Loving My 40's

Never would have thought I would love my 40's.

If you had asked me when I was 20 I would have said

"40 is old".

Man was I wrong!

There is something about this stage that has enabled me to live my best life. I've changed my value system to be about what makes my heart sing and about inspiration.

MUSIC, DANCE, ART, FRIENDS, FAMILY, FOOD, DRINK, LOVE.

These are some that illicit this for me.

It would have been pretty surprising to my 20 year old self that I would chose to start a band, join the circus and move in with the folks at 40........but that's the BEAUTY of life...........you can't predict it.

You just have to LIVE it.

I've stopped beating myself up for what I cannot change. I've became more resolved in gratefulness, and I'm smarter when undertaking something new.

That's a genuine smile you see there. I'm happy.

That's the thing that beauty is made of.

Feeling Beautiful vs. Looking beautiful

Is there really a difference between feeling beautiful and looking beautiful?

I would say so, yet they go hand in hand.

How many girls in our world struggle with self-esteem?

How many women struggle with being a little thinner ? a little younger? a little less grey? an a little more of what they are not?

I bet each of us has had moments of self-loathing. I bet guys struggle with these as well.
I have recently come to the conclusion that practicing extreme self-care is one way to get to the feeling beautiful part of my life and the looking beautiful ends up as the lesser important result of this practice.
Some may find it indulgent and selfish,but I assure you that when I started really taking care of myself as I would care for someone I loved or as I would a guest in my chair, I started feeling beautiful, and I had more to offer others.
So I don't feel guilty when I book myself a massage,or a pedicure,or a facial.

My body needs massage to prevent injury, work out stress and it feels good.

A pedicure keeps my feet healthy because I stand on them all day long. Not only does it make me feel good but my feet look pretty after.

A facial revives my face and helps slow down the aging process in a non-sergical way. My skin looks more radiant and feels so good after I get one.

These monthly treats help me to feel good and contribute to feeling beautiful, and I haven't changed a thing. I have catered to what I already have.

I have been eating healthy and I consider this part of my extreme self-care project. Cooking lean proteins and preparing complex carbohydrates, snacking on fruits and nuts and skimming on other indulgences has given me more energy. I eat more often than I used to, smaller portions, and the effect on my mood is remarkable.

I won't pretend it's easy beacause as a stylist I have gone full days standing behind my chair without leaving it even for a bathroom break. So learning to care for the necessities, making time for them, when time is the one thing I didn't have, meant I needed to change some important ways I did things and what I prioritized. Planning and preparing in advanced has become a way of life. I had to down size my to do list, curb my ambition, quit spending frivolously, and ask for help. It sounds like a no brainer, but I had to change everything I did, and the way I was living.

With this change in lifestyle came the biggest changeof all: EXERCISE. I grew up with an active lifestyle,and took it for granted. When I was becoming the success I dreamed of, exercise was the first thing to go. I was running out of hours in the day, with so many demands on me, I just didn't have time.

Ten years went by, and I was living on adrenaline, which is so bad for aging. I no longer felt anything but exhausted, pudgy, and weathered. I smiled less and socialised rarely, and almost everything around me was falling apart. I felt traped and in a corner, and I didn't know how I was going to get out of it. Then The Universe"" decided for me. I went to the doctor for a fibroid and because I was anaemic and the decision to have a hysterectomy became my saving grace. This decision meant I had to take 6 weeks off work, and in my industry that was devastating.
Believe it or not it was what I needed.....the operation was the only way I would have ever taken this time.
I began to change the way I was living. I got my mind healthy by having time in my day for nothingness. I made time for eating right, for exercise, for taking care of my body, for reconnecting to friends and family, for romance and especially for FUN.
I realise now that sometimes the worst things that you think can happen to you may be the Universe giving you the ultimate "WAKE UP GIRL" call. You can play the victim or you can embrace the call and change your mindset and find a little peace in the fact that you can make everything good if you choose.

Do I feel more beautiful?

Yes i do.

In response I smile more and a smile make anyone look more beautiful.

Butterflies and Bottlecaps

Here is the photo I took after being inspired by the children's story

"Butterflies and Bottlecaps"

by Eliza Clark

hair and photography

Lizanne Laurin

It's no use wishing.

