Oh, gosh. Well, let’s see…
Deciding to pick up a lash curler for the first time — I think that was a pretty good decision. Or finally getting around to mowing the fuzz on my upper lip — that was another one, because upper lip hair removal wasn’t really a thing when I was growing up, and I didn’t get around to it until college (but better late than never!).
Investing in some top quality eye makeup brushes was another game-changer for me, because while those little sponge applicators can technically get the job done, they can’t hold a candle to a proper set of tools.
More recently, I’m glad I decided to grow out my brows (they frame the face!), eat less dairy (I think I have fewer breakouts now), and take the time to figure out a process to cover the darkest of my dark circles that works pretty well for me.
But I think one of the best beauty decisions I ever made was using the Web to track down a hair stylist who knows what to do with curly/wavy hair, because before that, I’d gotten a lot of “interesting” haircuts from stylists who’d just hack away at my mop because they didn’t really know what else to do with it.
Thanks to the power of the Interwebz (especially Yelp), I haven’t cried over an Edward Scissorhands-ian haircut in about 10 years (she said, repeatedly knocking on wood!), so I feel like that has probably been my best beauty decision overall.
I hope you’re feeling chatty today, babe, because I would love to hear from you. 🙂 What’s been one (or more) of the best beauty decisions of your life? Tell me about ’em in the comments.
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
P.S. A big parade wave and “hello!” from the land of the living! Guess who actually slept well last night.
Yup, after not sleeping enough at all last week (I get bad insomnia), I actually made it through the night, and it was glorious! El Hub slept well, too, and so we tried to figure out this morning what might have contributed to it.
Do you ever do that? Try to figure out why you slept well the night before so that you can repeat the process?
We think it might have something to do with humidity…
Wait — hear me out. 🙂 We’ve had an unusually dry winter here in Northern California with nary an inch of rain in months, but it was overcast and a little humid yesterday (didn’t rain, though), and we’re wondering if the air pressure or humidity played a role in how we slept.
I’m curious — do you sleep with a humidifier in your room, and do you think it helps you sleep better?
I don’t have a humdifier at home, but I do think I feel better when I wake up at my bf’s house because he has one. Otherwise I get really dry and then the moment I wake up my body tries to overcompensate and I get all… goopy. Ick.
So I think the best beauty decisions for me would be a) the internet – seriously the best tool anyone can ever have and b) getting an at-home brow waxing kit. my brows had no definitive shape and little stray hairs all over and I didn’t think it was that big a thing but it so was.
I think really starting to take care of my skin, using a good night cream and a day cream with SPF, drinking a lot of water, that kind of thing.
As for getting a good night’s sleep, humidity may have something to do with it, taking some of the dry out of the air. I sleep better in a completely dark room, no TV, flipping around the alarm clock, covering up all those lights on things.
Interesting! It has been dry in the desert, as well. I think my eczema is getting a little weird (Dr. appt. later to confirm what it actually is), so I might look into a humidifier today. The Man is working overnights for the next few weeks. I can’t sleep the first week of adjustment, so last night was a -fall asleep on the couch, to the TV- kind of night. 🙁
Hmm, I’d have to say that my first visit into Sephora as a transfer student to Sacramento State (2005) was the turning point in my non-existent make up life. I didn’t wear any make up until then, and the commute to school was more obvious under my eyes. Fast forward to a year after, and I found the wonderful Corrector by Bobbi Brown.
GAME CHANGER!
And then there’s the unknown year that I found your blog. I now have a decent collection of makeup and brushes/tools. I’m still working on stepping up my game by practicing eyeshadow and liquid eyeliner, but you and youtube are helping me with that. 🙂
Cheers to Tuesday! Hope the humidifier is the key to the wonderful sleep 😀
I live in Seattle, WA area and I always sleep wonderfully when it’s raining and terribly when it’s very hot. Hooray for rain!
When I decided to purchase Lorac’s POREfection Baked Perfecting Powder, I have come to realize that that has been the best beauty decision of my life, thus far. It is my PERFECT everyday foundation. It is also great for setting liquid foundations if I want super long staying power and extra coverage. I couldn’t recommend it more. Best beauty decision of my life.
Best beauty decisions…growing in my brows (’nuff said), getting a proper foundation match from a higher end brand (drugstores don’t cut it for olive skin), and learning to research online for swatches and reviews before buying in store.
I don’t sleep with a humidifier in my room, but I can imagine the benefit. I totally think the weather plays a role in sleep. We’ve had well below average temperatures in Florida over the past month and I certainly haven’t been sleeping much.
