Andrea, you are gorgeous! This picture of you is absolutely beautiful. You don't need to wear make-up to be girly. The loveliest people I know never wear make-up. My mom has never really worn make-up and neither have I. It always felt like a mask to me and inevitably, by the middle of the day, I felt as though my face had literally slid off onto my shirt.

If you ever need a former tomboy as a comrade in trying things girly, hit me up!

My favorite thing to do with makeup is to think of it as *painting your face* Makes it so much more fun that way!

Waxing=wrinkling. Try threading instead!

Waxing=wrinkling. Try threading instead!

Waxing=wrinkling. Try threading instead!

I can relate. :) I just recently started the whole eye cream thing partially because I've been so tired with two kids (1 and 3) and those dark circles seem to have improved ;), but also because I (thank God) successfully survived colon cancer and have been wanting to say "thank you" to my body, even in small ways, for hanging in there with me. So, a bit of eye cream, some lip gloss, some body lotion after I shave my legs - it's amazing how it can make me feel pampered and loved.

BTW, every time I visit your site it occurs to me what a beautiful person you are, whether or not there's a photo - your beauty is evident in photos, but in other ways as well! :)

Cheers,

Carole

beautiful photo..............of you

Due to your inspiring energy in this post, I wore mascara on Friday for the first time in a looooooong time! I gave it up years ago in favor of sleeping in a few more minutes :-0

I used to be the counter manager of a high-end French skin care line. Each day involved manicured nails, stylish make-up, coordinated accessories...just more glamour overall. Then I switched to working in the health care field. (Who needs extra make-up when working in an ICU?) And then started a job where I had to be at work and functioning by 5:30am! That's when the mascara went by the wayside!

So...this past Friday, I took extra time to exfoliate and mask my face. Lather on rich moisturizer. Spend extra time looking in the mirror. And applying mascara to my lashes :-) All simply to dress up - and feel special - and visit with friends (and my laptop) during a luxurious 6-hour session at Starbucks!

Thank you, dear Andrea, for reminding us to soak in our feminine beauty each moment of every day!

Caring for your skin is a beautiful thing to do for yourself. It doesn't have to involve lots of make up - as you so gorgeously show, a natural, clean face is the most stunning!
I have very pale skin and at 35 I am now startign to reap the rewards of lots of water, and no direct sunlight on my face.
We deserve to be gentle with ourselves.

I've been getting my eyebrows waxed since I was a teenager, because I grew up with two caterpillars for eyebrows. But I rarely wear makeup. The last time was four years ago when I got married. All I wear now is moisturizer.

Facials, though, are fantastic. I always feel great after one.

dude. you look super-hot in this photo!
as far as girlie goes...I am ALL ABOUT THE SPA! When I can get to one, there is NOTHING better.

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Hi, I'm just surfing in again and was, well compelled to say hi and comment. I've had acne, now rosacea for over 2 decades now, geez I didn't know it was that long... So, I've used the whole skincare lines of many companies...and coverup and the whole shebang... it can be fun, but I feel the need to pretty up from a feminist p.o.v. a lot.

You look great and I envy your skin. :) Enjoy the new products and I may be looking in to some of your suggestions.

you know, I think I was late too...but I think it is okay. I go back and forth between hating make up and facecare stuff etc...to loving it. Right now I am into it and I love the Outer Peace collection for Aveda, I also love Beauty Juice stuff. I think you should just have fun, of course hydrating your skin and cleaning it is actually healthy and will make one age more gracefully...I sort of stumble along but certainly believe it keeping it light and natural.

wait till you try bare escentuals, sister:) hit a sephora soon!

wait till you try bare escentuals, sister:) hit a sephora soon!

Ah, this is a topic after my own heart! I blame it on my astrological sign of Libra, because I've been girlie since inception. My mother is all no-nonsense (no makeup, no skincare), but I recall always wanting to put ribbons in my hair, and coordinate my own outfits. I fired my mother when I was 6! I began primping in my early teens, but wasn't allowed to do the whole makeup thing until I was a Junior. But I grew up in the 80s, a decade big on red lips and heavy eye-shadow.

