Nowadays you can look up a product on the net and get feedback from people who bought it and have something to say, yay or nay.  This is like having girlfriends all over the place talking about what they use and why they like it.  For instance I like St. Ives Shea butter with oatmeal moisturizer which can be purchased in any drugstore.  It does not create an allergic reaction on me and is not that expensive.  And, I do like Avon products which can be ordered on line.  One thing that is a bit pricey that I like is Ceramide capsules ( a collegen booster) from Elizabeth Arden that I order from Macys.  But, I can use the capsule three times so it breaks down the price a lot. 

 I think the best invention has been the net.  I can get all kinds of answers that I just used to wonder about.

I have very fair, very dry, and very reactive skin.  I love Aveeno products!   Back in the day, when the STBXH and I made huge gobs of money, I bought Aveeno products.  I used to buy Clinique for my few makeup needs.  Now, I buy Almay. 

The packaging isn’t as pretty, but I don’t react to the products, so it works.

Since I have very short hair, and am going ashey gray at an alarming rate, I can’t afford to have my hair professionally cut and colored.  As a result, I buy professional products, and dye my own hair.  My wonderful hair-person then cuts my ends off.

(I must say- this is the reward of being a pleasant client and good tipper for years.  She is now cutting me a deal on hair cuts.  Um, my current financial restrictions are the cause of a mentally-ill soon-to-be-ex spouse.  Had he not thrown away the business I started, we were recession-proof.  If you have an unique product required by big business, it’s hard to lose market share.)

Now that I know how easy it is to dye short hair, I probably won’t go back to having it done.  I’ll save my money for pedicures which I find to be a treat I can just occasionally afford.  Better yet, massages, which I used to have regularly some 7 years ago, and really, truly miss, since I have back problems from a car accident.

Hair-coloring is no longer a luxury for me.  

I was a natural red-head.  My mom was white by age 40.  I am 48, and still ashey-gray, so I am indulging in, "better living through chemicals."  It makes me look tired and sad, which is truth in advertising, but still not my best look.  When I go true white, I’ll stop dyeing my hair.  

Constance in the Sierra Foothills

I’ve always been a comparison shopper. I pay attention to a products contents. I compare the pricey with the not so pricey. Sometimes, the not so pricey is healthier and of better quality. There’s also some pricey items that are in a league all their own. I love natural soaps can be pricey. I love my old faithful Dove beauty bar.

The beauty aids that I like can be found at Rite Aid, CVS and Duane Reade. I’m not giving up my MAC lip gloss which is reasonably priced at around $16.00. I’m not giving up manicures, pedicures, waxing and threading!  

I’m reading some books on making natural products at home ( moisturizers, lotions, shampoos and conditioners etc.)

"Mother Nature’s Beauty Cupboard", Donna Lawson

"The Body Shop Book Skin, Hair and Body Care, Introduction by Anita Roddick

It has been known for a long time that most beauty products are overpriced and contain ingredients similar to those which cost less. It’s advertising that raises the ante. Baby oil does as well as high priced items, as most of us know.

 Actually, brand names are for those who want to be trendy. A little innovation becomes the scent or cure of the week or month , and then it is replaced by another tiny  change; it’s capitalism.

 Today on this website , there is a question about accepting one’s aging, and the sale of beauty products, of course, is linked to the national fear of aging.

 Several years ago, my childen held a post-75 birthday party for me, and my friend of longest duration  (can’t call her my oldest friend) gave me a gift which made me cry, for it was a large box containing  all kinds of beauty creams to help me fend off aging. I wasn’t insulted, but upset, because it revealed her obsession. We are 6 months apart, and as she knows, I was brought up in a European-American home where aging was not a curse, and I never relied on cosmetics to erase who I am, while she began making radical changes early in her appearance to ward off looking older. I wept for my friend.   

Visiting Sephora is like going to the Magical Kingdom; it encourages us to wander and to wonder, and for a few moments to be entranced that an over-priced ointment or powder will transform us, but, of course it is transitory—-except for the bill which is inflated.