When I first started wearing make up, I was really scared to over-do it. I used brown mascara and a teeny bit of concealer under the eyes. Later I discovered that adding contrast to my face actually looked so much better! I started doing my brows and wearing black mascara. And wow, I had a face.
A year later, when I was seventeen, a classmate told me out of the blue that I had such nice full lips. I honestly never noticed the fullness and shape of my lips until then. Not much later I went to Yves Rocher store and asked the ladies for a good every day lipstick. I bought this gorgeous mlbb shade which I still own and wear 🙂
I think I cope much better in the winter when it is a little bit humid – last winter in Vienna was so so dry, and I was so ill. This year has been much more humid, and I’ve have been much healthier and better general!
I grew up in South West England, where it rains for about 9 months of the year, so rain makes me happy!
My best beauty decisions… stopping eating dairy and coming off hormonal contraception. Both have led to my skin being clear for the first time in 10 years! That and managing to grow my brows back after years of overplucking!
Most of my good decisions have been made this year I think – returning to my natural hair colour, cutting my hair really short (which I’d always wanted to do but never really had the cajones), this year has been a really good year for my beauty regime evolving into a grown up regime!
Hope you manage to recreate the conditions for good sleep!
The best beauty decision I’ve made was starting to pay more attention to my eyebrows! I always thought that just plucking them and keeping them neat was enough, but now I see what a difference it makes when I actually fill them in nicely! Day and night, absolutely day and night.
So I am starting to pay more attention to the tools I use, but what are some of the good synthetic eye brushes that you could recommend?? Also I have curly hair tooo and nooooo one knows how to cut it:(((
Oh, gosh. This is tough. Here are a few things that came to mind:
1. Finally embracing my curly hair.
2. Dying my hair black.
3. Getting back into nail polishes.
4. Using eye shadow brushes!!!!
The best decision I ever made was getting a facelift. Actually, a face, brow and eye lift. After years of looking in the mirror and pulling the skin on my face back to see what I’d look like, I decided that I would rather just take the plunge. I did, and I am thrilled. Not a week goes by when someone doesn’t comment on how great I’m looking.
The next best thing I ever did was use moisturizer ever night since I was in my mid twenties – a good 30 years, in other words. I’ll never know how much (or even whether) it helped, but at least it won’t be on my list of regrets!
I sleep with a humidifier, and I can say it made a difference in my skin and hair. Plus, I hate getting shocked every time I walk across a carpet and touch something!
Hmmmmm….my best beauty decisions..
One of those decisions was reading your beauty blog, honestly. I have learned things about skincare and makeup that I didn’t know before, from you and other readers. I learned that blending makes makeup look so much more natural, and I learned that it’s ok to experiment with fun colors past my college years and embrace my fun side.
Being Italian, my best beauty decision regarding my thick brows was giving them a little shape. I actually have never plucked them, but instead use one of those eyebrow razors… that way, if I get a little “shape happy” I haven’t destroyed the follicles to the point where they won’t grow back.
Not wearing makeup every day has also been a great decision, because it gives my skin a break. I noticed that I broke out a lot more when I wore makeup and full foundation every day – my skin seems to appreciate a nice gel-cream moisturizer like Garnier’s, and a BB or CC cream. I will also probably start using coconut oil as an eye makeup remover – I have heard it removes even waterproof makeup quite well and moisturizes the eye area very well.
I wanted to ask, what do you use for the very baby fine upper lip fuzz? I think mine is giving me breakouts around the mouth, so it’s time to do something about it.
My best ones have been attending beauty school (this is where I REALLY learned about makeup application). The other is this: I recently learned to redefine the word “beauty”. I now think beauty as we know it now, is really glamour. Red lipstick, fluttery eyelashes, flawless complexions: this has more to do with glamour than real beauty. Beauty has so many different definitions that it isn’t fair to claim one definition and then force others to conform to it.
Well said!
My best decisions are probably growing in my brows and taking care of my skin, which would include wearing sunscreen!
Hmmm…the first best decision I made was to go back to my natural hair. After 7 years with a relaxer, I longed for the days when my hair was a lot healthier & big & wild & free & un-tameable (is that even a word…haha). I’m never looking back & embracing it is so liberating. Secondly, I’d say learning how to properly groom my brows. I never got a handle on using the Benefit Brow Zinger like the SA at Sephora & since using MAC’s brow crayon in Spiked, my brows look amazing. I cringe every time I see a photo of myself with brows “sculpted” using a black eyeliner pencil. What in the world was I thinking?!!
Watching Lisa Eldridge tutorials, some Kevin Aucoin eyelash curlers and making my own moisturisers, cleansers and serums. Oh and using a 10% AHA 3 times a week. Yep, best beauty decisions I ever made!
