About.com Beauty

Summer Beauty Mistake No. 1: Nasty Feet

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 23:53:20 +0000

Now that summer has finally come to New York City, people's feet are out in all their glory, usually clad in gladiator sandals which I am SO NOT A FAN OF (go ahead and ream me out in the comments section, I have tough skin). Since the toes are on display, I will remind everyone to:

Please, please, please do not grow out your toenails so that they are long enough for you to scratch a mosquito bite on the back of your leg.
Use a pumice stone on your heels -- scaly feet are gross.
Do not pick at your bare feet in front of another person. No matter how comfortable you are in someone's presence (I don't care if you were at a friend's side as she gave birth), your friend/sister/mother/husband does not want to watch you dig between your toes and glide your fingernail under your toenail and then roll up the nasty bits and them drop them on her Peshawar carpets. I'm just sayin'.

Beauty Pet Peeve: Flat, Lifeless Long Hair

Sun, 28 Jun 2009 11:28:11 +0000

I was in London on a business trip recently and I noticed the hair trend of the moment was long, straightened hair. I think the women were hoping for sleek, but what they ended up with was flat and lifeless, which is what tends to happen when you grow thin hair long and then straighten it with a flat iron. Few of these styles had any body to them.

I don't know if British women have thin hair in general (there are a lot of natural blondes there, and individual blonde hair is thinner than dark hair) or if their hairstylists are thinning their hair out with razors, but what these styles were lacking is a good, old-fashioned beauty keyword, "body."

To add body to thin hair you can do the following:

If you were born with super thin, wispy hair, don't grow it longer than your shoulders. The longer the hair, the more lifeless it becomes.
If your individual hair strands are thin, but you have a lot of hair, you can grow hair long, just ask your stylist to cut in long layers. Layers add body. But make sure the stylist doesn't thin hair too much.
Invest in a good thickening, volumizing spray or mousse. But a little will go a long way. Too much product will also weigh hair down.
Let hair air dry. Most hair has natural wave to it. If you let hair airdry, the natural wave will add body. Scrunch hair as it dries for added wave.
Consider hair extensions. Not all hair extensions are a major investment. You can get a few clip-on extensions for extra body.

Farrah Fawcett: Goodbye to a Pop Culture Icon

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 13:20:46 +0000

Today, Farrah Fawcett died after a 3-year battle with cancer. We take this time to remember her over the years in this photo gallery.

Another Cool Beauty Tool: Your Finger

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 23:14:34 +0000

I use my index finger all the time in the name of beauty. After applying eyeliner to my bottom lid, I always smudge it so it looks less harsh. You can use your finger to apply a sweep of eyeshadow on your lids (I once wrote not to do this, but I've since changed my mind), you can use your finger to apply cream blush on the apples of cheeks and lipstick looks super natural when applied with a finger, rather than perfectly in the lines.

I like to apply Dr. Hauschka's lip balm, then apply a bright red lipstick with my finger. The balm melts onto my lips in the most fantastic way, but I hate the lack of color. The red adds just the right amount of pop without looking too fake and perfect. Lips are left moist and sexy.

An 80-Year-Old's Secret to Youthful Skin

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 13:43:46 +0000

An acquaintance told me she met an elderly woman in NYC who looked much, much younger than her 80 years. My friend was enthralled by her and wanted to know the secret to looking so fabulous. In the course of conversation, the woman (named Ruth) told my friend she'd moved from Europe in the 30s to escape the Nazis and ended up in Manhattan where she became a writer. Her expertise? How to look young naturally. In fact, she claimed to have written the first book on natural beauty which was a success in the 70s.

So what was the secret to Ruth's youthful looks? The secret, according to Ruth, was that after she made all the money on the first book, she spent some of the proceeds on an eyelift.

Omigod! Megan Fox Has a Weird Thumb

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 05:53:31 +0000

The latest in celebrity body oddities is Megan Fox's weird thumb. Apparently the Web is all abuzz over Fox's strange, flat-yet-wide-and-strangely-small thumb, which a doctor has identified as a possible "clubbed thumb." Here's the picture (see the thumb, over there, to the left). Decide for yourself.

Not content with Megan Fox's weird thumb? Here are other body mysteries of celebs:
Is model Karolina Kurkova missing her belly button?
What's up with Lisa Rinna's puffy lips?