It's no use wishing for features that are anything other than they are.
Too many of us spend precious time not being happy with what we were born with. Those with straight hair wish they had curl. Those with thick hair wish it was thinner. Brown locks revere golden ones and the list goes on. I spend most of my day rearanging salt bonds in the hair to change texture, or disolving natural melanin and replacing it with artificial dye molecules, and smoothing unruley curls then pumping up limp hair. I love my job and enjoy the challenge that it encompasses, it's my art, but the thing I do the best when it comes to my job is getting people to apreciate their own beauty.
I read a children's book many years ago called "Butterflies and Bottlecaps" by Eliza Clark. It tells a story of a little girl who has butterflies for hair. She doesn't like her butterflies because no one else has butterflies for hair. Everyone else can put ribbons and clips in their locks and she spends most of her time covering them up with scarves and hides away. As she gets older her butterflies become more beautiful and more exotic and yet she doesn't see this. One day she goes for a walk and hears the most beautiful sound. She discovers a little girl who has bottlecaps for hair. She is mesmerised by the light shinning off of the bottlecaps and the beautiful sound comming from this little girl. "You are the prettiest sight I have ever seen." said the girl who had bottlecaps for hair. "I like how your bottlecaps sparkle too, and how they tinkle like tiny bells when you move." said the girl with butterflies. In each other the girls could see that being different wasn't such a bad thing. The little girl's mother in this story says something very wise to the young girl when she is concerned of those who stare at her. "You don't know what they could be seeing." "You are special" her mother said" You are strong, and funny, and kind. They might be seeing your muscles, or your jokes, or your good heart."
This story is what I beleive when a guest is in my chair. Beauty is not about your hair or your eyes or your body. I think it is about your Butterflies and about your Bottlecaps and all that makes you unique. The energy and spirtit you bring to those around you.......that's what makes you beautiful, timeless, ageless and whole.

FACE SHAPE how important is it to your CUT?

How Important is face shape to your haircut?

There have been numerous times when a client will sit in my chair and say something to the effect of......... Can you cut my hair for my face shape?
Magazines and television and the so called experts have refered to this necessity of finding the perfect cut to enhance the shape of a face. These experts have also told us all that the perfect shape is oval.
What????
I don't buy into this philosophy. Each and everyone of us has the perfect face shape. And although some cuts don't work for certain people, I would never box anyone in and say this is the perfect cut for your face. If you have the one cut that will work for you and you live with this face forever, does that mean that this is the cut you must have as long as you have this face??? If that is the case we would still be wearing beehives and mullets and afros...
I personally think that Sarah Jessica Parker is beautiful.....did you know that she has a long face? She will sometimes wear her hair long and straight.(a no no for someone with a long face. Who cares!..I think she is still stunning and it just proves that those experts are wrong.

Who are these so called experts???? What are their names??? How long ago did they make these decisions???? Why are we listening to them???

Realistically the shape of your face is only a miniscule part of what you should consider when chosing your style. There are a number of things that can ROCK your hairstyle.....
one of them is change: just something new will kick start you and get you excited to do the do.
an other is styling: knowing what to use and how will ensure your hair sings and dances on your head.
color: imagine a wall with no paint...that's what a cut with no color is.
texture: waves and curl and volume.....mmmm
attitude and ownership!!!......it's the sexiest part of your new look..... it's called CONFIDENCE

What should you consider when coosing a new cut?

Trends and in some cases fads. These keep you modern.

How do you want to market yourself? What is your profession? How do you want the world to see you. What is your personal style

How much time can you spend on styling your hair and how often are you planning to maintain it?

What is your hair able to do? .....texture....formation....length....etc.

What is your goal with your image?
These are some of the questions and things you should consider when chosing a new look.


So I say take a risk and try something new.

Best Beauty Tip you'll ever get!

Everyone wants to know the little tricks of the trade in the beauty industry.

I've been a hairstylist for 18 years and there are some simple tips that can help anyone get what they want.

Here is the best tip you could ever get:

The saying "beauty is skin deep" has been used so much these days that it really is only a cliche. The truth of the matter is beauty is relative to the energy one puts out to the universe. Society, culture and demography will get in the way of getting your true beauty to shine if you let these OPINIONS decide if in fact you are beautiful.

We are all beautiful. When we truely understand this, we shine with an inexplicable radiance.

Here is an other cliche; "beauty is in the eye of the beholder".

Maybe it's just that true beauty can only be seen by other truely beautiful people. No jelousy, no envy just admiration.

It's the twinkle in someone's eye.

Or the smile that lights up the room.

It's the open arms you feel even when they are to the side.

Or someone's welcoming face.

It's the positive energy that exudes from them.

It's the love that is available.

When you are in this presence you feel beautiful yourself. It's contageous and it is healing.

I guess Tip 1 is:

Find those things inside to feel good about and start showing them to the world. Dig deep and start looking at the world through beautiful eyes. Look for the beauty in others and I guarentee that your beauty will shine through. And quit picking out all of your "flaws" and others "flaws". That's just like looking through foggy glasses.

After this, learning how to get volume in your hair or what color your hair should be will only be an expression of who you want to be for a moment in time, where you can enjoy yourself in that moment.