HI KAREN!! which lipstick are you wearing?? i want it !!!
Not washing my hair. For years I used volumizing products on my stick-straight hair. Them I read an article in the nytimes where this girl’s 5th ave stylist told her to rinse her hair a few times a week under hot water, and scrub at the roots, but not to remove the natural oils with shampoo. Voila! Natural volume. I’ve gotten so many compliments and saved so much money! I use a pea-sized amount ever week or two especially at the nape of my neck, but never lather. So liberating. My scalp is really healthy and fresh. (People sniff if they find out and can’t believe it!)
And a good stylist! After the umpteenth bad cut in a decade, I googled “why can’t I get a good haircut” and found a great advice blog by a girl in France. She knew a stylist in a city close to me. Perfection! It’s not so much that she’s good at straight hair but that she has an overall creative vision and artistic sensibility, an artistic excellence. I pay a lot every 4-6 months instead of a little every 2-3 months, and I’ve never been happier with my hair. ( if you live near Boston, her name is Nikki at the Parlor Salon!) (plus she is super down to earth and genuine!)
That, and learning to love more, not react so much to faults of others, be more unselfish. That’s an ongoing process. But it does change the demeanor and attractiveness in a way that feels like real beauty to me.
I’m really interested in this!
I used to wash my hair daily, until injuries from a car accident forced me to change to a once-per-week routine (I needed help getting in/out of the shower, and it was quite an involved process, so I could only shower 1x/week while I was recovering).
The first month or so was miserable – my hair was a greasy mess all the time. Then it seemed like my hair adjusted to the new regimen, and I found my hair was MUCH healthier when I only washed once a week (of course washing every day was stripping my hair of the natural oils and so my hair overcompensated by producing too much oil). I never went back to daily washing.
A couple of years ago I cut WAY back on the number of products I was using (shampoo, wash out conditioner, leave-in conditioner, straightening gel, heat protectant spray, shine serum) and now just use shampoo, wash out conditioner, and a small dab of straightening gel.
My question for you is whether you use any leave-in products in your hair, and if so, whether just washing with warm water is enough to get the residue of those products out of your hair? Or is NOT using any leave-in products (including styling products, such as mousse, whine serum, etc) part of your routine?
Oh dear – that was SUPPOSED to say “shine serum,” NOT “whine serum”!!! LOL!
The best beauty decision I’ve ever made was looking up makeup tutorials on YouTube. It began my whirlwind love affair with makeup and it has honestly developed into a full-fledged passion for me. The first beauty guru I ever watched was Kandee Johnson.
When I was growing up, it was definitely getting my eyebrows tinted and waxed starting around age 16, something I refuse to ever go without. I’m a natural strawberry blonde Norwegian, so I have pale blonde hair, and lots of it! There’s no way I could ever tweeze it all! 😉 And in recent years probably investing in better brushes and learning new techniques from beauty bloggers like you. 🙂
Probably the best decision I made- in my teens- was to take excellent care of my skin. It has really paid off now that I am nearly 59! NO sleeping in makeup ever, cleansing and moisturizing, drinking water, and the addition of retinol and AHA, which I alternate. Consistency has been key for me. At least in my experience, I don’t think you have to pay a fortune to get good skin! I’ll admit it is fun and luxurious to use the ‘good stuff’ and we deserve it! On the East Coast our cold spell has been awful. Grrrrrrr! I have been using my regular body lotion and topping it off with Crisco, lol. Seriously…it’s keeping my skin hydrated and it’s non irritating. It absorbs fast, too. So much for luxury- heh!
@Betsey,
I heard *that!*
When I was in my teens and 20s, I got jeered at for being a “paleface” because I never tried to tan. People kept comparing me unfavorably to my friends who did tan, but I ignored them.
Now I’m almost 50,and get wistful remarks from my peers about my “creamy skin.”
Yeah. Now it isn’t “pale,” it’s “creamy.” 🙂
My best beauty decision was to grow my hair out. For the former, a hairstylist I newly visited asked me if I’d ever considered growing my hair out and that it’d look good. She gave me recommendations on how to style my hair as it was growing. She’s since left the hairstyling business to take culinary school but I’ve kept my hair long. I’m grateful to her for the advice.
I’m also glad I got my ears pierced when I was 15. I love wearing earrings.
I have to agree with a majority of the commenters, and you, about finding a good hair stylist being one of my best beauty decisions. It’s not like my super straight, fine hair is difficult, but for some reason most of the cuts I’ve had have ended with a lopsided front or unevenness somewhere. Now I’ve found a girl who does a great job listening not only to what I want, but what I’m afraid of happening. I’ve never had a more fantastic cut, and it looks good even after it grows out some. If any of you ladies live in St. Louis, I go to Mary at Linea Salon – she’s really meticulous so sometimes it takes a little longer than I expect but I’ve never been less than satisfied.
