“Beauty is more than skin-deep. Beauty is unique grace and confidence, a shining light that sparkles through the eyes and smile. It’s not what you look like; it’s what you project.” – Beauty Den

Beauty Odyssey mainly focuses on improving our physical appearance by using cosmetics. Today I would like us to focus ourselves. I picked the term “Beauty Odyssey” because life is a journey. It’s a constant evolution and with each passing year comes changes. These changes also occur in our bodies, our looks, and our skin. How we deal with these inevitable changes is entirely up to us. As women, we are constantly focusing our attention on our flaws. We need to learn to appreciate ourselves as we are and always have the right attitude. All the make up and cosmetics in the world will not make us feel better about ourselves.

I think the media plays a big role in how we feel about ourselves. When we pick up that glossy magazine, most of us are aware that the model on the cover page has been digitally retouched. But there is always that little part of us that wishes for that flawless skin, beautiful body, perfect hair, and perfect smile. We need to always remember that the models you see in the glossy pages don’t always portray reality. They are human beings just like us and deal with the same issues like we do such as blemishes, dark circles, fine lines and wrinkles, stretch marks and a whole host of other problems. In addition it takes a whole team of makeup artists, hairstylists, fashion stylists, photographers, art directors and photo retouchers to create that beautiful illusion. It’s an exaggerated perfection, something that no human being could ever look like.

Women from all walks of life, all crave the same thing – to look pretty and feel good. Looking your best is a combination of acquiring knowledge, accepting the things you can’t change and having confidence in yourself.
To help us on our way to appreciating ourselves, here are some natural beauty tips from www.beauty-secrets4u.com. Read the rest of this entry →

Many of us do not understand what the term SPF really means. I know that the higher the SPF labeled on the sunscreen, then the better protected I am form the sun, or is it? Most doctors recommended we apply a sunscreen of between SPF 15 and SPF 30. But there are sunscreens out there that have an SPF of 70+. So does it offer me maximum protection from say the sunscreen with SPF 15. I always used to wonder about this recommendation. If there are products with higher SPF’s, then why don’t doctors recommend the higher SPF.

SPF is the measure of a sunscreens ability to prevent UVB rays – which cause sunburn, from damaging the skin. The SPF number is a rating that determines how long you can stay in the sun without burning. It does not indicate the quality of protection, just length of time. The amount of time it takes you to sunburn depends on your skin type, and the SPF number you need depends on how much time you expect to be outdoors. Remember that if you will spend time in water, then you need to reapply the sunscreen at least every two hours for it to be effective. Click here to view a chart on SPF values for various skin types on various levels of sun intenisty.

So, here is the reason why I think doctors only recommend a sunscreen of between SPF 15 and SPF 30. SPF protection does not actually increase proportionately with a designated SPF number. For example, SPF 4 blocks 75 percent of sunburn damage; however, it may not provide broad-spectrum protection (protection from both UVA and UVB rays). Read the rest of this entry →

For a while now, I’ve wanted to dye my hair purple. I got the idea from a close pal, who also got me enrolled in a gym. I’d always known that if I had caucasian hair, I’d wear it spiky and tinted, but I’d never seriously thought of colouring my dreads.

Once I settled on the idea, I had to find the right shade. Most shops have brown, black, Burgundy, blonde, and – believe it or not – grey. I did manage to find ulraviolet-black, blue-black, and something called aubergine.

At first, I thought I could go ultra-violet with highlights of aubergine. The latter looks like a maroon shade of purple. But the salonist said if you shampoo between colours, the second colour is nullified.

I started out with ultraviolet and planned to add the aubergine two weeks later. But by day 2 I was impatient and decided to try it anyway. The ultra-black was just, well, black! I wanted something more … colourful.