I don’t use makeup, just gobs of Carmex to combat the extremely dry air here in NM, but the one beauty luxury that I have not eliminated, only rare-ified, is pedicures. I love having my toes done, but even more luxurious is the process. To close my eyes and lean back against the massaging chair while my feet soak in warm water, are vigorously rubbed with salts, wrapped in a mud mask, or rubbed with creams, is a delightful experience I cannot bring myself to forego completely.

Last year I introduced my bf to the joys of (gifting) professional massages; as all the women in his life have since benefitted from this awakening, I am anticipating the enjoyment of massages for birthdays and Christmas myself. Otherwise, this is also a luxury that I would hesitate to cut out completely but have been forced to attend to less frequently.

I have given up my MAC makeup, a line that is carried by Macy’s. It’s just too expensive, I have been using a Revlon foundation and powder. I will admit it does not go on as smooth as the MAC, but I just can’t justify to my self that I need to spend more in times like these. I dye my own hair, I have very long, thick blonde hair, to get it done in the salon is over $100. I go to sallies beauty supply and get the mixes and colors I want and it cost less than $20. I will say though that when things start looking up I will be returning to the MAC counter.

Hi,

I makes me laugh to think that we intelligent women (and now men) keep falling for these cosmetic ads. We know most of them do not work, yet we buy them anyway.  A good, simple face cream and body lotion are all most ever need.  Not a pot of chemicals which claims the earth and costs more than 6 months rent. 

It is a known fact that the average pay for women is less than their male counterparts. Yet women are more likely to spend more money than men.  Our insecurites are constantly played out by the media. And who is telling us to buy that particular expensive brand? Usually the male owners of the expensive brand companies. 

Women need to celebrate our inner and outer beauty.  If we are deemed not good enough to be higher wage earners, then our money should not be deemed good enough for these exclusive brands. 

I ask all who can, lets turn the tables around. Instead of buying more things to ease our own insecurities, lets be strong and save.  If you have a good blusher and it has not run out, why buy a new one just because it claims to be the best on the market?  If these brands want our money, make them work for it, let’s face it, you had to work very hard for yours!  

I am sick and tired of being told by the media that I need to keep looking young.  I am young!!!!. At age 25, you do not need any cosmetic which claims to hide the early signs of aging. If you do have lines and wrinkles at age 25, you dont need a cream, you need to go see your doctor - quick!  

By thinking about how you spend, you can save hundreds, or even thousands a year.  The more savings you have, the more financially secure you will be. This security will last longer than any effects of a compound applied to your body.  

Stop buying expensive makeup or cosmetics, save your money instead and work on empowering your inner makeup.

Hey ladies—you’re right..who can afford these kinds of prices in this economic climate? However, now is the time to re-evaluate what we are actually using. While holding your beloved cosmetics in your hand, you may ask yourself, do I really need this? Is this worth the price? But, a better question may be, hey wait, what are these ingredients on the back? Do they REALLY NEED to be putting all this junk in my favorite product? I have to admit, I’m a sucker for my Estee Lauder eyeliner and my lotions upon lotions but until I started reading into the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics (www.safecosmetics.org) little did I know what I was actually putting on to my skin and ultimately into my body. 

 Ladies, check out what is actually in your products and the safety rating on the Skin Deep Database (www.cosmeticsdatabase.com) and join us at the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics to make sure that those products that have become part of our family are actually safe and are as nice to us as we are to them!!

One of my goals this year was to start taking better care of my appearance, like foundation and lipstick.  So I haven’t cut corners, but have always bought everything at drugstores anyway.  I’ve also just discovered the joy of relaxation massages, so I will have to put that in my budget now :)

One tip I’d like to pass on though, is I use baby shampoo to wash my makeup off.  It works to wash the mascara off without having to scrub around my eyes too hard - and it doesn’t sting my eyes like other soaps!  And then I use Apricot scrub to exfoliate once or twice a week.  I’ve also stopped using astringent because it dries out my skin.