Not to say, though, that exterior obsession pre-empts the most necessary component of beauty (IMO), which is intelligence and the accompanying qualities of compassion and engagement in the human project! It's a cliche', but beauty encompasses so much more than the canvass. And there is no beauty, IMO, without strength, therefore from the beginning I linked good skincare with healthy foods, outdoor activities, and care of the body-mind-soul connections.

But back to the beauty talk--I recently forgot to wash my face in the shower and thought, what is wrong with my skin today? If you can look as fabulous as you do without washing your face, Andrea, you are a true beauty! Me, I love Lush skincare, and DHC from Japan, but I'll try anything--particularly if its on sale at New Seasons. I now make enough $$ to get regular facials--they save me when I'm emotionally low, or eating the wrong foods.

The payoff is that despite BAKING myself for years on the beach without sunscreen, and despite weathering the hormonal insanity of infertility treatments, and an overly stressful life, I'm regularly told I look 10+ years younger than my ancient 45. :-) Why does that matter? Probably doesn't, but for me pretty feels good, so I go with it.

P.S. Love to hear about all the burgeoning estheticians out there!

Good for you! I am in training to become an esthetician this fall and I am loving it. It has been a surprising change in my life and it is turning out very well. I have been a girly girl at times and an athlete and all hairy and hippy like and I've discovered that at different times I have embraced different things and they are all a part of me. So, now that I am 40 I still don't wear a lot of makeup but I do take pretty good care of my skin and I enjoy good products but not too many. Bioelements is what we are learning with and I love the aromas very light and yummy. It's fun to be a little bit of everything and I find wanting to be the most beautiful and healthy me can be very satisfying. You have a natural healthy glow and taking care of yourself while meeting the needs of your baby gives back to him in the end. Happy Mama= Happy Baby or Happy Mama can deal with cranky baby much easier. Love your site and your take on things.
xoxoxo

I finally started getting my eyebrows done a year or so ago, so I'm with you on that. That's about as girly as I get. Oh wait, I curl my eyelashes, but absolutely NO makeup. Ugh. I love to see people as they are, not as they think they should be.

I love that you are trying all of this for the first time! I'd much rather deal with just water but got caught up into it and have been looking for some organic and natural products. Thanks for sharing!

Eminence is my favorite, too! Esp. the red rose line. Just another reason to love being a girl.

Eminence is my favorite, too! Esp. the red rose line. Just another reason to love being a girl.

Can I just say - I'm a straight girl - but I'm so JEALOUS that Matt gets to kiss those hot lips!! You are HOT - Deni posted some pics on FB of you that she took - you are BEAUTIFUL! Really hot :) I myself am using pro-activ but would like to use something more natural instead. Skincare is so tough - especially when I am prone to breaking out!

I think I might check out that Eminence line :)

Just wanted to say that I commiserate- during this last pregnancy of mine I totally had the hyper-pigmentation thing happen. I was horrified, too- there was a 'V' right in the center of my forehead, and the other area that got a lot of attention from the sun is my upper lip. Regardless of sunscreen. So now I have a nice 'tan mustache'.

And... my baby is three weeks old, so I still haven't done anything about it. You inspire me to do something- hopefully soon!

There's a difference between coverup and concealer?

Well, girlfriend, all I want to say is that you can kick-start a skin care regimen but you have always been an absolute stunner! I've often envied your clear, luminous skin... with genes like yours, I'd say you don't need to change anything about your routine!
But, of course, if you're having fun, then go for it. :-) And sunscreen is always a good idea.

Great topic, thanks for brining this up Andrea! Sounds like many of us are in the same girly boat. I use Origins skin care products, including the white tea serum and nitamins night moisturizer, and their Modern Friction scrub. And now I use Neutragena helioplex SPF for face every day, even when I'm in the office. no foundation, but eye makeup, and still working through all my old Lancome lipstick samples that look great but I never use. Heck, I think it's also time to use a touch of that perfume that's been on my counter, and that gift certificate for a facial -- time to go!

Andrea, you're beautiful! When I want to get girly, I shave my legs, use a sugar/olive oil scrub, put lotion on, use a biore strip on my nose, and wax my fuzzy face! Feels so good :o)
xox,
Linnea

Andrea! I am about 6 weeks away from graduating..I will be a licensed esthetician. You must, you must, you must keep up with your new skin care routine. Pretty please? :) The skin is the largest organ in our body! No one ever thinks of it that way. It's so important to take care of it properly.

