Girl-Woman-Beauty-Brains-Blog

Mary-Louise Parker, the star of WEEDS, opens up to More magazine in the June 2009 issue about dating as a single mother, taking a stand against Botox, and much More.

On Botox:  To actually want to look your age on camera is a violation in Hollywood's youth-at-all-costs handbook, but Parker says she has urged the producers not to digitally enhance her features, telling them "Don't take out my wrinkles.  I'm happy that I look a little tired."  She hasn't had Botox or surgery she insists, contorting her face into a series of hilarious contortions to prove it.  "Somebody told me that they'd read I had all this work done and showed me a picture and it was totally airbrushed," she says in outrage.  "It made me so mad.  I don't like what that says to other women.  I'm 44, and I look okay for 44.  I'm not trying to look 34."

Related Articles:

• Megan Fox June 2009 ELLE
• Sandra Bullock June 2009 Harper's Bazaar Magazine
• Rebecca Romijn June 2009 InStyle Magazine
• Paula Abdul June 2009 Ladies' Home Journal
• Jessica Simpson June 2009 Vanity Fair
• Diane Kruger June 2009 Lucky Magazine
• Beyonce Knowles June 2009 Marie Claire
• Drew Barrymore May 2009 Elle Magazine
• Harper's Bazaar March 2009:  26 Best Beauty Buys
• InStyle Magazine:  2009 Best Beauty Products
• May 2009 Self Magazine:  10th Annual List of Healthy Beauty Awards

Health and Wellness Wednesday:  Are Bargain Cosmetic Treatments a Bargain?

Given our current “recessionista beauty” purchasing habits, it is imperative to be mindful of what we are putting in/on our faces and not solely focus on the “bargain.”  We can’t take chances when our face is on the line, after all the consequences may be irreparable. 
 
 “I have seen many new patients that are coming to me after receiving “botched” treatments,” says Dr. Mark Nestor.  “I can’t stress enough the importance of seeing a specialist (dermatologist, plastic surgeon, oculoplastics and facial plastic surgeons) – you don’t want to take any chances when your health and appearance is at stake.”
 
According to The American Society of Dermatologic Surgery and The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, looking for a bargain on cosmetic procedures will unfortunately lead to an increase in horror stories about ‘discount injectables’ bought offshore and cosmetic medicine and cosmetic surgical procedures performed by untrained or poorly trained practitioners.”
 
You can now be econ-savvy and still look and feel your best by choosing cosmetic treatments that offer more “bang for your buck.”  Do your homework and choose treatments with longer-lasting results and lower long-term maintenance costs.  Weigh your options and opt for what will look good now … next month … and maybe even next year! 

For instance, recent clinical data demonstrates that the results of Restylane can last up to 18 months in 95 percent or more of patients with just one repeat injection. This means fewer injections and less dollars spent to look vibrant, fresh and youthful for more than a year! 

Remember, caveat emptor -- buyer beware!

Related articles:

• WARNING:  What You Need To Know Before Seeing Your Aesthetic Treatment Provider
• Ask Amanda
• New FDA Approved Evolence Is Not Your Mother's Collagen
• Professional Cosmetic Treatments for Your Hands
• Cosmetic Procedure Review: Juvederm Versus Restylane
• Botox Gives New Meaning To The Words Brain Freeze
• No. 1 Way To Fight Wrinkles
• The Surgery-Free Makeover
• The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly of Wrinkle Creams Containing Growth Factors

 

 

2009 Predictions: The Beauty Edition

Who is the new player joining the war on wrinkles and taking Botox in a run for your money?  Reloxin!  Made from the same neurotoxin as Botox, Reloxin is said not only to act more quickly but it even may last longer.  From growing thicker eyelashes to Botox's new competitor to an anti-aging perfume, this is a must-read for anyone looking for the next best beauty products!

