you can afford going to the parlor, get a hot oil massage to your head

Body Care tips
• Moisturize your entire body to keep it soft
• Apply sunscreen to all exposed body parts
• If you are planning on bleaching your face, your neck and back too to get the same even skin tone
• Apply ubtan twice a week to your body

Makeup tips
• Don’t apply too much of makeup for your wedding. Keep it natural and safe.
• Indian brides generally stick to red/brown lipstick, peach eye shadow and blush.
• For night time functions, add a bit of shimmer to your makeup
• Get a trial makeup and hair session before the D day. Click a photo of this and make sure the makeup and hair style you chose looks good in photos too
• Apply foundation that perfectly matches your skin tone. Dab a bit of foundation and powder to your neck back and hands too.
• Use water proof makeup.
• The makeup you choose should have a matte finish and should not look greasy or dry.
• Practice posing for the photos. Your smile should look natural .
• On the day of the wedding, apply a good deodorant/mild perfume

Cooling Ubtan

This ubtan can be used for cooling the body. Very good for skin with acne/blachead/whitehead. A bride to be can use this treatment everyday starting 30 days prior to her marriage
-3 teaspoon chickpea fluor
-1/4 spoon turmeric powder
-2 teaspoon sandalwood powder
-1 teaspoon neem powder
-2 teaspoon ground cucumber
Rub the mixture onto face with gentle circular motion for 10-15 minutes. Wash off with warm water.
For a bride to be, you can do this daily starting 1 month before the wedding. You are sure to see the skin glow.