Beauty Confidential

I must have been absent the day that all the girls learned how to do their hair and do their makeup.

Granted, I grew up during the “Big Bangs” era but somehow I never learned to do much else with my personal appearance other than tease my bangs into a five foot arch hanging over my head.

In fact, one time–I must have been in 9th grade or something–I decided I didn’t like my bangs. I didn’t want bangs. My solution? I would cut them off. So I took the scissors, put them as close to my scalp as possible, and snipped off my bangs.

Unfortunately, this didn’t go as well as I’d planned. In fact, I told the kids at school that my bangs had CAUGHT ON FIRE.

Seriously.

So that should give you some background on how hair/makeup/skin care challenged I am. (Very.)

The Parent Bloggers Network sent me Nadine Haobsh’s new book, Beauty Confidential, and I am not joking when I say this book has changed my life.

First, she mentioned that parted down the middle hair looks good on virtually nobody. Hmm. So I got out of the shower, parted my hair on the side, straightened it and WOW. It made a huge difference. My hair actually looked like it had a hair style now, instead of looking like an unruly mop.

Then, I read all through her sections on how to apply makeup. The first few times I did it, it took me awhile. I really liked the hint on applying eyeshadow with your fingers. Following the advice in the book, I was able to actually put on makeup that looked good. I was very impressed. By the time the week was out, I could do it in about 3 to 5 minutes and it truly made me feel better about myself. Since I changed up my hair and put on a little makeup, the comments about how young I look have diminished a lot which makes me happy.

This book is great. It explains things in step by step fashion. It tells you what to expect when you go various places, from getting a bikini wax to how much to tip the shampoo girl. It is written in a friendly tone so you feel like you are chatting with someone who truly gets it. She even gives you specific product information and  a guide to how much the things cost. She gives you tips on when to splurge and when the $3 stuff will work just as well.

This is, by far, the best book I’ve read on beauty tips ever.