Oh and start waxing everything. It's so much easier and after awhile, it really does grow back thinner and patchier. I don't intend to ever touch a razor again.

I have the same washing routine: water in the shower, no soap. Except since becoming pregnant, my skin is all wacky and I don't know what to do with myself! I thought about doing a facial but thought, eh. I think you might have me convinced.

By the way, my husband and I were vacationing in the Nordic region and while we were waiting for a tour bus to take us around Helsinki, a woman from NYC turned around and recognized my necklace as a Superhero necklace (it's the Joy necklace)! I thought that was pretty cool and somewhat bizarre.

I love this! I'm 37 and the only reason I do skin care now is because I wrote a web site for a skin care lady. I worked in trade for facials and WOW. Now I see what all the fuss is about! Especially with fair skin and freckles. Welcome to the world 'o pamper.

My latest and most favorite discovery for my skin is tinted moisturizer from Laura Mercier. I am significantly older than you - 57 - and this moisturizer does not look like a mask and does not settle into and emphasize wrinkles. It just evens out my skin tones and gives me a bit of a glow. Add some Healthy Lips (red) lipstick and that is as girly as I get. When I want to feel really special.... a bit of Chanel No 5 .... or L'Occitane White Tea fragrance.

simple is better

oh my god I thought I was the only girl who didn't wash her face with anything other then water in the shower! I too am starting to get those pretty sun spots now. And have started to use dermalogica although now that I am pregnant I am looking for something more organic so thank you for the link. I'll look into it. Sephora makes me squirm. I don't know what to do in there. I barely wear make up these days and I don't really know how!I like being girly by wearing my hair longer then I probably should. I feel a bit masculine and my hair helps me feel more like a girl. My hair dresser hates that I wear it long and thinks I would look better with it shorter - every time I believe her and we cut it - I go through a period of depression and feeling horrible until it grows back out.
P.S. I love that self portrait.

Count me as clueless! It took having a teenage daughter to help me understand why any of this is important. We went to makeup counters to learn how to apply eyeliner, foundation, and the finer points of lipstick application. I had no idea! It has been fun to play with her though and to grow into the girl I never was growing up!

the first few paragraphs made me giggle cause i am so the same way. i didn't remotely know how to put on makeup and i don't wash my face either (and kinda felt like i looked like a drag queen when i did put makeup on cause i really didn't have any skill in doing it)!

but in the last year i've gotten more interested in it, and its been lovely to ask friends who do know how to give me a wee lesson! makes for good girly bonding moments! i still love to walk the world mostly with bare skin but now take pleasure in gettin' all pretty once in a while! for me it

what a gorgeous photo! i don't wear any makeup and am not a girlie girl in my choice of clothes and other things. but i do like the occasional sparkle (not that boys can't like those too!). i think as i get older i am more comfortable with the way all of the pieces of my nature fit together.

Oh you are so a girl after my own heart... tho I do and have washed with cleanser and moisturized, that's about all I can manage. I had my very first facial last year, and it was lovely, and I would probably do it again if I thought of it, but I guess I don't think of it... Girly-ness for me is about wearing skirts, and giggling with my girlfriends... and that's about as far as I have ever taken it... The Eminence stuff looks lovely!

I get girly with manis and pedis and yummy smelling body scrubs and lotions...oh, and I try to use eyeshadows in funky colors but I am still not sure how to apply!

I've been lurking for a few weeks now and found my way from Ali's blog. Just love your posts.

I don't wear makeup on weekends and go through the motions of putting some on for work but don't really know why since it is not existent by lunch.

The one thing I am loving right now is threading of eyebrows instead of waxing. I am naturally a furry girl and must have my eyebrows taken care of. A friend introduced me to threading and I am over the moon.

I've been lurking for a few weeks now and found my way from Ali's blog. Just love your posts.

I don't wear makeup on weekends and go through the motions of putting some on for work but don't really know why since it is not existent by lunch.

The one thing I am loving right now is threading of eyebrows instead of waxing. I am naturally a furry girl and must have my eyebrows taken care of. A friend introduced me to threading and I am over the moon.

glad to know that you like the eminence products at home. i had a great facial with them, but did not buy any of the products at the time. i am in the market for a new skincare routine, also to deal with post-baby skin (sigh, it was so glow-y during pregnancy). i have not tried, but have heard really good things about a line called Grateful Body that is sold at Rainbow. Kristie, who shares her poetry at www.beloved.org told me about the line and uses it. i am going to try either those or the eminence myself...