Other than hair, I’m going to have to say learning how to blend was a MAJOR revelation in my life. I had seen probably hundreds of blogs or videos on how to blend, but none of it really made sense until I read this article at xovain – http://www.xovain.com/makeup/blending-eyeshadow#awesm=~ouhg2Rdoal7PYv – and I’ve been blending like a master ever since. Maybe it’s because she has before-blending and after-blending photos, but it just clicked. Major kudos to this girl for giving such a thorough step-by-step.
I don’t have an humidifier at home, but maybe it would help my allergies O.o I could try.
The best beauty decisions of my life:
a) Getting into art school.- YES, it may sound weird, but it was art school (I’m a fine arts major) that thought me about color, and it was color that made my a nail polish junkie, and (later on) a makeup junkie. My entire (art)work is based around using fashion and makeup and translate it into abstract painting.
b) Cutting my hair.- I had moderately long hair, and it was DAMN greasy, lifeless and… the wrong mix of straight and wavy. Now I have it short (boy short), and I can control it much better! It looks less greasy and it’s a breeze to style!
c) Taking acne meds.- I had severe hormone-induced acne (because of PCOS-like stuff), and I went to a dermatologist to receive treatment; I am now on antibiotics, and I have a special skin care routine to prevent breakouts (but not overdry my skin); for the first time since I was 12 I have now almost-clear skin, I’m so happy!! 😀 😀
Let’s see …
There have been quite a few, since I’m something of a slow learner when it comes to my looks.
The best “general” change I ever made was to go completely cruelty-free in my makeup/skin care choices. It can be a little inconvenient at times, but there are great choices out there, and I feel so much better about my routine.
The first “revelation” about self-care occurred when I was in my late teens. I was battling acne that was not that severe, but was persistent.
I was convinced that the way to “cure” my insanely oily skin, and therefore my acne, was to dryyyy the daylights out of it, so I used an alcohol-based “toner” so strong it could probably have been used to clean road tar off construction equipment. My skin responded by defiantly continuing to break out, *and* look red. I wandered into a health-food/vitamin store one day, and an employee suggested that I use aloe vera gel on my face. I took her suggestion, my skin calmed down, and the “gentler is better” approach has kept my skin looking healthy for about 30 years.
Then in my 20s I was encouraged by a friend to stop trying to blow my naturally wavy hair straight, and instead work with its natural tendencies. I took up curl enhancer and a diffuser attachment, and have made [relative] peace with my hair.
Oh, yeah – and count me in the “no more sponge-tip applicators” club. Good makeup brushes really do make all the difference.
My best ever beauty discovery was contouring. I never, ever thought that light and dark colours could add such definition to your face. Definite game changer within my beauty regime!
Best decision was investing in the too faced makeup brushes. My makeup looks a million times better. Also following this site so I can see the makeup swatches and your thoughts about the makeup before I splurge. I had a humidifier in my appt because it was so dry my sinuses were a mess. It makes a world of difference. You should get one!
1) Wearing sunscreen most everyday. 2) Sometimes going without makeup when in public (hello inner beauty! lol) 3) Drinking lots of water.
1. Deciding to get over it and just try using blush! I’m super pale, so it’s nice to finally have some healthy colour in my cheeks!
2. Deciding to invest in some good (Chanel) eyelash curlers. I have long-ish lashes (or so I’ve been told)so I thought I’d capitalise on that!
3. Getting into reading (and now writing!) beauty blogs. I’ve learned so much about makeup, brands and quality since I started reading, especially Makeup and Beauty Blog and Temptalia 🙂
Karen how do you deal with the fuzz on your upper lip? I never had to but now I’m in menopause and need to take care of it and I’m scared!!
Best decisions for moi:
1. Decided to trim my eyebrows
2. Change my plastic-y comb with brush comb. TOTALLY changes my limp, straight hair. Now my hair looks like it has volume!!
3. Experimenting with types of vegetables and kitchen spices to find out what I really like and NOT like, so I can eat more of them and put them in my food. I had embarrassing stomach problem (it can’t stop gurgling because of gas), and vegetables cures it. Now I really, really like bok choy families and carrot…
We use a humidifier in our room in the winter. We don’t wake up with a dry throat or a nose to blow. We also have one in our son’s room. When he had a cold it helped it so much. He wasn’t sleeping well and using that allowed him to rest and not be as stuffy. Truly amazing!!:)
One of the best beauty decisions I ever made was to begin wearing sunblock every day when I was about 20. Sure, the majority of sun damage occurs before the age of eighteen (I am religious about slathering my now 2 year old in it), but I really believe if you start early, you can help your skin look youthful for far longer. I mean, I did two tours of Iraq, I HAD to wear sunblock!! It has paid off, because I am now 35, and people think I am 20-21, 23 at the max.
