bymarin courtesy of fdp

Awwww, yeah! I know you’ve been waiting with bated breath, so, without further ado:

THE TOP 7 NO MAKE-UP, ALL DAY, EVERY SEASON, BEAUTY TIPS!

1) Wear sunscreen. Sunscreen, sunscreen, sunscreen. It is a must. Any day you wake up you need sunscreen. Sunny or cloudy, altitude or sea level, put on sunscreen. Sunscreen protects your skin from the ultra violet radiation that induces wrinkles, age spots, and cancer. There is little more beautiful than not having cancer.

2) Exfoliate. Exfoliate any skin you anticipate putting make-up on and/or any skin you want to look decent in the light of day. The jist of exfoliating is supply and demand. Removal of the uppermost layer of crippled and/or dead skin cells prompts the cells left behind to increase production. They rejuvenate. Higher cell turnover leaves you with skin that is more vibrant and fresh! By nixing the decrepit cells, any moisturizer, foundation, or, OH OH, sunscreen, will enjoy optimal application conditions. The product will go directly and smoothly onto your best skin.

Exfoliation should be limited to once per week. More often and your skin may start to look like a beefy wound; it’ll be too new.

3) Groom your eyebrows. Without a single product on the face, well maintained eyebrows convey a “put together” look.

My relationship with my eyebrows is complex, and in many ways still in its adolescence (lots of rebellion and acting out), so starting out I needed to enlist some professionals to help me find a flattering structure. Once you spend that money to have your eyebrows shaped by an experienced aesthetician, you can perpetuate the look by periodically plucking away any hairs that don’t fit the prescribed pattern. Batta bing batta boom, you’ve got a natural, complimentary look before you can even say “unibrow.”

4) Limit the amount of nastiness you introduce to your face. That’s not a comment on your dating life, (or rather, it’s not intended to be a comment on your dating life…), it is an admonishment to keep bacteria and grime off the visage. They don’t belong there and your skin knows it. If detritus is present, your body will fight back by initiating inflammation. Inflammation leads to red spots, oily patches, and aggressive coups against your pores. Don’t give your body fodder for retaliation by resting your cheek on your palm. Keep the peace.

5) Change your pillow case. As discussed above, you want to minimize the amount of gross you get on your face. True life confession? I drool when I sleep (quantity will remain undisclosed).

Think about how many bacteria slosh around your saliva like a slip n’ slide (hint: a lot). Now imagine all those little bacteria sticking around in the splash zone AKA your pillowcase AKA where you rest your head for roughly a third of your day. Ew. That goes for shampoo residue, product residue, and residue residue. It all just hangs out waiting to irritate and aggravate your skin.

Some vigilantes recommend changing your pillow case every 2 days (sleep on one side, then flip the next night). If you’re type A enough to do that, go for it. I try for a weekly rotation.

6) Take your make-up off and wash your face before you go to sleep. Every. Single. Time. I know. Hygiene is annoying. But make the commitment. Again, you want to minimize your face’s encounters with yuck; it will pay off dividends as you age.

7) Floss. You only get one set of permanent teeth. That’s why they’re called permanent and not… perpetual. Your smile is one of the most naturally beautiful things about you. Your teeth are functional and fabulous. Treat them as such.

So, that’s it! My 7 best non make-up beauty tips! Learn them, love them, and enjoy being beautiful! Join me next week for a look at what’s hot and happening in Halloween make-up this year!