The thing I find most beautiful in other women is self-confidence! I am always so in awe of people who have no problems just being, completely comfortable showing the world their unique self. I was late to the whole girly thing too. It didn't help that my mom is a never-wears make-up kinda gal. I love fun lotions like you mentioned and a little natural makeup to make me feel more polished, yet still myself. I still wish I could figure out how to apply mascara without smudging it all over (how does it always end up on my nose??), but I find the "girly" things I like the best are the ones I have to convince myself I'm worth the splurge for like manicures, massages and facials. It's great to feel pampered :)
By the way- you're gorgeous!

My favourite girly pick me up is new nailpolish. Cheap and cheerful, and i can never get enough!

"the whole girly thing"
really helps
when you need a date
for Friday nite.

Andrea, if you figure it out, can you let me know? I only wear mascara and eye liner because my sister once told me I have no eyes without them. And I put on a foundation kind of thing just to smooth out my face (too many freckles). After that, I'm completely lost. :)

getting girlie is one of my favorite things. for awhile i worried that it might preclude (or be precluded by) my strength as a woman or my feminist passion... but all has been integrated and i love who i am!

I just had my moustache and soul patch lasered off! It only gets better after 50!

I didn't get my first pedicure until I was 30-and then my husband had to buy me a spa package for my birthday to get me to do it (I am 32 now) and OMG-LOVE THEM!!!

I'm also a big fan of the facial though those happen less often.

I'm a pretty low key girl as well-I almost never wear makeup and my style is pretty relaxed and casual/boho-ish. I'm learning to balance the girly parts with the relaxed parts and realize when it's important and when it isn't.

I've rebelled against the whole makeup industry thing as a adult. I don't like the idea that I need a product to make me look better. Though, I'm a believer in eyebrow waxing, just because it makes my eyes show up better without having to wear any makeup. But I learned how to do it at home, so I can maintain it myself.

I generally wear makeup to work, but definitely don't on the weekends. And when I do wear it, it's pretty minimal (and it's usually all rubbed off by the end of the day anyways). I'm in love with Pevonia cleansing products (yep, I drank the Koolaid after a facial too) because they have this great grapefruit smell and a "propolys" something or other product that is fabulous for clearing up zits. But I'll definitely check out the face powder - could be right up my alley.

I also love Eminence products, but had a tough time with the steep price tags. So I found it on ebay! The spf30 powder was significantly cheaper and there are plenty of samples too.

My partner also uses the powder as we purchased the translucent and he loves not having the greasy feeling of sunscreen on his face!

What a lovely shot! I'm fully in favor of beauty (and health) regimens that suit you, and your personality and your lifestyle, rather than those phantom faces and bodies in magazines. So brava! And gorgeous eyebrows :)

I am a bit late to the girly party as well. I had my first eyebrow wax a couple of months ago and now I am totally ALL ABOUT the eyebrow waxing. Have also discovered a new affinity for shoes!

I bought my first pair of bitchin' red shoes...they make me feel girly and sexy at the same time. especially when they are peaking from the bottom of my extra dark jeans.

Me too. I walk down the make-up aisle and feel like crying! I always WANTED to look more put-together, but then I can just never bring myself to spend $15 on mascara...which I would end up smearing all over myself anyway ;).

i also almost never used cosmetics, i always saw it as a mad industry trying to convince me that i must buy something to be socially accepted.

i've got a couple of lip-gloss, and use Weleda products since years - i make sure everything i buy is made from organic ingredients, and that most of all, it does not involve any animal product or testing on animals.

If i think of all the womens which i find most beautiful, their beauty comes mostly from inside :)

something about this shot that I just LOVE - it's true and so real and I just have a thing for white t-shirts :) You look great without all the girlie make up but hey, it IS fun to play huh?!! I'd love to know where you went for your facial - aren't they the best :)

xoxo
Stef

something about this shot that I just LOVE - it's true and so real and I just have a thing for white t-shirts :) You look great without all the girlie make up but hey, it IS fun to play huh?!! I'd love to know where you went for your facial - aren't they the best :)

xoxo
Stef