Best beauty decision you ever made

[Goostacean]

Lockdown is giving me plenty of time to think of what I could change in my beauty regime (which is currently very limited ).

Please inspire me: what was your revolutionary/ life-changing/ beauty-defining decision, product, new habit or whatever?

I have a NuFace Trinity which I think is the same thing as the mini but with changeable heads. I love it but it’s definitely a commitment so don’t get one if you don’t have a spare 15-20 mins to spend on it. I’m 40 and it’s helped my face look more toned, I bought it more for my jawline than anything else. I just use ultrasound gel rather than their own stuff - much cheaper!

buying that lumea zap zap gadge a few years ago. the elimination of my monobrow alone was worth it i'd happily have paid a salon ~300 for that. i'm lazy i should use it more in my legs.

or perhaps the discovery of acid toning when i was about 18.

@risefromyourgrave Thankyou for the info. Do you use it daily or just a few times a week?

@louisethedisease I used it pretty much daily, it recommends 5 times a week so I just did it every day morning apart from when I really didn’t have the time. After 60 days they say to go down to 2 ‘maintenance’ days a week. I bought the eye attachment then so now I do 5 days of the eye, 2 days of the face! I think it’s the only thing like this that is approved by the FDA in the US, which kind of proves it works I think, as they can’t approve things without evidence that it works.

I have also stopped useing liquid foundation, specially with this heat, mineral powder foundation seems to last all day for me, were liquids foundation was mostly gone by lunch time.

@peoplearepeople very interesting what you say about henna. Is there a particular one you recommend?

I started growing out my hair dye around three - four years ago. I love the natural grey and I'm really glad I'm no longer bound to routine of colouring the roots every few weeks. My roots would be noticeable a fortnight after colouring my hair.

Recently I've started using Skinny Tan. I can't imagine sunbathing ever again, but I do like having some colour.

Microshaded eyebrows (prefer it to microblading, which I did for a couple of years)

Cleansing with apricot kernel oil in the evenings and just water and a flannel in the mornings

Nivea Creme every night

SPF 50 every day (since my early 20s, I'm mid 40s now)

Exercise - agree with pp about getting a sweat on!

Drinking a glass of water first thing - I put it next to the bed the night before

Doing all the above religiously

I'm mid 40s and have few wrinkles, which is probably thanks to the SPF!

Getting my my teeth professionally bleached by the dentist. Expensive but would pay it again in a heart beat.

Chopped my hair super short and it's bloody liberating.

A aaa

this thread is amazing

Braces & teeth whitening at 41.
9 months of smile-tru (like Invisalign) and I love my smile now. Teeth whitening was included after the braces. I had custom trays for the whitening gel (Boutique) to be used at home as and when required.

Microblading - found a bloody fantastic artist in Kidderminster (Natasha Phillips at Refined Beauty) Her attention to detail is second to none. She’s incredible. Love the shape and colour (dark brown), had them done Jan 2019 and they’re just fading a bit now. Still have a lovely shape to fill in where needed with pencil, so I’m in no rush to get them redone (just as well really!!)

Philips Lumea IPL - brilliant on underarms (dark hair). Part way through treating bikin area (dark hair) and the regrowth is vastly reduced so far. Might try my legs next, but the hair is paler there, so not sure how well it’ll work.

Absolute Collagen - been using for almost a month now. Nails are stronger. Hair seems silkier. Skin.....nothing notable to report yet. Going to stick with it for six months - hoping it’ll ease some joint aches.

Really like The Body Shop’s Drops of Youth Liquid Peel for my face. Also good on feet.

Lots to look into from this thread.
Pre lockdown, I was considering getting some hydra-facials. Anyone have any feedback on those?

Laser eye surgery.

Laser hair removal - i was so conscious of the hair on my legs i didn't bring dc to the beach sometimes -
I'd get them waxed but then it had to be a certain length to be waxed again and invariably the sun shone just before they needed doing again.
It made me sooo sad.
A life changer - thank you Mum, you gave me the money for it and encouraged me to go for it.

@Livingoffcoffee I use the Altruist SPF30 from Amazon as a moisturiser/SPF every morning. I don't find I need anything else. It's great stuff, cheaper than Ultrasun which I've also used, and even my family members with eczema and sensitive skin can use it all over.

Cynosure laser hair removal is excellent.

Had lash extensions which I loved but find them hard to maintain.

Love shellac mani/pedi's which always cheer me up and make me feel well put together

In certain countries there’s a much bigger culture of sun protection and it definitely shows - a lot of very elegant ladies with great skin from Japan or South Korea aren’t shy about a culture of wearing “floppy old lady hats and sunglasses and long-sleeved everything” in their 20s.
Sadly I think certain countries obsession with sun protection ties in with colourism and ageism... (I would know as I’m from one of those countries)
I still think sun protection is important obviously but I wouldn’t want to be as obsessive as some cultures. Many of my Aunties would get angry if we caught the sun

(Sorry I hate to derail this thread)

Anyway to answer the OP - electrolysis! It provides permanent hair removal (laser has not been proven to be permanent)

Retin-A, 50+Sunscreen every day (also on backs of hands!), Facial skincare applied right down neck to between boobs. Ditching sugar from my diet and increasing water. Nadine Baggott over Caroline Hirons advice so you don’t get confused or go broke.

Having my brows microbladed, have not had them freshened up in nearly a year now due to being pregnant & they still look perfect

@lindyloo57 which mineral powder foundation do you use? Liquid foundation melts off my oily face 😩

Started using st tropez 10 day tanning instead of lying in the sun all day.
My skin feels much nicer for it

Every time I have given up alcohol it has made no difference to my weight or energy levels whatsoever. I've done it for months and felt no difference. That's probably just me. I do feel better if I eat healthier.

Vioetbluegreenred I use laura mercier it is discontinued but you can get it if you shop around, I tried bare minerals but didn't get on with it so much, you might, it's worth a try if you can't get LM, I even use a little LM as a setting powder over liquid foundation just to use them up, it helps them last longer.

@KnitFastDieWarm
Please could you tell me what hair products you use, please?
I have fine wavy hair too, and am struggling finding curly girl products that work without making it look greasy!

Hmmmm it’s a tough one to narrow down but I’d probably say -

Phillips Lumea is incredible. Sadly mine is currently broken (won’t recharge) so I’m saving up for a new one.

Getting rid of my long hair. It was beautiful and so long I could sit on it and drew many compliments but, under peer pressure, I decided to donate it to a charity that made wigs for those with hair loss. I expected I’d hate short hair and would regrow it asap but found it works much better for me and compared to all the other 20 somethings at the time who all had long hair, I felt a bit “different” and edgier and now I’m in my thirties and I’ve never grown it out since, just kept going shorter. It always looks chic and “done” and, although it needs styled most days, it’s so much less time consuming to wash and dry and I feel the focus is more on my face/eyes than the long hair. Apart from now when it’s got longer in lockdown and I’m in desperate need of a cut. Currently shoulder length, longest it’s been in many years and I’m longingly eyeing up chin length bobs and short pixies. Can’t wait to get it lopped off!

Also, swimming. Before lockdown I’d go in my lunch hour or after work every week day and often on a Saturday too. It’s really toned me up and given me an athletic figure that I never had and strong arms and legs. I’ve also found it makes me put more effort into keeping my body moisturised and “groomed” if that makes sense. After an evening swim, I’ll always take a long shower and wash my hair/exfoliate/moisturise in the changing rooms and it just feels really luxurious, like me time. Swimming has been really great for me and I’ve missed it SO much! Definitely more flabby now than I was at the beginning of the year .