New Trend: Posing Nude While Heavily Pregnant

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 14:50:03 +0000

Could you imagine taking semi-nude or fully nude photos of yourself when heavily pregnant? It's actually a big trend among new mothers right now (remember when Demi Moore posed pregnant and nude?) and more and more new moms are duffing their clothes and posing for photographers.

Jennifer Loomis is a well-known pregnancy photographer (and a friend of mine) based between Seattle, San Francisco and New York. Her new book, Portraits of Pregnancy, 50 pregnant women (one famous) who posed for Jennifer. Each one tells her sometimes heartbreaking stories of pregnancy and motherhood. Many of the women have battled infertility, some have had miscarriages, yet all the stories have a liberating message in them. The women range from age 16 to age 54 and are of all ethnicities and backgrounds. Because the stories are so inspirational, "Portraits of Pregnancy" is my favorite gift for newly pregnant friends and new parents. At only $25, it also makes a great coffee table book.

Buy Portraits of Pregnancy online.

Some Random Thoughts About Beauty That Have Nothing to Do With Hair & Makeup

Wed, 10 Jun 2009 18:35:48 +0000

Since my site is about beauty, I usually focus on hair, skin and makeup. But recently, I've been struck by so many beautiful things that have nothing to do with our looks. I want to share them with you. Here's what I found beautiful this week:

1. Ken Cary, 70, is losing his eyesight and his hearing but is taking life by storm. Instead of sitting in a chair and awaiting his fate, he's taken on a job -- answering phones! -- and he's learned to golf blind and give speeches, which always scared him. He's jumped out of a plane 3 times in the last year. (Read about him here). That's beauty.
2. When I see a dad eagerly taking on roles in his home that his father and grandfather never dreamed of -- that's beauty.
3. People who rescue animals no one else wants, like my good friend Laura, who spends so much energy trying to find homes for loveable pit bulls. That's beauty.
4. My friend Kat, who travels a long distance every week to sit by the bedside of a lung transplant patient who's family is "too busy" to take care of her. That's beauty.
5. My Vipp trash can, which was hand designed for a beauty parlor in the 50s. That's beauty.

Feel free to add your own thoughts below....

Dry Skin -- 10 Ways to Fix Dry Skin on Hands, Feet, Face and Lips

Sat, 06 Jun 2009 23:30:12 +0000

There's nothing more annoying than dry, itchy skin. I've battled dry, itchy skin for years and couldn't stand the way lotion feels on my legs (it tends to get sticky and I inevitably hop in the shower to wash it off). I wish I learned years ago that I LOVE the way oil feels on my skin. I'm addicted to a sugar scrub my friend Susan makes in her home and should be selling because it's amazing. It contains the sugar, which acts as an exfoliant, and a bunch of different oils which make my skin extra silky and dewy and gets rid of the itch.

If you suffer from dry, itchy skin, check out Dry Skin -- 10 Ways to Fix Dry Skin on Hands, Feet, Face and Lips

Pati Dubroff's Fabulous "How to Take a Proper Bath" Tips

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 20:47:01 +0000

I'm a fan of GOOP, Gwyneth Paltrow's newsletter and Website because, quite simply, I have a big girl crush on 'GP' (what all her close friends call her, as Paltrow told Conan last night on his show). Recently GP featured beauty tips from famed makeup artist Pati Dubroff. I particularly liked Dubroff's advice on taking a good, long bath. Here is my version of her process:

1. First, she puts Epsom salts in her bath. I use salts as well and it gives the bathwater a "soft consistency," much like the ocean. Apparently Epsom salts also de-toxify and de-puff the skin.
2. While in the bath, Dubroff uses an exfoliating mitt, like the kind found in Korean bath houses (I am also a fan of body scrubs at Korean bathhouses). You can get yourself a good exfoliating mitt at health food stores or online.
3. Next, she slathers skin with organic extra virgin coconut oil. I've never tried this, but I can't wait to. I prefer the feel of oil on my skin to lotion, so this may be a keeper for me. Buy this in a health food store or online.

I think it would make a great hostess gift to package the salts, the mitt, the coconut oil and a candle in a classy basket.

Get more GOOP beauty tricks on the GOOP Website.