maintenance for the mavens

Today a friend told me I should I should share, ala blog, some of my beauty secrets / product junkie hints / trade secrets / favorite girlie spots since I am definitely a gal that likes to be girlie-girled with hair goo, face gunk, mani's, waxes, etc. But then I thought, if I share, they wouldn't be secrets anymore. Alas, since it's a new year, and I would like to think of myself as a practical maintainer as well as a mare that can share. Since I have hours of this to share and my palette for the new is always changing, I will start with a few:

1. Bumble and Bumble hair products. They not only make your hair bouncy and shiny, but they are also conditioning at the same time. While I don't have the $$$ for all of the products, my favorite is the Styling crème. While it's around $25 for a bottle, it will last you forever. The trick is (and this goes for any product), less is more. Always start small. This creme is good for any type of hair but seems to work best with thicker hair (sorry, it gets a little gluey in the wrong head of hair) but otherwise, for waves, straight, damaged...it's lovely. You can do all sorts of heat inspired looks (hot rollers, irons, etc.) and it conditions your hair to a point of keeping it safe from the hotness…that hotness in the end is you!!

Their surf spray rocks but here’s a tip: if you mix 1 3/4 teaspoons of sea salt (or regular salt) with one cup of water in a spray bottle, you can get the same results. If you like you can add a few drops of your favorite essential oil such as lavender to get not only conditioning, but you’ll smell just dandy. Make sure you SHAKE well each time you use it. Use it on damp hair and either air dry or scrunch under a hairdryer. Excellent and sexy.

2. Favorite bikini / Brazilian waxer in L.A.

Get WAXED!! I realize I am bouncing around here, but this is a MUST. After months of terror getting my privates ripped, torn, burned and shredded, I thought I had found a utopia. This place had a wax that was different and I "thought" the waxing was, too. But afterwards, I suffered with outgrow problems I won't get too graphic with. Then the gates of Heaven opened and I found her at Billion Dollar Brows. I only got my eyebrows done there once but it wasn’t because they were bad. Nope. I don't get my brows done. Have you seen them? They are Marlene Dietrich-ed (mom ALWAYS said at some point they would never grow back...but I wanted to be a grunge rocker in the 90's!!) They are now thin as rails. But the day I did go, they giggled and cleaned up the two or three loose hairs, shaped them and filled them in so I had sexy diva eyebrows. And can I also say it’s relaxing? As if! Their chairs recline in the most comfortable way and your head is back in a perfect spot so they while they work and you close your eyes, all you do is here the light background music and the hum of the cars outside the door. It also is fast and does not hurt!!!

Billion Dollar Brows rocks for regular eyebrow care but back to the wax. Marina is her name and waxing is her game. She is the cutest, tiniest woman you have ever seen and makes you feel extremely comfortable, which is plus since she is touching all of those spots that otherwise might make you blush. She also tells the wildest tales about her life, other clients and in return, you get a very fast, pain-free wax. Also, the aftermath weeks later are unbelievable. One word of caution: she has a mirror in that odd place that when you happen to crane your neck, you are suddenly face to face with your sassy spot. While SATC taught us it's good to look at it and love your sass, seeing it at angles with all of the other parts of your body tends to make you want a Xanax.

All of that aside, I give it a high kick in short shorts!

http://www.billiondollarbrows.com/

3. Old standbys. I did listen to my mom when she told me to always keep a jar of Vaseline around just.in.case. It took me years to do this since I was still recovering from the time I took an entire jar and smeared it all over myself because I liked how shiny I looked…but she was right. Vaseline is good for burns, but even more, its great for dry skin. Right now my hands are like how I picture Yoda’s claws – dry, flaky and sometimes they hurt. I have been slapping some ‘line on them before bed and don my little cotton gloves and voila, soft and pretty hands are what you get the next morning. Works for feet, too!

Witch hazel. While you can use it for a variety of things: sores, bruising, anything swollen, I like to use it as an astringent. It’s mild, natural and does not strip your skin like many more popular products. Not to mention, a jug of it is CHEAP.

Indulge my darlings…and wear sunblock!