The next best “beauty decision” (more like luck), was finding the love of my life. He doesn’t care if I wear makeup or not, doesn’t care if I wash my hair or dress to the nines or not. He just loves me for me. I can be myself around him, and that is the best beautiful that anyone can find!
i renounced beauty and makeup altogether and now wear a paper bag over my head whenever I’m in public.
What a timesaver!!
I’m glad you got some sleep!
Best beauty decisions:
– Not wearing liquid liner on my lower lashline any more – this is what I did in high school.
– Wearing SPF daily from a young age – was a necessity because I’m ginger! I’ve also taken care of my skin from a young age.
– Recent: getting a humidifier! I need to get one for the first floor, but I love having it in my bedroom. HUGE difference, I have sinus issues too.
– Buying better mascaras that don’t make my eyes itch.
Not tanning!
Mine would probably be to start plucking my brows. When I don’t they’re full, messy, and I have a bit of a monobrow. My mom had a thing about me not touching or removing any of my bodily hair and letting only the experts do it, which wasn’t something a middle or high school kid could afford. For prom I went to a woman to do my makeup. She shaved off the monobrow and would have done more if my mom hadn’t stopped her. I’ve been maintaining it since.
Going natural and wearing my hair curly. Bye bye ghd’s.
Learning that you can apply eyeshadow to hooded eyes, and how to do it.
Discovering Nars, not a brand that is available in my country, and discovering that i can be completely wrong about what a Nars product will look like in real life, but that it will still be perfect for me when it arrives!!
First of all it’s winter in NJ and we ALWAYS use the humidifier in the winter. WE have forced hot air heat and without the extra moisture EVERYTHING goes somewhere in a handbasket (catch my drift?) LOL
My best beauty decision? I’ve been taking care of my skin since I was 12 and actually using decent products since I was 18. Too bad we didn’t know about sun exposure back then, I LOVE LOVE LOVE the beach.
My second best beauty decision was to wax my legs, underarms, and bikini area – I’ve also been doing this since I was 18. I get such a rash when I shave my pits and can’t even imagine shaving my bikini (itchy itchy). Just recently I started shaving my legs in the winter to cut costs.
My next foray may be to check out threading. Since I am getting older I have found that I have a freakin’ full beard if I’m not careful. I can’t wax because some of my facial products have retinol in them and waxing discolors the skin and makes it darker. i have to tweeze and it’s a daily adventure.
Korean eyebrow and eyeliner tattoo was the best thing that happened to me. Nope, they’re not permanent so they won’t turn blue like the ones you see on old ladies. I have thin and sparse brows and hate having to draw eyebrows everyday. For the eyeliner, I only had my upper lash line done. It looks very natural, and I don’t need to tightline anymore. With the tattoos all I need is just some gloss when I’m in a hurry. I got mine tattooed last November 2011 and now they faded a bit so I’m due for a retouch.
My tip is don’t go to establishments like Browhaus, ask your Korean friends who did their tattoos and which Korean establishments to go to. All my Korean ex-pat friends have tattoos. My tattoos only cost $150 but cosmetic clinics and establishments will charge you $500 for just the eyebrows alone. Plus Korean communities only trust their stylists, so you’re pretty much sure you’re in good hands if your Korean friends tell you that the tattoo artist is good 🙂
Oh and another good decision was investing a Shiseido eyelash curler. I always wanted to try lash curlers but did not want to buy an expensive one and I ended up just giving them away or throwing them out because I hate having to use them because they pinch. Shiseido’s eyelash curler has a deep curve and does not pinch my lids accidentally at all 🙂
Yes, very much so regarding the humidifier. It’s crazy dry here in the winter and the humidifier is a must. I don’t have trouble sleeping but I can feel the difference in my energy, etc, because I’m not waking up like some wilted plant. I highly recommend. Plus, it makes a humming noise which can be relaxing if you like that sort of thing.
Best beauty decision? Definitely tweezing my eyebrows, drinking lots of water every day and focusing on my skincare routine. I’m really happy with my Clarisonic.
I think the best beauty decision I ever made was to start reading all of these wonderful beauty blogs on a daily basis to get great tips, product recommendations, tutorials, etc. I wish I would’ve started so much earlier!