So without further ado... See products

Check back later this week for our review of new L'Oreal EverPure Sulfate-Free Color Care System and Olay Professional Pro-X skincare products. 

Related articles:

• FDA Approves LATISSE To Increase Eyelash Length
• How To Shave Six Years Off Your Face
• Lancome Fashion Focus Chicago
• Beautynomics:  Is Consumer Vanity Outweighing Fear of a Recession
• Anti-aging articles
• Books on Anti-aging

Allergan, the makers of Botox, announced that the FDA has approved LATISSE (bimatoprost ophthalmic solution) 0.03% as a treatment to increase eyelashes in length, thickness, and darkness. 

Bimatoprost, the active ingredient in LATISSE™,was first approved in 2001 as a medical product to lower intraocular pressure in people with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension.

Available only through a doctor, LATISSE™ is a once-daily prescription treatment applied to the base of the upper eyelashes with a sterile, single-use-per-eye disposable applicator.

According to LATISSE™, users can expect to experience longer, fuller and darker eyelashes in as little as eight weeks, with full results in 16 weeks, BUT in order to maintain long, thick, dark eyelashes, you have to continue using  LATISSE.  If you discontinue using it, eyelashes will gradually return to where they were prior to treatment over a period of weeks to months (average eyelash hair cycle).

COST:  For a year's worth of long, thick, dark lashes, expect to pay almost $1,500 a year -- or $120 a month.

SIDE EFFECTS:

• Eye redness (3.6%)
• Itchy eyes (3.6%)
• Skin hyperpigmentation (2.9%)

 

WARNINGS:

• Allergan warns against applying LATISSE to the lower eyelid because it may cause darkening of the eyelid skin which may be reversible.
• LATISSE™ use may also cause increased brown pigmentation of the colored part of the eye which is likely to be permanent.
• It is possible for hair growth to occur in other areas of your skin that LATISSE™ frequently touches.
• It is also possible for a difference in eyelash length, thickness, fullness, pigmentation, number of eyelash hairs, and/or direction of eyelash growth to occur between eyes.
• These differences, should they occur, will usually go away if you stop using LATISSE™.

 

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STORY:

It was a media frenzy last year when the FDA had U.S. Marshals seize over 12,000 tubes worth $2 million of Jan Marini's Age Intervention Eyelash, which contained bimatoprost that caused swelling of the eyes in some users -- including us! -- although Jan Marini Skin Research denied that the product contained bimatoprost.

The jury is still out for us, but we will keep you posted if we use it or discover any new information.  Do you think you would be interested in using LATISSE on your eyelashes?

 Please see comment section for a response from Jan Marini Skin Research.

Easy Hairstyle Update -- Bangs!

Bangs are the easiest way to...   ...update your hairstyle.   ...cover a wide forehead.   ...and cheaper than Botox at hiding wrinkles.   "And you thought I was just being trendy,"chuckles Mother Blogger.      Find some inspiration from 15 celebrity photos, including Jessica Biel's or Keira Knightly's sideswept bangs to Christina Aguilera's or Katy Perry's short, blunt bangs.         See bangs

The Lazy Woman's Guide To Midlife Reinvention is brought to you by our entertaining and witty blogger Karen Hamilton.  Karen offers five tips to to make your midlife reinvention go a little more unwrinkled -- I mean smoothly.

Laugh and celebrate midlife with Karen.

Beauty Product Review of Obagi Medical Condition and Enhance System

Preparing for microdermabrasion about five years ago, I succumbed to my doctor's advice and plunked down the cash for Obagi Condition and Enhance System.  Although it was extremely effective, I stopped using it, primarily because I changed derms. Somewhere in the recesses of my mind, I also remember "The System" being too much of a system, too complicated, too many products.  But testing it for this review refreshed my memory and skin on its efficacy.

Discover the results.

 

Written by Schmicker for Girl-Woman-Beauty-Brains-Blog. (Don't forget to any aesthetic treatment questions that are bothering you.)