Sunday morning, after almost an hour with purple on my head, we rinsed it off and saw … black. The colour didn’t catch! At least, it  didn’t catch the hair. But for the next one week, everything my head touched turned to purple. I had towels, windows and gym mats in that hue. Stress! Read the rest of this entry →

We protect our skin from sun damage by using a broad-spectrum sunscreen. Sunscreens are chemical agents that help prevent the suns ultraviolet rays from reaching the skin. The term broad-spectrum means that the sunscreen protects us from both UVB and UVA rays. Many cosmetic companies have products that claim to have anti-aging benefits. The truth however is that the best defense against wrinkles is a sunscreen of SPF 15 or higher, be it in your moisturizer or foundation.

Daily application of sunscreen prevents new wrinkles from forming or existing ones from deepening. The basics to look for are a product rated SPF 15 or higher, and containing one of these ingredients listed as active to ensure adequate protection from UVA rays: avobenzone (also known as Parsol 1789 or butyl methoxydibenzoylmethane), titanium dioxide, or zinc oxide. The best sunscreen is one that not only protects you from the sun but also prevent damage to the skin. So look for a sunscreen that is loaded with anti-oxidants

Sunscreens absorb reflects or scatters UV light. There are 2 types: Read the rest of this entry →

Skin cancer is the No. 1 most common type of cancer. Many of us unknowingly spend too much time in the sun with little protection. This exposure to the sun causes damage to our skin. Repetitive exposure of this kind, can put us at risk of getting skin cancer. Daylight, even dim, obscure daylight, causes skin damage. When the skin gets damaged, it means it slowly becomes less and less able to hold moisture or feel smooth.

Protecting your skin from the sun is important because the sun emits ultraviolet(UV) radiation. Over time, exposure to UV radiation causes many changes in the skin, including wrinkles, discoloration, freckles or age spots. It is important to note that most skin cancers are caused by exposure to the sun.

We really need to understand why exposure to the sun is so damaging. First, there are two types of UV radiation: UVB and UVA. UVB rays cause sunburns. UVA rays are believed to be responsible for photo aging(the damage that occurs to the skin from many years of exposure to the sun). UVA rays penetrate the skin deeply and cause sunlight induced premature aging, wrinkling and age spots. Both UVA and UVB rays can cause skin cancer even on cloudy days.

Nearly 95% of the UV radiation that we are exposed is caused by UVA rays. When photo aging occurs, certain fibers in the skin called elastin(from the word elastic) are damaged by the rays of the sun. Elastin is found in the dermis and is responsible for giving structure to your skin and organs. As we age, elastin diminishes which causes the skin to wrinkle and sag. Exposure to the sun also causes the elastin fibres to breakdown causing the skin to sag and stretch. The skin also tends to bruise and tear more easily and takes longer to heal. Usually sun damage will not show up when you are young but will later in life. So be sure to also protect your young ones from sun damage and teach them the importance of applying sunscreen. Keep children under six months old away from the sun. Read the rest of this entry →

I saw a feature in the news recently about a very offensive topic that we face everywhere around us be it at home, in matatus, at work etc- Body odour. The most affected areas on our bodies are hands, under the armpits, around the genitals and feet.

What is B.O?
According to Wikipedia,  B.O is the smell of bacteria growing on the body. These bacteria multiply rapidly in the presence of sweat, but sweat itself is almost completely odorless to humans. Body odor can smell pleasant and specific to the individual, and can be used to identify people, though this is more often done by dogs and other animals than by humans. An individual’s body odor is also influenced by diet, gender, genetics, health and medication.

How do you tell a friend that he/she doesn’t smell so good?
Unfortunately, the person who has it may be so accustomed to their own smell that they don’t notice. I remember not too long ago I was in this dilemma. A colleague and a very good friend of mine used to offend everyone in the office because of B.O, case in point under her armpits. Guys couldn’t take it anymore so they turned on me questioning why I didn’t advice my friend to use deodorant. Problem was I had tried giving her hints but she wasn’t picking on them. I finally decided enough was enough and told her that she had to do something about her B.O to say she didn’t take it well is an understatement, she even denied it.  All in all she got over it, enlisted my help and I introduced her to the fresh world on deo.

