Your face is the most
attractive part of your personality. A skillfully done make-up enhances
its appeal; it gives you an added dignity in society, and helps you gain
self-confidence. But, mind you, make-up should speak for itself, show
your taste and enhance your dignity; mere piling-up of beauty aids is
not make-up. Such unskilful use of cosmetics diminishes natural beatury.
There are women who are not beautiful, but since they know the art of
carrying themselves; they become the centre of attraction despite their
ordinary looks. Attractive personality and beauty are two different
things. If you have an appealing personality, your complexion and your
looks will add to your charm but, unfortunately, if you have an
unattractive personality, only looks will not be able to help you.
A woman should learn the
art of beautification and should adopt a style of her own so as to
remain the centre of attraction. It is, therefore, necessary to know the
secrets of beauty aids and the art of using them to the maximum
advantage. It is also essential to have a thorough knowledge of the
various beauty aids available in the market.
It is helpful to apply a
good foundation or lotion on the hands, neck and the face before
make-up, so that the skin appears even. Powder gives a kind of glow to
the checks, so does the cream. Rouge heightens the natural pink
tinge of the cheeks. Eyes lend charm to the face. Their beauty can be
increased by a make-up of the eyes, eye brows and eye lashes. All these
beauty aids are important to enhance the appeal. Every woman should know
them and should take care to use these to the maximum benefit.
Although a large number
of different beauty aids are available, they should be used according to
the specific requirement of one's age, skin, shape of the face, season
and occasion. Wrong choice of make-up may affect your skin; you may look
unattractive or more aged than your actual age. In order to keep your
facial skin young and glowing you can use various cold creams, vanishing
creams, nourishing creams, cleansing creams, astringent lotions,
calamine lotions, foundation creams and face powders.
COLD CREAM
Cold cream is used to
minimise the effect of the vagaries of the climate. It can also be used
as cleansing cream to clean the skin of dust and dirt. Cleansing creams
are made with honey, wax, almond oil, borax powder, rose water and
essence. Cold cream can be used all through the year. It protects the
skin from the cold biting dry breezes in winter. In the rainy season and
in summers, it is used as an all-purpose cream. Some popular brands are:
Lakme, Ponds, Charmis, Navea, Max-factor, Pears, Afghan Snow, Emami and
Johnson.
VANISHING CREAM
Moisture is necessary to
preserve the skin from the ups and downs of the weather. Vanishing cream
keeps the skin moist. It is beneficial for oily and normal skin.
Vanishing cream contains stearic acid, potassium hydro-oxide, glycerine,
di-glycol stearate and water. If used before make-up, vanishing cream
lends a glow to the face. Some known products are : Lakme, Max-Factor,
Ponds, Charmis, etc.
NOURISHING CREAM
Nourishing cream is used
to give nourishment to the skin. In softnes the skin and keeps it
glowing. The bottle of nourishing cream should be kept away from the
reach of the children because the lanolin, wax and oil contents in it
are injurious to health. Lakme and Max-Factor are some of the major
producers of nourishing creams.
CLEANSING CREAM
It is used to clean the
face of make-up and the dust before going to bed. The layers of make-up,
dust and sweat remain as a coat on the face and do not let the skin
breath which may result in wrinkles and dullness. Cleansing cream is
made with a mixture of stearic acid, mineral oil, lanolin, teropenol,
tri-ethanolamine, propyline, glycol and perfume. Some famous brands are
: Gala, Lakme, Anne French and Max-Factor.
ASTRINGENT LOTION
Astringent lotion is used
to check the oily skin's tendency to ooze stickiness, because oiliness
clogs the pores. In order to open them, it is advisable to use a good
astringent lotion on the exposed part of the skin. The main ingredients
in an astringent lotion are : alum (fitkiri), glycerine and water. Some
well-known brands of this lotion are : Max-factor, Lakme, Gala.
CALAMINE LOTION
Calamine is used to
remove the spots on the skin and to make it even. It is available in
various shades according to the requirement of one's complexion. Lakme's
Lacto-Calamine and Vicco Turmeric Cream are popular products in this
field.
FOUNDATION CREAM
Foundation cream not only
removes the spots, but it also makes the skin smooth so that make-up
looks appealing and well-set on the face. Max-Factor's Hi-Fi, foundation
cream is available in many shades. It can be chosen according to your
complexion. 'Satin Glow' by Lakme is in liquid form and is useful for
all types of skin. 'Look Natural' by Gala and 'Sheer Genius' by
Max-Factor are complete beauty aids in themselves.
FACE POWDER
Face powder is applied
after the application of foundation cream to make the face look glowing
and bright. Face powders are available in different shades and should be
chosen according to the colour of your skin. Chemicals such as kaolin,
talc magnesium stearate, magnesium carbonate, zinc oxide, yellow oxide,
grey oxide and perfume are used for manufacturing face powders. Care
should be taken not inhale face powder because the chemicals it contains
like magnesium and oxide are injurious to lungs. These may cause cancer.
Lakme, Max-Factor and Ponds are some fine products.