Fortunately body odour is very manageable so instead of offending people around you here are a few pointers on how to get rid of it. Forget Botox injections, these are simple and affordable remedies for B.O: Read the rest of this entry →

This is another gem from another of my aunts (yeah, my aunts are better than yours!)
During my sister’s upcoming wedding preparations, the bridesmaids had a meeting with the beautician, who happens to be my aunt.

Ok, I have a confession to make. I never really did stick to my tried-and-true remedy for rashes. I am quite lazy when it comes to beauty treatments. I honestly can’t picture myself waking up an hour earlier than usual everyday to apply makeup and do all those things that women with perfectly flawless skin do to maintain their complexions (OK, for some it’s just their genes, show-offs!)

Anyway, of course this time I took the initiative to ask about some beauty treatments because I gotta look awesome for my sister’s wedding.

So my aunt had this to say
Apparently I have oily skin on my forehead hence the rashes. Thankfully, there were some other ladies with the same dilemma as I did, thank God. So what she would recommend (and it works, I’ve tried it; I just need to keep at it!) is: Read the rest of this entry →

A few days later, I noticed that my face was burnt out again. Groan. I went back to the shop and bought Himalaya Neem wash, because, well, the cream wash was finished, and the Neem wash is for all skin types, so that seemed like a much safer option until I figured out what exactly was what.

I had re-used the for-oily-skin gel wash because it was in a pretty bottle, felt deliciously cool on my skin, smelt fabulous … and because I wasn’t about to throw out a perfectly good tube of facial wash. My reasoning was ‘what’s the worst that could happen?’

I used it one morning, just once. By lunch time, my face was stinging and ’sunburnt’. It took me a week of mild exfoliant and soothing Neem wash to get rid of the burn effect.

Yeah, I’m not ever trying that again.

Then I went a-googling and found out a few things. Apparently, getting burnt by clay masks is more common than you’d think. Yahoo answers claimed it was a sign of allergy, at which point I decided that I have sensitive skin, since I am ‘allergic’ to mud masks and cinammon exfoliant, and since my skin is shiny and  patchy, and is both dry and sticky after cleansing. Read the rest of this entry →

Powder
The purpose of powder is to keep foundation on longer, to set the foundation(keeps it from slipping) add a little more coverage , take away shine and give the skin a polished flawless look.

Since make up looks very different in the package than it does on your face then just like foundation it’s important to try it on your skin before you buy. The secret to powder is to get one with a yellow undertone and one that’s a shade lighter than your foundation. It will make your skin look natural, healthy and radiant.

There are four types of powder that come in loose powder form or pressed powder form. Loose powder is used when you first do your make up. It’s usually applied with a large powder brush. Always apply powder with a light hand, building it up when you need to. The key here is to apply it delicately and sparingly.

Pressed powder comes in a compact. Normally used for touch ups and to combat midday oiliness. Read the rest of this entry →

So, a few months ago, when I bought my first ever facial products, I went with Himalaya oily skin products. And that worked just fine for a few days, until my face broke out in what looked like sunburn. A week later, when I tried my first home facial, my skin burnt so intensely that I was tempted to smother myself with a pillow, just to stop the stinging.

I decided, based on the burning, that perhaps my skin is dry. After all, I had had a facial once, for an interview at KQ, and the lady insisted my skin was dry. I ignored her of course, on account of being so shiny.

However, I am a bit of a DIY fanatic, so I laid off the toner and bought some Himalaya dry skin products. That seems to work fine. The cream wash is gentler on my skin, even though it smells annoyingly flowery and tastes like pins.

The for-dry-skin fruit mask stung, but it stung considerably less than the mud mask. So I stuck to milk masks and exfoliated the burned areas every two days, and that seemed to help. For about a month, my skin looked and felt great. Read the rest of this entry →